In this article, author Veronica House interviews David Joliffe, who retired from the Brown Chair of English Literacy at the University of Arkansas in 2018. The two discuss how to find funding and support for community-engaged projects.

This column features two prominent literacy scholars, Catherine Compton-Lilly and Eve Gregory. They discuss their recent research studies in various contexts and describe the reciprocal relationships between school, home, and community literacy practices.

The author argues for the importance of social capital effects being taken into account in assessing the effects of family literacy programs, and literacy programs generally. Focus upon short-term effects such as test scores, which can be considered as assessments of human capital, does not serve literacy education well. It would be helpful to…

Inspired by Delgado-Gaitan's work with Latina mothers' stories of transformation, this commentary engages scholarship on the communal "mujer-" or womanist-oriented spaces of teaching and learning. The author explores themes of "convivencia" (communalism) centered on faith, spirituality, and humor central to creating compassionate spaces of…

The author discusses the influence of video games and other technologies on modern family life, drawing on her own experiences. The implications of digital and other "new" and multiple literacies are described, with reference particularly to the work of Patrick Shannon and James Paul Gee.

At the community level, literacy improvement can no longer be the mission of a single organization. Successful literacy intervention is a family goal. Many are intrigued with the common sense of the new collaborative literacy programs and hope that they will succeed in breaking the intergenerational cycle of low literacy. (Author/JOW)

Describes the many and varied literacy projects in which the author and his family are involved. Discusses how, reaching far beyond print media, they xperiment with other forms of literacy that enrich each of them personally, socially, and politically. (RS)

Presents a graduate student's reflective memoir of literacy practices experienced as a college student in South Korea. Considers how literacy can be a sociopolitical practice that struggles to free all people, including the oppressors. Rethinks literacy practices in relation to recent historical events--the reunion and rebuilding of family…

Community action and social change have roots in personal family narratives that connect members within the same household, between families and schools, and between families across national borders. In two northern California communities, the value of computer literacy lies in the personal narratives that unite these families to each other,…

Discusses the author's experience as a kindergarten teacher with students who have had a wide range of literacy within the home. Notes how some parents "misuse" the "Hooked on Phonics" program and their children gain no benefit from it. Proposes that educators lower "the legal reading age," providing all children--even the youngest ones--with…

Discusses perceived shortcomings of current family literacy program models that too often: are conceived and implemented as a compensatory model; target only one child and one parent; do not effectively integrate adult education, literacy/ESL, or parent-child interaction time into programing; and that have a radically unstable funding base.…

Describes a range of British family literacy initiatives: family literacy in settings working with students from nursery to secondary education; specialist courses for Portuguese-speaking families; and health and parenting programs that address parenting issues and support families in accessing health services. (Author/JOW)

Describes one teacher's methods for introducing to secondary English students the concepts of book design and gift books. Outlines the methods by which English teachers can have students design gift books for friends and family members. Argues that this activity fosters family literacy. (HB)

Even Start is a federally funded program addressing the literacy needs of children and parents by offering parenting education, early childhood education, parent and child together time, and adult education. Noting that recent research on brain development and learning prompts a reexamination of beliefs and practices related to child rearing,…

A systems perspective of adult literacy assessment stresses use of comprehensive, holistic strategies. For literacy methods, systems theory emphasizes the holistic nature of the adult in relation to the complex web of systems. Systems theory applied to materials reflects the plurality of literacies and the need for a variety of materials. (SK)