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Literacy Reform and Common Core State Standards: Recycling the Autonomous Model
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2014
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EducationNew LiteraciesLiteracy DevelopmentEarly Childhood EducationLiteracy EvaluationChild LiteracyLiteracy ReformPrimary EducationAutonomous ModelAdult LiteracyLiteracy Practice21St Century LiteracyPublic PolicyCurrent StateAdolescent Literacy ProcessesLiteracy LearningEducational LeadershipPublic EducationElementary Literacy ProcessesEarly Childhood LiteracyLiteracyEducation ReformLiteracy TeachingEducation Policy
The Common Core State Standards (2009) currently being adopted by 46 states in the US are the latest in a string of education policy decisions predicated on the autonomous model of literacy (Street, 1984). As such, they focus upon learning outcomes and materials, with little regard for the need to adapting learning to students’ contexts. This article details an account of how the autonomous model attained its current state of prominence, starting with the National Reading Panel’s (National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, 2000) report that defined effective literacy learning, which was a major driving force behind the No Child Left Behind legislation. This article also describes what the model neglects in terms of 21st century literacy and offers suggestions for breaking the cycle of ill-informed, demonstrably ineffective policy decisions facilitated by such an autonomous model.