Transformational Literacies and Social Justice

New Literacy Studies and critical approaches to education, offer a potential space for transformation whereby basic skills learners can explore their narratives and society around them. This shifts from a traditional, competency based approach to curriculum design to a culturally relevant, learner driven, and socially empowering model (Freire, 1993; Barton et al 2003; Duckworth, 2013, 14) which takes into consideration the cultural, psychological and educational factors related to the Learners and their lives. Drawing on research from the educational and community-based setting this key note lecture argues that the aforementioned encourages dialogic communication between teachers and literacy learners whereby learners and communities can ask questions, analyse and subsequently work through effective and meaningful strategies to take agency over their lives, enhancing their situation and empowering them and the local and wider communities.