Literacy
 | What's new in the Literacy website?The Literacy continuum is now K-6 and will be revised further to extend to Year 10. This continuum defines eight key aspects of literacy and is connected to other key literacy publications. The Literacy continuum K-6 can be viewed or printed and assembled by clicking on the links below. (Please note: The continuum is available to DEC staff only through the Department's intranet.) K-6 Literacy continuum print version Interactive NSW Literacy continuumVideo: Literacy across the curriculum - Professor Peter Freebody, University of Sydney Video: The benefits of whole-school literacy plans - Professor Allan Luke, Queensland University Video: Creating effective persuasive texts Parts 1-2 - Dr Sally Humphrey, Australian Catholic University Interactive Literacy teaching guides provide the same text found in the pdf version at the Literacy publications link, but have been re-formatted so that each full page appears on the screen at any one time. In addition, accompanying video footage is embedded within the text at strategic points. (Please note that the file are approx. 200MB and will take longer to load than a usual pdf.) An introduction to quality literacy teaching; Literacy teaching guide: Phonics; and Literacy teaching guide: Phonemic awareness. |
| Other news: |
| ALEA 6-9 July 2012 call for papers flyer |
Literacy as described in the NSW DEC Literacy K-12 Policy
| 1.1.1 | Literacy is the ability to understand and evaluate meaning through reading and writing, listening and speaking, viewing and representing. |
| 1.1.2 | Literacy skills need to continually expand and diversify because our rapidly changing social and economic environment requires competence in a range of new communication forms and media. |
| 1.1.3 | Literacy competence is central to achievement in all areas of learning as students progress through the early, middle and later years of schooling and into the workforce and personal life. |
The place of literacy in the evolving Australian Curriculum context
Literacy has been given a significant profile in the evolving Australian Curriculum. Literacy is an integral part of the English Curriculum. It is one of the three organising and interrelated strands along with Language and Literature. As well, Literacy is a General Capability that is essential to each learning area. This means that Literacy is developed through teaching in each learning area.
In the Shape of the Australian Curriculum: English, 'literacy' is described:
'Literacy' conventionally refers to reading, writing, speaking, viewing and listening effectively in a range of contexts. In the 21st century, the definition of literacy has expanded to refer to a flexible, sustainable mastery of a set of capabilities in the use and production of traditional texts and new communications technologies using spoken language, print and multimedia.
Students need to be able to adjust and modify their use of language to better meet contextual demands in varying situations.
While the initial and major continuing development of literacy will be in the English programs all teachers in all learning areas must take responsibility for developing student capability in response to specific literacy demands of their learning area. (Shape of the Australian Curriculum: English, May 2009, National Curriculum Board, p. 15.)
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