Includes bibliographical references (p. 247-264) and index.

Why study literacy? -- Organisation of the book -- Keywords -- Encounters with literacy -- Academic study of literacy : mapping the field -- Meanings of "literacy" in different traditions -- Literacy acquisition -- Consequences of literacy : the literacy thesis -- Literacy as social practice -- New literacies -- Keywords -- Educational terms -- Anthropological terms -- Psychological terms -- Literacy acquisition -- Beginning to read -- Whole language -- Social challenges and policy -- Literacy in schools -- Consequences of literacy -- The great divide -- Testing the literacy thesis -- Autonomous versus ideological models of literacy -- Demythologising literacy -- Literacy as social practice -- Literacy practices -- Literacy and identity -- Multilingual literacies -- Literacies at work -- The literacy thesis resisted -- Exploring literacy as social practice -- Investigating literacy practices : an ethnographic perspective -- Literacy log -- Literacy and education -- Phonics, whole language, and English orthography -- Children's literature : code, content, and practice -- Academic literacies -- Literacy at large -- Workplace literacies -- Everyday writing in modern society -- International policy and practice in the literacy field -- "Literacy problems" and the mass media.

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