Definitions of literacy have evolved considerably since the beginning of the 20th century, especially over the last two decades, in response to the demands of a highly technological society. These enhanced definitions include more than the basic skills of writing and reading. For women, in particular, literacy has become linked with a variety of issues such as personal growth and development, ways of knowing and the effects of patriarchy on their lives. / This study attempts to gain a deeper understanding of the personal meanings of literacy in the lives of a group of women. It examines the meanings women assign to literacy in their daily lives. It explores how literacy fashions and alters women's perceptions of themselves and their place in the world. It also illustrates the dynamics of qualitative research on the participants.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2007. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 68-07, Section: A, page: 2762. Adviser: Scott D. Johnson. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 184-215) Available on microfilm from Pro Quest Information and Learning.

Thèses (M.A.)--Université de Sherbrooke (Canada), 1999. / Titre de l'écran-titre (visionné le 14 juillet 2006). Publié aussi en version papier.

Abstract not available.

La thèse porte sur les initiatives d'un organisme non gouvernemental (ONG) de femmes aux Philippines destinées à des travailleuses du sexe et des survivantes d'agression sexuelle. Plus particulièrement, en se basant sur l'approche de la prise en charge issue des organisations locales et des écrits féministes des pays en voie de développement, cette étude se penche sur les facteurs du programme qui favorisent la prise en charge de ces femmes marginalisées et les éléments qui y font obstacle. Une intervention qui vise la prise en charge d'un groupe marginalisé s'inscrit dans le cadre de l'éducation non formelle. L'étude, qui marie les traditions de l'ethnographie et de l'étude de cas, s'est déroulée aux Philippines de la mi-novembre 2001 à la mi-février 2002 dans une maison d'hébergement d'un ONG national. Ving-neuf informatrices (directrice de l'organisme, intervenantes et participantes) ont pris part à la recherche. Pour recueillir les données, diverses méthodes ont été employées, soit la consultation de documents, les entretiens et échanges informels, l'observation participante et les récits de vie. L'analyse, fondée sur la théorie émergente, à enfin fait ressortir des thèmes qui ont permis de mieux comprendre les éléments qui facilitent ou entravent le processus de prise en charge des personnes à qui le programme s'adresse.

The closely aligned theoretical discussions of situated learning (Lave & Wenger, 1991; Wenger, 1998) and situated literacy (Barton & Hamilton, 1998; Hamilton, 2000) were used to explore literacy and learning activities in an adult literacy program that combined literacy education and employment preparation in three distinct learning settings. The parallel discussions provided a socioculturally-based framework that permitted a detailed analysis of what learning and literacy looked like. Guiding the study was the following question: How do situated views of literacy and learning contribute to an understanding of the employment preparation program and its three settings? Using the frameworks of situated learning and literacy to closely examine the employment preparation program revealed disconnects between the work settings (the coffee shop and job placements) and the class setting, and subsequently between the notions of learning literacy and learning about work. Among the study's contributions is a clearer conceptualization of a broad definition of literacy, in which the development of literacy practices becomes the focus for supporting the development of adult literacy education. Policy contributions examine the role of the provincial program funder and how it has a structure to support the development of a practice-based approach in adult literacy education. Finally, contributions to research propose the use of an analytical tool to further understand sociocultural learning, and specifically literacy and learning practices, in adult literacy programs. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)

This qualitative study explored the personal and educational experiences of five adult education students who returned to high school in rural Ontario. Examining the voices of the rural adult education students led to a greater understanding of the meaning of dropping out and returning to high school. A framework for the participants' journey is presented using a lifecourse trajectory perspective. The findings and implications of this study suggest that rural adult students face unique challenges, and that a dialogue around existing policy and practices might strengthen the program even further.

The purpose of the study was to examine a literacy program serving Canadian deaf and hard of hearing adults, through a socio-cultural perspective of learning. A provincially-funded literacy program for deaf adults provided an opportunity to understand the dynamics of literacy learning within a richly cultural environment. Theories of situated learning and situated cognition were used to examine learning within six literacy learning settings. The findings of the research study showed evidence of situated learning and communities of practices. Four socio-cultural themes emerged from the findings: ASL as a shared language, roles of instructors, new literacy practices and personal development. The socio-cultural elements played a role in the lived experiences of the learners and helped shape the students' identities as deaf literacy learners. The findings of the study provide new insights on how literacy learning can be embraced using a socio-cultural perspective and deepens our understanding of deaf literacy learning.

The employees' ability to continuously and collectively learn, and to apply their learning are critical to their own and their organization's performance. This study, therefore, sought to understand employees' perceptions of and experiences with the application of or, transfer of their learning. It also sought to understand the interplay between the three primary transfer sources. The overarching research question that guided this study was what were employees' lived experiences with transfer? The subquestions were how do employees transfer their learning, when did transfer enter their learning experiences, and why did they believe that transfer occurred? A hermeneutic phenomenological research design was employed. The participants' lived experiences were examined, described and interpreted. By allowing the participants' voices to resonate throughout the text, the depth, richness and meaning of their experiences were captured. Seven federal government employees, at the administrative, professional and managerial levels, comprised the purposeful sample. The participants engaged in a formal audiotaped interview, an informal interview and a focus group session. Eight main themes emerged from the data analysis. Two themes, related to the individuals' characteristics, were the desire to learn and how transfer occurred. Four themes, related to the training program's design and development features, were discourse, application of the learning to life's situations, learning by doing and when transfer entered the learners' learning experience. The last two themes, related to the organizational climate characteristics, were an open and supportive culture, and the major challenges to transfer. The transfer research, comprised of the individuals' characteristics, training program features and organizational climate characteristics, provided one lens through which the findings were interpreted. Three adult learning theories, self-directed, situated cognition and transformational learning, provided the second lens. The transfer and adult learning literatures were quite complimentary. The learning theories however, brought a broader and more comprehensive understanding to many of the participants' transfer experiences. The theories, by illuminating the interplay between the primary transfer sources, integrated the quantitative transfer research findings into a more coherent body of knowledge. This research also contributed to a more fullsome understanding of the learning theories and the difficulties in measuring transfer. Adult education principles and practices appear to be well positioned to enhance employees' transfer efforts as transfer does indeed appear to be a key concept in adult learning. This study advances our understanding of transfer from the perspective of the employees' "lived" experiences, and of the complexities of transfer. The findings are relevant to adult education practices, and to organizations and employees in better understanding and facilitating transfer.

No description available.