Literacy

Chronicles of Complexity (TPCS draft)

by Jan Blommaert

Communicating in English: Talk, Text, Technology

by Daniel Allington

Co-edited by Barbara Mayor; published by Routledge in March 2012

Communicating in English: Talk, Text, Technology looks at how people use spoken and written English to communicate in... more Communicating in English: Talk, Text, Technology looks at how people use spoken and written English to communicate in their everyday lives.

Exploring the complex relationship between communication, technology and the English language, this book offers the reader practical insights into the analysis of speech and writing. A wide range of examples is provided, ranging from text messages and domestic quarrels to the works of Shakespeare and the words of Martin Luther King.

This book takes a fresh look at established topics such as rhetoric, language acquisition, and professional communication, as well as covering exciting new fields such as everyday creativity, digital media, and the history of the book. Key theoretical concepts are introduced in an accessible manner, and the reader is given an in-depth understanding of English-language communication in its social and historical contexts.

Drawing on the latest research and on the Open University’s experience of producing accessible and innovative texts, this book:

• explains basic concepts and assumes no previous study of English studies, communication studies or linguistics

• features a range of source material and commissioned readings to supplement chapters

• includes contributions from leading experts in their fields, including Naomi Baron, Deborah Cameron, Guy Cook, Janet Holmes and Almut Koester

• has a truly international scope, encompassing examples and case studies from Europe, North America, Africa, Asia, and Australasia

• is illustrated in full colour and includes a comprehensive index.

Communicating in English: Talk, Text, Technology is essential reading for all students of English language studies or communication studies.

Grassroots literacy: Writing, Identity and Voice in Central Africa

by Jan Blommaert

Language and superdiversity (Blommaert, Rampton & Spotti, eds 2011)

by Jan Blommaert

This is the first of two special issues of 'Diversities' devoted to Language and Superdiversity. The second part will be published in the first half of 2012.

Discourse: A critical introduction (2005)

by Jan Blommaert

Orthography as Social Action: Scripts, Spelling, Identity and Power

by Mark Sebba

To be published: May 2012 ISBN: 978-1-61451-103-8

Orthography as Social Action: Scripts, Spelling, Identity and Power
Edited by Jaffe, Alexandra / Androutsopoulos, Jannis / Sebba, Mark / Johnson, Sally

The chapters in this edited volume explore the sociolinguistic implications of orthographic and scriptural... more
The chapters in this edited volume explore the sociolinguistic implications of orthographic and scriptural practices in a diverse range of communicative contexts, ranging from schoolrooms to internet discussion boards. The focus is on the way that scriptural practices both index and constitute social hierarchies, identities and relationships and in some cases, become the focus for public language ideological debates. Capitalizing on the now robust body of literature on orthographic choice and debate in sociolinguistics and anthropological linguistics, the volume addresses a number of cross-cutting themes that connect orthographic practices to areas of contemporary interest in sociolinguistics and linguistic anthropology. These themes include: the different social implications of self vs. other representation and the permeability of the personal/social and the public/private; how scriptural practices ("inscription") serve as sites for social discipline; the historical and intertextual frameworks for the meaning potentials of orthographic choice (relating to issues of genre and style); and writing as a broader semiotic field: the visual and esthetic dimensions of texts and metalinguistic "play" in spelling and its ambiguous implications for writer stance.

Linking assessment to reading comprehension: A framework for actively engaging literacy learners, K-8

by Nora White

co-authored with Nancy Anderson and Happy Carrico

Providing high-quality literacy instruction is one of the most important responsibilities of K-8 teachers. While the... more Providing high-quality literacy instruction is one of the most important responsibilities of K-8 teachers. While the battle of confidence between teachers' abilities and test results rages on, expert teachers continue to make powerful moment-by-moment decisions that make all the difference in students' development. Expert teachers observe students every day and understand which behaviors are indicative of learning. They make decisions based on patterns of evidence of students' strengths and needs. Furthermore, expert teachers are critical consumers of the multitude of lessons that are readily available in published texts and on the internet.

The purpose of this book is to make visible to novice teachers the process that expert teachers engage in as they plan effective literacy instruction. With this purpose in mind, we developed an explicit framework for understanding how expert teachers connect student assessment to quality instruction in comprehension.

Two areas of research particularly influenced this book: Dr. Marie Clay's writing and work in early literacy and ethnographic literature about language and literacy practices and how to apply these tools to the practice of effective observation. Underlying this framework of how to connect assessment with instruction is an orienting theory of teaching, learning, and reading comprehension that has been greatly informed by the work of Dr. Richard Allington. We build on his "thoughtful literacy" model in our development of 20 model lessons for instruction.

Roman Imperialism and Runic Literacy - The Westernization of Northern Europe (150-800 AD). Aun 33.

by Svante Fischer

Aun 33.  Uppsala, 2005.

This dissertation discusses Roman imperialism and runic literacy. It employs an interdisciplinary terminology. By... more This dissertation discusses Roman imperialism and runic literacy. It employs an interdisciplinary terminology. By means of terms new to archaeology, the growth of a specialized language, a technolect, is traced until it enters the realm of literacy. The author argues that there is more than one way for literacy to appear in prehistoric cultures. The ’normal’ perception is that literacy grows out of a need to keep records of a growing economic surplus. The ’other’ way for a culture to become literate is that someone else forces literacy upon it. This has been the case in many parts of the world subject to Western imperialism. The onslaught of Roman imperialism caused the invention of runic literacy in Northern Europe during the Early Roman Iron Age. The invention of the runic script should thus be seen as a preemptive reaction to the threat of Westernization. A comparison is made with a number of Early Modern Period cases of newly invented scripts caused by the arrival of literate Westerners in West Africa. The invention and introduction of the runes may well have been a dictated shift in literacy, seeking to break away from Latin. A number of dictated shifts in literacy from Early Modern Period America and Modern Period Asia are studied in comparison. The interaction between Germanic and Roman affinities was accentuated by the Roman army’s recruitment of Germanic men. These came to dominate the Roman army. This gave rise to a Germanic kleptocracy, a criminal rule in the post-Roman world. The role of runic literacy changed in the post-Roman aftermath of the Migration and Vendel Periods as the kleptocratic elite found it increasingly difficult to support a lavish lifestyle that included runic literacy. As a result, there was a decline in runic literacy in Northern Europe until the economic revival of the Viking Period. By then, it was clear that the North was soon to be integrated into the Christian West.

Teaching Cultures: Knowledge for Teaching First Grade in France and the United States (Hampton 2002)

by Kathryn Anderson-Levitt

Comparative study, based on long-term ethnography and video-viewing sessions, of first-grade teachers' cultural and... more Comparative study, based on long-term ethnography and video-viewing sessions, of first-grade teachers' cultural and professional knowledge for teaching reading in France and the United States. 

Provocations: Sylvia Ashton Warner and Excitability in Education

by Judith Robertson

Co-authored with Cathryn McConaghy, Sydney, Australia

The edited collection advances understanding of the distinctive legacy and contested life of New Zealand literacy... more The edited collection advances understanding of the distinctive legacy and contested life of New Zealand literacy educator, Sylvia Ashton-Warner.  Never truly acknowledged for the extent of her contributions in her home country, Ashton-Warner became a migrant teacher in her later years, crossing international borders to impress strains of her open education philosophy on teachers in the United States and in Canada.  Provocations draws on feminist, psychoanalytic, literary, and educational theories to draw an original and much over due portrait of this remarkable woman's contribution.

Ethnolinguistic Diversity and Education: Language, Literacy, and Culture. Routledge, 2010.

by Marcia Farr

Edited book.

Language Diversity and Writing Instruction, Institute for Urban and Minority Education and National Council of Teachers of English, 1986.

by Marcia Farr

Co-authored with Harvey Daniels

An Introduction to Teaching English Learners in Elementary Schools: Three Workshops for Pre-Service Teachers

by Andrea Hellman

The volume contains materials - handouts and presentation slides - for three workshops (2.5 days) to introduce... more The volume contains materials - handouts and presentation slides - for three workshops (2.5 days) to introduce elementary teacher education candidates to teaching English learners in mainstream classes. The content is also appropriate for a 1-credit university course or school-based teacher professional development of elementary in-service teachers in WIDA states.

Ethnolinguistic Chicago: Language and Literacy in the City's Neighborhoods. Erlbaum, 2004.

by Marcia Farr

Edited book.

The Use of Integrated Learning Systems in Developing Number and Language Concepts in Primary School Children: A Longitudinal Study of Individual Differences

by Robert Fitzgerald

An Integrated Learning System (ILS) is a computer-based system that manages the delivery of  curriculum materials... more An Integrated Learning System (ILS) is a computer-based system that manages the delivery of  curriculum materials to individual learners and is capable of providing comprehensive feedback to the  learner and the teacher. Feedback to the teacher may include detailed information on the performance of
individual students and defined groups of students, and diagnostic assessment of learning problems. In  comprehensive systems, more complex features are available, such as the facility for the software to  define clusters of learners with particular learning profiles as a basis for tutorial work. The two Integrated  Learning Systems used in this study, SuccessMaker and Tomorrows Promise, have many of these  features and, like such systems, usually run on a set of computers networked to a file server.  These two  systems are currently the most widely used systems in North America and are fierce competitors in the
educational marketplace.

Advancing Literacy in Tasmanian Primary Schools

by Timothy Moss

Co-authored with Ian Hay, Geraldine Castleton, Rosemary Callingham, William Edmunds, Ruth Fielding-Barnsley, & Peter Grimbeek.

Research book published in 2011.

The purpose of the Raising the Bar Closing the Gap project was to develop a ‘whole-of-school’ approach to literacy... more The purpose of the Raising the Bar Closing the Gap project was to develop a ‘whole-of-school’ approach to literacy education with particular emphasis on the effectiveness of the project, leadership, professional development and classroom-based strategies. Apart from understanding if the intervention made a difference, the evaluation aimed to address the following six questions: • What model of literacy teaching is most effective? • What does effective leadership for literacy education look like? • What intervention strategies are schools using to assist underperformers? • What value-adding literacy activities do schools and classrooms provide to students? • How effective are literacy plans, their implementation and evaluation? • How effective is professional development in improving literacy outcomes?

Challenges in leading for literacy in schools

by Timothy Moss

Co-authored with Geraldine Castleton and Sally Milbourne. Research book chapter published in Language and Literacy Education in a Challenging World (2011).

Language and Literacy: Study Guide (ELG 354)

by Anitha Devi Pillai

Level 3 Module, SIM University (2010)

Synopsis:

This course explores competing definitions of literacy in contemporary society and examines the... more Synopsis:

This course explores competing definitions of literacy in contemporary society and examines the theories of language and language learning which underpin new views of literacy. It discusses the development of literacy and the relationship between people’s lives and their involvement in learning opportunities. Throughout the course, students are encouraged to examine the literacy events and practices in everyday lives.


Topics:

• The Social Basis of Literacy
• Researching Literacy Practices
• Emergent literacy amongst preschool children
• School Practices
• Adults literacy
• Literacy embedded in language: Genres


Textbook:

David Barton. (2007). Literacy: An introduction to the ecology of written language.UK: Blackwell Publishing.

Learning to be literate: multilingual perspectives

by Viv Edwards

This textbook brings together research on literacy and multilingualism from a variety of settings: the learning of... more This textbook brings together research on literacy and multilingualism from a variety of settings: the learning of English in migrant destinations, immersion and bilingual education, and the maintenance of heritage languages. Designed to be accessible to students from a wide range of disciplines, the book explores multilingualism as a global phenomenon at both the individual and societal level, and literacy learning in a wide variety of contexts, and uses both these discussions to explore the theoretical and policy issues which are behind current educational practice, and points to possible ways forward. Students are introduced to examples of innovative and best practice from a range of international contexts, and discussion points and suggested activities encourage them to build on their own experiences as language learners. This is an ideal introductory text for students on courses where a critical understanding on language in education is necessary, as well as being a useful summary of the field and its future directions for researchers, practitioners and policy makers.

The Experience of Joint Honours Students of English in UK Higher Education

by John Hodgson

English Subject Centre Report 26: June 2011

View on issuu: http://issuu.com/englishsubjectcentre/docs/joint_honours

This report is about the experience of Joint Honours students studying English. Based on a series of focus groups... more This report is about the experience of Joint Honours students studying English. Based on a series of focus groups conducted with students in 2010/2011, it provides evidence of the how they come to embark on joint honours study, the benefits they gain and the difficulties they encounter. The report also explores how students identify themselves, the synergies they perceive between their subjects and how they cope with different expectations and teaching styles. Students also give their views on how they are approaching their dissertations and, in the longer term, their future careers. The report concludes with consideration of how joint honours students of English in UK HE might be better supported. It argues for a better understanding of the differing epistemologies of their chosen subects, and a change in the writing culture of the academy.