Digital Natives, Yet Strangers to the Web
When Reuben Loewy took up his first teaching gig in 2012, he had a major revelation: The digital revolution has dramatically transformed the way that kids perceive reality. Perhaps that makes the 55-year-old teacher sound like a dinosaur. What he discovered is, after all, one of the most obvious realities shaping education policy and parenting guides today. But, as Loewy will clarify, his revelation wasn’t simply that technology is overhauling America’s classrooms and redefining childhood and adolescence. Rather, he was hit with the epiphany that efforts in schools to embrace these shifts are, by and large, focusing on the wrong objectives: equipping kids with fancy gadgets and then making sure the students use those gadgets appropriately and effectively. Educational institutions across the board are certainly embracing (or at least acknowledging) the digital revolution, adopting cutting-edge classroom technology and raising awareness about the perils and possibilities of the Internet.
What is digital literacy?
Digital literacy is the topic that made the ETMOOC learning space so irresistible to me… I think as educators we spout off about wanting our students to be digitally literate, but not many of us (myself included) have a firm grasp about what that actually means, and quite a number of us are still attempting to become digitally literate ourselves. Whatever that means. It turns out, defining digital literacy isn’t such an easy task. The etmooc community was fortunate enough to hear Doug Belshaw speak on this topic in a recent webinar. I’ve followed Doug on Twitter for quite some time, and it turns out his dissertation investigates just what is digital literacy… and his TED talk can be viewed here. Doug explained that digital literacy is quite ambiguous, and he doesn’t have all of the answers when it comes to defining these terms. 30 definitions of digital literacy represented in one of the first texts about the topic (from Gilster, published in 1998!!)
Teacher's Guide to Digital Citizenship
The horror stories of young people not grasping the reach and influence of the content they put online are familiar to all of us. From the loss of job opportunities due to unprofessional pictures or comments on social media, to the more serious threats of abduction, and even the self-harm inspired by cyber bullying, the stakes are high. While students may often seem clueless to these dangers, some are starting to understand the risks. In a recent Rasmussen study on digital literacy, details of which you can see in the infographic below, 37% of millennials aged 18 – 34 said they consider the internet scary, which is more than any other demographic. Still, millennials know just as well as any other demographic just how important digital literacy is and will continue to be to their working lives. As such, studies like these serve to demonstrate how crucial teaching digital literacy — particularly at a young age when that digital footprint is still lightly drawn — has become. Online Safety
Digital Literacy | Communication Learning | Media Education | Skills Communication
Social Media at School: Teaching Safety on the Virtual Playground | Edutopia
These days, social media gets a pretty bad rap. It seems like every other day there is a celebrity apology or a story about a teen who commits suicide due to cyberbullying. It's true, social media can breed some pretty awful stuff. Acceptable Use Our school is unique in Philadelphia in that it's one of the few public schools with a 1:1 program that allows students to take devices home. Let's face it -- teenagers are on social media in school and out of school, even if their parents have told them they can't be, and even if the school has rules about being on phones during school hours. In my class, we start the year with the book, lol. . .OMG by Matt Ivester. Always Learning It is through these discussions that I learn about how students use social media, what their experiences have been, and what their beliefs are. Schools and teachers don't have to be afraid of social media if they take the time to teach kids how to play on this virtual playground responsibly, ethically, and safely.
Cornell University - Digital Literacy Resource
Digital Literacy: Unlocking Technology's Potential | edu@scholastic
With 1:1 technology initiatives and BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) programs increasingly being implemented in schools across the globe, the need for digital literacy education has become more important than ever. Although technology enables students to access more information in much less time, it does not always foster learning. Teaching digital literacy helps to manage all of the benefits of technology while helping students understand how to safely weed through the vast amounts of information online. Technology in the classroom has the following advantages: Allows students to manipulate information and media to construct their own meaningsEnables students to share their ideas quickly and easilyEngages students of all cognitive levels and abilitiesPrepares students to be college and career ready These benefits, among others, are why technology has become a major part of the global curriculum. Educators need to embrace the creative and collaborative aspects of digital literacy.
The Urgency of Digital and Media-Literacy Skills
What a fantastic year that has begun – already full of so much possibility and no lack of challenges either! I am faced with the realities of my own personal beliefs that we are in an era of urgent need for digital and media literacy skills. As a result, I know that I have to make changes to my pedagogy that facilitate students acquiring the necessary skills, while still increasing their achievement. I am a big believer in the power of digital media, and the fact that our students are rapidly moving toward a full digital existence, if we aren’t already almost there yet. I know that I already access most things digitally. Digital media has opened up challenges as well. We need to look toward new objects of study and toward connecting with evolving practices and design challenges of the 21st century. After starting the school year, here is what I know so far: It really doesn’t matter how long you have been teaching, classroom management and self-regulation are always at the forefront. Related
