Family Literacy: An Annotated
Bibliography
(August 2000)
Part A: Family Literacy
Section 6: Curriculum and Instruction
Auerbach, E. (1990). Making meaning, making change: A guide
to participatory curriculum development for adult ESL and family
literacy. University of Massachusetts, Boston: Bilingual/ESL
Graduate Studies. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED 321
593).
This document, describing the University of Massachusetts Family
Literacy Project, is intended to provide guidance for those interested
in developing adult English as a Second Language (ESL) and family
literacy programs for immigrants and refugees. It serves primarily
as a curriculum guide, stressing important project components, the
reasoning behind them, and suggestions for how others can incorporate
these processes into their own program. The author, however, encourages
program developers to carefully consider the specific concerns and
issues of each group of participants to ensure effectiveness. Provided
throughout the article is documentation of the learning process
for teachers, students, and staff.
Hannon, P., Nutbrown, C., & Fawcett, E. (1997). Taking parent
learning seriously. Adults learning, 9(3), 19–21.
Although the combination of adult education and early childhood
education can often support each other, difficulties can exist because
the aims and the traditions of each component also differ. The purpose
of this article is to focus on how early childhood educators can
think about parent learning. Early childhood educators need to recognize
that (1) differences exist between adult and child learning; (2)
parents are experts of their own children; (3) parents have views
on school literacy; (4) parents have views about their role in their
children's learning; and (5) bilingual parents may have different
learning needs. This article concludes with suggestions for practice.
National Center for Family Literacy. (1995). Family literacy:
Parent/child interaction time (participant's manual). Louisville,
KY: Author.
This manual, focusing on parent/child interaction time, serves as
a part of the training for family literacy programs. It discusses
the importance of parent/child interaction, outlines the definition
and structure of parent/child interaction time, and promotes ways
in which this interaction time can
be successfully transferred to the home. Included in the manual
is a typical example of parent/child interaction time, in addition
to a listing of what is and is not considered to be parent/child
interaction time. The importance of parents learning to facilitate
their child's learning is discussed by means of listing characteristics
of emergent literacy and describing the role of parents and play
in a child's learning process. The manual includes a list of common
problems and solutions for implementing parent/child interaction
time and a list of suggested questions to be examined during the
planning of a program to foster parent/child interaction.
National Center for Family Literacy. (1995). Family literacy:
Parent groups (participant's manual). Louisville, KY: Author.
This manual serves as a guide for programs intending to develop
and implement parent groups. Included are sections discussing the
purposes of parent groups, the definition and examples of parent
groups, issues targeted by parent groups, and the role and responsibilities
of a staff member
involved with a parent group. The manual provides a sample session
plan, a parent survey, and a sequencing of topics for parent groups.
Group dynamics and facilitating skills are addressed by underlining
the importance of communication, involvement, and respect among
group members. Methods used to empower families are also discussed.
In addition, strategies for facilitating personal growth for parents
(e.g., self-esteem and problem solving) and questions that should
be examined while developing a parent group are included.
National Center for Family Literacy. (1995). Family literacy:
Putting the pieces together (participant's manual). Louisville,
KY: Author.
This manual serves as a training guide for instructors of family
literacy programs. The guide focuses on component integration, teambuilding,
and collaboration, which together foster effective family literacy
programs. The component integration section of the manual defines
the term, provides examples, lists what individual program components
have to offer in integration, discusses ways to address curriculum
integration, offers a list of guidelines for implementing component
integration, and demonstrates sample planning worksheets for component
integration. The teamwork section of the manual describes what teamwork
is, who are considered members of the team in family literacy programs,
attributes of effective teams and team members, and a description
of the Four Stage Model of Team Development. The manual also offers
examples of ways to help build teamwork. The collaboration section
discusses the importance and process of collaborating. The manual
provides a checklist of strengths and barriers to successful collaboration
and a sample collaboration chart which tracks the benefits of collaborative
relationships between a program and the various agencies with which
it interacts.
Padak, N., & Cook, D. (1990). Family literacy programs
training manual. Columbus, OH: Ohio State Dept. of Education,
Division of Adult Basic Education.
This manual is comprised of nine 1-hour training sessions for adult
participants in family literacy programs. The authors note that
the sessions can be combined or used individually. This feature
allows a trainer greater flexibility in customizing the program
to the needs of the participants. The training sessions focus on
the following topics: (1) the process of literacy learning; (2)
emerging literacy; (3) environments for literacy learning; (4) children's
literature; (5) promoting reading fluency; (6) environmental print;
(7) promoting writing growth; (8) language-experience activities;
and (9) reading-reasoning activities. For each section, the authors
provide goals, procedures for implementation, and a reference list
for further learning on the session's topic. Also included are worksheets
for activities that promote active participation among group members.
Two sessions include handouts with suggestions for language activities
that parents can engage in with their children. The training session
on children's literature provides a handout with questions, answers,
and recommendations for reading with children. A listing of appropriate
books for designated grades (1–4) is included. There are two
reference lists, one focusing on parents and reading, and the other
on intergenerational literacy.
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