Teaching Critical Reading in Australia

Abstract

This paper examines the impact of and particular problems with teaching critical reading, by focusing on education for critical literacy in Australia. In particular, the paper examines the theory of critical literacy, how the theory is being introduced into the state school syllabus, and how each school organizes its literacy curriculum accordingly. Teaching critical literacy can be defined as the practice of interrogating our recognition of legitimate meanings and our understanding of the political functions of a language. In that sense, critical literacy cannot be considered as being a thinking skill, but rather a political practice. According to the state school syllabus and a school unit in Queensland, teachers and students can develop their critical literacy by reflecting on the politics of language and commonsense. This style of teaching critical reading has some impact on Japanese education, because the educational system tends to avoid political issues. However, the ways in which teachers organize critical literacy in their classrooms remain an area of concern to be discussed. This paper argues that we should explore philosophical and practical approaches to discovering how students can gain access to literacy practices based on their own histories and experiences.