At the start of any writing class there was always a format on how to write and what it should look like. Five paragraphs, thesis should be at the end of the intro paragraph, and seven sentences make a paragraph. what about being able to read this very paragraph? would you consider yourself literate because you can? what if I told you there are a variety of ways that a person can be literate?
TECHNOLOGY AS A FORM OF MULTIPLE LITERACY
one way a teacher, in particular, can become technology literate is by become well-versed in the technology and media their students use. If you think back to the grade school years, or maybe ghost stories told by your parents, technology was not a means to be used as a form of literacy. Now in the 21st century, everyone has had some kind of brush with technology. Being able to use technology and integrate it into the given curriculum is a useful tool for any teacher or educator. Being able to understand the technology that his/her students use, can help improve the level of understanding that the students may have. When was the last time you had a teacher be able to use their laptop without having to call on a student to come up and do it for them? happens more often than necessary. According to the Multiple Literacies, New
Literacies, and Teacher Education the author explains and even suggests that prospective teachers should receive a university level instruction on what it means to understand and produce a form of technological literacy that their prospective students may present to them. Examples of technology as a form of multiple literacy are being able to navigate the internet, using audiobooks and e-books, and being able to decode different online sources. In preparation to write this blog post, I did not want to spend time staring at my screen reading the article, so I thought to myself, “I should find an audio version of this text.” In the back of my mind I had a feeling that I was going to spend more time scouring the internet trying to find an audio version so instead, I popped portions of the article into Google translate, and had it read the article to me. This is just one real time example of the benefit of being technogically literate, being able to maneuver and find ways to complete work and have thorough understanding through using the internet or technology based items. Another way I could have completed my work without having to type out these words, is using a voice to text software. If the pandemic has taught us anything besides washing our hands, is that people no matter the age, use technology to cope and learn, therefore, schools along with teachers and educators alike, should adopt this as a form of learning and response to modernity by becoming the hub of technological literacy.
