Cognitive and psycholinguistic skills of adults who are functionally illiterate: Current state of research and implications for adult education

Eme, Elsa

doi:10.1002/acp.1746

Cited by 36 publications

(31 citation statements)

References 51 publications

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“…ESL learners with low print literacy also depart from native speakers (NS) of English with low literacy (Eme, 2011) in that they need to practice speaking and listening to English as a new language as well as reading and writing. In this respect, the pre-or low-literate students in ESL classes are primarily immigrants who recently arrived in the Anglosphere and whose background of L1 illiteracy may result from a number of reasons: one's schooling might be severely disrupted before entering the host country, or one's ethnic group might traditionally prefer oral language performances such as stories or poems to literacy, compared to the prevailing "chirographic culture" in most developed countries (Ong, 1988, p. 2).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Teacher repair in a second language class for low-literate adults

Park

2015

Linguistics and Education

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Teacher repair in a second language class for low-literate adults

Park

2015

Linguistics and Education

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“…Although they received instructions in reading and writing, they left school with literacy skills that are at least three to four years below the expected level of performance [34]. As a result, they can use written language only to a very limited extent; they are unable to read and understand even short sentences [35]. A recent survey concludes that there are about 7.5 million functional illiterates in Germany (14.5% of the adult population [36]).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Training-related changes in early visual processing of functionally illiterate adults: evidence from event-related brain potentials

Boltzmann

Rüsseler

2013

BMC Neurosci

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BackgroundEvent-related brain potentials (ERPs) were used to investigate training-related changes in fast visual word recognition of functionally illiterate adults. Analyses focused on the left-lateralized occipito-temporal N170, which represents the earliest processing of visual word forms. Event-related brain potentials were recorded from 20 functional illiterates receiving intensive literacy training for adults, 10 functional illiterates not participating in the training and 14 regular readers while they read words, pseudowords or viewed symbol strings. Subjects were required to press a button whenever a stimulus was immediately repeated.ResultsAttending intensive literacy training was associated with improvements in reading and writing skills and with an increase of the word-related N170 amplitude. For untrained functional illiterates and regular readers no changes in literacy skills or N170 amplitude were observed.ConclusionsResults of the present study suggest that the word-related N170 can still be modulated in adulthood as a result of the improvements in literacy skills.

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“…The researchers have found a relationship between functional illiteracy and disorders of cognition; especially, if they are in children coming from poor environments (Eme 2011, Greenberg et al 1997, Greenberg, Ehri 2002. Neurological disorders have been also considered (Korte 2007, pp.…”

Section: Causes Of Functional Illiteracymentioning

confidence: 99%

The Phenomenon of Functional Illiteracy in the Light of Empirical Studies

Przybylska

2018

PBE

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The aim of the article is to throw light on the phenomenon of contemporary functional illiteracy in the countries of the prosperous West. According to the international comparative studies and the ones conducted in several Western European countries, this phenomenon affects a great population of adults who fulfilled schooling obligation in childhood. The range of illiteracy has contributed to making literacy a significant political and educational issue and scrutinizing the problem of functional illiteracy by the scientists. The article outlines some of the threads interesting to the illiteracy researchers in German and English language areas. These are issues connected with conceptualisation of illiteracy phenomenon, its causes and results, and the problems of learning of adult illiterates. The contemporary concepts of literacy and programs focused on improving literacy skills emphasize "dispersion" of literacy practices, their embedding in individuals' localness and subjectivity. This questions all the attempts of imposing universal standards and the only right language patterns. Individuals' needs within the scope of the ability to read and write are highly particularized; they depend on life situations, needs and interests of individuals. With regard to the reasons for illiteracy, there is a conviction dominating in the scientific milieu that they are rooted mainly in social and economic poverty as well as improper socialization in family and school, although other "dysfunctional contexts" are noticed in illiterate people's lives. What is more, the effects of illiteracy cannot be generalized. Admittedly, functional illiteracy carries risk of social exclusion, still, it does not affect all people with low literacy skills. With regard to teaching and learning of illiterates, there is consistency concerning compliance with the principle of

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Cognitive and psycholinguistic skills of adults who are functionally illiterate: Current state of research and implications for adult education

Cited by 36 publications

References 51 publications

Teacher repair in a second language class for low-literate adults

Teacher repair in a second language class for low-literate adults

Training-related changes in early visual processing of functionally illiterate adults: evidence from event-related brain potentials

The Phenomenon of Functional Illiteracy in the Light of Empirical Studies

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