AIBU to think that people working in certain occupations should be given some training in recognising when people have literacy problems and act accordingly...

[Allthingspretty]

..especially when they are asking people to fill out forms and therefore act accordingly?

I have been thinking about this for a while and think more places like dental surgeries etc need to have an awaremess.of how complicated some.forma seem to those people qho sreuggle with their literacy and.could be classed as functionally illiterate?

If someone, without special needs, has made it to adulthood without being able to read and write then they have been seriously let down in their childhood. There is also a good chance they are lacking other life skills and have poor self esteem.

When I was at work and dealing with customers we'd often ask if they had reading glasses, were ok to read without them or do they need help. If they were wearing glasses we'd ask if they were for reading etc. People who struggled jumped at the opportunity as it was a get out clause. Just being friendly, helpful and non-judgemental encourages people to talk to you, there were numerous occasions when people then broached that they struggled a little and I could give guidance on where to get help to build confidence and skills.

You shouldn't need special training just some common sense and compassion, but unfortunately many seem to be lacking in that.

It seems more acceptable to admit you are bad at maths as opposed to English. Its a problem that people underestimate.

I love the idea :) I am just training now to work with adults who have literacy and numeracy needs and I am so excited about it. But I do believe that I will come across many people who have not fitted into standard education and will be very capable with the right support. Most forms are written in dreadful language, font etc. Love some of the kind approaches already described on this thread.

One of my SILs struggles with literacy - she's severely dyslexic and was written off as "thick" at school. She can do the basics - supermarket shopping/bus timetables etc, but struggles to follow a recipe, for example. It's such a confidence-killer. She almost didn't come to my hen party because she was scared of not being able to read the restaurant menu, but didn't want to tell me that was the problem - easily solved, we printed it off their website and looked at it together, so she knew what she wanted in advance.

She would panic if she was given a form to fill in there and then, and wouldn't have the confidence to ask for help. It might help if the person giving the form asked "shall I take your details or do you want to fill it in yourself?" There's always a way to help someone while protecting their dignity, but people don't always know there's a problem. After all that rambling, I don't know what the answer is.

Catduff
It might help if the person giving the form asked "shall I take your details or do you want to fill it in yourself?"
Perfect! There's really no excuse for anyone to ever be put in the position of having to ask or struggling with a form.

Except depending on the situation you might then be dictating personal details in a room full of other people. Which is hardly dignified.

I think quite a lot of social services/health based occupations do receive guidance on adult literacy and how to help/identify people who are struggling.