Literacy versus Language: Exploring their Similarities and Differences

Abstract

This article discusses the concepts of Literacy and
Language and then state their similarities and
differences in general and in relation to education.
The two terminologies (literacy and language)
sound familiar and highly talked about by nearly
everybody yet, confounding to comprehend and to
distinguish. While basic or conventional literacy is
lightly understood as reading and writing skills, its
conventional premises are technically profound in
Language. Language on the other hand is many times
viewed as means of communicating and sharing ideas.
If these ideas are disseminated or communicated in
writing, literacy skills are implied. These land marking
similarities are crucial to pinpoint in such an article.
In other words, it is immaterial to argue about the
importance of language in communicating ideas,
emotions and feelings in a human society because
language is a tool for disseminating information in
different modes. Similarly, it is irrelevant to question
the importance of literacy skills in people’s lives as it
helps in; getting them employed, develop individually,
operate in more meaningful ways and contribute more
effectively in a society. Practically, there are some
members of different communities around the world
who knows and can speak a language fluently, but they
may be unable to read and write it. Such earmarking
distinctions and similarities are the focus of this
paper. In terms of differences, literacy from a broader
sense, where it is defined as being knowledgeable or
competent in a specific area, impinges on all domains of
the society. In other words, there is no such a thing or a
person as literate or illiterate without putting them into
context as everybody in a broader sense is literate and
illiterate in some area. While basic literacy of reading
and writing skills associated with language can be a
shared background among five people, their knowledge
or area of expertise as professionals might be different.
Hence, the need to explain some similarities and
differences between literacy and language.