抄録
The purpose of this paper is to explore the concept of functional literacy and changes in its meaning, for the period from the 1950s when it was introduced into UNESCO's literacy strategy to the mid-1970s, by analyzing the relevant UNESCO documents. A while after W. S. Gray advocated the concept, "functional literacy" became the central concept that formed UNESCO's literacy strategy. Gray defined the concept as the knowledge and skills in reading and writing which enable one to engage effectively in various activities in their daily life. After introduced into UNESCO's strategy, the scope of reading and writing activities linked to functional literacy narrowed to one connected with various aspects of development, and then to one connected with economic development, and vocational and technical training in particular. Functional literacy tends to be seen as utilitarian and decontextualized literacy which merely adapt people to existing society. However, the fact that functional literacy used to be linked to people's recreation, critical reading, participation in society, and becoming active agents to build a better society, and that it emphasized the needs and contexts of people and community concerned, shows the great potentiality of the concept.
