"The distinctive contribution of the approach to literacy as social practice lies in the ways in which it involves careful and sensitive attention to what people do with texts, how they make sense of them and use them to further their own purposes in their own learning lives" (Gillen and Barton, 2010, p.9).
This statement could not be more relevant than it is in our time. "Education at all levels faces great challenges in the face of rapid change. Indeed, we are in a period that could be characterized as fruitful turbulence in education as digital technologies create new social, cultural as well as cognitive affordances"(Gillen and Barton, 2010, p.10) We, as Educators, strive to facilitate learning environments for our students that will prepare them to think critically, problem-solve, seek new information, and apply knowledge to new applications--in short, prepare them for jobs and life situations that may not yet exist. This requires multiple literacies, including digital and technological literacy.
I have spent the entirety of my career in the field of Early Childhood Education--mainly preschool and Toddler-aged children. The use of technology in the classroom, the limitation of screen time, and the value of new media has long been debated in ECE professional communities, and professional development activities. The lines are almost visible in the sand between proponents and opponents. I am transitioning into an administrative role in my facility, and will soon be called upon to articulate my policy in this area, and stand on this subject. I am truly embarking on this course of study with intentions of gleaning as much input from others to help me formulate my own position, more fully.
Already, I have seen how the use of technology can open doors for different learning styles of students. The access to information is immediate and gratifying--School-agers in our after-school program have a wide-variety of information and reference materials at their fingertips. This makes finding information on a given topic more rewarding. The use of blogs and social-media make networking possibilities and story-telling exponentially greater than ever before. "The uses of technology have a two-fold advantage: they can promote the types of literacy traditionally encouraged, as well as the digital fluency needed to prosper in the digital age"(Huffaker, D., 2005, p.93) I have personally found the access to teaching ideas, journal articles, and professional forums has been a huge plus, as well.
The most important part of the opening quotation is that of "careful and sensitive attention" (Gillen and Barton, 2010, p. 9) As responsible educators, we must approach every facet of the learning environments we prepare armed with knowledge, information, research, and best-practices. This includes open-mindedness to new literacies and their potential, as well as the commitment to life-long learning on our part. "If learning is to be efficacious, then what a child does now as a learner must be connected in meaningful and motivated ways" (Knobel, M., and Lankshear, C., 2011, p.207)
Gillen, J.&Barton, D. (2010, January). Digital Literacies: A Research Briefing by the Technology Enhanced learning phase of the Teaching and Learning Research Programme. Economic and Social Research Council. Retrieved from: http://eprints.lancs.ac.uk
Huffaker, D. (2005). The educated blogger: using weblogs to promote literacy in the classroom. AACE Journal, 13(2), p.91-98
Knobel, M. and Lankshear, C. (2011) Literacies: Social, cultural and historical perspectives. New York: Peter Lang
Virginia-
ReplyDelete"We, as Educators, strive to facilitate learning environments for our students that will prepare them to think critically, problem-solve, seek new information, and apply knowledge to new applications--in short, prepare them for jobs and life situations that may not yet exist."
I agree with you that it is important, actually essential, to provide our students with the skills to succeed in the present time as well the times that lie ahead. Look at a doctor's office- secretaries use computers almost exclusively for their jobs and nurses and physician's assistants are intaking information on computers or iPads. We must be fluent in these technologies.
I am beginning to appreciate more the fact that my district has provided Chromebooks to each and every student in a recent technology initiative. While there is an added piece of classroom management for students who may misuse or misplace their Chromebooks, it is incredibly powerful that students have access to this technology and use cloud-based technology to collaborate on the web.