By: Kristen Pandise
As educators, we want to provide our students with the best
possible learning experiences. It is our goal to have the lessons we teach
extend beyond the classroom, prepare our students for the future, and have our
students become literate and active members of society. While this sounds like something that can be
achieved in a short amount of time, it is something that takes time to
cultivate and develop within our students.
In our society today, there is a huge increase in technology
being used in the classroom. While this is only going to aid our students in
the future, solely focusing on using every aspect of technology may hinder the
process of our students becoming multiliterate. A student that is multiliterate
is someone who is socially and cognitively literate with live, electronic, and
paper texts. Further, students that are multiliterate are tactical
problem-solvers; they are able to evolve their knowledge based on a strategy
that best fits with the situation. If students are only socially and
cognitively literate with electronic texts, they will struggle to become
multiliterate. Students will only know how to solve problems using technology,
instead of using other textual modes. Only using technology poses a threat to a
student becoming multilterate because, multiliteracy also requires students to
be critically literate. With an increase in technology, there is also an
increase in the chances that students can be manipulated or swayed by the
information that they read. If they are only familiar with using technology,
they will not be able to examine live and paper texts in order to become
critically literate. Is there such a thing as too much technology when it comes
to developing multiliterate students?
I like how you emphasized the need for our students to use their multiliteracies in order to be problem solvers in the future. Yes, technology in today's classrooms and beyond is important, but the ability to interact with varied types of texts are what will allow this next generation to foster those higher order thinking skills to approach problem solving as critical thinkers.
ReplyDeleteToday, I am feeling the frustration of a student who can not do something for the first time. I am required by a teacher to do something I haven’t done before. I am required to learn. Sometimes, learning is hard. Although I get frustrated because I have to do something twice, or in my case, for a third time. I’m having difficulties navigating through a new literary sea. As an adult, I feel like I can be considered somewhat multiliterate, but it is clear that I still have a lot to learn.
ReplyDeleteI liken my struggle to that of a student who works primarily with the electronic texts. It doesn’t have the same instant change if you need to find more information or the “flash” of a screen. It is quiet and thought provoking. Electronic texts can be the same way, and so can a traditional text, but they have to learn to see it in that way. I’m about to try this for the third time. I had reach into my background knowledge that I’m familiar with in order to navigate this new territory. I'll remember this the next time my students have to learn something new.
I couldn’t agree more Kristen. It is so easy in this day in age where technology and digital applications are so prominent and popular to start to lean on these resources too much, especially in the classroom. By relying purely on tech based literacies we are doing our students a disservice and we need to make sure that they are literate in a multitude of ways including talk and paper texts. Technology and electronic texts are certainly important, but student literacy should not stop there.
ReplyDeleteAs educators we need to mold our students into well round literate people. They are our future after all. As you stated, they need to understand paper texts, digital media, and human interaction. We sure have a lot to teach!! :)
ReplyDeleteI wonder when technology will fully take over the classroom. I feel like we still need to teach the basics of literacy and students should not fully relay on technology. They need to know how to spell without spell check, write out full words and not speak or write in short hand. Students also need to know how to pick up a actually book and read it and turn the pages. I hope in my teaching career technology will not fully take over because I still will aways want to teach the basics.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree that in order for our students to be multi literate they need to be able to problem solve without technology. With yesterday's storm, it makes me think, can people continue their daily lives without some of the technologies that we get so used to? If not, are they able to adapt their routines with their knowledge of the world? We need to make sure our students are problem solvers in all different aspects of literacy and media in order to be well-rounded people!
ReplyDeleteKristen, I completely agree that as teachers we must be sure our students are multiliterate. Children today have never known a world without a laptop or cell phone, and some have never entered a classroom that did not have a SMART board. Teachers must enable students to be able to function if these various forms of technology were not accessible. For example, students must still be able to write a properly punctuated paper with proper spelling without relying on spell check on a laptop. Students must be able to go to a library and find a book that contains needed information, rather than just entering a question into a search engine. Students must be able to stand in front of a class and present an oral presentation without reading from a screen. These skills are all needed for the real world. It is important students are up to date with technology, however these skills should not be lost.
ReplyDeleteKristen, I thought your blog post was very insightful. I agree with many of the points you made about students over using technology. I had thought about the over use of technology with young children before because as a babysitter I have noticed how addicted the children have become to technology. However, I had never thought about how problematic this could be to their literacy. In this growing world of technology I believe it is still very important for students to be familiar with “live and paper texts”, as you said.
ReplyDeleteYes! Technology should not be the only focus because the world is buzzing with it! Kids need to be taught how to use technology, of course, but they also need to understand that the world is bigger than an iPad screen. :)
ReplyDeleteHi Kristin,
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed you posing question at the end. I do believe that as useful and advancing as technology is, there is definitely such thing as too much technology. We have seen that many forms of paper texts have already started to become obsolete, such as the use of encyclopedias, dictionaries, and even the task of writing papers with a pencil and paper. While the use of technological resources for these activities are definitely easier and more efficient, I believe that adopting technology for all tasks such as these take away from a child's ability to learn patience, process, and foundational skills.
Great post! There just needs to be a balance! Technology is great and extremely beneficial to a students academical success. But it’s best to have a limit on screen time and more paper and text. I believe students are not being hindered but instead are able to flourish within their multiliteracies.
ReplyDeleteKristen,
ReplyDeleteWe must make sure that our future students are multiliterate in order to have a successful future. Technology is not always going to be there but their own personal skills will. Technology is extremely important; however, I find that students now would rather type than write. Students that have a hard time spelling and reading often use the voice to text feature when writing papers. This helps them not be far behind but it also makes them rely on this feather rather than doing it on their own. Students need to be technology savvy but also “old school” when it comes to using the pencil and paper.
Kristen - love the post! I really like how you not only emphasize the importance of technology, but other forms of literacy as well. At such a young age children are able to maneuver their way around a smartphone or tablet, and those early practices should be utilized and enhanced through education. While that is the case, we also need to make sure that students develop other practices in order to become a well-rounded, productive members of society.
ReplyDeleteI love what you had to say about making sure that teachers are not too reliant on technology. I am a big support of using available technology in the classroom but also agree that too much can be harmful to the students learning. Students and also teachers as well can become to reliant on technology so that when they are in a situation where technology is not a available to them they do not know what to do or how to go back to basics. I have Worked in a school where a teacher was so reliant on technology that when we had a power outage during school, they did not know how to continue their lesson and panicked.
ReplyDelete