Literacy of Technology: The Need for Flexible Educators and Supported Students

Becoming Literate in the Information Age: Cultural Ecologies and the Literacies of Technology by Gail Hawisher and Cynthia Selfe: Summary

Gail Hawisher and Cynthia Selfe raise compelling issues with traditional education, and the increasing importance of not only teaching technological literacy in the classroom, but also for teachers to maintain a flexible and open-minded approach to the rising use and development of technology. 

To begin their paper, Hawisher and Selfe identify the installment of computer literacy as a new “basic job skill” and later iterate the many factors that influence literacy in technology as well as ones influenced by this literacy. They mainly use accounts of two different cases from their study of 350, with occasional mentions of others’ comments and opinions, to exemplify the complexities of teaching and learning technology literacy. 

My Interpretation

Ultimately, it seems their main point has much to do with recognizing the individualities of learners and each of their unique life circumstances and the gaps in equality between students that arise from these differences. Educators should recognize that technology is becoming an important skill- a skill that the success in many fields is dependent on having- and also that the classroom is no place for arrogance. There may come a time in which a student might have better knowledge on a certain topic than their teacher- like, for example, when it comes to technology- and their needs to exist an encouragement and pursuit of this knowledge, as well as a willingness to learn more from their students. There is also a point to be made about race, gender, economics, etc. and how these factors influence a student’s access to technology, their existing knowledge about technology, the kind of support they receive at home, and so much more.

My Response and Opinion

I think that this notion is similar to one mentioned in James Paul Gee’s essay- that unequal access and pre-exposure to certain Discourses- like, in this case, one that embodies computer literacy- leads to an unfair treatment, judgment, and assessment of students.

Overall, I agree with Hawisher and Selfe’s arguments. I am of the belief that there has been a necessity for some level of change in the education system to better accommodate advancing technology and computer development, as well as to better foster a healthier learning environment for students- one that reflects the fluidity of the real world and its nature of constant evolution.