Raising Standards in Literacy represents the best current thinking and research about literacy. The book is the outcome of a high-profile series of seminars on raising standards in literacy, and includes contributions from an impressive group of international researchers and policymakers.

By offering a rich and unique mix of contemporary perspectives on literacy education, this book provides an invaluable source of study and insight into the latest research and developments in the teaching of literacy. It includes sections on:

* how research into literacy teaching can inform new approaches found in England, the USA and Australia
* the ways in which literacy education is developing in England, the USA and Australia
* the issues involved in assessing progress in literacy and the validity of research claims made about standards of attainment.

The book celebrates the apparent success of current literacy initiatives at the same time as raising questions about the feasibility and relevance of such initiatives to the literacy co-ordinators and consultants and for all those undertaking further study or research in literacy education.

'This book is a stimulating and important text that is perhaps most suited to academics and policy-makers that to teachers. However, for me its greatest significance lies in the fact that although some chapters attempt to answer questions and define standards in the field of literacy education, they actually only serve to demonstrate what others acknowledge - the complexity of even defining literacy in the modern age, let alone improving it.' - Peter Anstee, Cambridge Journal of Education

Greg Brooks, Ros Fisher, Maureen Lewis