“Oh my goodness, the finest works in literature you miss out on … that could have been as basic as a comic book or as advanced as Shakespeare.“ (BC2) “ It’s all to do with your imagination – stretching it.” (BC8) “ I’d be able to understand more, about things I’ve not seen yet” (BC10), and “nothing beats first hand experience but if you can read you can get all sorts of interesting information.” (BC11).

Two participants (SK1, NB5) identified how frustrating it had been for them not to be able to read their children’s school books and not to be able to help them with their homework, problems which they saw as being resolved had they had the opportunity to learn to read and write earlier. Several participants wanted to be able to write their life stories, letters, e-mail messages to friends, and reports at work.

· Communicate With the World

Several participants spoke of sharing their knowledge and experience, both in terms of living with a physical disability and in their work, volunteer and advocacy activities, with a larger audience. This desired ability was associated with an increased contribution and acceptance by society. For one participant (BC11) it was critical to offset physical disability by compensating, or being more competent, in other areas of life and being able to read and write competently gave that person the ability to effectively do that. Several participants spoke of relating to the world more effectively than they currently felt able to do.

The participants provided a number of specific activities that they were unable to currently do because of their lack of literacy skills. These included writing a resume, work-related reports, letters, day-to-day filling, signing forms, reading work-related manuals and interesting books, using a computer, going to school or college, finishing Grade 12, becoming a counselor and getting a job.

Pervasive in the participants’ responses to this question was a sense of “lost resources,” “the missed contributions to society” that these individuals, constrained by their lack of literacy skills, represented. There was a sense of the ”frustrated intellects,” the exclusion from full participation that the added handicap of literacy difficulties causes in addition to a physical disability. The frustrations involved “living a dumbed down life” the long term impact and the undermining of the self-esteem and confidence desperately needed by these individuals to manage social interactions with a physical disability.