This ethnographically informed study explored how 32 former participants in the Functional Adult Literacy (FAL) Program in rural Uganda used learning from the program in their daily lives, the perceived outcomes of applying the practices learned in the program, and the meanings that literacy held for participants. Learning domains included…

This paper discusses particular uses of language in a specific social location in the Philippines drawn from the 15-volume ethnographic study of functional literacy in 14 marginal communities in the Philippines by Doronila (e.g. 1996). These are uses of language by people whose internal capacity to generate change is strong yet many of whom are…

Understanding the health literacy of America's adults is important because so many aspects of finding health care and health information, and maintaining health, depend on understanding written information. Many reports have suggested that low health literacy is associated with poor communication between patients and health care providers and with…