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COPYRIGHT 2004 International Reading Association Inc.
I thought this was an exciting and thrilling book. When I first started it, I thought it would be about abuse. Then as you read on, you find out it is about surviving and dealing with the after-effects of abuse. Honestly, it really inspired me to be a strong-willed woman. If I ever find myself in that position, I hope I can succeed with it as well as Patty did. I feel that Patty did the right thing, and I commend her for that. I also feel that because of the events that had happened, Jamie will be a more productive and caring parent. (Family literacy class member's written response to What Jamie Saw [Coman, 1995])
It was, in everyone's evaluation, a well-written book because of the story and the characters. This story, which initially seemed to be about death, really showed us that while we can all survive death, with love we can begin to live again. (Adult education student's reference to Missing May [Rylant, 1992] in a class newsletter)
These excerpts were written by adults who were attending adult basic education (ABE) programs. What evidence of literacy can be found in their comments? This issue--what counts as literate behavior--has been a contentious one in adult education circles in the United States for many years.
Early in the 20th century, for example, people were considered literate if they had completed a certain grade in school or could sign their name.
These definitions don't work in today's complex society. Indeed, scholars have increasingly pointed to the contextual nature of literacy; they contend that what it means to be literate depends to a large extent on the situation in which an adult operates. Consider these definitions, for example:
Literacy is not simply knowing how to read and write a particular script, but applying this knowledge for specific purposes in specific contexts of use. (Scribner & Cole, 1981, p. 136) Literacy is not just the simple ability to read and write ... by possessing and performing these skills we exercise socially approved and approvable talents. (Cook-Gumperz, 1986, p. 1) [Functional literacy is the] possession of, or access to, the competencies and information required to accomplish transactions entailing reading and writing [in] which an individual wishes--or is compelled--to engage. (Kintgen, Kroll, & Rose, 1988, p. 263)
Policymakers have adopted these context-bound views of literacy. Perhaps the most widely quoted current definition of adult literacy is this one from the National Literacy Act of 1991:
"[L]iteracy" means an individual's ability to read, write, and speak in English, and compute and solve problems at levels of proficiency necessary to function in the job and in society, to achieve one's goals and develop one's knowledge and potential. (Pub. L. No. 102-73, Section 2; www.nifl.gov/public-law.html)
These definitions make common-sense sense. Consider your own literacy abilities and proclivities--does your ability to read well or write well depend on context? Indeed, does what counts as reading "well" also depend on context? We think so. However, we also think that these definitions of literacy may focus too much on skill to the exclusion of will. That is, literate people not only know how to read and write but also choose to do so. The definition of engaged reader, developed and studied at the National Reading Research Center (Athens, Georgia, and College Park, Maryland, USA) describes fluent, adult readers as having the desire to read and use literacy (motivation); the skills and abilities that allow readers to recognize print, understand it, and interact with it (strategies); information about reading and how to obtain ideas from the written word (knowledge); and the ability to learn from and with others while using reading skills and abilities (social interaction) (Baumann & Duffy, 1997).
Our work with adult education programs is based on this comprehensive definition, which embraces literacy abilities and literacy choices and attitudes. In this article, we develop the rationale for this approach in adult education programs and describe current projects at the Ohio Literacy Resource Center (OLRC) that are designed to help teachers offer students opportunities to become engaged readers and writers.
Why engaged readers?
Too often adult literacy programs seem based on the assumption that, if learners work hard on skills for six months, they will have "acquired" literacy, as though it is a set of skills adults can "get" from a tutor (Kazemek, 1985). One study of 20 adult literacy classes in eight U.S. states found basic (not higher level) skills the predominant instructional focus (Beder & Medina, 2002). This is unfortunate, for educators have long known that learning is most powerful when it is authentic--connected to the world that exists beyond the classroom. And authentic reading and writing create motivated and engaged readers and writers. Indeed, early pioneers considered interest to be of primary importance to learning (e.g., Dewey, 1913; James, 1890/1950). Later scholars have shown that, when students have both interest in what is being taught and access to interesting materials, learning, motivation, effort, and attitudes improve (Hidi, 1991; Schiefele, 1991). Csikszentmihalyi (1990) went so far as to assert that "there cannot be any learning unless a person is willing to invest attention" (p. 116). More recently, Purcell-Gates and her colleagues (Purcell-Gates, Degener, & Jacobson, 2000; Purcell-Gates, Degener, Jacobson, & Soler, 2002) studied the achievement of 159 adult literacy students in 22 states. They found that authentic instruction (as opposed to school-like instruction) led to more positive changes in adults' literacy practices outside the classroom. Thus, the relationships among authentic learning opportunities, interest, motivation, engagement, and learning have been well established in educational and psychological research.
With regard to learning to read, another important ingredient is time spent reading. Although research in adult education contexts is lacking (and needed), clear evidence from studies of school-age children shows the relationship between time spent reading and reading achievement. Here are some examples:
* The 2000 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) results showed that the more students read each day, the higher their scores...
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