M2 Blog Post 2 - How New Literacies are Relevant to Us
Upon completing the additional readings for this module, there were multiple statements and points of view that were enlightening and insightful. One of the statements that resonated with me the most was “Powerful literacy instruction should prepare students today to produce, communicate, interpret, and socialize with peers, adults, and the broader world they will enter when they graduate” (International Literacy Association, 2018). As an educator, my primary goal is to prepare students for the world outside of the classroom. It was not too long ago when I graduated from college with hopes that my college prepared me enough for my future career. Something that I have noticed amongst the current student population is their lack of attention towards punctuation and formatting emails. I want my students to be able to properly format and send emails, write professional papers, and communicate their thoughts and perspectives in a manner that shows they have discourse. The Internal Literacy Association does a great job highlighting all of the benefits of having digital forms of literacy in the classroom. But it also points out the limitations to technology. The article states, “technology cannot make school more interesting, engaging, or exciting for students simply by having wireless access or digital screens delivering curriculum” (International Literacy Association, 2018). Part of what makes teaching such an impactful profession is an educator’s ability to make school an engaging and welcoming place. Of course a teacher can “press play” on a Kahoot or a Quizizz, and that will be somewhat stimulating. But I personally believe that when a teacher takes the time and develops a hands-on activity where students are engaged and moving around, it will have a greater effect on students. Teachers have the power to motivate students and engage students in lessons and topics without the use of technology. Technology is a powerful tool, but does not need to be implemented into every lesson. This is something that I will consider as I am constructing future lessons and labs.
I currently work as a high school science teacher. I am always looking for new ways to implement different forms of literacy into my lessons and activities. A couple of the different forms of digital literacy that I have used in my classroom are presentations, lab simulations, and virtual field trips. I feel that it is a teacher’s responsibility to introduce their students to a variety of digital literacy in order to prepare them for the future. In my science classes, students tend to favor presentations. Students collaborate with other students to find and filter useful information found on the internet and ultimately construct a presentation to share with their peers. In Digital Literacy, Vanek states, “Media literacy also takes into account production skills, including production of original content and remix, through which learners contribute to the body of information found online (Bigelow, Vanek, King, & Abdi, 2017; Knobel & Lankshear, 2008).” (2019). Students are constantly engaged with all kinds of media platforms. It is essential for students to know how to find credible sources that contain reputable information and data. Another statement that connects to students navigating the internet is, “Students must have the skills and knowledge necessary to understand where to find information and how to use it to accomplish a predetermined goal or solve a problem using digital media and text, online learning tools, and social media resources (Partnership for 21st Century Learning, 2019; Wyatt, 2018)” (Vanek, 2019). My goal is for my students to learn not only science, but to be versed in multiple kinds of literacies that they will use for the rest of their professional career.
Has anyone else found success with a certain kind of digital activity that engages their students and builds their computer skills?
References
International Literacy Association. (2018). LITERACY LEADERSHIP BRIEF Improving Digital Practices for Literacy, Learning, and Justice More Than Just Tools. https://www.literacyworldwide.org/docs/default-source/where-we-stand/ila-improving-digital-practices-literacy-learning-justice.pdf
Vanek, J. (2019). Digital Literacy. https://www.air.org/sites/default/files/TSTMDigitalLiteracyBrief-508.pdf
I think it is incredibly important you mentioned how students don't seem to take much care to make sure they use correct grammar, punctation and send emails in professional tones. I teach middle schoolers who have access to school emails they can use to email their teachers, counselors or administrators. I have found that there is a severe lack of knowledge about what goes into a professional and appropriate sounding email. I, myself, remember teaching myself how to professionally email my professors when I reached college. I feel as though that is an oversight in current education, as students who aren't attending college may not get the experience of having to articulate their thoughts appropriately and professionally. In almost every job, there is some form of professionalism and mature articulation that is needed, and if we aren't pushing that in schools we are almost certainly setting our kids up to fail.
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