Community Literacy Programs and the Politics of Change
Published on 30. August 2001
Book
Paperback/Softback
221 pages
978-0-7914-5072-7 (ISBN)
Description
An examination of community literacy programs-with an eye toward radical change.
Community Literacy Programs and the Politics of Change argues that the meaning and value of literacy is a function of specific local institutions. At the core of the book is an examination of one institution, Western District Adult Basic Education. Grabill moves between the case of Western District and literacy theory from disciplines like rhetoric, composition, education, sociology, and professional and technical writing in order to develop a theory of institutions and institutional change. The book enables researchers and teachers to locate spaces where change is possible within institutional systems and then work in those spaces to change the meaning and value of literacy.
Community Literacy Programs and the Politics of Change argues that the meaning and value of literacy is a function of specific local institutions. At the core of the book is an examination of one institution, Western District Adult Basic Education. Grabill moves between the case of Western District and literacy theory from disciplines like rhetoric, composition, education, sociology, and professional and technical writing in order to develop a theory of institutions and institutional change. The book enables researchers and teachers to locate spaces where change is possible within institutional systems and then work in those spaces to change the meaning and value of literacy.
Reviews / Votes
"This book does a wonderful job of bringing together an astounding number of provocative ideas in a way that links theory and practice. Grabill's viewpoint-that institutions that affect community literacy programs can be redesigned in a participatory fashion that both empower the users of those programs and improve the institutions attempting to meet users' needs-is brilliant. I haven't seen this idea anywhere in my literacy reading, and yet I am convinced that Grabill is right." - Mary Sue Garay, coeditor of Expanding Literacies: English Teaching and the New Workplace"...this book is extremely useful for teachers and researchers because it problematizes literacy theories and then offers clear steps toward solutions." - Anthropology & Education Quarterly
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
Albany, NY
United States
Target group
College/higher education
US School Grade: College Graduate Student and over
Product notice
Paperback (trade)
Dimensions
Height: 232 mm
Width: 160 mm
Thickness: 12 mm
Weight
299 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-7914-5072-7 (9780791450727)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
Jeffrey T. Grabill
Community Literacy Programs and the Politics of Change
E-Book
08/2001
1st Edition
State University of New York Press
€35.99
Available for download
Person
Jeffrey T. Grabill is Assistant Professor of English at Georgia State University.
Content
Figures and Tables
Preface
Acknowledgments
1. Disciplinary Gaps, Institutional Power, and Western District Adult Basic Education
2. Locating the Meaning and Value of Literacy
3. Exercising Power: Who Decides Which Literacies Count
4. Utopic Visions, The Technopoor, and Public Access to Networked Writing Technologies: Community Literacy Programs as On-Ramps
5. Community and Community Literacies
6. Participatory Institutional Design
7. Next Steps: Tactics for Change
Notes
References
Index
Preface
Acknowledgments
1. Disciplinary Gaps, Institutional Power, and Western District Adult Basic Education
2. Locating the Meaning and Value of Literacy
3. Exercising Power: Who Decides Which Literacies Count
4. Utopic Visions, The Technopoor, and Public Access to Networked Writing Technologies: Community Literacy Programs as On-Ramps
5. Community and Community Literacies
6. Participatory Institutional Design
7. Next Steps: Tactics for Change
Notes
References
Index