Is+digital+literacy+different+to+the+literacy+of+the+Twentieth+Century?

Is digital literacy different to the literacy of the Twentieth Century?

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“If it were possible to define generally the mission of education, it could be said that its fundamental purpose is to ensure that all students benefit from learning in ways that allow them to participate fully in public, community, [Creative] and economic life.” //  — New London Group (2000, p. 9) taken from [|Jenkins, Clinton, Purushotma, Robison. and Weigel, M.] The question is what do people need to contribute to and participate in life in the twenty-first century? Has that fundamentally changed with the onset of the digital age? In the past twenty years has life changed so greatly that we need to change how we teach literacy? The answer is yes and no. “Prior to the 21st century, //literate// defined a person’s ability to read and write, separating the educated from the uneducated. With the advent of a new millennium and the rapidity with which technology has changed society, the concept of literacy has assumed new meanings” [|(Jones-Kavalier and Flannigan, 2006).]This is true, the manner in which we seek out information has change, books, hard copy articles are becoming less common as the main source for research, but this writer would not go so far as to say obsolete, not yet. The focus is now on line information. Much of this online data has had or still has its roots in traditional literacy. However the onset of the digital age has allowed for this information to be uploaded and presented to an infinitely larger audience. A good example of this is newspaper which until recently have been bought by consumers in paper copy each day. This has now been updated so that the same information found in hard copy can be found online. Its convenience is obvious, but because of other online material, newspapers both on line and hard copy are in decline. Other forms of digital media are been used to access the same information. Interpreting the digital data however is still required. Literacy skills are needed to achieve this. The tradition literacy skills of reading, writing, speaking and listening have not been replaced they have been built upon by the emerging literacies. These skills set the groundwork for the digital literacy skills that students learn. It would be true to say that digital literacy develops alongside the tradition skills. It could be said that the traditional and the digital literacy support each other and if used well can enhance the learning for the student.  One form of literacy does not replace the other. Students will need, into the foreseeable future, the ability to communicate using the skills of reading, writing, listening and speaking. “Literacy has not become technological, but there has been a shift from print to digital technologies, and with this, the emergence of new families of literate practice. On the basis of this, theorists of digital literacies argue that the revolution in communication and information technologies has created new types of textual surface and hence, new literacies (Bigum & Lankshear, 1997; Durrant & Green, 2000)”  ([|CEGACT, 2008]). It is these literacies that are developing at a rapid rate. “Unlike the traditional notions of language and literacy, which are primarily unimodal and textual, this new form of communication and self-expres­sion occurs multimodally, incorporating visual and aural elements with textual elements, and an immediacy which itself is a di­mension of the new language”  ([|The Report of the 21st Century Literacy Summit. A Global Imperative. 2005. p.1.).] Interpreting many of these skill is however reliant of an sound understanding of reading and writing. This is our model of communication. Digital Literacies can be use to enhance how ideas are communicated however “These skills build on the foundation of traditional literacy, research skills, technical skills, and critical analysis skills taught in the classroom” [|(Jenkins et al).]  As has been discussed we are in a state of rapid and constant change. Part of what we have to learn is to take the skills we have and work with whatever the latest technology is and enhance our literacy. Communication is the key, how we do this is evolving. As many writer point out this is not unlike the onset of the printing press or the typewriter. Embracing the change is vital for our survival. “21st century literacy is the set of abilities and skills where aural, visual and digital literacy overlap. These include the ability to understand the power of images and sounds, to recognize and use that power, to manipulate and trans­form digital media, to distribute them perva­sively, and to easily adapt them to new forms”  ([|The Report of the 21st Century Literacy Summit. A Global Imperative. 2005. p.2] .). It is these new forms, application and programs which cause the most angst. These are upgraded and developed to embrace the new technological advances that are made.  <span style="font-size: 120%; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-language: JI; msobidilanguage: JI; msofareastfontfamily: 'Times New Roman';">//“Literacy has always been a collection of cultural and communicative practices shared among members of particular groups. As society and technology change, so does literacy. Because technology has increased the intensity and complexity of literate environments, the twenty-first century demands that a literate person possess a wide range of abilities and competencies, many literacies. These literacies—from reading online newspapers to participating in virtual classrooms—are multiple, dynamic, and malleable. As in the past, they are inextricably linked with particular histories, life possibilities and social trajectories of individuals and groups”// [|( NCTE, 2008).] <span style="font-size: 120%; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif';">

<span style="font-size: 120%; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;">**References** Jenkins, H., Clinton,K.,Purushotma, R., Robison, A. and Weigel, M. Confronting the Challenges of Participatory Culture: Media Education for the 21st Century. Accessed 9/06/09 [] Jones-Kavalier, B. and Flannigan, S. (2006) Connecting the Digital Dots: Literacy of the 21st Century. //Educause Quarterly//, Vol. 29, No.2 accessed 1/06/09 [] <span style="font-size: 130%; font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;"> <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-language: JI;">NCTE Executive Committee( 2008)**The Definition of 21st Century Literacies.** <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif';">National Council of teachers of English Accessed 8/06/09. [] The Report of the 21st Century Literacy Summit. A Global Imperative. (2005) NMC: The New Media Consortium. Accessed 8/06/09 [] What is Digital Literacy? Computer Education Group Australian Capital Territory (CEGACT)(2008) Accessed 9/06/09 []