Literacies and Learners: Current perspectives (3e)

For primary and early childhood teachers and for teachers in training.

Literacies and Learners: Current perspectives, 3e continues to question common sense notions of language and language learning. It explores the major theories and issues in the fields of language, language acquisition and language education.

This edition provides the latest information and incorporates many more practical teaching strategies, aimed at helping teachers to bring creative and critical thinking and action into their classrooms. With Australian content, currency of approaches and very practical examples, this text gives an accessible introduction to literacy and learning that will deepen student teachers’ understanding of their own reading and writing practices in both print and other symbol systems.

1. Understanding language and language learning David Green
2. Children learning language Rod Campbell & Carolyn Baker
3. Text types, grammar and style Rod Campbell & Graham Ryles
4. Oracy: the cornerstone of effective teaching and learning Rod Campbell & Nicole King
5. Reading: starting out David Green & Rod Campbell
6. Reading in the middle years David Green & Rod Campbell
7. Writing: purposeful and creative expression Rod Campbell & David Green
8. Skills and knowledge for writing Rod Campbell & David Green
9. Multiliteracies: teachers and students at work in new ways with literacy Annah Healy
10. Monitoring children’s language and learning Rod Campbell
11. So what should my classroom look like? David Green

NEW – structure and emphasis of the book has been updated to take into account developments in theories and practice.
NEW – Chapter 5 Reading: starting out… and Chapter 6 Reading in the middle years, (previously Chapter 6 Children and Print: Reading), include developmentally appropriate practices for teaching reading, strongly grounded in the four practices of the reader. The major approaches to reading instruction are supported with many credible teaching strategies based on actual classroom activities.
NEW – Chapter 7 Writing: purposeful and creative expression and Chapter 8. Skills and knowledge for writing (previously Chapter 7 Children and Print: Writing), also take a developmental approach to writing and writing instruction. The skills and knowledge (grammar, punctuation, spelling and style) of English required by writers are presented, and supported with teaching strategies that have been trialled in many classrooms with many teachers.

• Chapter Quotes and Introductions stimulate thought and provide students with a clear understanding of what they will achieve within the chapter.
• Snapshots in every chapter form a major new learning feature, highlighting real-life classroom case studies with accompanying questions.
• Activities allow students to think critically and apply the concepts raised in the chapter.
• Annotated bibliographies provide students with additional information on helpful resources specific to each chapter.
• References for extended investigation for interest or assessment purposes are provided at the end of each chapter.

Rod Campbell is an education consultant in literacy and language education and curriculum to schools in Australia, Singapore and four other Asian countries. He has taught in primary, secondary and special schools, has worked as a school psychologist, and has been a lecturer at QUT and McAuley College (ACU) in language and literacy education, and in curriculum studies and teaching practices in early childhood and primary education. His doctoral thesis and other publications, as well as much of his consultancy activity, reflect his interest in teaching knowledge of English and its application in and across the curriculum.

David Green is a former primary school teacher and principal who for 27 years was an academic at QUT in Brisbane where he taught literacy education and children's literature. He is now an educational consultant to schools and a part-time lecturer at Griffith University and QUT.