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Lancaster University, 2002
Key findings
- ROWA! has developed a distinctive approach to building
local literacy communities, based on a network of local
coordinators who work hard to get to know and be in known
in their communities and, in return, gain their trust. This
has generated a great deal of warmth and loyalty to ROWA!
as an organisation.
- ROWA!'s success comes from a belief that learning should
be enjoyable. Having fun and the opportunity to socialise
are important factors for those who had negative experiences
at school.
- ROWA! has been effective in forming partnerships and heightening
literacy awareness among agencies and community organisations
that are not involved in education. These partners now see
themselves as part of a community literacy strategy.
- The nature of ROWA! as an independent partnership, led
by a director who in turn is responsible to a board of directors,
had resulted in a flexible and creative approach within
a strategic framework. This has enabled ROWA! to respond
quickly to community learning needs, but equally it has
allowed ROWA! to access new funding streams.
- ROWA! challenges current notions of progression. Its holistic
approach provides learners with a range of entry points
and choices about future activity.
- ROWA! has reached into many individuals' lives in ways
that other agencies, restricted to working within traditional
boundaries, would find much more difficult.
- The future challenge for ROWA! is to consolidate its impressive
community base at a sustainable pace. In doing so, it will
be in a position to respond efficiently, effectively and
creatively to the literacy needs of the communities it serves.
Peter Hannon, Mary Hamilton, Viv Bird and Paul Davies
This report is a case study of a community in which Read
On - Write Away! (ROWA!) has had a strong presence for some
time. Samples of residents and of professionals were interviewed
in order to examine in detail some key issues raised by the
broader evaluation of ROWA undertaken in 2000-2001 (above).
These were: developing a ROWA! programme at a local level;
progression; social inclusion; community empowerment; changed
literacy practices; and inter-agency working.
The study found that the development and effects of the ROWA!
programme were inter-linked with the development of other
services on the Greenhill estate and with general regeneration
and community empowerment activities. This was partly because
the ROWA! coordinator shared the Residents' Association office.
She found that she had to be very proactive in spreading the
word about ROWA!, although word of mouth also played a big
role in the recruitment of new learners.
Courses organised by ROWA! were having a positive effect
on the confidence and literacy skills of adults and children,
and were leading people into more learning, to thinking about
employment when they had not done so before, and to taking
a more active role in their community. Adult learners were
able to use their improved skills in practical ways, for example,
writing and funding bids for courses or attracting other resources
for the estate, or publicising new courses. Some had begun
writing to relatives or reading for pleasure in their spare
time (this included school children who took part in ROWA!
programmes). Some parents commented that it was good for their
children to see the parents learning.
Certain groups of people, notably young men, appeared to
be less impacted by ROWA!, but the programmes did appear to
be affecting the long-term future of the estate, particularly
because of its involvement with the young children who live
there.
For more information visit www.rowa.org.uk
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