This paper reports part of a larger project investigating the design, production, distribution and use of literacy teaching resources. Popular non-governmental locally and internationally based web-sites for teaching resources were studied in terms of their content, user profiles and interactive features. In the second phase (ongoing) South Australian teachers were surveyed regarding their resource seeking experiences. User profiles of websites and teacher surveys confirm that Australian teachers are active in accessing global digital networks to source resources. When the percentages of users are considered relative to population size, it appears that Australians actively hold quite a large stake in each of the websites explored. At the same time, teachers attest to the importance of local applicability and relevance. Often, teachers elicit a call online for resources which relate to a local context. Seemingly indicative of a move against trends of globalisation, it is interesting to consider that these desires are being expressed through global forums. Based on qualitative survey responses I describe how teachers manage global/local tensions in resourcing through processes of adaptation, combination and contextualisation.
Abstract: