Digital literacy is continuously growing in society and throughout children’s and adult’s lives. The fast changes that we see in our society are not a new observation, but has been occurring throughout History. Whether that be children changing from writing on wood to slate many centuries ago, or from children writing on pen and paper to using computers and mobile phones nowadays as recognised in The 21st Century Fluency Project.
Teachers need to recognise and adapt to these constant changes so children are able to learn what influences them most later in life. Some aspects of digital media started off as mere communication between peers such as blogs, mobile phones, video calling and social networking. However these forms of communication are being used more and more in companies, the workforce and for educational purposes. It also brings many opportunities for individuals. For example, children may be discussing their feelings about a particular topic and could very easily find many other responses to develop their awareness and broaden their thinking at a click of the button. This is something I would particularly like to develop as a student teacher and in my future teaching career. If I continue working with the children and using these digital media forms, it will increase their knowledge of the world and may help those low achievers get involved and progress more in a particular subject because 90% of learning we recall after it happening comes from being taught a concept applied to real time, a real world task or a simulation (Dale in The 21st Century Fluency Project).
Teachers need to care about and be able to teach digital literacy because the children need to learn how to be adaptable in the real world and later in life. It is no good dismissing the need to teach digital medias which is the view of some that was apparent in The 21st Century Literacy Project because children may never have the opportunity to use these media forms. All children need to be prepared for the future and by recognising what is happening in the present and being able to use this is the most effective way.
The 21st Century Fluency Project Understanding Digital Kids 2
I agree that teachers need to keep up to date with current technology. It is really important that we have the means to teach children in medias they will experience in their social and domestic lives, particularly as they progress to secondary school. In my own experience, children have been much more enthusiastic about using computers and voice recorders than reading books and other traditional formats. Also, children appear to take pride in the fact they know how to work all of the latest technology. However, as discovered through the week 1 readings, some teachers feel uncomfortable teaching through technology as the children are more likely to be more competent in using it, having grown up with it. Changing attitudes towards using technology in the classroom as well as confidence should be addressed - children could miss out on all kinds of opportunities.
ReplyDelete