1887
Volume 22, Issue 1
  • ISSN 0155-0640
  • E-ISSN: 1833-7139
USD
Buy:$35.00 + Taxes

Abstract

Recent work in literacy has emphasised the partnership between parents and schools in furthering children’s literacy development. This paper discusses the nature of this partnership in late primary school and early secondary school learning in Australia and the ways in which information is communicated between the partners. It is argued that, while schools devote a lot of attention to communicating with parents, this communication does not typically become true dialogue. Instead, the communication is always monodirectional with the school communicating messages to parents, but rarely receiving (or attending to) messages from parents. As such, parents come to be viewed by the schools as junior partners in their children’s literacy development and the school view of partnership focuses on moving parents into the school’s framework. At the same time some parents do not see the partnership in the same way as the school and instead locate responsibility for developing basic skills with the school. Attempts to include parents may then be seen as getting parents to do the school’s work. The study concludes that in current practice there is not actual partnership between school and home in the group investigated.

Loading

Article metrics loading...

/content/journals/10.1075/aral.22.1.02lid
1999-01-01
2024-10-12
Loading full text...

Full text loading...

References

  1. Badger, L. , B. Comber and B. Weeks
    (1993) Literacy and language practices in the early years in disadvantaged schools. Report tothe Department of Education of South Australia, the Commonwealth Department of Employment, Education and Training and the Curriculum Corporation.
    [Google Scholar]
  2. Breen, M. , W. Louden , C. Barratt-Pugh , J. Rivalland , M. Rohl , M. Rhydwen , S. Lloyd and T. Carr
    (1994) Literacy in its place: An investigation of literacy practices in urban and rural communities. Report tothe Commonwealth Department of Employment, Education and Training. Perth, Edith Cowan University.
    [Google Scholar]
  3. Cairney, T.
    (1995) Developing parent partnerships in secondary literacy learning. Australian Journal of Language and Literacy17, 4: 262–275.
    [Google Scholar]
  4. (1998) Literacy and diversity: Have our observations of difference made a difference?Proceedings of the ALEA/AATE Joint National Conference. Canberra, ALEA/AATE.
    [Google Scholar]
  5. Cairney, T. and L. Munsie
    (1995a) Parent participation in literacy learning. The Reading Teacher48, 5: 393–403.
    [Google Scholar]
  6. Cairney, T. , J. Ruge , K. Buchanan , K. Lowe and L. Munsie
    (1995b) Developing Partnerships: The home, school and community interface. Canberra, Australian Government Publishing Service.
    [Google Scholar]
  7. Freebody, P. , C. Ludwig and S. Gunn
    (1995) Everyday literacy practices in and out of schools in low socio-economic urban communities, Report tothe Commonwealth Department of Employment, Education and Training and the Curriculum Corporation.
    [Google Scholar]
  8. Gee, J.P.
    (1994) Orality and literacy: From The savage mind to Ways with words . In J. Maybin (ed.) Language and literacy as social practice. Clevedon, Avon, Multilingual Matters.
    [Google Scholar]
  9. Gill, M.
    (1988) Good news is no news - politics, power and English. VATE Journal4: 3–11.
    [Google Scholar]
  10. Heath, S.B.
    (1982) What no bedtime story means: Narrative skills at home and school. Language in Society11: 49–76. doi: 10.1017/S0047404500009039
    https://doi.org/10.1017/S0047404500009039 [Google Scholar]
  11. Heath, S.B.
    (1983) Ways with words. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press.
    [Google Scholar]
  12. Liddicoat, A.J.
    (1997) Communicating in LOTE: writing and oral interaction. Canberra, MLTA.
    [Google Scholar]
  13. Lo Bianco, J. and P. Freebody
    (1997) Australian literacies: Informing national policy on literacy education. Language Australia, Canberra.
    [Google Scholar]
  14. MacDonald, B. and J. Sanger
    (1982) Just for the record? Notes towards a theory of interviewing. Educational Review Studies Annual7: 175–198.
    [Google Scholar]
  15. Masters, G.N. and M. Forster
    (1997) Mapping literacy: Results of the 1996 National School English Literacy Survey. Canberra, DEETYA.
    [Google Scholar]
  16. Mishler, E.G.
    (1986) Research interviewing: Context and narrative. Cambridge MA, Harvard University Press.
    [Google Scholar]
  17. Paschal, R. , T. Weinstein and H.G. Walberg
    (1984) Effects of homework on learning: A quantitative synthesis. Journal of Educational Research2: 97–104. doi: 10.1080/00220671.1984.10885581
    https://doi.org/10.1080/00220671.1984.10885581 [Google Scholar]
  18. Schuman, A.
    (1993) Collaborative writing: Appropriating power or reproducing authority?In B.V. Street (ed.) Cross-cultural approaches to literacy. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press.
    [Google Scholar]
  19. Shopen, G. and A.J. Liddicoat
    (1998) Partnership in perspective: Parents and teachers in the middle school years. Proceedings of the ALEA/AATE Joint National Conference. Canberra, ALEA/AATE.
    [Google Scholar]
  20. Snow, C.E. , W.S. Barnes , J. Chandler , I.F. Goodman and L. Hemphill
    (1991) Unfulfilled expectations: Home and school influences on literacy. Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press.
    [Google Scholar]
  21. Tizard, B. and M. Hughes
    (1984) Young children learning: Talking and thinking at home and at school. London, Fontana.
    [Google Scholar]
  22. Wells, G.
    (1986) The meaning makers. Portsmouth, NH, Heinemann.
    [Google Scholar]
/content/journals/10.1075/aral.22.1.02lid
Loading
  • Article Type: Research Article
This is a required field
Please enter a valid email address
Approval was successful
Invalid data
An Error Occurred
Approval was partially successful, following selected items could not be processed due to error