Reading beyond school: Literacies in a neighbourhood library

A Ward, L Wason-Ellam - … Journal of Education/Revue canadienne de l' …, 2005 - JSTOR
A Ward, L Wason-Ellam
Canadian Journal of Education/Revue canadienne de l'éducation, 2005JSTOR
This ethnographic study describes family and community literacy practices in a
neighbourhood public library. As an intercultural research team, we observed patterns of
library use and held extended conversations with librarians and neighbourhood parents
about literacy activities in the library. The neighbourhood public library was a hub of
contiguous communities of practice. It has emerged as a setting with shifting boundaries
between formal and informal literacies and between traditional print media and multimodal …
This ethnographic study describes family and community literacy practices in a neighbourhood public library. As an intercultural research team, we observed patterns of library use and held extended conversations with librarians and neighbourhood parents about literacy activities in the library. The neighbourhood public library was a hub of contiguous communities of practice. It has emerged as a setting with shifting boundaries between formal and informal literacies and between traditional print media and multimodal literacies. The study reveals the dynamic nature of literacy practices in a setting that supported both formal and informal literacies.
JSTOR