Family and intergenerational learning and literacy policies: A dozen questions to guide critical policy analysis

• In Event: Educational Policy and Social Change

Proposal

Introduction

This paper offers a framework for creating, revising, or analyzing policies related to family and intergenerational learning and literacy (FILL) internationally. The paper will define key terms, describe the core components of critical policy analysis, and offer guiding questions to inform FILL policy, accompanied by international examples illustrating each topic. To our knowledge, this is the first academic work on international FILL policies.

Key Terms

Family literacy denotes both the ways that families use literacy in their daily lives and programmatic efforts to nurture learning and literacy (Lynch & Prins, 2022). Here, we focus on projects, initiatives, programs, or other intentional efforts to assist parents (caregivers)–and their surrounding community–in supporting children’s language and literacy learning and educational success.
Countries often use synonyms to denote programs and policies pertaining to family literacy. The paper will include examples of related terms (e.g., parent education, parental/family involvement/engagement/participation in children’s learning/education).

Critical Policy Analysis and Its Relevance for International FILL

In this paper, we view policy as a continuous process, from the moment the text is conceptualized to the moment it is enacted in a classroom or project. We draw on critical policy analysis (CPA). CPA examines the intended and unintended consequences of policy, and analysts might ask questions about whose practices are considered best practices and under what conditions are these practices most likely to occur (Steiner-Khamsi, 2014). The following topics are useful for guiding CPA (Diem et al., 2014): differences between the policy and practice, values and assumptions embedded in the problem addressed by policy, whose voices are included or excluded, policy’s potential to reduce inequities, and the role of marginalized groups and/or target audiences in shaping policy.

Questions and Considerations to Guide FILL Policy Analysis

Policy Content

1) Does a FILL policy exist? If so, is there a single FILL policy or are there multiple policies that pertain to FILL? Which government unit or units oversee FILL?

FILL components (early childhood education, parent education, adult education, parental involvement in education) are often present in policies across ministries or sectors such as early childhood or primary education, adult education, employment, health and human services.

2) What roles do federal (central) government and local (state, departmental, provincial) governments play in creating and overseeing FILL policies?

Different levels of government play distinct roles in establishing and implementing FILL policies and providing funding. It is crucial to examine what authority states and localities have in implementing policies established by central government.

3) What does the FILL policy cover or include?

Policies vary in their specificity, what they cover (e.g., programming, funding, program content requirements, performance measures, goals), and mechanisms of implementation and enforcement.

4) Who is the policy (and government-funded FILL programming) intended to serve?

Policies may focus on the general population or on groups that are marginalized because of family income, formal education, geographic location, caste, tribe, migration status, language, or other factors. Policy makers should determine how to serve families with the greatest educational needs.

5) How is FILL funded, if at all?

Public funding from federal, state, or local governments may exist, but usually programs must secure funding from additional sources (e.g., private foundations, non-governmental organizations, fundraisers, private contributions).

6) Who is implementing the policy? How are FILL programs staffed and what kind of background and training do employees have or need to have? What kinds of opportunities exist for professional development?

Policies determine who can provide FILL programs and how they are staffed. Staff quality and their ongoing professional development affect program quality.

7) What are the requirements for evaluating programs and demonstrating their outcomes and benefits? How can you ensure that a wide range of family goals and outcomes are included, not just employment?

Evaluation is complex because FILL programs vary widely, they engender myriad benefits and outcomes, and outcomes may not appear until after program exit (Carpentieri, 2013). Consequently, the simplistic, short-term evaluations that many funders require seldom align with multi-faceted FILL programs.

8) Is the policy culturally and linguistically appropriate?

Since family literacy programming originated in the USA and is primarily practiced in high-income, English-speaking countries (USA, UK, Canada), one must examine whether FILL policies in other countries are tailored to their distinctive conditions, needs, and sociocultural practices.

9) How can policy makers and practitioners make FILL provision a property of the community and responsibility of the government?

Mainstream approaches to FILL often hold parents (mothers) responsible for educating young children. Instead, policy makers should consider how to create conditions that enable children and their caregivers to learn, pursue education, and sustain literacy practices.

Policymaking Process

10) Which groups or stakeholders are (should be) involved in creating and refining FILL policy? Who is missing?

Anyone who is affected by, or has relevant knowledge about, the policy and its implementation is a stakeholder—including staff and participants. We suggest different scales (national, regional, local, site-specific); offer stakeholder examples (e.g., education providers; parent organizations); and emphasize including those with the least power.

11) What mechanisms exist for stakeholders–particularly program administrators and staff who implement FILL programs–to inform the creation or revision of FILL policy?

Governments use many methods to elicit feedback on policy (e.g., public comment periods, advisory groups or boards, expert panels, participatory planning activities [Schafft & Greenwood, 2003]). Policy-making opportunities must be genuine, substantive, and deliberative, and accommodate people with literacy difficulties.

12) How are nonstate actors involved in shaping FILL policies?

Nonstate actors, particularly corporations and private foundations, wield enormous power in international education (Monkman, 2022). Their involvement raises concerns about equity, transparency, and who has the power to shape FILL policymaking and programming.

Conclusion

This paper elucidates how policies might be used to help FILL initiatives and families flourish around the world. Following CPA, we emphasize the need to scrutinize the values and assumptions embedded in policy documents and implementation, the (un)intended consequences of policy, which groups are included or excluded, and how the intended participants can play a substantive role in shaping the policies and programs intended to benefit them.

Authors

• Esther SUSANA Prins, Pennsylvania State University

• Alexis Taylor Cherewka, Pennsylvania State University

• Carol Clymer, Penn State College of Education

• Rakhat Zholdoshalieva, UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning