Low Print Literacy and Its Representation in Research and Policy

ABSTRACT

This paper constitutes an edited transcript of two online panels, conducted with four scholars whose complementary expertise regarding print literacy and migration offers a thought-provoking and innovative window on the representation of print literacy in applied linguistic research and in migration policy. The panel members are experts on language policy, literacy, proficiency and human capital research. Together, they address a range of interrelated matters: the constructs of language proficiency and literacy (with significant implication for assessment), the idea of literacy as human capital or as a human right, the urgent need for policy literacy among applied linguists, and the responsibility of applied linguistics in the literacy debate.

Acknowledgments

We are indebted and very grateful to Constant Leung, who inspired us to write this paper and supported us with feedback and though-provoking comments along the way.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.