| In North America, research on the issues surrounding first language (L1) literacy, English literacy, and computer literacy has tended to focus on the learning needs of either adult literacy learners whose L1 is English or ESL learners who are literate in their L1. ESL Literacy adults, who have limited or no L1 or English (L2) literacy, have fallen in the gap created by language policy and the resulting language programs and services provided at the federal, state/provincial, and local levels. This study explores what ESL Literacy adults believe their needs are in relation to L1, English, and computer literacy. The context is the existing ESL programs at two schools in the metro area of a large U.S. city in Massachusetts. Participants across the two schools included 19 females and 2 males with limited or no literacy in their first language and in English: five students were enrolled at a school that offered computer literacy as part of its curriculum. In a mixed methods research design, participants were administered a pre-class questionnaire and then a post-class questionnaire to determine if their attitudes and opinions regarding their L1, English (L2), and computer literacy needs had changed after 12 weeks of ESL instruction. The results were triangulated with interview and observation data and revealed that ESL Literacy adults at both schools considered computer literacy to be a basic tool for survival in today's digital society. The intent is that the results may be used as guidelines by ESL educators and program administrators in the modification of existing curricula or in the development of new ESL Literacy curricula that incorporate reading and writing through the use of computers and the internet in an authentic way. |
