Languages and literacy

Abstract

As the first of three chapters with a cross-curricular focus this chapter explores the place of language and literacy in the curriculum. The chapter begins with an account of the English language internationally. This is followed by reflections on the nature of spoken language, particularly in relation to multilingualism. These two sections that reveal linguistic diversity are followed by a set of linguistic principles that are used to underpin the interdisciplinary accounts of research on reading and writing in the chapter. The fascinating variations in the language requirements in the curricula of Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales are analysed, particularly in relation to their general organisation, and the ways that talk, reading and writing are represented. The chapter concludes by arguing that linguistic diversity and pupils' rights and voices should be two central organising features of language curricula.