Literacy as a social practice in Early Childhood and Primary Education (5-7 years): Research and intervention design in children at risk of social exclusion in urban contexts.
ACRONYM: APErtURA
Reference: EDU2017-83967-P
Literacy in urban spaces, in which the population lives in structural situations of poverty and social marginalization, requires a deep knowledge of the literacy practices and events existing in those spaces.
2016 saw the publication of the Poverty in Spain, village by village report, which configures an accurate map of the population at risk of poverty in municipalities with more than 50,000 inhabitants, showing how the Spanish population at risk of poverty is concentrated in the south of the country, with nine of the ten municipalities with the highest rate of population at risk of poverty located in the Autonomous Community of Andalusia. Historical data from 2009 shows the significant percentage growth of the poverty rate in Andalusia, and the difference with the national average.
In light of this data, the APErtURA research project set out to analyze the problem posed by literacy in students of Early Childhood Education (5 years) and Primary Education (6 and 7 years) in centers with a low sociocultural level.
Previous research has not approached the earliest years of formal training in reading and writing, and has always been confined to a school setting. However, literacy events in our society mean that the literacy of schoolchildren does not solely take place within the school, but also in their religious communities, their family homes and their own neighborhoods. (Neuman & Celano, 2001). As for Spanish students aged five to seven, it is unknown what their writing and reading practices are inside and outside of school, and what relationship exists between them. A systematic investigation of these writing and reading practices would be invaluable in describing the communities to which the Early and Primary Education students, their families, and their teachers belong; as well as the interrelations that are established between the various domains.
This project sought to describe the literacy practices of students in domains such as their homes, schools, neighborhoods, or groups of friends. Similarly, it sought to identify and analyze the conflicts generated in the school literacy process between the different local discursive communities, and to find an explanatory model for the low development of literacy in Areas with Social Transformation Needs. In addition, it designed a literacy improvement program and developed guidance and support materials for families and teachers to improve literacy.
The research followed an ethnographic approach with a multiple case study design, represented by students (and their families, friends and teachers) enrolled in two schools in the province of Cádiz and four in the province of Seville, all in Areas with Social Transformation Needs. Data collection was carried out through interviews, participant observation, written documents, photographs and videos.
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