The best public policy arises out of a need to provide protection to those who cannot protect themselves in the marketplace. This paper suggests that consumers with limited literacy skills are routinely overlooked within the healthcare arena and may be in need of consumer protection policies. Low literacy is generally perceived to be a stigma, and consumers may actively work to hide this fact. Moreover, given they lack literacy skills, low literate consumers employ other coping strategies to get their needs met. Based on the analysis of secondary data, in-depth interviews with adults from literacy educational centers, and observations in pharmacies, I explore the viability of the coping strategies that low literate consumers use when buying and consuming prescription and non-prescription drugs. The results suggest that while some of the strategies are successful, other strategies may lead to harmful consequences. / Master of Science

The aim of this study is to compare and contrast the teaching of the adult illiterates as done by Cora Stewart in the United States of America, James Yen in China, and Frank Laubach in Africa. / Typescript. / "September 1949." / "Submitted to the Graduate Council of Florida State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts under Plan II." / Advisor: Nita K. Pyburn, Professor Directing Paper. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 51-54).

The concept of literacy has expanded to include understanding and effective utilization of information, media, and technology. The Children's Internet Protection Act requires school districts to teach proper online use and behavior. The lack of a technology requirement in a rural, public school district in Northeastern Pennsylvania that meets the needs of 21st century learners and the conditions of the Children's Internet Protection Act was the rationale for the development of this project study. The study's conceptual framework stemmed from theories related to new literacies, multimodality, computer education practices, and millennial learners. The research questions examined educators' perceptions of topics and skills to include in a curricular framework that addressed the lack of a comprehensive technology requirement to improve 21st century digital literacy skills for all students. A qualitative case study design was selected and data from 40 open ended questionnaires, one 5-member focus group discussion, and two 6-member focus group discussions were open coded and thematically analyzed. Emergent themes relating to a digital literacy course framework included information access skills and the application of technology. Findings were validated through member checking and triangulated with 62 existing curricular documents. The project for this study consisted of a curricular framework for a 90 day 21st century digital literacy high school course that can be used by any school district to enhance the preparation of students for life after high school. Such use of the findings and culminating project may positively affect social change through a modern definition of literacy thus contributing towards the development of a positive and prepared 21st century citizenry.

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Low health literacy levels put patients at greater risk for poorer compliance and access to care, which leads to worse patient outcomes. Nurses must understand health literacy to improve health literacy for their medical surgical patient population. It is necessary for a formal education program on this topic. The purpose of this project was to increase medical surgical nurses' awareness and knowledge of the importance of health literacy and to introduce the REALM-SF tool to assess a patient's literacy level, allowing a nurse to better individualize the education provided to the patient. Lewin's change management theory was key in the development of this project with attention to his three stages of change acceptance. The practice focus question was, "Will medical-surgical nurses show an improvement in their knowledge of health literacy when comparing measurement of knowledge pre education and immediately post education?" The HL-SF12 for registered nurses tool was used to collect data for this project as a pre- and post-implementation knowledge assessment. Thirty-one medical surgical nurses participated in this education session. The results of this analysis show that there is a significant gap in medical-surgical nurses' knowledge of health literacy. However, all participates showed a significant increase in their scores from pretest to posttest after the educational module, which signifies that this education program was successful. Assessing health literacy is a major step towards improving the delivery of patient education by nurses and assists the patients in the management of their medical problems. All of this leads to positive social change by making sure that the education provided by the nurses is understood and received well by the patients and their families.

Individual differences in early literacy skills can be attributed to children’s previous history of emergent literacy experiences during their preschool years. The purpose of this qualitative study was to learn about the emergent literacy experiences of one Libyan American preschooler and one Syrian American preschooler and how their families support these experiences in their bilingual homes. Through the lens of social theory of learning (Lave & Wenger, 1991; Wenger, 1998) and sociocultural theory (Rogoff, 1990; Vygotsky, 1978), this multi-case study was designed to explore family literacy practices with a preschooler in a naturalistic setting. The questions guiding this study were: (1) How did the texts, tools, and technologies available in two bilingual home settings impact the emergent literacy practices of a Libyan American child and a Syrian American child? (2) What support did family members provide for these two children as they developed emergent literacy practices in their bilingual home settings? Data sources included a demographic questionnaire, digital-recordings of family literacy practices with a preschooler, audio-recorded in-depth interviews with the parents, home visits, the preschoolers’ writing samples, and photographs of literacy activities, materials, and the home environment. The recorded family literacy practices and interviews were transcribed and analyzed to identify emerging themes. Both within-case analysis and cross-case analysis were conducted. Findings revealed that the preschoolers in both families use a multimodal process such as talking, drawing, singing, chanting, recitation, technologies, and sociodramatic play in their daily literacy experiences. The parents are not concerned with teaching their children specific literacy skills; but they naturally use techniques for keeping them on task and questioning skills to enhance oral language and comprehension development. These families’ home literacy practices are Americanized by living in the mainstream social group, and English is frequently used among the family members. However, their bilingualism and religious literacy practices enrich and vary their children’s emergent literacy experiences and their family literacy practices. The significance of this study resides in the importance of getting to know individual families’ backgrounds to better understand and respect the cultural practices of family literacy.

Adult education has often been described as a start and stop process for second chance learners. Hierarchical, decontextualized, and scripted materials remain prevalent in adult education programs. Differences in and among programs often present barriers to participation that profoundly affect adult learners' lives and literacies. Albertini (2009), Hull, Jury, and Sacher (2012), and Street (2004) call for more innovative, tailor-made programs to support adult learners. The Women's Literacy Network (WLN), a literacy and empowerment program for women, is an innovative, tailor-made program that trains adult women with GEDs as literacy tutors and matches them with women working on their GEDs. In this narrative inquiry, I examine the literacy identities of five WLN tutors through the lens of social practice theory. I conceptualize literacy identities as lived in and through participants' storied lives. Constructions of literacy identity are revealed in participants' histories, stories, and practices and the ways in which they enact and express their literacy identities. Participants' stories are told using a braiding of memoir with narrative ethnography. Each woman's narrative centers on a prominent thread that weaves throughout the fabric of her literacy identity. These threads are then connected across the narratives to reveal how the women were positioned by others, their internalization of or resistance to this positioning, and their own positioning in historical time and space. Findings indicate that participants' literacy identities were rooted in a metaphor of "identity-as-difference" (Moje & Luke, 2009, p.421). Isolation was a common theme, as was the need to affiliate and belong. Participants reported gaining confidence and experiencing a sense of community and belonging. Gender mattered; participants stated that "women understand women." Mothers revealed that their learning influenced and shaped their family literacy practices. According to participants, the WLN offered opportunities to build relationships that helped expand their social networks. Frequent, intense interactions were important in keeping participants connected to the WLN, its coordinators, and each other. Participants framed and reframed their literacy identities, re-positioned themselves in their life roles, and came to revalue themselves as literate beings (K. Goodman, 1996b).

This is an exploratory qualitative study which is an in-depth investigation into the literacy practices of the congregants of the KwaMashu African Gospel Church circuit (Durban). The study focuses on the practices, uses and values that the congregants attach to literacy. The contribution of this study can be summarised by the following three points: 1). The church is a potential domain or institution that can contribute to the eradication of illiteracy and promotion of literacy skills. 2). Literacy seems to be integral in all spheres of life. 3). Literacy is situational or contextual; therefore, formal literacy cannot always be generalized. There are four critical questions posed by the study: 1). What are the literacy practices that the church members engage in? 2). What are the literacy events occurring or identified in the church? 3). How do church members value literacy? 4). How do non-literate church members cope with the literacy demands of church literacy practices? The study aimed at exploring how literacy is used and valued by the members of this church. The data was collected and analysed qualitatively from three categories of participants (leadership, non-literate and literate congregants) who are its members. The study revealed that literacy is used and valued by the congregants. It further revealed that in the literacy events that were studied congregants had a tendency to use orality and literacy mediators. Although these appeared to be coping means for non-literate members, the study revealed that even the literate members sometimes made use of literacy mediators and orality. The study concludes that despite the culture of Pentecostalism (reliance on guidance by Holy Spirit and tendency towards oral practice of religious activities), literacy appears to be integral to and irreplaceable in this church. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2011.

Adult English literacy learners (ELLs) are learners with limited or no formal schooling in their first language who are learning to read and write in English. At present, the limited research surrounding adult ELL instruction does not fully investigate the literacies that learners make use of outside of the classroom in a Canadian context. Through the lens of the New Literacy Studies, this case study examines the variety of print-literacy practices that adult ELLs engage with inside and outside of the classroom, highlights the value of these literacy practices, and emphasizes the importance of connecting out-of-class literacy practices with those occurring in the classroom. Additionally, this study uses learner perspectives to describe out-of-class literacy practices and provides a platform for adult ELLs to discuss their in-class preferences. The findings indicate the necessity of acknowledging prior experiences of ELLs in the classroom and provide implications for in-class instruction and resettlement agencies.

Adult English literacy learners (ELLs) are learners with limited or no formal schooling in their first language who are learning to read and write in English. At present, the limited research surrounding adult ELL instruction does not fully investigate the literacies that learners make use of outside of the classroom in a Canadian context. Through the lens of the New Literacy Studies, this case study examines the variety of print-literacy practices that adult ELLs engage with inside and outside of the classroom, highlights the value of these literacy practices, and emphasizes the importance of connecting out-of-class literacy practices with those occurring in the classroom. Additionally, this study uses learner perspectives to describe out-of-class literacy practices and provides a platform for adult ELLs to discuss their in-class preferences. The findings indicate the necessity of acknowledging prior experiences of ELLs in the classroom and provide implications for in-class instruction and resettlement agencies.