Literacy, Access, and Libraries Among the Language Minority Community

Now In Paper! While there is a great lamenting among the public within educational circles about "illiteracy," especially within the language minority community, there is little focus on the possible solutions to the problem of low literacy rates. This body of work highlights many successful strategies which tackle this issue. This book is unique in that it approaches the issue of literacy in the language minority community from many perspectives. Literacy is investigated as a continuum of interconnected factors. It takes a hard look at the research in a way that is enlightening for both researchers and students. Accompanying the research are numerous suggestions and possible solutions. This book contains the necessary theoretical base as well as practical solutions. It includes accounts of reading programs in the classrooms, recommendations of selected Spanish language books for children, documentation about cases of free reading at the university level and the strengths of native language books for adult learners. Literacy, Access and Libraries is helpful to a wide range of audiences while detailing the specific concerns of language minority communities. With a concrete foundation in theories of literacy the book is also helpful to educators and those concerned with relationships between communities, and the impact of language acquisition, literacy, and reading on the social practices of students. It contains effective strategies for literacy in both public and private settings, and proves an excellent source of information for anyone providing services to the language minority community. Cloth edition previously published in 1998.

About the Author :
Rebecca Constantino (Ph.D., University of Southern California) has written extensively on issues concerning literacy and language minority communities. She is active in community service and is a member of the California Association of Bilingual Education.

Review :
...a must read for anyone working with urban students, those who speak English as a second language, or members of minority populations. Teachers of English as an additional language to children and adults will find this book of interest. The papers are well referenced and index is provided. A good source of information for educators and librarians who provide services to this often-neglected population in our schools and communities. It will help readers develop not only a fair understanding of the issue, but more importantly the useful strategies in promoting literacy among linguistic minorities. In addressing the needs of non-native English speakers/readers, Constantino's book fills a gap in the literature. There are some excellent summaries of research to date as well as lengthy bibliographies. This book is recommended for academic libraries with library schools, college libraries that support ESL programs and, perhaps most importantly, for school and public librarians. This is an informative book for librarians...this book would benefit the English as a Second Language teacher in terms of explaining the importance of free reading in teaching English. It is also beneficial to the school or public librarian facing the challenge of serving minority language populations.