Critical Literacy Methods

Headline text
Critical Literacy in English Language Teaching

‘Learning a language is learning ways to construct meanings; learning an additional language to one’s native language would be a way to make contact with and construct other meanings, to relate to foreign cultures, and thus to enlarge interpretive procedures. By learning languages critically, [...] we learn to exist in a dynamic process that enables the production of multiple understandings about what makes it possible to elaborate certain points of view and about their implications to our lives on the planet.’

(Jordão, C.M. 2008. Reading the World as Social Practice: Conceptual Questioning as a Tool for Enhancing Critical Literacies. English Quarterly 39 (2-3). Canadian Council of Teachers of English Language Arts: Winnipeg, Canada.)

Critical Literacy is inter-disciplinary. It has emerged from theories about globalisation, social movements and the relationship between languages, knowledge and power.

The main difference in relation to other educational approaches in Language Teaching is the way language is conceived.

Such understanding of language represents a major shift in thinking about communication, culture, identities, knowledge and ethics with several pedagogical implications. These implications will vary depending on contexts and the aims of teaching English. Here are some possible implications:

AIMS OF EDUCATION

BASIS OF PEDAGOGICAL FOCUS

SELECTION OF CONTENT

RELATIONSHIPS

SELECTION OF CONTENT

CULTURE & IDENTITY

Reading the Words and the Worlds
The table below illustrates, in general terms, the differences between traditional reading, critical reading and critical literacy in terms of assumptions and questions prompted (remember that reading refers to the word and the world, that is, not only to the printed word, but also to how we create meaning and interpret the world).

Table copied from http://www.osdemethodology.org.uk/criticalliteracy.html, where you will also find more resources and examples

Adapted and expanded from: Gina CERVETTI, Michael J. PARDALES, James S. DAMICO, A Tale of Differences: Comparing the Traditions, Perspectives, and Educational Goals of Critical Reading and Critical Literacy, www.readingonline.com 2001. Open Spaces for Dialogue and Enquiry (OSDE) initiative offers a set of principles, procedures and guidelines for the development of Critical Literacy and independent thinking in Global Citizenship education. You will find free online resources at:

If you want to develop your own Critical Literacy skills, you can use the professional development resource pack of the OSDE Methodology, available for download at:

http://www.osdemethodology.org.uk/keydocs/pdresourcepack.pdf

OCEM is a set of official documents elaborated by the Federal Ministry of Education in Brazil as guidelines to the teaching of different subjects. The guidelines for the teaching of foreign languages can be downloaded at:

http://portal.mec.gov.br/seb/arquivos/pdf/book_volume_01_internet.pdf

You can read and download the new ‘Critical Literacy: Theories and Practices Journal’ at: http://www.criticalliteracy.org.uk/journal/index.html