This reader provides an accessible collection of readings which illustrate both the current variation in research on language and literacy and the common underlying themes. It is made up of twenty chapters, of which eight have been specially commissioned. Together they illustrate some of the ways in which researchers are grappling with key questions about language, literacy and education.

The reader is organized around four key themes: Talk and the Processes of Teaching and Learning; Literacy and Education; Discourse and Identity; Multimodal Communication. As a collection, it
* Explores both theory and empirical research
* Illustrates a range of educational contexts, including mainstream schooling, English as a foreign language, sign bilingual deaf education, and indigenous community learning
* Focuses on informal contexts such as the home, the playground, local communities
* Considers diverse participants, including children and adults, bilingual and monolingual learners.

This insightful compilation by experts of research into many aspects of language will be of relevance to anyone interested in language and education including students of language and literacy, teachers in mainstream primary and secondary classrooms, teachers of English as a foreign or an additional language, teacher trainers and lecturers in English.

The reader is required reading for the Open University course: Language and Literacy in a Changing World (E844) which forms part of an MA in Education and MA in Education/Applied Linguistics.

The companion volume is ANALYSING LANGUAGE IN CONTEXT: A STUDENT WORKBOOK by Theresa Lillis and Carolyn McKinney (ISBN 1 85856 287 2)