The Future Of Literacy Studies

This book brings together authors actively involved in shaping the field of literacy studies, presenting a robust approach to the theoretical and empirical work which is currently pushing the boundaries of literacy research and also pointing to future directions for literacy research.

This five-volume collection lays out the foundations and nuances of literacy studies. Beginning with the theoretical and epistemological perspectives that have been influential in shaping contemporary approaches in literacy studies, the set further explores new digital literacies, literacy in educational and institutional contexts, and the crucial issues of literacy in relation to social mobility, multilingualism and globalization. With a full introduction to the set and to each volume, researchers will find in this set a comprehensive guide to this crucial area of study.

The International Handbook of Research in Children's Literacy, Learning and Culture presents an authoritative distillation of current global knowledge related to the field of primary years literacy studies. Features chapters that conceptualize, interpret, and synthesize relevant research Critically reviews past and current research in order to influence future directions in the field of literacy Offers literacy scholars an international perspective that recognizes and anticipates increasing diversity in literacy practices and cultures

This volume brings together in a new way the traditions of language, ethnography, and education in particular — integrating New Literacy Studies and Bourdieusian sociology with ethnographic approaches to the study of classroom practice.

Learning and Literacy over Time addresses two gaps in literacy research—studies offering longitudinal perspectives on learners and the trajectory of their learning lives inside and outside of school, and studies revealing how past experiences with literacy and learning inform future experiences and practices. It does so by bringing together researchers who revisited subjects of their initial research conducted over the past 10-20 years with people whom they encountered through ethnographic or classroom-based investigations and are the subjects of previous published accounts. The case studies, drawn from countries in three continents and covering a range of social worlds, offer an original and at times quite an emotive interpretation of the effects of long-term social change in the UK, the US, Australia and Canada; the claims and aspirations made by and for certain kinds of educational interventions; how research subjects reflect on and learn from the processes of being co-opted into classroom research as well as how they make sense of school experiences; some of the widespread changes in literacy practices as a result of our move into the digital era; and above all, how academic research can learn from these life stories raising a number of challenges about methodology and our claims to 'know’ the people we research. In many cases the process of revisiting led to important reconceptualizations of the earlier work and a sense of 'seeing with new eyes’ what was missed in the past. The reflections on methodology and research processes will interest postgraduate and academic researchers. The studies of change and of long-term effects are widely relevant to teacher educators and scholars in language and literacy education, educational anthropology, life history research, media and cultural studies, and sociology.

Offering the wisdom that only experience and expertise in the field can bring, this book takes a critical look into the present and the future of literacy as envisioned by leading reading researchers. The lead author of each chapter, and in some cases more than one, of the authors, is a distinguished reading researcher elected by their peers into the Reading Hall of Fame. In this book these distinguished literacy leaders extend their role as researchers to speak directly to issues of practice and policy. All chapters address the theme of literacy and the teaching of literacy as being in a constant state of change. The authors are theoretical as they describe literacy, literacy acquisition, and the teaching of literacy; they are practical as they examine the issues that classroom teachers and reading specialists engage with on a daily basis; and they are political as they advocate for informed policy at the local, state and national levels. A key message in this book is that literacy professionals must take an active role to shape change.

Ken and Yetta Goodman are renowned and revered worldwide for their pioneering, influential work in the field of reading/literacy education. In this volume major literacy scholars from around the world pay tribute to their work and offer glimpses of what the future of literacy research and practice might be. The book is structured around several themes related to research, practice, and theories of reading and literacy processes that characterize the Goodmans’ scholarship. Each chapter reveals how the author’s scholarship connects to one or both of the Goodmans’ work and projects that connection to the future – what are the implications for future research, theory, practice, and/or assessment? This milestone volume marking the hugely significant work of the Goodmans will be welcomed across the field of literacy education.