New Literacies in the Digital World



New Literacies in the Digital World

New ‘literacies’ in the most simplistic of terms, to me, means that students and teachers alike use a variety of digital mediums for the sole purpose of determining and/or communicating meaning.  In order to do so, a series of skills must be developed including: computer literacy, critical literacy, traditional decoding and comprehension strategies, as well as cultural proficiency. 

While students and teachers each have their own set of standards as established by ISTE (International Society for Technology in Education), these standards are essentially interconnected.  The following information was taken from the ISTE website.  To reference this resource, please use the following links: 

student:   http://www.iste.org/docs/pdfs/nets-s-standards.pdf?sfvrsn=2:

teacher:  http://www.iste.org/docs/pdfs/nets-t-standards.pdf?sfvrsn=2

NETS standards for Students	NETS Standards for Teachers
Creativity and Innovation/ Communication & Collaboration	Facilitate and Inspire Learning and Creativity
Both student and teacher apply existing knowledge for the purpose of learning.  Teachers model using creativity, innovativeness, and inventiveness in their lessons by designing real world applications promoting reflection, collaboration, and communication.  Students, in turn,  exemplify their own creativity as they engage in the tasks or explorations provided.
NETS standards for Students	NETS Standards for Teachers
Research & Information Fluency	Design & Develop Digital Age Learning Experiences & Assessments
Similarly, teachers design authentic learning experiences for students to engage in research; thus, building stamina.  By personalizing educational goals and fostering curiosities, students naturally plan their own process of inquiry, engage in higher order thinking tasks, and report results.  Teachers, naturally progress monitor and assess to inform further learning direction.
NETS standards for Students	NETS Standards for Teachers
Critical Thinking, Problem Solving, & Decision Making	Model Digital Age Work & Learning
Students design and engage in projects that have real world application modeled and guided by the expertise of the teacher.  This process develops the collaborative and communicative skills of both student and teacher.
NETS standards for Students	NETS Standards for Teachers
Digital Citizenship	Promote & Model Digital Citizenship & Responsibility
Teachers model and teach safe, legal, and ethical use including etiquette and responsibility with the incorporation of technology; students simply follow the positive example and serve as role models for other students.
NETS standards for Students	NETS Standards for Teachers
Technology Operations & Concepts	Promote & Model Digital Citizenship & Responsibility
Students are able to incorporate their technological skills and effectively transfer those skills to the rapid advances in digital tools.  Teachers, likewise, must constantly be reflective practitioners, while maintaining knowledge of current pedagogy to continue to provide best practices in the area of technology for continued student achievement.

 Many of the standards described with the exception of digital etiquette, reflect or are connected to BEST practices for teaching ELL students.  It is my hope that as I learn more about different technological tools, I will be able to be more effective in my daily practices.  For example, using a variety of media will enhance how well I can incorporate scaffolding and/or sheltering strategies for my ELLs. 

References

International society for technology in education. (2012, October 01). Retrieved from      https://www.iste.org/

Richardson, W. (2010). Blogs, wikis, podcasts, and other powerful web tools for classrooms. (3rd ed.). Corwin Press.