The readings for this week concern how we reconcile
digital literacies in a critical manner in the classroom and how to teach in a
way that pairs discipline literacy with socially just content. We teach
students in a different manner than what I remember growing up. As we’ve
advanced up in academia, our access to technology has expanded our access to
information and literacies. Also, we’ve seen a shift in focus on socially and
culturally liberal views that emphasize “justness.” Both the implementation of
critical digital literacies and socially just content are important, although
there are challenges associated with both.
When I
was reading the first reading for the weak, there was one quote that stood out
to me. “Critical digital literacies offer chances for students and teachers to
become designers (Kress, 2010), instead of only consumers of powerful texts
(Gounari, 2009; Janks, 2010) – one of its ultimate goals.” There may be
hesitation on the part of administrators to implement critical digital
literacies because they are often under pressure to get results. And if not
properly administered or overseen, then critical digital literacies can go in a
number of different directions. I think one of the biggest reasons why critical
digital literacies aren’t utilized in classes is because they challenge the
traditional relationships in the classroom, the identity of the classroom, and
the type of instruction. Education can be very resistive to change. Another factor
to take into account is that digital literacies can expand access to education
to underrepresented communities who have traditionally lacked access. The
problem, however, is that digital literacies can be more expensive than
traditional literacies.
Critical
pedagogy looks at the relationship between the educator and the students and
the power the educator has over the student. Digital literacies blur this
relationship and this power. Research has shown that in critical digital
literacies the learner will actually outpace the teacher or even have more
background knowledge of the content (Avila & Pandya 2013). Naturally, it
makes sense for us to expand digital literacies to all students. One of the
ways that educators have done this is through blogs. So, our class is already
doing something right. I was fortunate enough to go to school in well-funded
school districts that had the money and resources to acquire the technology
necessary for these digital literacies. It wasn’t until high school that they
were used in a critical manner. We need to teach students from an early age to
question things and not wait until high school. On the other hand, students in
underfunded school districts face the opposite. So how do educators handle this
challenge when digital literacies are more beneficial, but can be inaccessible
to them?
One
thing that stood out to me from the Moje reading was the following.
“Such teaching (culturally responsive teaching) also
recognizes that needs and interests are always mediated by memberships in many
different groups of people and by activities engaged in many different times,
spaces, and relationships. However, the cultural knowledge and practices of
some students—most often, students of color, English language learners and
recent arrivals to the United States, or students from low-income homes and
communities— are often unrecognized or dismissed in
teaching practice.”
We’re going to be dealing
with a diverse group of students when we become teachers. Not everyone is going
to get that well-paying job in the suburbs where many of the students are
white. We want to teach culturally responsive curriculum, but not everyone is
the focus of our attention. As the quote says, minority students and ESL
students and poorer students are overlooked. That makes me think that the
target for culturally responsive teaching is white students. While it’s good
that they receive culturally responsive teaching, it’s at the expense of other
groups of students, yet another inequality of the education system. Should we
focus our efforts on one groups of students who need more help or all students
who may not need the help?
Thanks for sharing! Digital literacy are changing the way teachers and students engage with reading. They are giving more authority to students, “opening up the classroom landscape so that there is room for multiple paths to knowledge.” For teachers this is very exciting to because it promotes reading. However, it comes with some potential challenges. Digital literacies breaks the traditional model of literacy instruction. This is the idea that a teacher identifies a text gives it to their students, they read it and answer questions on it. Students miss the opportunity for inquiry based learning and the ability autonomy. These digital texts act as a tool for students, allowing them to become experts on the topic. Students can find similar texts, look up words and images, respond to others through blogs and commentary sections. Digital literacy shifts the knowledge heavily onto the student and allows them to be apart of a community sharing our their own thoughts and ideas. With this new autonomy, teachers have to model where to to find these digital text that are reliable and relevant. Other skills include determining bias and fact checking sources. In the traditional model of literacy the students are given texts that the teacher deems worthy of learning. Also, digital literacy, breaks the norm of where learning can take place. With guidance and proper modeling students can navigate the internet on their own outside of school.
ReplyDeleteThe most interesting part of the Pandya reading is the overall theme that digital literacies are “disruptive by design”. This made me question what she truly meant by this. They are changing the narrative of learning in the classroom. There are giving teachers the opportunity to break the mold of telling only the dominant narrative. Teachers can create curriculum that meet the interests of their students with digital literacies. Reading can be an authentic experience that isn’t just found in a book. I hope to bring these same practices to my classroom so that I can get my students excited about reading.
Thanks for your comments, it's the comment that I've read over the most. For my post, I kind of regurgitated the information and didn't really critically question it. But your comments took the words out of my mouth and I agree with what you have to say. There's so many benefits of digital literacies and an equal amount of disadvantages. It's up to the instructor to guide students so they aren't misguided.
DeleteThank you for your opinions. I think you are right regarding the reasons that critical digital literacies are not utilized in most of the classes. And I think it is reasonable, especially for the teenagers who are in the middle and high schools. In the classroom setting, teachers as educators, their modeling roles should be very clear in front of the students, which does not mean their power has to be over the students that students can not argue with them. The traditional type of instruction is one of the important parts of the school educational system. And I totally agree with you that students should be taught on how to question things at their early age because, in this way, stereotype could be avoided.
ReplyDeleteThank you for posting. I agree with Patrick's above-mentioned comment about Pandya's reading that called digital literacies disruptive by design. I think this does a disservice to the importance of technological incorporation. Technology can be disruptive at times which is why teachers need to carefully regulate the use of technology. Technology does help though because it provides students a whole list of opportunities of new ideas as well as the ability to take charge of their education.
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing your opinion. I very much agreed when you stated that some teachers are weary of incorporating into the classroom because it challenges the type of environment that is reflected in a traditional classroom. Yet, educators should overcome this fear and take into account the plethora of benefits that come when they use technology in their lessons. Especially working with diverse learning students because there are many educational programs that aid the student’s learning as well as the teacher’s.
ReplyDeleteWe must be willing to take risks in education. Not everything will work, but it's worth the effort to try something.
DeleteThank you for your sharing.The answer I give you is that we should.We should focus our effort on a group students who need more help. I didn’t experience many racial relevant problems. But I did experience some teachers would divide students into “good” and “bad” just based on the grades. Even though I was regard as “good” I still hate this. Because for those who are regarded as “good student”, they are easily get jealous by the other students. That gonna destroys the relationships between students.And for those students who are regarded as “bad students “,they may just give up on themselves. Actually, I don’t think grade is the only way to see how this student is. Because each student is unique and has his or her own characteristics. What we should do as teachers is to respect every students just like the way they treat us.
ReplyDeleteGood post. I think digital literacy is definitely a critical skill for our society moving forward. I don't think technology should get a blanket approval though. It was sensationalized that the invention of radio was going to revolutionize education. It did not fulfill those promises (not that it was worthless for education, however). TV had the same claims, but in the end there was minimal impact from TV as the main form of education (it is why we don't [or at least shouldn't] have all students only watching TV the entire time at school). Directed interaction and discourse are important for strengthening learning. Computers and the internet have more to offer than radio and TV, and can certainly offer new ways of interacting and acquiring information, but with how many mediocre software suites and glitchy technology, and profit driven businesses conducting profit driven research to market their claims, it is easy to never see those sensationalist claims we first heard about. I say all this as a note of caution. I am not dismissing the articles, their research, or their claims. I think all teachers need to actively pursue utilizing technology (in a socially just way) to aid and bolster their own teaching whenever possible.
ReplyDeleteI appreciate how you point out that technological literacy is important in all classrooms, but it can become even more important that we incorporate it in high need or low income schools, because technological literacy is important for everyone, so it is important that we include it in our classrooms, because if students are not given the opportunity to learn it they will enter the career field behind their peers and that is not fair.
ReplyDeleteThat was the thing that stood out to me the most in the reading. Not everyone has the same opportunities, and how we distribute them is unequal. We must make the most of what we have.
DeleteThanks for you post. I'd like to add on to what you've said about how digital literacy can allow the students to become the experts. I agree with you that the school system might be resistant to this shake-up of who has what knowledge. This fear and resistance speaks to a much larger truth of how schools can be agents of reinforcing old power structures. By keeping digital literacy out of classrooms, a school is maintaining the status quo that the student should know less than the teacher. In my opinion, this should never be the case, in terms of digital literacy or any other area. Especially when we're talking about adolescents, it's important that they feel smart and valued. By dismissing digital literacy, schools are telling them that their strengths do not matter.
ReplyDeleteThanks for posting. Your point about educators being hesitant to embrace teaching digital critical literacy because there is a focus on "getting results" is interesting. I found that issue of not having measurable results in both Pandya and in Moje's chapter when he discusses Cultural Navigation perspectives. I appreciate that he makes a call out to researchers (himself included) that if "this perspective has the most power for developing the literacy skills and subject-matter learning of marginalized youth, then those of us who work from this perspective need to find ways to document the effects of Cultural Navigation practices." Do you think that research on digital critical literacy should also seek to show measurable improvement?
ReplyDeleteThank you for your post this week. I was struck by your assertion that the target of culturally responsive teaching is white students and I am not sure that I understood your point clearly. It is undeniable that the traditional curriculum of our schools has repeatedly overlooked, marginalized, and oppressed students of color, emerging bilinguals, and all communities that don't fall within the boundaries of white middle-class culture. Traditionally our curriculum has been culturally relevant only to those of the dominant culture - however if that practice is perpetuated, culpability lies with the teacher. At the end of the day, it is the teacher's choice whether to invite or exclude diversity into the curriculum. Even within the bounds of a school that serves a community of the dominant culture, it is essential to expose students to cultural intersections. Particularly in monocultural environments, we have a great responsibility to present varying perspectives and varying ways of knowing so that we can actively combat bigotry and promote empathy.
ReplyDeleteI think the perfect answer to question is from the end of the Moje reading, "In this case, teaching with integrity involves developing secondary school subject-matter pedagogy that is socially just in its provision of opportunities to learn how to make sense of and produce the texts of different subject areas and teaches social justice as teachers guide youth in critiquing, challenging, and constructing knowledge in those disciplines and in everyday life." We must focus on teaching the subject in a matter that allows students to be able to connect with their daily lives. As you suggest our white students are the ones who connect the most. We must make sure all students can connect. This means bringing in the other types of students and focusing on making sure their needs are met. -Kiley
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing Nate.
ReplyDeleteTo answer your question, I think it goes along with the idea of equality vs equity. Yes, it is clear that in the United States, there is little to no representation in the populations you mentioned. I do not think it is a matter of making the content relatable, but rather a quesiton of good environment and reassuring students of a great and safe teaching environment.
Now, to add on the comment you said about education being resistant to change, I would actually go on to say it is quite the opposite. There have been strides in education, such as the idea of a reverse classroom. COMPLETELY against the traditional classroom setting, and since it is a relatively new idea, there is not that much research on it to show it being effective. I do not know of many other methods in other courses since the reverse classroom I have mainly seen in a math course. I think in order for their to be true change in the education realm, perhaps we must look at our European counterparts, such as Finland who has some very radical, and different approaches to education.
Thanks for your post Nate. I thought some of your points were quite interesting. There has been such a shift from content to application. Throughout many of my observations, I see as well that many students are not learning in the same way that I was only 5 years ago. Information is irrelevant when its abundance and access in excess. This is a blessing and a curse so that students are not required to be bogged down with arbitrary knowledge. Rather, they are encouraged to learn how to learn and apply. I think this is absolutely fantastic. They are encouraged to innovate and to be the developer of their own knowledge base and new information. These are some pretty cool trends in the world of education.
ReplyDeleteI appreciate the reflection regarding your experience and the use of technology in the class because I wasn't in favor of technology use in the classroom as a student in high school and I have my doubts especially as a teacher. However, as a college I know I use or have had to use my tech for either following a reading provided online or needing to research a topic for an in-class activity. It works in that environment because its at a different level compared to high school. Either way, it all comes to funding and prioritizing the use of money for the needs of the students which may be different for different schools.
ReplyDelete