We've probably all experienced the embarrassing moment of forgetting to put pen to paper.
In some corners of the world, there is a group of people who have encountered similar scenes. But this group faces much more than that, for them, writing is a challenge in itself.
Fortunately, there is now a "little thing" that can alleviate this difficulty. The World Literacy Foundation, a non-profit organization, has teamed up with Media.Monks, a Dutch creative advertising agency, to create an educational tool called the Literacy Pen. Its goal is to help millions of people around the world solve the problem of illiteracy.
A "literacy pen" is not actually a pen, but a small device that can be attached to a pen. It's the size of a thumb, with only a button and a small screen on the front, and a Type-C port for charging on the side.
The "literacy pen" is suitable for most of the pens that we can see in our daily lives. Underneath the body, it has two buckles for attaching to the pen. Whether it's a pencil or a ballpoint pen, the installation is done with just one touch.
It is clearly aimed at a writing situation. When encountering a word that cannot be spelled, the user can press the button to read the word they want to write, and then the word will appear on the small screen in the form of letters, so that the user can copy the word.
The function of the "literacy pen" is extremely simple, but it is very helpful for literacy promotion.
It doesn't require any other apps or devices, and its intuitive and easy-to-use features provide an unprecedented way for illiterate people around the world to learn.
Globally, illiteracy has been a major obstacle to social development.
According to the latest data from UNESCO, there are 773 million illiterate adults worldwide, the majority of whom are women, which has a significant impact on their self-perception and development opportunities.
For most of us, writing is perhaps an ability at our fingertips. But for the world's 773 million illiterate people, every word is very difficult. The advent of the "literacy pen" has made it easier to learn to write, enabling them to gradually overcome obstacles and master writing skills.
In addition, it is precisely because of the single function and simple structure of the "literacy pen" that it will be relatively inexpensive to make. This can promote the spread of "literacy pens" to every corner of the world, especially those poor areas that are in dire need of educational resources.
Tomas Almuna, Creative Director of Media.Monks, said: "The Literacy Pen will change the lives of millions of people who are unable to read and write and whose daily lives are limited."
He added, "We have developed the Literacy Pen in an innovative way using basic technology, and we hope that this tool will inspire users to learn on their own and open the door to new opportunities."
In the years following the end of the Second World War, more than 44 per cent of the world's adult population was affected by illiteracy, and there were significant differences between countries and regions, such as Malawi, where the illiteracy rate was over 90 per cent. Europe has not been spared, with about half of the population in Calabria in southern Italy unable to read and write.
At an education conference in 1949, the then Director-General of UNESCO, Mr Jaime Torres Bodet, said: "In the 19th century, slavery was abolished by law, and the goal of the 20th century should be to abolish another form of slavery, illiteracy."
The advent of the "literacy pen" is the official response of the World Literacy Fund to this challenge.
Vanessa Portilla, Chief Operating Officer, said, "The Literacy Pen is not just a tool for us, but also a helping hand to those struggling with illiteracy and equips them with the skills they need to build a better future."
The "literacy pen" not only teaches the illiterate community how to write, but also empowers them to learn independently and help them realize their self-worth. For them, this change in mindset and thinking may be more important than learning to write.
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