THESES SIS/LIBRARY TELEPHONE: +61 2 6125 4631 R.G. MENZIES LIBRARY BUILDING NO:2 FACSIMILE: +61 2 6125 4063 THE AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL UNIVERSITY EMAIL: [email protected] CANBERRA ACT 0200 AUSTRALIA USE OF THESES This copy is supplied for purposes of private study and research only. Passages from the thesis may not be copied or closely paraphrased without the written consent of the author. WRITING WORDS-RIGHT WAY! Literacy and social practice in the Ngaanyatjarra world Inge Birgita Kral March2007 A thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor·of Philosophy (Anthropology) of the Australian National University DECLARATION OF AUTHORSHIP I, Inge I<ral, declare that this thesis comprises only my original work, except where due acknowledgement has been made in the text to all other materials used. This thesis does not exceed 100,000 words in length, exclusive of footnotes, tables, figures and appendices. Signature: . ... Date: ... ..J.~.6.. Table of contents Tables and Figures ............................................................................................................................. i Acknowledgements .......................................................................................................................... iii Abstract ............................................................................................................................................. iv Abbreviations ..................................................................................................................................... v Chronology ....................................................................................................................................... vi Chapter 1 Literacy in the Ngaanyatjarra world-setting the context ...................... 1 Introduction .................................................................................................................................. 1 Background.................................................................................................................................... 2 Literacy and illiteracy .................................................................................................................... 6 Ethnographies of literacy .......................................................................................................... 13 An ethnography of literacy in the Ngaanyatjarra context ..................................................... 19 Thesis outline .............................................................................................................................. 24 Chapter 2 'Mission time' ......................................................................................... 31 Introduction ................................................................................................................................ 31 The 'protectionist' era ................................................................................................................ 31 Mt Margaret Mission .................................................................................................................. 33 The Ngaanya~arra world ........................................................................................................... 38 Warburton Ranges Mission ....................................................................................................... 42 The mission generation .............................................................................................................. 43 Literacy, Christianity and schooling-the English experience ............................................ 49 Habitualisation into new practices ........................................................................................... 54 Literacy, Christianity and adults-the vernacular experience .............................................. 57 Conflicting values and practices ............................................................................................... 59 The westerly drift ........................................................................................................................ 61 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................... 63 Chapter 3 'Native Welfare time' ......................................................................... 65 Introduction ................................................................................................................................ 65 'Assimilation'-a new policy era .............................................................................................. 65 Tutored assimilation ................................................................................................................... 66 The 'Native Welfare generation' ............................................................................................... 69 Education for unemployment................................................................................................... 81 The move 'from rations to cash' ..........................................•................................................... 91 Literacy and schooling ............................................................................................................... 96 Literacy and adult practices ....................................................................................................... 98 Priface Conclusion ................................................................................................................................ 104 Chapter 4 'Government time' ............................................................................... 107 Introduction .............................................................................................................................. 107 'When the new things came in'-self-determination and change ..................................... 107 'Homeland time'-'-()Utstations and the return to country ................................................. 111 literacy and 'self-determination' ............................................................................................ 114 literacy as social practice ........................................................................................................ 119 The orality of written texts ..................................................................................................... 128 literacy as a political strategy ................................................................................................. 136 The formation of a community of interest .......................................................................... 139 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................ 146 ChapterS Literacy and the 'practice of everyday life' ....................................... 149 Introduction .............................................................................................................................. 149 Transformed practices ............................................................................................................. 150 literacy in the domestic space ............................................................................................... 153 literacy in the public space .................................................................................................... 161 literacy domains ...................................................................................................................... 167 · Administrative literacies .......................................................................................................... 173 literacy as cultural practice ..................................................................................................... 179 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................ 190 Chapter6 Transmitting orality and literacy as cultural practice ....................... 193 Introduction .............................................................................................................................. 193 Socialisation into the Ngaanya~arra world ........................................................................... 193 Language socialisation ............................................................................................................. 194 Language shift ........................................................................................................................... 200 Home, school and learning ..................................................................................................... 203 Family literacy ........................................................................................................................... 206 Children reading and writing-a special situation ............................................................... 212 The birthday party- socialisation into a Western literate ethos ...................................... 222 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................ 226 Chapter 7 Young adults-change, learning and engagement ............................. 227 Introduction .............................................................................................................................