Global Literacies

This book illuminates results from a wide-ranging, landmark study of global leaders and their world-class companies that proves that managers must understand, respect, and learn from a variety of national cultures to be successful--at home and abroad. 10 photos.

The World Wide Web is transforming the way that information is distributed, received and acted upon. Global Literacies and the World Wide Web provides a critical examination of the new on line literacy practices and values, and how these are determined by national, cultural and educational contexts. Gail Hawisher and Cynthia L. Selfe have brought together scholars from around the world, including: Mexico, Hungary, Australia, Palau, Cuba, Scotland, Greece, Japan, Africa and the United States. Each represents and examines on line literacy practices in their specific culture. Global Literacies and the World Wide Web resists a romanticised and inaccurate vision of global oneness. Instead, this book celebrates the dynamic capacity of these new self defined literacy communities to challenge the global village myth with robust, hybrid redefintions of identity that honour ethnic, cultural, economic, historical, and ideological differences. This is a lively and original challenge to conventional notions of the relationship between literacy and technology.

This book offers critical perspectives on global literacies, connecting research, theory, and practice. An emerging concept in the literacy field, many scholars agree on the need for students to develop global literacies, yet few agree on a widely accepted definition. Based on a synthesis of the literature, the editors formulate a definition of global literacies with four dimensions, including: literacy as a human right in all nations around the world; critical reading and creation of multimodal texts about global issues; intercultural communication and reciprocal collaboration with globally diverse others; and transformative action for social and environmental justice that traverses borders. Taking this shared, proposed definition as a starting point, the chapters then offer contextualized examples of global literacies from K-12 and teacher education classrooms to make explicit links between research and practice. The contributors interact with and interrogate the book’s definition of global literacies using a common framework of critical theory. As such, this book provides both emerging and established scholars with critical frameworks for positioning global literacies in ways that are relevant, dynamic, and forward thinking.

Understanding digital modes and practices of traditional rhetoric are essential in emphasizing information and interaction in human-to-human and human-computer contexts. These emerging technologies are essential in gauging information processes across global contexts. Digital Rhetoric and Global Literacies: Communication Modes and Digital Practices in the Networked World compiles relevant theoretical frameworks, current practical applications, and emerging practices of digital rhetoric. Highlighting the key principles and understandings of the underlying modes, practices, and literacies of communication, this book is a vital guide for professionals, scholars, researchers, and educators interested in finding clarity and enrichment in the diverse perspectives of digital rhetoric research.

The World Wide Web is transforming the way that information is distributed, received and acted upon. Global Literacies and the World Wide Web provides a critical examination of the new on line literacy practices and values, and how these are determined by national, cultural and educational contexts. Gail Hawisher and Cynthia L. Selfe have brought together scholars from around the world, including: Mexico, Hungary, Australia, Palau, Cuba, Scotland, Greece, Japan, Africa and the United States. Each represents and examines on line literacy practices in their specific culture. Global Literacies and the World Wide Web resists a romanticised and inaccurate vision of global oneness. Instead, this book celebrates the dynamic capacity of these new self defined literacy communities to challenge the global village myth with robust, hybrid redefintions of identity that honour ethnic, cultural, economic, historical, and ideological differences. This is a lively and original challenge to conventional notions of the relationship between literacy and technology.

The articles collected in this volume draw on or relate to a body of work that has become known as the 'New Literacy Studies' (NLS), which studies literacy as situated semiotic practices that vary across sites in specific ways that are socially shaped. The collection offers a body of empirically and theoretically based papers on literacy ethnography as well as providing engagements with critical issues around literacy and education. The articles offer complementary perspectives on research and theory in literacy studies and include research perspectives from Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, as well as North and South America. The researchers are all concerned to take the work of the New Literacy Studies further by expanding on its conceptual resources and research sites.

In this volume, renowned literacy and language education scholars who have shaped policy and practice aimed toward social justice and equity address current intellectual and practical issues in the teaching of literacy in classrooms and educational environments across diverse and international settings. Drawn from talks that were presented live and hosted by Global Conversations in Literacy Research (GCLR), an online open-access critical literacy project, this book provides access, in edited written form, to these scholars’ critically and historically situated talks. Bringing together talks on diverse topics—including digital and media literacy, video games, critical literacy, and ESOL—Albers preserves the scholars’ critical discourses to engage readers in the conversation. Offering a broad and expansive understanding of what literacy has to offer for scholars, teachers, and students, this book demonstrates the importance of positioning literacy as a social practice and brings critical literacy to a global audience.

The acquisition and maintenance of literacy is of pressing interest and concern to educators and educational policy makers worldwide. What are the common themes, the common questions, and the unique circumstances and initiatives that spring from this interest and concern? To address these questions, Understanding Literacy Development: A Global View brings together leading experts from around the world to explore ways to best provide teaching and learning opportunities, tailored to specific educational needs, to help all children become better readers. The premise is that current generic "one-size-fits-all" approaches are inappropriate for many children and can lead to underachievement and failure. The contributors write from a stance that reflects not only their own particular expertise and experience, but also sheds light on literacy development across cultures, countries, and circumstances. Taken together, chapters in this volume target a wide and comprehensive set of literacy issues, and offer an extensive exploration of the complexities of literacy development, including issues related to early literacy, school instruction, family literacy, adolescent and adult literacy, and teacher development. At a time when education is burdened by increasing economic pressure to do more with less, it is imperative that educators and decision makers at all levels have access to current, broad-ranging, and in-depth information and evidence to inform their choices. This volume, compiling critical research on a wide spectrum of literacy concerns, is an invaluable tool for scholars, teacher educators, professionals and graduate students in the fields of literacy education, early childhood education, educational psychology, educational policy, and related areas.