Although Jennifer Powers makes a valid point about the need to re-examine
our understanding of literacy in order to come to a more multifaceted and
inclusive definition of it, ultimately, her attack of print literacy is
exclusive by nature and, therefore, contradictory. In this regard, I believe
that Henry Jenkins' view on 21st century literacy is more sound, or at least
well-balanced.
In spite of being a fully-embracing-advocate of multiliteracy, Jenkins,
unlike Powers, does not reject nor deny the importance of print or
"textual" literacy. In fact, when it comes to traditional literacy
skills related to the interpretation and production of 'print' text, he still
ranks such skills as having a central role in the 21st century which we must
expand upon rather than totally replace.
Another interesting point that Jenkins makes is the need for teachers to
recognize and facilitate current patterns of multitasking, particularly with
regards to homework. Unlike traditional views on multitasking which have tended to see it as a
negative interference, Jenkins views multitasking as an important new skill which
he describes as "the ability to scan one's environment and shift focus as
needed to salient details," and which he believes has implications for
modern teachers. As he put it, "multitasking enters pedagogical practice
when teachers recognize the desires of contemporary students to... maintain
what some have called 'continuous partial attention', interacting with homework
materials while engaged in other activities."
Two great examples which are
quickly catching on of how teachers are making greater efforts to accommodate
for contemporary patterns of afterschool multitasking are the use of podcasts
and internet games. Some teachers have the luxury and the technological savviness
to set up systems where classroom materials and lectures are automatically sent
to students Ipods. As he indicates "rather than needing to set aside
dedicated study time to practice a foreign language, this allows students to
access their homework while walking from classes... or while engaging in other
activities." Likewise "homework assignments in the form of online
games," such as those from cybernation.net, "could be designed... to
facilitate patterns of multitasking." https://owl.uwo.ca/webct/urw/lc5116011.tp0/cobaltMainFrame.dowebct
Monday, March 5, 2012
Slam Poetry
Ever since
my early undergrad years (perhaps having something to do with the fact that
many of my friends were poets) I have taken great pleasure in listening to
spoken-word performances. What always blew me away was not so muchwhat
the poet said as how they said it. Sure, the content by itself would
have been fascinating enough to read. However, for me, would rendered spoken
word its unique quality was its power (without a single prop) to give new
meaning and life to words, solely conveyed by a poet's voice, tone, facial
expression and body language.
In spite
of this personal interest in spoken-word, it wasn’t until our in class session
this semester that I realized the wonderful potential of slam poetry as an
in-class activity. Prior to teacher`s college, I had never heard of Taylor
Mali. As a former teacher of English who is currently well known as a poet of
slam poetry, he has certainly inspired me to incorporate the practice of slam
poetry into the English classroom. With its "dual emphasis on writing and
performance" slam poetry is a great way to encourage students to focus on
"what they`re saying and how they`re saying it” (http://www.educationworld.com/a_curr/voice/voice069.shtml).
It gets
students thinking about how non-verbal elements and delivery of content is
equally as important as content. One of the advantages to this is that it can
serve as a nice segue into a unit on Shakespeare or any other play, because it
gets students comfortable with (an excited about) reading script aloud as it is
meant to be read. As mentioned during our session, the oral communication
strand of the English curriculum is one that often does not receive enough emphasis
but that easily can through activities such as this one.
It would
also be a great idea to do slam poetry earlier on in a given course, as it can
also serve as a great means to break the ice. As Brenda Dyck put it, slam
poetry can bring students to a "kinder, gentler place -- a place where we
were free to share our innermost thoughts". Because they are given the
opportunity to voice their own joys, concerns and opinions, students (contrary
to what one might think) tend to take this kind of activity very seriously.
Here are a few interesting links
that can be used as teacher resources if anyone is interested in incorporating
slam poetry into the classroom.
Winnepeg Poetry Slam:
http://www.wpgpoetryslam.com/for-teachers.html
Used with an intermediate class:
http://www.educationworld.com/a_curr/voice/voice069.shtml
http://www.educationworld.com/a_curr/voice/voice069.shtml
Government of Canada: Language Portal
http://www.noslangues-ourlanguages.gc.ca/manchettes-headlines/claquement-slam-eng.html
Friday, March 2, 2012
Powers and Student-Centered Learning
While one can certainly argue that Jennifer Powers' article holds bias
against, or nearly against, print literacy, her endorsement of multiliteracy
certainly deserves credit. What I enjoyed in particular was how rather than
just saying that we need to incorporate more technology and media into the
classroom for its own sake, or as a way to 'improve' students literacy skills,
she really backs her promotion of multiliteracy by validating her students'
multiple ways of knowing. As Powers states,
Why is it that many English teachers...seem stuck on print literacy...Today's North American Child is not necessarily a child of the printed word; her or she is more likely a child of television, video, music, and the internet, where an amalgam of words, sounds and images combine together to communicate ideas. This does not mean that these children are limited in their literacy; on the contrary, they employ multiple forms of literacy every day in order to decode the information with which they are being bombarded.
In stating that students already do employ multiple forms of literacy and that it is us educators who are lagging behind in our reluctance to expand on our own foundation of traditional literacy skills, Powers may come off harshly. However, if one gets past their initial feeling of defensiveness, one will see the merit in what she is saying, and one will see how what she is really promoting is a more student-centred instead of teacher-centred approach to learning. By empowering students' ways of meaning-making and knowing, one is ultimately empowering students to take ownership of their own learning. If students' current ways of meaning-making and knowing involve multiple forms of literacy, then, (as she would say) 'so be it'.
Why is it that many English teachers...seem stuck on print literacy...Today's North American Child is not necessarily a child of the printed word; her or she is more likely a child of television, video, music, and the internet, where an amalgam of words, sounds and images combine together to communicate ideas. This does not mean that these children are limited in their literacy; on the contrary, they employ multiple forms of literacy every day in order to decode the information with which they are being bombarded.
In stating that students already do employ multiple forms of literacy and that it is us educators who are lagging behind in our reluctance to expand on our own foundation of traditional literacy skills, Powers may come off harshly. However, if one gets past their initial feeling of defensiveness, one will see the merit in what she is saying, and one will see how what she is really promoting is a more student-centred instead of teacher-centred approach to learning. By empowering students' ways of meaning-making and knowing, one is ultimately empowering students to take ownership of their own learning. If students' current ways of meaning-making and knowing involve multiple forms of literacy, then, (as she would say) 'so be it'.
Lesson Plan Redesign: Version 2
ORIGINAL LESSON PLAN:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1UdGmfLp1qf_PfC7mCOjJxLd6Uk628jv7SEg2z2t_vgk/edit?hl=en_US#
If I were to redesign my lesson plan, the central change I would make is to incorporate the use of bitstrips into my lesson's central activity. In the original activity, my instructions to students are essentially to get into groups of 4-5, choose one out of four major events that occur during the scene 4 of Godzilla (1987), and finally, report about this event from the perspective of Oshima Japan’s most celebrated news reporter. Because students were given litmited time to complete this task, the only means by which they could report their story was through an oral presentation. Although this medium is a generally effective means for students to demonstrate their knowledge, it is not the only medium. Other equally effective mediums include storyboarding and, as Gregory Anderson put it, "whereas drawing a storyboard by hand in the classroom has recognised pedagogical benefits," using bistrips allows you to "produce a more professional, novel, and seamless storyboard"
http://www.nate.org.uk/cmsfiles/ict/h2t/4_Storyboards.pdf
Another bonus to making this change is that it remedies a factor I had clearly overlooked, i.e., differentiated instruction. By providing students with another option, you are awarding them with another outlet and to demonstrate what they have learned.
IN ADDITION...
By having students do bitsrips storyboards, this would address the specific curriculum expectation (of the media literacy strand) of having students produce their own media text in order to demonstrate their understanding of technique and convention. Like all 'texts', visual texts like bitstrips have their own 'language' and conventions in order to convey meaning. Allowing students the opportunity to produce another type of text other than traditional writing, or storyboards, allows them to explore another type of literacy. In other words, it encourages the notion of multiple forms of literacy, such as digital literacy and visual literacy, as opposed to tradition literacy associated with printed texts. It also helps students better grasp the concept of all media as being constructed to suit particular audiences and to convey particular messages.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1UdGmfLp1qf_PfC7mCOjJxLd6Uk628jv7SEg2z2t_vgk/edit?hl=en_US#
If I were to redesign my lesson plan, the central change I would make is to incorporate the use of bitstrips into my lesson's central activity. In the original activity, my instructions to students are essentially to get into groups of 4-5, choose one out of four major events that occur during the scene 4 of Godzilla (1987), and finally, report about this event from the perspective of Oshima Japan’s most celebrated news reporter. Because students were given litmited time to complete this task, the only means by which they could report their story was through an oral presentation. Although this medium is a generally effective means for students to demonstrate their knowledge, it is not the only medium. Other equally effective mediums include storyboarding and, as Gregory Anderson put it, "whereas drawing a storyboard by hand in the classroom has recognised pedagogical benefits," using bistrips allows you to "produce a more professional, novel, and seamless storyboard"
http://www.nate.org.uk/cmsfiles/ict/h2t/4_Storyboards.pdf
Another bonus to making this change is that it remedies a factor I had clearly overlooked, i.e., differentiated instruction. By providing students with another option, you are awarding them with another outlet and to demonstrate what they have learned.
IN ADDITION...
By having students do bitsrips storyboards, this would address the specific curriculum expectation (of the media literacy strand) of having students produce their own media text in order to demonstrate their understanding of technique and convention. Like all 'texts', visual texts like bitstrips have their own 'language' and conventions in order to convey meaning. Allowing students the opportunity to produce another type of text other than traditional writing, or storyboards, allows them to explore another type of literacy. In other words, it encourages the notion of multiple forms of literacy, such as digital literacy and visual literacy, as opposed to tradition literacy associated with printed texts. It also helps students better grasp the concept of all media as being constructed to suit particular audiences and to convey particular messages.
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