Literacy in Theory and PracticeThis book challenges conventional theories about literacy, and the practices which often arise from them. It attempts to provide a new perspective through which the variety of literacy practices across different cultures can be viewed and from which the practical issues that arise in specific literacy campaigns and programmes can be approached. Dr Street first examines the explicit theories developed about literacy within different academic disciplines, on the premise that these underlie statements about literacy within development campaigns and in everyday usage. He analyses in detail arguments about the 'technical' and 'neutral' nature of literacy and its supposed 'cognitive' consequences in the work of some psychologists, linguists and social anthropologists. He claims that these amount to a coherent but flawed model that he terms the 'autonomous' model of literacy. Against this he poses an 'ideological' model, one which pays greater attention to the social structure. He attempts to bring together recent shifts in this direction in writings on literacy and to construct a coherent model for further work. |
From inside the book
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... suggest some directions for further research and some of the bases for a more general theory of literacies . Finally , I shall attempt to show how the model applies to certain Unesco programmes for literacy and also to adult literacy ...
... suggest some directions for further research and some of the bases for a more general theory of literacies . Finally , I shall attempt to show how the model applies to certain Unesco programmes for literacy and also to adult literacy ...
Page 4
... suggest that it is more often ' restrictive ' and hegemonic , and concerned with instilling discipline and exercising social control . 8 The reality of social uses of varying modes of communication is that oral and literate modes are ...
... suggest that it is more often ' restrictive ' and hegemonic , and concerned with instilling discipline and exercising social control . 8 The reality of social uses of varying modes of communication is that oral and literate modes are ...
Page 6
... suggest little justification for such claims . Those linguists who have paid explicit attention to literacy ( and they are as yet few ) have been forced to question the early assumptions of the discipline with regard to literacy and to ...
... suggest little justification for such claims . Those linguists who have paid explicit attention to literacy ( and they are as yet few ) have been forced to question the early assumptions of the discipline with regard to literacy and to ...
Page 9
... suggests . Classes and the development of individualism , which Goody related to the spread of literacy , were taken by Gough to derive from the ' division of labour and the relationship to the mode of produc- tion ' . Differences ' in ...
... suggests . Classes and the development of individualism , which Goody related to the spread of literacy , were taken by Gough to derive from the ' division of labour and the relationship to the mode of produc- tion ' . Differences ' in ...
Page 11
... suggest that the detailed study of one such area provides a concrete test of the ideas formulated in Chapters 1-4 and that the material from this area has some general significance . The area under analysis is that around Mashad , the ...
... suggest that the detailed study of one such area provides a concrete test of the ideas formulated in Chapters 1-4 and that the material from this area has some general significance . The area under analysis is that around Mashad , the ...
Contents
The Autonomous Model I Literacy and Rationality | 19 |
The Autonomous Model II Goody | 44 |
Literacy and Linguistics | 66 |
The Ideological Model | 95 |
Introduction | 129 |
Maktab Literacy | 132 |
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Common terms and phrases
abstract academic adult literacy ALBSU anthropologists appear argue argument associated assumptions attempt autonomous challenge Cheshmeh claims Clanchy classical Greece cognitive commercial communication concepts consequences of literacy context conventions culture described Dinka language economic English establish ethnocentric explicit fact forms of literacy framework functions Goody Goody's Graff Greenfield groups Hadith Hildyard and Olson ibid illiterate individual instance institutions intellectual involved Iran Iranian Islamic kind knowledge Koran learning linguistic literacy campaigns literacy practices literacy programmes literacy skills literate modes logic Lyons maktab Mashad meaning model of literacy mullah neutral Nicaragua non-literate objectivity oral and literate orchards organisation paralinguistic Parry particular political and ideological problems recognise relation represented scientific significant simply social society speech structure suggests tajers Tanzania teachers teaching theory tion tradition Unesco unschooled Vai script village western Wolof words written forms written language