FRAGMENTS OF AN OLD AND CURRENT HISTORY OF LITERACY

The title of this article is faithful both to the contents and to the organization of the text. It uncovers aspects of the history of literacy which are strikingly current: the different ways used to estimate the extent of illiteracy, the roots of the current literacy movement and its division into two networks, and the ideological changes it has survived. The article briefly describes the provincial organization of literacy programmes in order to identify trends and to ask questions concerning organizational practices which may result in the mortgaging of the future of the movement The conclusion sets. forth the following paradox: “the new Canadian Education Act, in principle, allows universal access to literacy programmes, but by forcing these programmes to fit the school system, it risks excluding most of its target population”.