Changing Literacies

Chapter 4: 

"The printing press heralded an information revolution that drew from and enabled other social, cultural and political change. It was a technology of its time. A growing segment of the public were able to access information in volumes and types never previously imagined, challenging the traditional authority of the church and scholars."

I chose the above quote from Chapter 4 because it draws parallels between the technology of the printing press and the emerging technologies that we are experiencing now, and how it is challenging to adapt to these new modes of learning. At the time when the printing press was invented, it was very advanced and opened an entirely new world of literacy to the public. Just as this happened with the printing press, it is happening to our society now: we are continually being introduced to new and innovative technologies. How we choose to adapt and accept the new ways of learning is what is important.

Chapter 5: 

"We now realize that to read online texts in a critical way, one needs to see them as more than free-standing, isolated constructs to be deciphered in the same way as paper-based texts (Penrod, 2007; Richardson, 2006). Blogs need to be read and understood as part of a whole wider network of texts whose process of publishing makes a difference to the way they mean and the role they play in society (Lankshear and Knobel, 2006a)."


I found this quote to be very interesting because it is often difficult to be a critical reader if you do not look at the larger picture of where the information has come from. Information, especially on the internet, comes from so many different informational outlets that it can be very extensive and cover many different perspectives. I also connected with what they mentioned about reading blogs, and understanding that blogs are part of a large network of texts almost working together. I found this to be very important because just as in this class, my blog is only one point of view based on a common text that we are all reading, and reading critically at that.

Chapter 6: 

"The idea that digital technology might help to motivate reluctant learners and provide more meaningful contexts for literacy has captured the attention of an increasing number of educators (Merchant, 2007b)."

I really enjoyed this quote because I think it is very important to engage at-risk learners as much as possible. At this day in age I feel like students really have a comfort zone with technology. They are comfortable navigating, creating, and constructing on the internet, which enables them to learn.  I have always felt that being comfortable in the classroom was a necessity for learning, and if the technology makes these students feel like they are doing something that they are good at and comfortable with when they're using technology, they are more likely to succeed.

References: 

Carrington, Professor Victoria; Robinson, Professor Muriel (2012-06-30). Digital Literacies: Social Learning and Classroom Practices (Published in association with the UKLA) (Kindle Locations 1481-1483, 1811-1814, 2073-2074). SAGE Publications. Kindle Edition.