Reflection literacy

Abstract

Reflection literacy (Hasan 2011 [1996]) proposes that literacy education should orient learners towards critique and the creation of new knowledge. It is a vision for literacy education which deserves deeper consideration within the SFL community and beyond. A key component of reflection literacy is argued to be metalinguistic knowledge, which facilitates conscious reflection on meaning. This paper considers one way that reflection literacy might be enacted in elementary classrooms that are ‘tilted towards reflection’, arguing that dispositions of reflection can be developed from the early school years. Evidence is drawn from a series of case studies conducted in Sydney, Australia. Consideration is also given to how Hasan’s proposal might be used to develop future studies in the field.