The Project is supported by the BLK Programme FörMig

(for info in German on FörMig activities in Hamburg click here)

The "Family Literacy" pilot project in Hamburg started with the beginning of the school year 2004/2005. It aims at enhancing the literacy skills of both parents and children of migrant background. The focus is on supporting parents with regard to their basic competence in the field of education, especially their ability to support the written language skills acquisition of their children at home. An additional objective of the project is to provide training to teachers and educators in their work with children with poor reading and writing skills. The overall aim here is to intensify the co-operation between the home and the school or kindergarden.

Family-oriented literacy aims at linking the elements from the following areas:
- parents’ education
- pre-school and primary school education
- teacher training

The intergenerational and systemic character helps to bundle the synergies and to achieve better results than each of the three components offers separately (Nickel 2001).

The project will develop as a co-operation between an international research Institute (UIE) and a teacher training institute at regional level (LI). After the evaluation of the two-year pilot project it should be expanded and tested in Hamburg and introduced into the training of teachers, social educators and other pedagogical personnel with the perspective of putting it into practice in other German “Länder”. The exchange with other similar projects in Hamburg, Germany and worldwide is an important element of the project. UIE co-ordinates a Grundtvig 2 Learning Partnership on family literacy ("QualiFLY).

Background

The lack of experience with language and writing in pre-school education is regarded as one of the most significant risk factors for the written language skills acquisition (PISA). Everyday use of writing in a family considerably supports children in realizing the function and the utility value of writing. It is a fundamental prerequisite for the prevention of functional illiteracy.

As a result of the broad public debate on education in Germany which followed the publication of the PISA results, public awareness for the relevance of basic education and "literacy" has increased. It is necessary to develop new concepts, especially concepts improving the cooperation between schools and parents of migrant background.

Long-standing projects in other countries (England, Israel, the Netherlands, Turkey, USA) offer valuable orientation possibilities for developing corresponding innovative concepts in Germany. The concept of the British “Basic Skills Agency” focusses on the support of language and literacy skills in pre-school and primary school education. Up to now in Germany there is still little experience with such concepts.

Objectives of the project

The two-year pilot project started in the school year 2004/2005 in nine locations (seven schools and two kindergardens) in socially disadvantaged districts of Hamburg, involving the parents of the 5-year-old pre-school children. The work continues in the second year, when the children have entered school, to give further support to the initial phase of the written language skills acquisition in school and at home (school year 2005/2006).

In the practical implementation the "Family Literacy" concept is based on three pillars for two generations that work with each other. The curriculum developed for the project comprises the parallel work with parents and children and joint activities involving both parents and children. The emphasize is on the improvement of the language and literacy skills taking into account personality and action-oriented concepts. 

The project will be evaluated by the Department for Quality Assurance of the Institute for Teacher Training and School Development. The Basic Skills Agency, London, is a consultant to the project. The project is part of the BLK Programme FörMig and supported by the German “Bund-Länder-Commission for Educational Planning and Research Promotion”.

Further Information:

Project Documentation (in English and German)
List of Participating Schools and Kindergartens in Hamburg
Bibliography
“QualiFLY”: European Project on the Quality in Family Literacy

Contact:

UNESCO Institute for Education
Maren Elfert
Feldbrunnenstr. 58
20148 Hamburg
Germany
Tel.: +49-40-44 80 41-40
Fax: +49-40-410 77 23
E-mail: m.elfert@unesco.org

Institute for Teacher Training and Curriculum Development
(Landesinstitut für Lehrerbildung und Schulentwicklung)
Dr. Gabriele Rabkin
Felix-Dahn-Str. 3
20357 Hamburg
Germany
Tel.: +49-40-42801-2304
Fax: +49-40-42801-2799
E-mail: gabriele.rabkin@li-hamburg.de

Programmträger FÖRMIG:
Universität Hamburg
Institut für International und Interkulturell Vergleichende Erziehungswissenschaft
Binderstraße 22
20146 Hamburg
BLK-Programm Förmig
Von-Melle-Park 8
20146 Hamburg
e-mail: foermig@erzwiss.uni-hamburg.de
www.blk-foermig.uni-hamburg.de