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For both Dewey and Cremin, the matter becomes even more complexwhen we ask what literacy means in a society dedicated to democraticideals and informed by an ethos of individual freedom. In democratic set-tings, Cremin says, it is important to distinguish between what he calls“inert” and “liberating” literacy. As Cremin defines these terms, the for-mer is that level of verbal and numerate skill required to comprehendinstructions, perform routine procedures, and complete tasks in a rotemanner. From a social perspective, this is that measure of literacy wemight expect to find applied in a cultural setting in which tradition pre-vails and customs are securely in place, and where opportunities forfreedom, choice, and innovation are limited. To speak of literacy as “lib-erating,” however, assumes a much more challenging standard by whichindividuals command both the enabling skills needed to search out infor-mation and the power of mind necessary to critique it, reflect upon it, andapply it in making decisions. It is only this more expansive and demand-ing meaning of literacy, or what Dewey calls “popular enlightenment,”that can inform and animate a vital democracy. Indeed, Dewey remindsus, a successful democracy is conceivable only when and where individu-als are able to “think for themselves,” “judge independently,” anddiscriminate between good and bad information.
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