This study investigates the role of a family literacy program in facilitating critical literacy among Maya immigrant parents as evident in their ability to navigate inhospitable institutional structures, re-writing their role as advocates for their children in school decision making. The study highlights the conscientization that emerged among…

Family literacy initiatives are historically rooted in positivism. In relationship to family literacy, the positivist paradigm is dangerous, as it strips the participants of power and removes their opportunities for voice. In response, a socially just approach to family literacy intervention is offered here. This approach embraces the context of…

Roughly 350,000 refugees, over 90% of them Somali, lived in five sprawling camps in Dadaab, Kenya in 2015. In the Dadaab refugee camps, families had unique experiences of disability, education, women's roles, and involvement with International Non-Governmental Organization (INGO) programming. INGOs provided a variety of basic services including…

This paper revisits and discusses some of Paulo Freire's theoretical tenets for participatory education suggested as part of a critical approach to the education of adults. Through data collected during a family literacy programme, the author analyses her discursive interactions as an adult education tutor with parents as learners. These discourse…

Educators in the field of "family literacy" have identified multiple approaches to family literacy programs (FLPs), and have underscored the need to identify and make explicit the philosophical orientations of their own programs. This was the task undertaken in this article, which focused on a FLP in south Florida that served the needs…

This article reports on a family literacy program that began with the creation and implementation of a Welcome Center in an elementary school in the Southwest United States. This center was intended to be a place where recent immigrant students and their families, teachers, as well as other community members, came together to participate in…

Describes a literature conference for the Harlem community on choosing and using self-affirming books for African American children. Describes Grandma's Place, a literacy and parent support center with an array of multicultural literature. Describes programs and activities that seek to support literacy, strengthen the family, and provide access to…

Utilizing an effective literacy program as a case study, the social-constructivist approach to family literacy is discussed in this article. The role of literacy programs as mentor to the apprentice family and the consequent transformation of family to child-mentor is described. Through review of an effective faintly literacy program, it is…

To improve current civil society and achieve the possibilities globalization offers, we must incorporate an education-for-empowerment approach to lifelong learning. This chapter explores the potential, promise, and implications for local action and dialogue.