Abstract The article (1) discusses the varied and changing concepts of literacy and English. It is argued that these changes have implications for the place of literacy in the New Zealand Curriculum. Literacy and literacies must be more explicitly addressed at all levels of the curriculum and within all curriculum areas. Reference is also made to how literacy is addressed in the curriculum documents of some other English-speaking countries. Introduction In this, the first decade of the 21st century, it is evident that we live in very different times from a generation ago--and, indeed, even a decade ago, when the current New Zealand curriculum for was developed. In these new times of globalisation, increased communication through information technology, greater intra- and inter-national communication, and an increasingly skills-driven society, high levels of literacy are demanded of all citizens. In such a society, what should be the place of literacy in the curriculum'? Should literacy be a focus of the curriculum statements:? If so, should it be a focus at all levels of the curriculum, or just the early levels, and should be the focus for the upper levels? Is literacy the responsibility of just teachers, or do all teachers have a responsibility for literacy learning? For that matter, what is English, and what is its relationship to literacy? Or should we be talking about literacies? These questions have been challenging the educators who are currently engaged in reviewing the New Zealand curriculum framework, particularly the curriculum. Debates about the relationship between and literacy, and concerns about literacy levels, have been common in countries where is an official language, such as Australia, England, Singapore, and Canada, for the last two decades; see Literacy for All in Australia (Department of Education, Training and Youth Affairs, 1998), the Literacy Task Force Report (1997) in England and Wales, and the no child left behind legislation (2001) in the United States. While concerns were expressed in New Zealand about the roles of literacy and the subject of in the early and mid-1990s, it was not until the late 1990s that these came into sharp focus (Ministry of Education, 1999a). The concerns were largely as a result of international assessment data that showed wide disparities in outcomes for specific groups of students--in particular, Maori and Pasifika students. As a result, literacy achievement has contributed to the anxiety over curriculum emphases and has become a crucial education goal. Higher student achievement in literacy is a key policy priority for New Zealand, as it is for a number of other English-speaking countries. The tension in the relationship between the subject of and literacy arises in part because, as Luke (2004) states, English education has reached a crucial moment in its history ... because of changing demographics, cultural knowledges, and practices of economic globalization (p. 85). The debate is further complicated because of the range of interpretations of what the subject of is, and what it is for, as well as multiple conceptualisations of literacy, and what is involved in becoming literate. For some, it seems that and literacy are almost interchangeable; for others, they are distinguishable fields of learning. Is a study of the language of English-speaking people, or is it literary studies'? Is it communication studies, or is it a specific set of skills that should he acquired within a wider context of learning? Should the curriculum be an curriculum, a language curriculum, a literacy curriculum, a literacies curriculum, or a communication curriculum'? Should it be all of these? At a time when the structure and content of the New Zealand curriculum are being reviewed, and educators are establishing a design for the future (Kress, 1995, p. …