[Reading-hall-of-fame] Multiliteracies:Making Connections in Adult Literacy Education

[Allan Luke]

Thank you, Tom, for your generous narrative recollection.

Courtney's contribution to the field carries on shining. She and I did this interview piece for her 2019 Routledge collection, trying to capture some of the historical context of her work and that of Michael Cole, Dell Hymes, Basil Bernstein and colleagues.

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/371852870_Beginnings_and_Endings_An_Intergenerational_Conversation

There is another interview piece a few years back for the journal Curriculum Inquiry - focusing on 'outsiders' working in Indigenous educational contexts.

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/333483268_On_cultural_others_working_with_Aboriginal_and_Torres_Strait_Islander_educators_and_communities_Courtney_B_Cazden_and_Allan_Luke_in_conversation

Tom's piece for the Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Education is a comprehensive an overview of adult literacy, written with Tom's synoptic precision and focus.


https://doi.org/10.1093/acrefore/9780190264093.013.1744<https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://doi.org/10.1093/acrefore/9780190264093.013.1744__;!!NVzLfOphnbDXSw!HNhpgvYToFH4P7VM0NnjU9uXCbSl7fEteYB7Qul-verbyNEcbZibOp92_T_Pgg8hXOapAZezkljqIobj0kE$>

  *   If any of you have topics that you would like to take up in an entry for the Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Education, contact me directly. The ORE, under lead editor George Noblett - who happens to be a great bluegrass bassist - has been going for a decade plus now and we've had great success as a 'non-canonical' Encyclopedia, taking up important topics, divergent and convergent, historical and contemporary.  We've already featured work by Tom, Arlette Willis, Donna Alvermann and Greg Brooks. The online readership and uptake has been significant, and Oxford (a non-profit), has committed all proceeds to maintaining and renewing the venture.

Thanks again, Tom - and hope you are all well and flourishing.

Allan

Allan Luke
Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

https://www.reverbnation.com/allanluke

________________________________
From: Reading-hall-of-fame <reading-hall-of-fame-bounces at lists.nottingham.ac.uk> on behalf of Thomas Sticht <tgsticht at gmail.com>
Sent: Sunday, 25 June 2023 07:11
To: reading hall of fame <Reading-hall-of-fame at lists.nottingham.ac.uk>
Subject: [Reading-hall-of-fame] Multiliteracies:Making Connections in Adult Literacy Education


June 24, 2023

Multiliteracies: Making Connections in Adult Literacy Education

Tom Sticht, International Consultant in Adult Education (Ret.)

In 1974 I spent the spring semester at the Harvard Graduate School of Education as a visiting associate professor teaching courses in adult literacy education and the development of readable, usable materials for adults. I was assigned to work in the office of Professor Courtney Cazden who was on sabbatical leave that year. Also in that year colleagues and I published a book entitled Auding and Reading: A Developmental Model that cited research by Cazden (1972) on oral language and children’s education so the assignment of me to her office was an interesting event for me.

Some 20 years later, in 1994, both Courtney and I were inducted into the international Reading Hall of Fame and then, just two years later, in 1996, Courtney joined with several others to form the New London Group which published a seminal article entitled “A pedagogy of multiliteracies: Designing social futures” emphasizing “the multiple linguistic and cultural differences in our society”

Another member of the New London Group was Allan Luke, who was inducted into the Reading Hall of Fame in 2002. In 2021 Luke was serving as a member of the board for the Oxford Research  Encyclopedia of Education (OREE) and recommended to the publishers that I be invited to write an article on Adult Literacy and Basic Education in the United States for the OREE. I was indeed contacted and I agreed to write the article (Sticht, 2022)..

In the article I discussed various topics that are today often discussed in terms of “multiliteracies” as formulated by the New London Group with both Courtney Cazden and Allan Luke as members. This includes topics such as academic literacy, health literacy, family literacy, workplace literacies, civics literacy, and digital literacy.

Now, bringing this all up to date, Cacicio, Cote, & Bigger (2023) have prepared a report for “ALL IN: The Adult Literacy and Learning Impact Network”, a coalition of organizations formed by the Barbara Bush Foundation to advance adult literacy education in the United States.  Entitled “Investing in Multiple Literacies for Individual and Collective Empowerment” the report’s authors “,,,acknowledge the seminal work of the New London group in establishing the concept of multiliteracies which captures the multiplicity of communications channels and increasing cultural and linguistic diversity in the world today; multiple literacies shares a focus on the impact of technology and distributed digital information on literacy”..





The Cacicio et al (2023) report maintains that “In the age of information, the types of literacies needed to participate in society have increased dramatically. These literacies include civic, digital, financial, health, information, and oral literacy, among others, all of which correlate to strong foundational literacy skills. Foundational adult literacy skills are clearly linked to sustained income growth,2 better healthcare access,3 improved job prospects for justice-involved and returning citizens,4 and stronger language and literacy skills among children.5”



Reference number 5 at the end of the above paragraph refers to a paper I wrote (Sticht, 2011) that discusses the relationships between oral language and written language learning, which relates to the works by Cazden (1972) and Sticht et al. (1974) mentioned earlier, and how this helps in the intergenerational transfer of oracy and literacy from parents to their children. In the Cacicio et al (2023) report oral language and literacy are discussed in a section on Storytelling and Oral Literacy and notes that, “Historically, oral culture and communication has served as a powerful tool of resistance to oppression, particularly among Black and Indigenous communities. Storytelling and public speaking in general, is a leadership skill–embodying empathy, emotional intelligence, and the ability to motivate others.”



Cacicio et al (2023) report that the purpose of their paper “. .. is to clarify how promoting access and integrated support of multiple literacies at the individual level can enable our country’s shared social, economic, and civic well-being. It aims to demonstrate how educators, employers, nonprofit, and government leaders can drive collective investment in multiple literacies and create thriving communities nationwide.”



Hopefully, this message will provide additional advocacy leverage for getting increased funding for and participation in the Adult Education and Literacy System of the United States.



References

“As our world becomes increasingly the written word becomes the baseline for communication       Cacicio, S., Cote, P., & Bigger, K. (2023). Investing in Multiple Literacies for Individual and

Collective Empowerment. [White Paper]. The Adult Literacy and Learning Impact Network.

https://allinliteracy.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Investing-in-Multiple-Literacies-for-<https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://allinliteracy.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Investing-in-Multiple-Literacies-for-__;!!NVzLfOphnbDXSw!HNhpgvYToFH4P7VM0NnjU9uXCbSl7fEteYB7Qul-verbyNEcbZibOp92_T_Pgg8hXOapAZezkljqDV3fmLQ$>

Individual-and-Collective-Empowerment.pdf

Cazden, C. (1972). Child Language and Education. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston.

New London Group.(1996). A Pedagogy of Multiliteracies: Designing Social Futures. Harvard Educational Review, 66, 60–92.



Sticht, T. et al. (1974). Auding and Reading: A Developmental Model. Online at: https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED097641.pdf<https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED097641.pdf__;!!NVzLfOphnbDXSw!HNhpgvYToFH4P7VM0NnjU9uXCbSl7fEteYB7Qul-verbyNEcbZibOp92_T_Pgg8hXOapAZezkljqaJ8eyXg$>



Sticht, T. (2011) Getting it Right From the Start. American Educator. Fall 2011. Online at: https://www.aft<https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.aft__;!!NVzLfOphnbDXSw!HNhpgvYToFH4P7VM0NnjU9uXCbSl7fEteYB7Qul-verbyNEcbZibOp92_T_Pgg8hXOapAZezkljqUS7Pxy4$>.

org/sites/default/files/Sticht.pdf

Sticht, T. (2022). Adult Literacy and Basic Education in the United States. Online at: https://doi.org/10.1093/acrefore/9780190264093.013.1744<https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://doi.org/10.1093/acrefore/9780190264093.013.1744__;!!NVzLfOphnbDXSw!HNhpgvYToFH4P7VM0NnjU9uXCbSl7fEteYB7Qul-verbyNEcbZibOp92_T_Pgg8hXOapAZezkljqIobj0kE$>







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