Date:
Saturday, 1 May, 2010
This campaign has been completed
This report details the findings from a research study that sought to develop adult and children’s literacy through understanding and supporting family literacy practices in the home.
Family literacy is broadly used to describe many literacy activities which involve one or more generation and describes an awareness of learners in a family and community context.
The primary aim of the research was to focus on and to identify where, how and why learning takes place in the home. This is a community based study, located in 4 geographical areas throughout the country, an inner-city area, a suburban area, a small rural town and a large rural town. Recruitment took place through local community projects, adult literacy services and
family learning centres. In total 41 families were recruited into the research.
The main findings from the research show that there are a variety of family literacy practices that the families engage in on a daily and weekly basis:
• Oral and aural literacies, including intergenerational story telling
• Numeracy practices especially when dealing with family finances
• Reading and writing practices usually involved helping children with homework;
• Texting was the most popular reading and writing activity;
• The importance of technology was highlighted with mobile phones, radios, MP3 players and television being used daily; and
• Use of computers and the internet was not high among the participants;
It is envisioned that the findings from the research will inform NALA’s work into making approaches to adult and family literacy more effective.
