Definition of Terms

There has been no meeting of the minds in the literature on the definitions of literacy and related terms. Not surprising, this lack of agreement has led to tension among literacy practitioners and scholars revolving around this controversy. Graff (1987), a literacy scholar and historian, argues that there is no accepted definition of literacy and the subject is therefore highly over-rated. He believes that rather than encouraging rational thinking, literacy simply serves the purpose of preparing individuals for the workforce. Raymond (1982) describes "one of the most puzzling paradoxes in contemporary education [as the] inability of literate people to agree about the nature and value of literacy" (p.2). While the word literacy slips easily into conversations, it is seldom used by speakers in the same way. Therefore, defining what it means to be literate defies consensus and may vary depending on the context.

A deficit discourse views "illiteracy" as the problem and its proponents believe that the simple solution for illiteracy is to offer more literacy. This explanation is based on faulty assumptions about language, literacy and learning, which overlook the invisible wider societal factors (Pellegrini, 1991). For the purposes of this research, the definition of literacy goes beyond the traditional limited meaning pertaining only to the ability to read and write. This will be elaborated in the next section, followed by definitions of literacy practices and literacy events, family literacy and family literacy programs, and then a few other selected terms used in this research.