Words for Life
Jonathan Douglas
Director
The National Literacy Trust
Where are we now…?
• The new National Curriculum has reemphasised the importance of attitudes and
behaviours around reading and literacy
• The Curriculum has embedded a rich model of
reading and writing requiring at KS2 a deep
understanding of authorial intention, inferential
reading and the creation and reception of
meaning
• SPAG is not going away, neither is phonics
screening
But…
• What on earth will the Level Descriptors for English look
like?
• What is the relationship between Teacher Assessment
and testing?
• What will the new commission on life after levels say?
• How will the new “middle tier” – academy sponsors,
regional school commissioners and Ofsted Regional
Directors - impact on literacy practice?
• What does the EEF think actually works?
• Will the General Election make any difference?
www.literacytrust.org.uk
Literacy a ladder out of poverty
Reduction in reliance on state benefits
– An increase in literacy cuts the likelihood of
reliance on benefits from 19% to 6%
Less likely to own your own home
– A modest rise in literacy level sees the
likelihood of a man owning their own house
rise from 40% to 78%.
But poor literacy means you are
More likely to live in a non-working household
– 22% of men and 30% of women with literacy below entry level 2
live in nonworking households.
Less likely to have children
– Individuals with low levels of literacy are more likely to lead
solitary lives without any children.
More likely to live in overcrowded housing
– Individuals with low literacy levels are more likely to live in
overcrowded housing with reduced access to technology.
More likely to experience divorce
– A literate family is less likely to experience divorce, as divorce
rates amongst those with high literacy are low, and significantly
lower than those with poor literacy skills.
Attitudes and behaviours matter as
well as skills
“Enjoyment of reading has a greater impact on
a child’s educational achievement than their
parents’ socio-economic status.”
OECD Reading for change 2002, 2009
“Overall, young people who enjoy reading very
much are nearly five times as likely to read at
the expected level for their age compared with
young people who do not enjoy reading at all.”
Children’s and Young People’s Reading Today,
2012
Reading – KS2 at level 4
1998
2003
Boys
75%
82%
Girls
82%
87%
Enjoying Reading at Year 6
1998
2003
Boys
70%
55%
Girls
85%
75%
Source: Sainsbury & Schagen 2004
Literacy behaviours in the home are vital
• Impact size of home learning environment about 3
times that of high quality early education
• Critical time for language development, 0-2yrs
• Poor home learning environment and/or poor
group care in first two years creates learning lag
that makes catch up difficult (but not impossible)
• Early language efficacy strongly co-related with
literacy skills throughout education
11
By the age of 4
• Professional children had 50 million
words addressed to them
• Working class children had 30 million
• Welfare children had 12 million
Research in the States has
demonstrated that early
language and communication
patterns are the foundation of
the early literacy/poverty gap
Professional children by the age of 4 have
bigger vocabulary than welfare parents
By the age 10, differences fully reflected in
school achievement
Meaningful differences in everyday
experiences of young
American children (1995) Betty Hart &
Todd Risley
www.literacytrust.org.uk
Geography matters
So we need an approach that
tackles
• Skills – new ways to support literacy teaching
and learning in schools and settings
• Attitudes – promotions and partnerships which
grow the demand for literacy and reading skills
in schools and the community
• Behaviour – a campaign to change behaviour,
especially in families
• A place-based approach – local leadership,
focus and capacity needed
An ecological model
The child
The family
Friends and peers
School life
The wider community
Wider social influencers
Community services
The policy context
A local literacy campaign
• Engages families and supports behaviour
change
• Works through and with local cultural and
community partners
• Uses media and other partnerships to
make literacy attractive and relevant and a
priority for everyone
• Supports schools and settings with
resources, skills and partnerships
www.literacytrust.org.uk
Peterborough Literacy Campaign
Focus areas
• Early years work
supporting families
• Transition from Key Stage
1 to 2
• Transition from primary to
secondary school
Hub Manager:
Sally Atkinson
sally.atkinson@literacytrust.org.uk
01733 863726
www.literacytrust.org.uk
What does this look like?
What does this look like?
• Launch event was attended by the Mayor, Lord Mawhinney and the key local authority partners.
• Love Peterborough poetry competition launched with local celebrity judges Warwick Davis and
Mark Grist. In partnership with Stagecoach.
Local author Guy Bass on a
story telling tour of schools
Kyle Vassell (Peterborough United
striker) at Leighton Primary School
Partnerships across our Hubs
Media partners
Brand and community partners
www.literacytrust.org.uk
What can you do?
• Activate your National Literacy Trust Network Membership
• Apply for the school library makeover!
• Contact sally.atkinson@literacytrust.org.uk for news and to
pass on your ideas
• Create your own projects and activities to engage parents
and partners to get Peterborough Reading
• Include a commitment to the campaign as a mechanism to
raise literacy in your school development plan
• When you celebrate reading and literacy use the logo
“Why I read” - Richard Peck
"I read because one life isn't enough, and in the page of a
book I can be anybody;
I read because the words that build the story become mine,
to build my life;
I read not for happy endings but for new beginnings; I'm
just beginning myself, and I wouldn't mind a map;
I read because I have friends who don't, and young though
they are, they're beginning to run out of material;
I read because every journey begins at the library, and it's
time for me to start packing;
I read because one of these days I'm going to get out of
this town, and I'm going to go everywhere and meet
everybody, and I want to be ready."
Thank you!
Follow @jdliteracytrust and @literacy_trust
on Twitter
Befriend National Literacy Trust on Facebook
Jonathan.douglas@literacytrust.org.uk
www.literacytrust.org.uk