DOCUMENT RESUME ED 387 696 CE 070 101 AUTHOR Bradshaw, Delia, Ed. TITLE Practice in Reading Values: Reflections on Adult Literacy Teaching. Adult Literacy Research Network. INSTITUTION Australian National Languages and Literacy Inst., Deakin. REPORT NO ISBN-1-875578-42-0 PUB DATE 95 NOTE 114p. AVAILABLE FROM National Languages and Literacy Institute of Australia, GPO Box 372F, Melbourne, Victoria 3001 Australia ($22 Australian). PUB TYPE Collected Works General (020) Viewpoints (Opinion/Position Papers, Essays, etc.)(120) EDRS PRICE MF01/PC05 Plus Postage. DESCRIPTORS Adult Basic Education; Adult Educators; Adult Learning; *Adult Literacy; Basic Skills; Educational Certificates; Foreign Countries; *Literacy Education; Professional Development; Program Descriptions; Program Design; Program Development; Student Certification IDENTIFIERS Australia (Victoria) ABSTRACT These 15 papers cover a wide range of topics and perspectives on the work of Adult Literacy and Basic Education (ALBE) practitioners in Victoria, Australia, in the contemporary ideological and political context. A preface (John Wilson) and introduction (Delia Bradshaw) begin the anthology. The papers are as follows: "...A Critical-Transformative Approach to Social Reality..." (Claire Gardner); "Creating a Literacy Club" (Jean Mitchell); "The Literacy Supp q.t Teacher and the Negotiation of Cultures" (Joanne Bradford); "Two-Way Schooling" (Adrian Hyland); "Journal Extract" (Carmel Sullivan); "What Do You Believe Is the Role of Negotiation withinan Adult Litera,:...y/Numeracy Program?" (Meredith Greenwood); "Negotiating Curriculum in the Light of the Victorian Adult English Language, Literacy, and Numeracy Accreditation Framework" (Mary Unwin) ;"The Implications of the Framework and the Certificates of General Education for Adults on Current ALBE Teaching Practices: A Case Study" (Clare Carmichael) ;"An Adult Literacy Student Program" (Ruth Yule); "Teacher as Facilitator" (Pam Holderhead); "Journal Writing" (Sandra Field); "A Student Program" (Rhonda Martin); "The Journal of ALBE" (John Logos); "Another Way: Initial Assessment" (Bill Keenan); and "New Theories, 'New Times,' So Do We Still Need Critical Literacy?" (Kaye Elias). Some papers contain references. (YLB) *****************) )************************************************* Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made * from the original document. * 11, InA A as AU ii II A 1.1 U S DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION Oftc. of Edvcallonal Research andImprovement EDUC A TIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC) Thes document nab been reproducedas ,aCe.vecl from the person or orgaruzahon or.glnahng .1 CI Minor changes have been made 10 ^prove reproduchOn ClUality Pomis of ntew or oprmons slated ,n this docu ment do not neCessehly represent official OE RI 00$11,0h on 1,011V/ "PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE THIS P MATERIAL HAS BEEN GRANTED BY IM TO THE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC)" THE NATIONAL 'T COPY AVAILABLE LANGUAGES 2 INSTITUTE "cc IV- lerril ALIA -4'4"311.1SI PRACTICE IN READING VALUES: Reflections on Adult Literacy Teaching Edited by Delia Bradshaw 3 National Library of Australia Cataloguing-in-Publication entry: Practice in reading values: reflections on adult literacy teaching. ISBN 1 875578 42 0 1. Reading (Adult education)Australia. 2. Adult education - Australia. I. Bradshaw, Delia. II. National Languages and Literacy Institute of Australia 374.012 Copyright © 1995 National Languages and Literacy Institute ofAustralia Publisher: National Languages and Literacy Institute of AustraliaLimited ACN 051 438 825 NLLIA Directorate, level 2, 6 Campion Street, Deakin ACT 2600,Australia NLLIA Publications, level 9, 300 Flinders Street, MelbourneVIC 3000, Australia Adult Literacy Research Network (ALAN NLLIA) level 9, 300Flinders Street, Melbourne VIC 3000, Australia Practice in Reading Values TABLE OF CONTENTS Preface Professor John Wilson 3 Introduction Delia Bradshaw 5 "..A Critical-Transformative Approach to Social Reality..-...ClaireGardner 7 Creating A Literacy Club Jean Mitchell 11 The Literacy Support Teacher and the Negotiation ofCulturesJoanne Bradford 20 Two-Way Schooling.....Adrian Hyland 25 Journal Extract Carmel Sullivan 29 What do you believe is the Role of Negotiation witinan Adult Literacy/Numeracy PrograreMeredith Greenwood 31 Negotiating Curriculum in the Light of the Victorian AdultLanguage, Literacy and Numeracy Accreditation Framework Mary Unwin 36 The Implications of the Framework and the CGEAon Current ALBE Teaching Practices: A Case StudyClare Carmichael 41 An Adult Literacy Student Program Ruth Yule 55 Teacher as Facilitator Pam Holderhead 65 Journal Writing Sandra Field 70 A Student Program Rhonda Martin 73 The Journal of ALBE John Logos 86 Another Way Bill Keenan 91 New Theories. "New Times", so do wc still need Critical Literacy?....Kaye Elias 102 Adult Literacy Teaching PREFACE Node is The Adult Literacy Research Network Node forVictoria (ALRNNV) was set up in late 1993. The professional devel- funded by the National Languages and LiteracyInstitute of Australia (NLLIA) to promote research into adult literacy opment of Adult Literacy and BasicEducation (ALBE) staff as well as to support the first time, and dissemination of results of research projects.Practice in Reading Values brings together, for this volume were original- some of the best writing of ALBEpractitioners working in Victoria. The papers in Development Course ly prepared by participants as assignments inAdult Literacy Teaching: A Professional which was offered in 1994 by the Council forAdult Education (CAE), Melbourne, WesternMetropolitan Campaspe College of Training and Further Education (TAFE),Outer Eastern College of TAFE, Loddon perspectives College of TAFE, and Wangarrata TAFE College.The papers cover a wide range of topics and It is hoped that they on the work of ALBE practitionersin the contemporary ideological and political context. of Adult will be of interest to all working within ALBE andof special assistance to those on the "outside" Literacy practice for understanding how theory andpractice in this dynamic field are developing. staff in the ALRNNV is grateful to the contributors for makingtheir work available for a wider audience, to five TAFE Colleges and CAE for assisting in the processof developing the initial assignments, to Delia Bradshaw for editing, to the Office of Training andFurther Education (OTFE), Victoria for agreeing tothe publication, and to NLLIA for funding the pubtication. John Wilson Director, Adult Literacy Research Network Nodefor Victoria made possible by fundingfrom the Adult This publication was Victoria. The project was Literacy ResearchNetwork Node for Coordinator, BeverleyCampbell and managed by the Network Special thanks to the Publication Committee. the Network did the word NLLIA staff and toHeather Glassford who processing. 4 Practice in Reading Values INTRODUCTION It is hard to imagine a better introduction to Adult Literacy andBasic Education (ALBE) in Victoria than this collection of practitioners' writing. All fifteen pieces have beenproduced locally and recently. They were originally prepared as assignments by participants in Adult LiteracyTeaching: A Professional Development Course which was offered in 1994 at the five Victorian institutionslisted in the Preface. In order to satisfac- torily complete that course and qualify for the formal award,participants had to both complete a journal and develop an Adult Literacy student program relevant to theirown teaching context.It was not until all the ALT courses were completed that the Adult Literacy ResearchNetwork Node for Victoria decided to seek permission to publish a selection of essays written by ALTcourse participants. The authors, therefore, did not write their assignments with this publication in mind. The result, Practicein Reading Values, is a mixture of journal extracts and theoretically justified studentprograms. Reading through this anthology is equivalent to being takenon a guided tour around the state of ALBE prac- tice in Victoria today, with each individual piece representinga personal invitation to come inside the author's thinking as well as into her or his classroom. Not only does thisgenerosity provide a first-hand, close-up view otfteen ALBE practitioners at work, but it simultaneouslypresents fifteen ways of thinking about Adult Literacy and Basic Education in fifteen different sites,thus constituting an up-to-date picture of the interplay between theory and practice in the ALBE field inVictoria today. This is not to suggest that there are only fifteen variationson the ALBE theme, nor that there are only fifteen stories worthy of publication.Far from it! The number of possible variations isas numerous as the number of ALBE practitioners at work in Victoria today, allnoteworthy for different reasons. There are fifteen accounts in this publication simply because the five institutions thatran Adult Literacy Teaching (ALT) courses in Victoria in 1994 were asked to nominate three ALT assignments each.While fifteen examples of contemporary ALBE thinking and practice is by no means exhaustive, it does,nevertheless, provide a picture of considerable breadth and depth. What then, for travellers/readers of these accounts,are some of the outstanding landmarks of this journey through ALBE territory? What are Victorian ALBE practitionersdoing and thinking? What matters most to them? When invited to focus on an area of their work forstudy, when encouraged to re-search an area ofper- sonal and