The literacy curriculum : A critical review

[Extract] This chapter critically reviews the scope of the literacy curriculum in the twenty-first century, uncovering some of the strengths, controversies, and silences that have divided literacy researchers and educators. It begins with the acknowledgment that the constitution of literacy and textual practices is in a constant state of flux in the ‘digital turn’, and in the context of the transnational flow of people, languages, discourses, and dialects. This has led to a search for theories of representation that account for intermodal relations, and the concomitant reformulating of the literacy curriculum to usefully reflect these transitions.

Here, the political and ideological antecedents of literacy curriculum and schooling as a form of cultural apparatus of the nation-state are acknowledged and historicized before tracing some of the major interpretive paradigms that have influenced the shape of the literacy curriculum in many parts of the world – basic skills, whole language, systemic functional linguistics, and critical literacy. The chapter draws attention to noteworthy advances and shifts in the field over recent decades. The significant challenges for the literacy curriculum, and perennial debates and currents that have surfaced in the changing social and political context of curriculum are acknowledged and debated. Finally, the chapter anticipates the future of the literacy curriculum, particularly in relation to global markets, increased mobility and transnational flows of culture, literacy practices, and curriculum technologization.