ABSTRACT
The development of good writing and critical thinking skills have been important issues of the educational excellence reform movement which has now emerged nationally. The socio-cultural perspective of learning is one which recognizes that learning is enhanced when it occurs in contexts which are both socio-culturally and linguistically meaningful for the learner. Schooling practices which contribute to their academic vulnerability and which dramatize the lack of fit between the students' experiences reflect a monolithic culture transmitted by the schools in the forms of pedagogy, curricula, instruction, classroom configuration and language. Ignoring the socio-cultural context of literacy acquisition has also further complicated the schooling of the language minority child. The teachers coordinated in various ways the students' interactions with content. This diversity of instruction was evident in the different social arrangements for learning. Culturally sensitive theories of cognition have continued to underscore the significant role of culture and social context in literacy acquisition and learning styles.
