Janet Soler – författare

This widely researched comparative study addresses the critical issue of literacy crises around the world and questions their wider sociological and educational impact. The recurring literacy crises in England and English speaking countries such as the US and New Zealand are linked to wider issues of educational standards, concepts of teacher professionalism, debates over curriculum content and the whole purpose of schooling, in order for us to obtain a deeper understanding of specific national contexts and the political pressures involved.

The authors'' comparative approach enables them to uniquely demonstrate how literacy crises in one country can actually stimulate and shape literacy crises in another, as well as illustrating that these crises frequently share common features across time and geographical boundaries.

Rather than championing any ''one best'' method of teaching reading, central questions are addressed and discussed, which will make this ground-breaking book essential reading for policy makers, teachers and students in literacy and education studies.

This widely researched comparative study addresses the critical issue of literacy crises around the world and questions their wider sociological and educational impact. The recurring literacy crises in England and English speaking countries such as the US and New Zealand are linked to wider issues of educational standards, concepts of teacher professionalism, debates over curriculum content and the whole purpose of schooling, in order for us to obtain a deeper understanding of specific national contexts and the political pressures involved.

The authors'' comparative approach enables them to uniquely demonstrate how literacy crises in one country can actually stimulate and shape literacy crises in another, as well as illustrating that these crises frequently share common features across time and geographical boundaries.

Rather than championing any ''one best'' method of teaching reading, central questions are addressed and discussed, which will make this ground-breaking book essential reading for policy makers, teachers and students in literacy and education studies.

Addressing the sensitive issue of difficulties in literacy development this practical book outlines what is meant by ''literacy'' and the barriers to literacy development such as social class, ethnicity, culture and gender. It emphasises practical strategies and programmes to help reduce these barriers at school, family and community levels. Throughout, the highly qualified team of authors relate cognitive, psychological, and socio-cultural perspectives to current curriculum policies, controversies and ethical considerations.

This book enables practitioners to reflect critically upon the choices available to them in assessing and supporting students who experience difficulties in literacy development. Topics covered include a thorough consideration of dyslexia, bilingualism, the conceptualising of literacy, equity issues, and suggestions for assessment and planning for pupils.

This is essential reading for students on initial teacher training courses and teachers on CPD courses in the area of special needs, literacy and dyslexia. It is also a companion course guide for the Open University’s new Difficulties in Literacy Development course.

Addressing the sensitive issue of difficulties in literacy development this practical book outlines what is meant by ''literacy'' and the barriers to literacy development such as social class, ethnicity, culture and gender. It emphasises practical strategies and programmes to help reduce these barriers at school, family and community levels. Throughout, the highly qualified team of authors relate cognitive, psychological, and socio-cultural perspectives to current curriculum policies, controversies and ethical considerations.

This book enables practitioners to reflect critically upon the choices available to them in assessing and supporting students who experience difficulties in literacy development. Topics covered include a thorough consideration of dyslexia, bilingualism, the conceptualising of literacy, equity issues, and suggestions for assessment and planning for pupils.

This is essential reading for students on initial teacher training courses and teachers on CPD courses in the area of special needs, literacy and dyslexia. It is also a companion course guide for the Open University’s new Difficulties in Literacy Development course.

Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Learning to Read brings together different disciplinary perspectives and studies on reading for all those who seek to extend and enrich the current practice, research and policy debates. The breadth of knowledge that underpins pedagogy is a central theme and the book will help educators, policy-makers and researchers understand the full range of research perspectives that must inform decisions about the development of reading in schools. The book offers invaluable insights into learners who do not achieve their full potential. The chapters have been written by key figures in education, psychology, sociology and neuroscience, and promote discussion of:

This book encompasses a comprehensive range of conceptual perspectives on reading pedagogy and offers a wealth of new insights to support innovative research directions.

Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Learning to Read brings together different disciplinary perspectives and studies on reading for all those who seek to extend and enrich the current practice, research and policy debates. The breadth of knowledge that underpins pedagogy is a central theme and the book will help educators, policy-makers and researchers understand the full range of research perspectives that must inform decisions about the development of reading in schools. The book offers invaluable insights into learners who do not achieve their full potential. The chapters have been written by key figures in education, psychology, sociology and neuroscience, and promote discussion of:

This book encompasses a comprehensive range of conceptual perspectives on reading pedagogy and offers a wealth of new insights to support innovative research directions.

This book provides a range of interdisciplinary and international perspectives on difficulties in literacy development. The high-profile team of contributors provide ethical and policy discussions, as well as contextualising individual and collective strategies to addressing difficulties in literacy development. The chapters break new ground by encompassing a wide range of perspectives related to critical literacy, socio-cultural, cognitive, and psychological viewpoints, to help inform practice, policy and research into literacy difficulties.

Issues addressed include:

*the different ways literacy can be conceptualised through social-science based disciplinary perspectives*the issues at the centre of current public and professional debates surrounding literacy difficulties and how these have impacted upon pedagogical responses *the impact of these wider political and social issues on individual students.

This reader forms the basis of the Open University’s Difficulties in Literacy Development course, but will also be of interest to postgraduate students, teachers, researchers, education professionals and policymakers who are keen to address difficulties in literacy development.

This book provides a range of interdisciplinary and international perspectives on difficulties in literacy development. The high-profile team of contributors provide ethical and policy discussions, as well as contextualising individual and collective strategies to addressing difficulties in literacy development. The chapters break new ground by encompassing a wide range of perspectives related to critical literacy, socio-cultural, cognitive, and psychological viewpoints, to help inform practice, policy and research into literacy difficulties.

Issues addressed include:

*the different ways literacy can be conceptualised through social-science based disciplinary perspectives*the issues at the centre of current public and professional debates surrounding literacy difficulties and how these have impacted upon pedagogical responses *the impact of these wider political and social issues on individual students.

This reader forms the basis of the Open University’s Difficulties in Literacy Development course, but will also be of interest to postgraduate students, teachers, researchers, education professionals and policymakers who are keen to address difficulties in literacy development.

This book outlines and critiques international strategies and programmes designed to address difficulties in literacy development. The high-profile team of contributors consider teaching programmes which operate at family, school, pupil and teacher levels. They argue that school is not the only legitimate location for literacy education, and show how difficulties in literacy can be addressed sequentially, both in and out of the school context.

Issues addressed include:

*the dilemmas facing practitioners in choosing between multiple approaches to practice*the factors which must be addressed in strategies which operate at the level of the family and the community*how to ensure the school can support programmes designed to improve literacy learning*how to put theory into practice in programmes designed for use with individual students*the teacher as ''reflective practitioner'' - developing professional practice which effectively raises literacy achievement.

This book will be of interest to postgraduate students, teachers, researchers, educational professionals and policymakers who are looking for practical strategies to address difficulties in literacy development.

This reader forms the basis of the Open University''s Difficulties in Literacy Development course, and is ideal for similar courses nationally and internationally.

This book outlines and critiques international strategies and programmes designed to address difficulties in literacy development. The high-profile team of contributors consider teaching programmes which operate at family, school, pupil and teacher levels. They argue that school is not the only legitimate location for literacy education, and show how difficulties in literacy can be addressed sequentially, both in and out of the school context.

Issues addressed include:

*the dilemmas facing practitioners in choosing between multiple approaches to practice*the factors which must be addressed in strategies which operate at the level of the family and the community*how to ensure the school can support programmes designed to improve literacy learning*how to put theory into practice in programmes designed for use with individual students*the teacher as ''reflective practitioner'' - developing professional practice which effectively raises literacy achievement.

This book will be of interest to postgraduate students, teachers, researchers, educational professionals and policymakers who are looking for practical strategies to address difficulties in literacy development.

This reader forms the basis of the Open University''s Difficulties in Literacy Development course, and is ideal for similar courses nationally and internationally.

Reading Across International Boundaries, edited by Roger Openshaw and Janet Soler, clearly demonstrates these broader characteristics of debates about the teaching of reading. It sets the educational issues firmly in the context of the social, cultural and political dynamics that inform and animate them and give them their meaning. It does so by setting out to understand their historical and comparative dimensions. Establishing the historical context highlights the origins and also the longevity of the problems and conflicts that are now widely familiar. The comparative approach also gives purchase on the wide range of approaches taken to these issues in nations around the world. More than this, however, this collection takes us into the realm of international influences. It underlines how debates in this area are not simply national, but are international and global in their scale. Moreover this is the case not only in relation to the broad fabric of policy debate, but also in the everyday struggles of pupils, parents and teachers in schools, classrooms and homes.

Such an agenda is unsettling and provocative. It has the potential to challenge received opinion, to hustle preconceptions. It may also propose alternative visions for the improvement of teaching in this area that might be taken up and taken seriously in different localities or even more broadly. Most of all, it enables us to enrich and broaden our understanding of the learning and the teaching of reading at a time when awareness and vision are sorely needed. This collection of articles by leading scholars based in several different countries will be a significant contribution to the research field, but also a major resource when put to good use by policy makers and practitioners, as it should surely be.