In a previous blog, I had talked about how literacy is much more today than just the teaching of reading and writing. Rather than just reading and writing skills on paper, literacy today involves being efficient in various modes of communication. This modern take on literacy has been dubbed “Literacy 2.0”. In Literacy 2.0, the authors explain that literacy in the 21st century “...assumes that students learn vocabulary, comprehension, creative and critical thinking, writing and so on, but that they do so in different venues” (Frey et. al., 2010, p. 1). Literacy today involves being able to interpret information in various forms as well as presenting information in various forms. Because of this broadening of the definition of literacy it’s not only possible for all content areas to teach literacy but it’s also appropriate.
It’s obvious that the English content area lends itself well to teaching literacy skills. What has changed are the various media available to create and present information. English classes understandably can and will continue to teach literacy skills via paper and pencil, but I think it’s appropriate for English teachers to explore different ways to write and present information. There are lots of different tools available for presenting information like presentation tools, infographic tools, story-writing tools, etc.
I think History also lends itself well to teaching literacy skills. I remember in high school lots of different writing assignments. I think the use of different media in History allows for history teachers to teach literacy as far as becoming efficient at communicating. Videos, radio shows, or even publications can be made to reflect the period the students are discussing.
Math and Science are kind of tricky content areas for incorporating literacy. Math has me stumped. I do not recall ever using any sort of writing skills in my math classes. I would imagine that project based learning or problem based learning could lend itself to incorporating literacy into math. Students could solve practical real-life problems and present their findings.
I have found as a Science teacher that teaching literacy skills is really important. Students have to be really good at reading comprehension in order to interpret problems on the ACT and the EOC. They also have to be able to comprehend scientific journal articles. Along with comprehension, students need to be able to communicate using academic language. Like History, science classes can incorporate different media to present information. What the focus is for me is having students present information in the correct format for science, while also using academic language and grasping the vocabulary.
For teaching literacy in the 21st century in general, I think project based learning has a huge role. For PBL, students are creating products or artifacts that they can share with an actual audience. When we teach literacy, we are teaching students to be self-sufficient in different modes of communication. For PBL, we are gradually relinquishing the control as teachers so that students feel confident working and creating independently. PBL involves the framework of relinquishing responsibility so that eventually “‘students assume all of the responsibility’” (Frey et. al., 2010, p.11). It is important for students to develop solid communication skills for their continued education and careers.
Reference
Frey, N., Fisher, D., & Gonzalez, A. (2010). Literacy 2.0: reading and writing in 21st century classrooms. Moorabbin, Vic.: Hawker Brownlow Education.
April,
ReplyDeleteGreat point about the importance of literacy in the ACT Science portion. They have to read through a lot of information and questions on the Science portion, which is often where students struggle. They are pretty good reading a graph once they know what they are looking for, but in the science part of the ACT they have to read a lot to figure out what the question is asking.
You are exactly right about one way to incorporate literacy into math is through problem based learning and project based learning. My math students have had projects using PBL in which literacy was a large role. Students had to research, complete calculations, write up their results, and create a presentation using technology.
April,
ReplyDeleteRE: “For teaching literacy in the 21st century in general, I think project based learning has a huge role. For PBL, students are creating products or artifacts that they can share with an actual audience. When we teach literacy, we are teaching students to be self-sufficient in different modes of communication..”
This is an excellent goal for literacy instruction as it applies to science. An inquiry-based approach is natural and logical in science instruction. Instructional methods that support inquiry is essential to both science and literacy learning. PBL is an excellent fit for both science and literacy and allows for the gradual release of responsibility.
Dr. Dell