Research Questions

The general overarching question for my study was "what are the literacy-related practices of low-income families and how do the families perceive these practices?" My specific research questions are outlined later in this section. First, I frame this study by posing several questions that force one to think about the lived reality of those residing in low-income circumstances and the meaning that education and literacy might have for them in their lives. I then explore issues related to how the parents in the selected community shape the literacy practices and perceptions of their children, with a view to understanding the sociocultural factors that affect literacy.

The research questions center upon exploring the social world of these children and the ways the children and their parents use the dominant and often transparent codes of mainstream academic discourse in household literacy activities. Parental motivation to become involved in their child's education and what they understand about the concept of participation in relation to educational decisions and decision-making are examined.

I also tried to gain an understanding of teachers' perceptions of the families' funds of knowledge as a resource for curriculum design and children's literacy growth (Moll, Amanti, Neff & Gonzalez, 1992; D. Taylor, 1993). Moll et al(1992) describe funds of knowledge as historically developed and accumulated strategies. These include knowledge of the language, social and discourse norms, and other cultural and linguistic resources of students and their communities, their multiple approaches to literacies, and their ability to solve the daily events of life (D. Taylor, 1997). As well, I look at how schools reflect and reproduce the inequalities of power and privilege of the society at large.