Overview
In Literacy, Culture and Identity, Canadian literacy educator and researcher Jill Sinclair Bell uses narrative inquiry to argue that literacy should be understood as an individual construct growing out of personal experiences shaped by societal attitudes. Through her innovative autobiographical study of an attempt to become literate in Chinese, Dr. Bell makes evident the conflicting stories of literacy held by members of different cultures. The difficulties encountered and the resulting challenge to the image of self highlight the degree to which identity is bound up in literacy and learning practices. Given the multicultural nature of education in North America today, this individually and culturally based notion of literacy has profound implications for our understanding of the teaching and learning situation.
Full Product Details
Author: Dr Jill Sinclair Bell
Publisher: Peter Lang Publishing Inc
Imprint: Peter Lang Publishing Inc
Volume: 42
Weight: 0.500kg
ISBN: 9780820436562
ISBN 10: 0820436569
Pages: 236
Publication Date: 01 January 1998
Audience:
Professional and scholarly
,
Professional & Vocational
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active
Availability: Available To Order
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Reviews
This book establishes Jill Sinclair Bell as a creative research voice in the methodologically tired field of language and literacy studies. Dr. Bell will be cited for two main contributions, a rigorous autobiographical narrative approach to the study of second language learning, an approach revealing experiential nuance untapped by any other method and a comparative, analytic, approach to the study of literacy through the use of Aristotelian commonplaces. This book is a must read for anyone interested in innovative approaches to the study of second language acquisition and for all those concerned with the possibilities of multiple literacies in multicultural environments. (Michael Connelly, Centre for Teacher Development, OISE, University of Toronto, Author of 'Teachers as Curriculum Planners: Narratives of Experience and Teachers' Professional Knowledge Landscapes') I found Jill Sinclair Bell's study of her own second language literacy development to be fascinating. (Merril Swain, Modern Language Centre, OISE, University of Toronto, Author of 'Bilingualism in Education: Aspects of Theory, Research and Practice')
Author Information
The Author: Jill Sinclair Bell is Associate Dean in the Faculty of Education at York University, Toronto, Canada. She has published a variety of articles in professional journals, classroom materials for adult learners of English and four books for teachers including, Teaching Multilevel Classes in ESL and A Handbook for ESL Literacy. She is currently co-editor of The Canadian Modern Language Review.
