Sam May's son, Jack May, was born in 1958 and by this time, the May family had completed a lifestyle transition that was representative of most American families as a whole. As Brandt describes it, “[the May family] changed from farm to town, from extended family to nuclear family, and from self-employment to salary employment.” These changes promoted Jack's acquisition of literacy by making him more educationally and culturally compatible with the rest of society and increasing the emphasis that the May family placed on literacy learning. Jack's parents always kept contemporary reading materials present in the household to ensure that Jack was prepared for a world that was rapidly becoming more socially and technologically based. Characteristics of literacy practices began to carry more weight in the economic and social worlds. For example, the quality of one's writing was now beginning to be seen as a reflection of an individual's characteristics, personality, and competence. Thus, practice of these literacy skills were enforced in Jack's household to the point that he acquired an aversion for several of them. After obtaining employment in the field of business, Jack received on-the-job training in literacy practices; much more than what his grandmother would have received or that Jack even needed. This exemplifies how the value and sponsors of literacy in society were changing dramatically in the United States during this period.
