This work provides an analysis of how knowledge is constructed and defined both inside and outside educational institutions, with chapters examining literacies of English, mathematics and science. The book adopts perspectives from the UK, USA, South Africa, India, Brazil and Kenya.

Part 1 Changing the subject boundaries: good science or good art? or both?, Shirley Brice Heath; evolving shared discourse with teachers to promote literacies for learning in South Africa, Alan and Viv Kenyon; mathematics, and its learning, as narrative - a literacy for the 21st century, Leone Burton. Part 2 Literacy practices inside schools, outside schools and in higher education: scientific literacy - a functional construct, Edgar Jenkins; family literacy programmes and home literacy practices, David Barton; enlarging the ways of taking for literary texts, Henrietta Dombey; frames of knowledge, Terezinha Nunes; children's formal and informal school numeracy practices, Dave Baker; how can you discuss alone? - academic literacy in a South African context, Lyn Hewlett; academic literacies, Brian V. Street. Part 3 The role of texts in literacies for learning: an agenda for research on text materials in primary science for second language learners in developing countries, Alan Peacock; focusing on the frames - using comic books to challenge dominant literacies in South Africa, Peter Esterhuysen; book learning - literacy and information, Margaret Meek. Part 4 Questioning dominant canons and practices: dominant and subversive literacy practices - the case for literature, Carol Fox; scientific literacy - whose science? whose literacy?, John Clay; calculating people - origins of numeracy in India and the West, George Gherverrhese Joseph.