Family literacy : experiences from Africa and around the world

Abstract

The term “family literacy” can be used to refer to literacy practices within families as well as to describe an intergenerational educational programme with a focus on literacy. In this book both references will be used, with a focus on programmes. In the past 30 years many different forms of family literacy programmes have been developed, mostly in the United States of America or the United Kingdom where they target preschool and primary school children and their parents and are based in schools or community centres. Educational programmes with literacy components involving families are found in countries all over the world, but not always under the term “family literacy”. Also, in Africa, intergenerational learning is a familiar practice, but is less institutionalized and more community-oriented. Family literacy does not only enhance literacy skills but also has wider effects. It can bring about changes in the school culture and in relationships within families. Evaluations have shown that family literacy increases the self-confidence of parents and often is the entry point for their re-engagement in education. Many parents continue with further education opportunities after participating in a family literacy programme. Some parents become “ambassadors” for family literacy programmes and help to recruit other parents for such programmes. Schools are often isolated and outside of the community instead of being a part of it, and family literacy can build a bridge between the community and the schools. The chapters in this book give an overview of the practice of intergenerational literacy learning in the African region. The chapters are very different from each other in many ways, but underlying every programme is a strong belief in the role of parents. Many chapters show that the need for adult basic education is so strong that it becomes a focus of the programme even when this was not the original rationale. The chapter from Uganda by Ronald Ssentuuwa shows that a programme that aimed at building classrooms and training teachers by involving adults in the community soon led to requests for adult basic education. These groups use the Reflect approach and, as well as building literacy skills, are also discussing other issues, such as health, that affect their lives. The chapter from Mali by Souleymane Kanté is about a World Education programme aimed at adults to support them in their literacy development and help them become more effective in community structures. As adults engage in this non-formal education, they become aware of and supportive of their children’s formal educational needs. Four chapters are from South Africa. The chapter on the Family Literacy Project by Snoeks Desmond tracks a project set up to address concerns about low levels of early literacy skills and shows how it expanded to include adult literacy teaching and a range of post-literacy activities where adults practise their skills, work with their children, and share information with neighbours. The chapter by Kerryn Dixon and Kelly Lewis describes a piece of research designed to find out how teachers and parents saw their roles in developing early literacy skills in children. The planned interviews, as well as unexpected reactions of some teachers, provide an interesting view of the need to align school and family approaches to literacy development especially where the language of teaching and learning is not the same as the home language. The chapter by Lucy Thornton and Juliana Thornton shows how a simple and effective activity of making books has helped children and adults at home, in preschools and in other care situations. We have included some family literacy experiences from outside Africa. We asked Farid Abu Gosh from the Palestinian communities, Maureen Sanders and Ruth Hayden from Canada, Sandro Spiteri from Malta and Vivien Bleakley from Australia to contribute to this volume. The Canadian chapter focuses on the Centre for Family Literacy in Alberta, a unique institution that offers a range of services and has found favour from families through to government. The chapter also contains descriptions of fun activities around literacy development for families that are underpinned by research and evaluation of their impact and how this has in turn led to support for the professional development of family literacy practitioners. The chapter from Malta documents the outstanding and innovative work that has been done by the Foundation for Educational Services with regard to the development of different forms of family literacy programmes. Malta is a unique case as parental involvement is now integrated as a key principle in the National Minimal Curriculum. The chapter from Australia describes in depth three sessions aimed at encouraging parents to read to their children. This attention to detail allows others to replicate these sessions with a clear understanding of the reasons behind the activities.