The readings this week talked about scaffolding and the literacies of today. Scaffolding is important when discussing literacy; I remember as a kid how teachers used to walk us through the alphabet letter by letter, and through stories word by word. Over time, they gave us the space to decipher these letters and these words on our own while still providing support. Finally, we reached our goal of learning how to read on our own, entering into the world of literacy (this same process applied to our ability to write).
As we enter into this digital age where the application of literacy has expanded beyond pen and paper to include digital tools and such, scaffolding will continue to be important. And although I've always been a proponent for the "single human agent as the scaffold" approach, I recognize through Tabak's article that we have reached an age where scaffolding can - and most likely should - come from a variety of sources to accommodate a variety of learners. The key is that the scaffolds need to be carefully designed.
Transitioning to the articles specifically talking about literacies...the Leu et al. article frames the skills needed today to successfully navigate the plethora of information and information sources available as "new literacies." I see where they are coming from, however, much like my cohort colleague Bryan Kurnish, I'm not quite on board with this. The idea of literacy has not changed, but rather, the avenues of which we have to gain literacy has diversified.
The Thompson article brings up some great points in this regard. In particular, data interpretation and visualization is probably one of the most important emergences of this digital age. We've had data visualization throughout the years, but more and more it seems to be reaching the point where this is a part of everyday life. And through this data visualization, we are able to make educated guesses of what to do next or what approach to take. This is in education and beyond. So the capability to be literate in the reading, interpretation, synthesis, and analysis of data is increasingly important for everyone and not just researchers.
This is a reason why I did my video project on Google Analytics. I think it is so important for students today to know how to interpret this type of web analytical data. More than likely they will create a blog or website for school or out of school. Knowing how to interpret web analytical data will help them to create the most effective websites to truly communicate the message they are trying to send.
Marcus, I agree with you that data analysis is becoming much more prevalent. Much of the ACT Science section is about that very concept. Students do not need to know much science to score well, they need to be able to read, analyze, and interpret data.
ReplyDeleteI also agree with you that scaffolding has become more than just one adult and a student and that that is a good thing. As I cautioned in my blog, however, we need to be careful that the tools we use have the capability of assessing student growth and have the fluidity to change along with that growth.
Marcus, you make a good point in stating that " literacy has not changed, but rather, the avenues of which we have to gain literacy has diversified". The more things change, the more they stay the same. Scaffol
ReplyDeleteding provided to the those enduring aspects of our education via digital tools that are ever changing is a challenge. The key is to know the difference between the mutable and immutable. As educators we must be mindful that we are not building a bridge to nowhere, over a river that may not exist in the near future, for a fleet of cars that may have wings.
Marcus, I also found the data analysis & visualization portion of our readings really thought provoking. I know that we disagree on the validity of the concept of "new literacies," but I see a trend between the new literacies described in Leu et al. and the concepts described in the Thompson chapter--the need for learners to evaluate and prioritize. When students engage in online reading tasks they are FLOODED with information about the topic they are investigating. They must evaluate the validity, efficacy, and usefulness of material and then prioritize the information they come across as being most important or not important at all. Similarly, as new information visualization technologies emerge, students will have to evaluate the one that is most effective, useful, and relevant. Thompson mentions that "as we develop ever more new modes for expressing our ideas and recording knowledge, the challenge will be figuring out when to use which form. When is text the best way to make a point? When is moving image? Or photos..." (110). I think as teachers, we need to be aware of this growing need to evaluate and prioritize so that we can create learning opportunities that hone those skills.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that scaffolding is important and needs to be carefully designed. When we consider both scaffolding and new literacies-- the avenues of which as you mention have changed/ diversified, it highlights the need to think about scaffolds differently than we have in the past. How can educators deliberately scaffold the learning experience both within the classroom environment (f2f and online), as well as the digital world where the youth interact and build knowledge? Obviously there are no straight answers or right answers. . But asking the right questions might be that first step in that direction..
ReplyDeleteGreat post, Marcus. I really enjoyed reading your take on scaffolding. At least we can all agree that scaffolds should be carefully designed, and probably individualized.
ReplyDeleteNow, literacies. Can we really still define literacy in the same way as 100 years ago, when it has evolved to include so many new ideas? I'm glad that you bring up Google Analytics, because data interpretation is a great example of this. You are completely right that this is a skill that today's students will need, and isn't data interpretation simply making sense out of numbers and words? To me, that seems like a new aspect of literacy that needs to be added to our evolving definition. Alli already mentioned support for this idea in Thompson, and the necessity for learners to evaluate a huge amount of material for relevance and validity. Sounds like literacy to me...