Research Advisory Committee on Emerging Literacy and Family Literacy in French

In 2004, FCAF (The Canadian Federation for French Literacy) created the Research Advisory Committee on Emerging Literacy in French. The committee's activities fit into the research focus of FCAF's global action plan in family literacy. The creation of this committee is the next logical step to the many activities taken on by FCAF -a network of experts in family literacy and emerging literacy.

The members of the Research Committee on Emerging Literacy and Family Literacy are representatives from various backgrounds:

• Three representatives from the Francophone Literacy Network
• One representative from the Canadian Language and Literacy Research Network
• One representative from the Canadian Institute for Research on Linguistic Minorities
• Representatives of federal ministries and programs linked to literacy: Human Resources and Skills Development Canada, and the National Literacy Secretariat.
• Researchers from different federal ministries: Statistics Canada, Canadian Heritage, Social Development Canada, Health Canada, Justice Canada, etc.
• University researchers from different regions and disciplines.
• The director of development from FCAF (Federation canadienne pour l'alphabetisation en francais)

The length of the mandate

• The length of the Research Advisory Committee's mandate is two years. The mandate is renewable. The first mandate began on February 3^rd, 2004.

Responsibilities of the Committee

The members of the advisory committee are responsible for advising FCAF in:

1. The development of research topics in collaboration with researchers from different sectors (university, governmental, etc.) and fields of research (economics, psychology, sociology, statistics, etc.) along with representatives of the community.
2. The training and support of the research teams according to the following themes:
   • Family dynamics, identity and language
   • Literacy
   • The factors that affect literacy and the choice of language.
   • Emerging literacy skills among preschool aged children.
   • Intervention programs in family literacy
   • Family-scholastic relations
   • Tools that support emerging literacy and the training to use these tools
3. Establishing links with educational structures (Canadian Association for French Language Education, The National Commission for Francophone Parents, etc.) along with research organizations and other institutions that are interested in aspects related to family literacy. The goal is to exchange information and to assure the complementary nature of the actions taken.
4. The identification of probable sources of funding for research in family literacy in order to verify who is funding what. It should be connected to other research that does not directly deal with family literacy, but could be a component of family literacy (in support of direct research).
5. The exchange of knowledge and information between researchers and interveners that work in family literacy and emerging literacy. In fact, they should favour the transfer of research to professionals that take part in fields that closely or distantly relate to family literacy.

Finally, the Research Advisory Committee will advise FCAF (The Canadian Federation for French Literacy), the Canadian Institute for Research on Linguistic Minorities (CIRLM) and The Canadian Language and Literacy Research Network on the issues of minority francophone communities related to emerging literacy and family literacy.

The meetings

• The Research Advisory Committee will meet in person, twice a year in Ottawa, during the duration of its mandate. The committee will also have teleconferences. Il will develop according to need, tools, and an electronic distribution list in order to assure a continuous exchange of information.

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LAST MODIFIED: July 06 2004 15:42:39