What Counts as Literacy?

I would argue that anything that requires the ability to read and write should count as literacy, whether it be on the Internet, or in the more traditional sense with books. In the 21st century it is just as important to be literate in the new media landscape as it is to be proficient with books and other print mediums. In order to be a productive member of society you need to be literate in online communication such as email, as well as be able to access and understand digital content. As Zachary Sims pointed out in Rich's article, "the internet is more about a conversation, books are more one-way." I think this is a pretty profound statement for a high school student and it highlights the importance of the changes we are seeing in new literacies. While I am in no way diminishing the value of reading books, they cannot provide the same kind of interaction, or conversation that the Web can. To be literate with the Web means you are able to engage with peers, or scholars, on any number of topics allowing you to have a back and forth that is more conducive to learning than the traditional method of reading a book independently. To weigh other peoples opinion and analysis is an important skill for life, and one that the Web can help foster in young people. As critics like Donald J. Leu have pointed out "Web readers are persistently weak at judging whether information is trustworthy," which highlights the importance of teaching our students how to evaluate verifiable sources. I don't, however think that this negates the importance of the new media landscape and it's importance, but instead is an obstacle that can be overcome. 

As our world becomes more and more digital, we need to make sure that we are preparing our students with the tools necessary to be fluent in digital literacies. The value of such is integral to success, on both a social and professional level. Never before has so much been done on the Web in both realms of life, and the more proficient you are the more possibility for success. As a special ed teacher who works with Dyslexic students, I feel as though Shaywitz's piece about the importance of the web for struggling readers is especially important. As new forms of communication continue to emerge and evolve, the playing field becomes more level, and those who struggle with learning disabilities, especially language based ones, now can use the web as a tool to compensate for their difficulties. Never before has it been so easy to find information on the web, and if you are someone who would struggles to get through pages of text to find important information you can now find a way around that through key word searches in Google and other engines.

Finally, it is our job as educators to help our students be competent with the ever evolving world of new literacies. As Michael L. Kamil, professor of education as Stanford said, "students are going to grow up having to be highly competent on the internet. There's no reason to make them discover how to be highly competent if we can teach them." When used incorrectly the web can be a dangerous tool, but with the right guidance and education we can teach our students to tap into the infinite information and benefits that the web has to offer those on their academic journey. 

New literacies as a social practice 9/17/15

Having grown up at the beginning of the “internet era” I remember a time before instant gratification. While I certainly had access to online resources from about the time I was in middle school, the internet, and digital literacies were not engrained in education like it is today. For the most part, I remember using hard copies of text throughout high school, and no teacher expected that students utilize the internet to compile information, or even submit assignments. By the time I arrived at college in 2005 the paradigm had certainly began to shift and by the time I graduated in 2009, the Web 2.0 was becoming a staple of education at both the secondary, and post-secondary level. I mention this because I am grateful for the opportunity to have been able to live, at least part of my life, during the era before new literacies and technologic fluency began to dominate education. The experience allowed me to be more intentional and careful when learning, and I was not tempted by the instant gratification that seems to plague our society today. What strikes me most when working with my students, and trying to actively promote “Education 2.0” is how careless they can be with technology, and despite the internet being a hugely powerful tool, how often they use it incorrectly. I would argue that because they are not always careful, their misuse of the internet further inhibits their literacy on multiple levels. That said, I do recognize “that there can be different literacies in different domains of life” (Gillen and Barton, 2010, p. 9). While many of my students may have trouble accessing and utilizing online information correctly, they are certainly more literate when it comes to navigating new technology, and becoming familiar with operating systems.

“In a rapidly developing technological environment, it is often not possible for the teacher to be the possessor of all knowledge…run up against this issue common in an environment where technological development is fast-paced and initially at least, demands knowledge and skills beyond which all teachers have” (Gillen and Barton, 2010, p. 21). I find this to be a fascinating issue and one, which speaks to digital literacies in realms beyond the education model. As technology continues to exponentially improve, how do we has humans hope to understand it all when once we feel literate with one technology, another comes along rendering the former obsolete? The challenge for educators seems even more pertinent: how do we was teachers begin to shift from being masters to facilitators, and “what are the consequences for pedagogic practices when: (iii) well-tried approaches to assessment become less appropriate to digital literacies?” (Gillen and Barton, 2010, p. 20). I’m not sure exactly how to begin to answer these profound questions, but I believe if those of us who began our journey before digital literacies exploded in the Web 2.0 era have anything to contribute to the conversation it’s a reminder to slow down, be deliberate, and mindful that instant gratification is not always the best, or most logical approach.