New Literacy's Reflection

The definition of literacy no longer means just being able to read, write, and regurgitate. Instead, today’s digital-based society requires that participants be able to manipulate, maneuver, and manage numerous sources of information simultaneously in order to construct new meanings (Eagleton & Dobler, 2007). For the classroom, this means implementing New Literacy Perspectives: how to generate questions/problem statements, conduct inquiries, synthesize resources, and share information (Laureate, 2009) to better equip students and educators for transition into the 21st century workforce.

I experienced an “ah-ha” moment when I read Jukes and Macdonald’s 21st Century Fluency Skills list and it occurred to me that just simply utilizing technology in the classroom was not synonymous with teaching 21st century skills. Instead, technology provides a platform by “facilitating the analytical and critical thinking and collaboration championed in the constructivist approach to education” (Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, & Malenoski, 2007). Teaching students how to use digital devices and their various applications is only a fraction of the skills needed to become web literate. These components are only stepping-stones students “…will need to work with information in all forms to fashion productions that have value, that entertain and teach” (Jukes & Macdonald, 2007).

Like myself, my students tend to do well on an individual basis but struggle to complete tasks when group dynamics are involved. Dr. Leu emphasizes that the development of global communication has made socioculturalism an imperative step in the acquisition of new literacy skills (Leu, Kinzer, Coiro, Cammack, 2004). Knowledge gained relating to stimulating social interaction in my classroom illustrated for me the importance of student engage in collaborative partnerships in both traditional tasks as well as digital-based ones. Utilizing VoiceThread (VoiceThread.com), for example, would be an age appropriate way for me to incorporate new literacy skills and promote social interaction in my classroom. Students can share ideas and thoughts not just within the confines of the classroom but also on a more global level.

In the coming school year, I would like to engage in professional develop using a new multimedia strategy called scrapblog. This” …enables students to create media-rich scrapbooks for the Web that they can share with others and receive feedback” (Oliver, 2008). I will seek out professional development on local and regional levels as well as online collaborations. Working knowledge of applications like BubbleShare (bubbleshare.com), Weebly (weebly.com) Quimble (quimble.com) will enable me to help students actively engage in setting up and participating in our class blog site. By personalizing this project with content that directly pertain to them, my students will be more apt to stay involved and continue to develop skills they can post as achievements.

Additional, I will seek out professional develop that focuses on teaching online etiquette and safety. Since I am on my district’s STEM committee, this will give me the opportunity to build relationships and make connections with other professionals and share my gained knowledge with the staff at my school. The Internet is a potent force that brings about the best and worst of society. Its endless avenues provide outlets for individuals to research, publish, and create within a few clicks of a button. As students discover this world, we as educators need to impress upon them gravity of staying safe, responsible and ethical online (2009).

The needs of the 21st century learner are vastly different from those of previous generations (Jukes & Macdonald, 2007). "We have passed from a smokestack age which was information lean to an age of info-glut and info-garbage" (Coiro, 2003). Therefore, today's students need to become "healthy skeptic[s]" (2007) in order to develop the necessary skills to become articulate and ethical users and producers of online information.

References
Coiro, J. L. (2003). Rethinking comprehension strategies to better prepare students for critically evaluating content on the Internet. New England Reading Association Journal, 39(2), 29–34.

Eagleton, M. B., & Dobler, E. (2007). Reading the Web: Strategies for
Internet inquiry. New York: The Guilford Press.

Jukes, I. (2007). 21st century fluency skills: Attributes of a 21st century learner. Retrieved from http://www.committedsardine.com/handouts/twca.pdf

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009). Program 4. Teaching Online Literacy Skills. [Educational video]. Baltimore: Author.

Leu, D. J., Kinzer, C. K., Coiro, J. L., & Cammack, D. W. (2004). Toward a
Theory of New Literacies Emerging from the Internet and other Information and Communication Technologies. Theoretical Models and Processes of Reading (5th ed.), 1570–1613. http://sylvan.live.ecollege.com

Oliver, K. (2008, May). Media magic. Learning & Leading with Technology,
35(7), 33–33.

Pitler, H., Hubbell, E.R., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using
Technology with Classroom Instruction that Works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.