Return-Path: <nifl-womenlit@literacy.nifl.gov> Received: from literacy (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by literacy.nifl.gov (8.10.2/8.10.2) with SMTP id h1C88cP11045; Wed, 12 Feb 2003 03:08:38 -0500 (EST) Date: Wed, 12 Feb 2003 03:08:38 -0500 (EST) Message-Id: <se49ba08.036@langate.gsu.edu> Errors-To: alcrsb@langate.gsu.edu Reply-To: nifl-womenlit@literacy.nifl.gov Originator: nifl-womenlit@literacy.nifl.gov Sender: nifl-womenlit@literacy.nifl.gov Precedence: bulk From: "Daphne Greenberg" <alcdgg@langate.gsu.edu> To: Multiple recipients of list <nifl-womenlit@literacy.nifl.gov> Subject: [NIFL-WOMENLIT:2482] language and literacy X-Listprocessor-Version: 6.0c -- ListProcessor by Anastasios Kotsikonas Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII X-Mailer: Novell GroupWise Internet Agent 6.0.3 Beta Status: O Content-Length: 5669 Lines: 98 Dora, Thanks for bringing up the issue of language and literacy, and specifically the issue of how individuals from diverse language backgrounds become literate if they don't understand the language of instruction? I am wondering if anyone on our listserv struggles with issues of nonspeakers of English and would like to comment on how you juggle literacy needs with oral needs especially in a beginning ESL class learners who speak different languages. And do you notice any special issues for women in these classes? Daphne Daphne Greenberg Associate Director Center for the Study of Adult Literacy MSC 6A0360 Georgia State University 33 Gilmer Street SE Unit 6 Atlanta, GA 30303-3086 phone: 404-651-0127 fax:404-651-4901 dgreenberg@gsu.edu >>> dora@cal.org 02/11/03 16:11 PM >>> It's wonderful to read that an International Literacy Decade is being launched and hopefully we will all be actively supportive of this decade. I am concerned, however, that in the categories listed, there is not a year set aside to focus on language. Although the definition of literacy has broadened widely, from where some of us stand, unless the knotty problems of language and language use are also confronted and solutions sought for them, we can talk all we want to about gender, poverty, health, sustainable develoment, etc., but we will fail. That is why I believe the message of Jomtien didn't get very far, and from those I know who attended the Dakar coference, there was very little mention of literacy and language. The reports I have seen on CONFITEA V also have little language information in them. I recently went to a conference on women and globalization, and the literacy strand had almost no papers addressing language issues. Resolving language issues is a daunting t! ask which makes it all the more important that we address them in a decade focused on literacy. One good question to ask is how to create access. For example, with over 6,000 languages that are spoken in the world today, approximately 1.38 billion people speak local languages that may not be used in formal education. How can the children from these language backgrounds become literate if they don't understand the language of instruction?There are some models and answers and there have been people working in this field for a very long time, dealing with such things as mother tongue education, language choice for literacy purposes, language choice for communication purposes, cross linguistic communication -- the list is long. Some of these models have been documented. One such documented study is work we did here at the Center for Applied Linguistics that addresses the use of mother tongue in education. Expanding Educational Opportunity in Linguistically Diverse Societies is available at http://www.cal.org/pubs/ford/eeolds.html. So for those of you who do attend the event at the UN on the 13th, please ask that we add a year of literacy and language to this commendable list. Dora Johnson Research Associate National Center for ESL Literacy Education Center for Applied Linguistics 4646 40th Street, NW Washington, DC 20016 Telephone: 202-362-0700 Fax: 202-363-7204 E-mail: dora@cal.org Web site: www.cal.org/ncle -----Original Message----- From: Ujwala Samant [mailto:usamant@comcast.net] Sent: Tuesday, February 11, 2003 12:12 AM To: Multiple recipients of list Subject: [NIFL-WOMENLIT:2475] Fw: [NIFL-POVRACELIT:1033] Launching of International Literacy Decade ----- Original Message ----- From: Winston Lawrence <winstonl@lacnyc.org> To: Multiple recipients of list <nifl-povracelit@literacy.nifl.gov> Sent: Monday, February 10, 2003 4:19 PM Subject: [NIFL-POVRACELIT:1033] Launching of International Literacy Decade > Hi all: The United Nations is launching International Literacy Decade - > Education for All-2003-2012 on Thursday February 13, 2003 at UN > Headquarters, New York. Time of the event 10am to 1.30pm. The Literacy > Assistance Center is mobilizing teachers, students and the entire literacy > community to attend the event. > The Director General of Unesco, Koichiro Matsuura will be one of the > featured speakers. Other speakers will include a teacher and a learner. > This is a significant event occurring at a time when the US is about to > rejoin Unesco. It is also coming after several important international > conferences that pushed literacy to the top of United Nations agenda. Some > of these conferences included Education for All, Jomtien , Thailand 1990; > World Summit for Social Development, Copenhagen 1995, (CONFINTEA V) Fifth > International Conference on Adult Education, Hamburg, 1997 and World > Education Forum, Dakar, 2000. The thrust for this decade has been in the > making a long time. > Over the next ten years the literacy community will have an opportunity to > focus on particular themes. such as > 2003 - 2004 Literacy and gender > 2005 - 2006 Literacy and poverty > 2007 - 2008 Literacy and health > 2009 - 2010 Literacy and sustainable development > 2011 - 2012 Literacy and peace > We hope that the literacy community can utilize the opportunities afforded > by this period to highlight the importance of literacy and and seek full > and appropriate funding for literacy programs. Thanks. > > Dr Winston Lawrence > Coordinator , Adult Literacy Services > Literacy Assistance Center > New York, New York, 10004 > (212)-803-3326 > Fax: (212) 785-3685 > > > > > -------------------------------- > Dr Winston Lawrence > Coordinator of Adult Literacy Services > Literacy Assistance Center > 32 Broadway 10th Floor > NY NY 10004 > winstonl@lacnyc.org > Tel. (212) 803-3326 > Fax:(212) 785-3685
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