Everyday literacy practices in remote rural communities in PNG: a case study of Fergusson Island

Since gaining independence from Australia in 1975, Papua New Guinea (PNG) has experienced major social, economic, political and educational changes, many of which have been accelerated by the influences of globalization. Within this context of rapid change, literacy has been an interest of international organizations keen to help PNG. Such organizations have emphasized the nation’s poor literacy rates. In particular, they have described many of the people living in remote rural communities as ‘illiterate’. Yet little is known about what the people living in these communities can actually do with literacy; the focus has always been on what they cannot do. The study described in this thesis aimed to fill this gap. The study drew on theoretical perspectives offered by the field of Literacy Studies, which analyses literacy practices within the social and cultural contexts in which they occur. In particular, it drew on Street’s notion of literacy as social practice and Barton and Hamilton’s notion of everyday literacy practices. In addition, it drew on Blommaert’s elaboration of grassroots literacy and Freebody and Luke’s Four Resource Model. Integral to all these ways of thinking about literacy is the importance of context, history and power. An ethnographically oriented qualitative case study approach was employed to explore how people living in the rural communities of Fergusson Island, Milne Bay Province, engage with literacy in their everyday lives. Participants were recruited from among people located at Salamo station, the economic center of the island, and two near-by villages. The data were generated using observations, group and individual interviews, conversations, photographs and written texts produced by some of the participants. The data were analyzed using methods derived from the theoretical ideas listed above. The findings revealed that the participants used reading and writing in six domains: government, church, school, market, gardens and personal lives. Reading and writing were evident in their everyday literacy practices. People read and wrote in both English and vernacular languages. They used functional grassroots literacy as they strived for economic gains amid the poverty of life in the remote rural communities of PNG. Their literacy practices were adequate for simple written communication in English and Dobu, the local language, but were less effective in settings beyond their villages where far more complex literacies were required for effective social and economic participation. By documenting the everyday literacy practices of people living in these remote areas of PNG, an under-researched context, the study contributes to perspectives on literacy in developing nations similar to PNG. Developers and organizations in the developing world are concerned about the literacy levels of rural communities and they often measure the levels through adult literacy enrolments in formal school systems of schools. The findings of this study suggest the value of paying attention to what people can already do in their everyday lives as a foundation upon which to develop their literacy capabilities further

Everyday literacy practices in remote rural communities in PNG: a case study of Fergusson Island

Since gaining independence from Australia in 1975, Papua New Guinea (PNG) has experienced major social, economic, political and educational changes, many of which have been accelerated by the influences of globalization. Within this context of rapid change, literacy has been an interest of international organizations keen to help PNG. Such organizations have emphasized the nation’s poor literacy rates. In particular, they have described many of the people living in remote rural communities as ‘illiterate’. Yet little is known about what the people living in these communities can actually do with literacy; the focus has always been on what they cannot do. The study described in this thesis aimed to fill this gap. The study drew on theoretical perspectives offered by the field of Literacy Studies, which analyses literacy practices within the social and cultural contexts in which they occur. In particular, it drew on Street’s notion of literacy as social practice and Barton and Hamilton’s notion of everyday literacy practices. In addition, it drew on Blommaert’s elaboration of grassroots literacy and Freebody and Luke’s Four Resource Model. Integral to all these ways of thinking about literacy is the importance of context, history and power. An ethnographically oriented qualitative case study approach was employed to explore how people living in the rural communities of Fergusson Island, Milne Bay Province, engage with literacy in their everyday lives. Participants were recruited from among people located at Salamo station, the economic center of the island, and two near-by villages. The data were generated using observations, group and individual interviews, conversations, photographs and written texts produced by some of the participants. The data were analyzed using methods derived from the theoretical ideas listed above. The findings revealed that the participants used reading and writing in six domains: government, church, school, market, gardens and personal lives. Reading and writing were evident in their everyday literacy practices. People read and wrote in both English and vernacular languages. They used functional grassroots literacy as they strived for economic gains amid the poverty of life in the remote rural communities of PNG. Their literacy practices were adequate for simple written communication in English and Dobu, the local language, but were less effective in settings beyond their villages where far more complex literacies were required for effective social and economic participation. By documenting the everyday literacy practices of people living in these remote areas of PNG, an under-researched context, the study contributes to perspectives on literacy in developing nations similar to PNG. Developers and organizations in the developing world are concerned about the literacy levels of rural communities and they often measure the levels through adult literacy enrolments in formal school systems of schools. The findings of this study suggest the value of paying attention to what people can already do in their everyday lives as a foundation upon which to develop their literacy capabilities further