The thought provoking papers in this volume address some of the key aspects of the literacy debate from the perspective of a language based theory of learning. The contributions range from the theoretical to the practical and from everyday development of language at home to the workplace. Featured here are papers which interpret literacy demands on students across the secondary curriculum, by authors who are working in and around Martin's 'genre-based' movement, as well as those which present alternative perspectives. Contributors include Geoff Williams, Ruqaiya Hasan, Theo van Leeuwen, Sally Humphrey, Clare Painter, Joan Rothery, J.R. Martin, Anne Cranny-Francis, Robert Veel, Caroline Coffin, Mary Rose Macken, Allan Luke and M.A.K. Halliday. The unifying theme throughout this volume is placed on the relevance of language in understanding literacy education as a significant social practice.