In this fast paced technological society in which we live, it is no surprise that the focus of reading specialists has now extended way beyond that of reading and writing. These skills are now referred to as traditional literacies.
New literacies also called 21st. century literacies have emerged as a result of our learners becoming more and more digitally inclined. Some of these literacies are:
· Computer literacy: the ability to use a computer.
· Digital literacy: the ability to communicate with a constantly expanding society.
· Information literacy: the ability to obtain, evaluate and judge information that is found (Lewis, 2009).
· Media literacy: the ability to obtain, evaluate and create messages in a variety of forms (Sylvester and Greenidge, 2009).
· Technological literacy: the ability to use a wide range of technology in learning (Sylvester and Greenidge, 2009)
As reading educators, we cannot ignore them. We must be informed about the skills our learners need to master, in order for us to prepare them for life and work in the future. Knowing these literacies would help us to properly plan for our learners in terms of the content, teaching strategies, resources as well as the assessment procedures.
In classrooms where these skills are being developed the children are actively involved in learning via Web 2.0 tools, e-books, digital storytelling, instant messaging and so on. They are using computers, printers, scanners, digital cameras and iPods. They are being trained to think critically, analyze and create. These are the kind of learning environment we ought to strive for where our learners are concerned.
Let’s put these literacies onto our schema and make a conscious effort to include them in our planning in the future.
References
Lewis, G. (2009). Bringing technology into the classroom. Oxford:Oxford University Press.
Sylvester, R. & Greenidge, W.( 2009). Digital Storytelling: Extending the Potential for Struggling Writers. The Reading Teacher, 63(4), p.284-295
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