"The distinctive contribution
of the approach to literacy as social practice lies in the ways in which it
involves careful and sensitive attention to what people do with texts, how they
make sense of them and use them to further their own purposes in their own
learning lives" (Gillen and Barton, 2010, p. 9).
What the
author is trying to impart by this passage is this: It is in how a person perceives and responds
to information that any change in his literacy and the society’s literacy can
occur. Literacy is not a one-way
street. It is interactive. It is dynamic. Every person in our society is able to
contribute to literacy in their own way.
And what we contribute is determined by how we perceive and respond to each
other’s ideas, and how we use these ideas.
A good example
of this social, interactive literacy is web blogging. According to Huffaker (2005), “Blogs
represent a perfect medium for literacy” (p. 93). A blog, in a way, is a form of storytelling
or self-expression. Bloggers tell their “stories”,
i.e. share their ideas with an online community. People from all over the world are able to
comment not only on the story but also to each other’s responses. And
whatever was shared in that interaction may be used by these people in another
discussion and it goes on and on.
Imagine the magnitude of learning and social change that can be achieved
through this!
This is
what New Literacy is all about, as explained in an editorial by Dana
Wilber. She states, “New literacies, in
contrast with traditional literacies, are more participatory. They are more
collaborative in allowing for the open sharing and creation of information on
sites like wikis and blogs“ (Wilber, 2010).
Gone are the days of writing a book report, meant to be read only by a
single professor, and subject only to that professor’s feedback. Through the internet, whatever ideas we share
does not end up in the recycling bin, but has the potential of influencing other
people and igniting change in the society.
Yes, the New Literacy dynamic is community oriented, which for me, is still quite new. I grew up with writing being a solitary endeavor, but today's posts, blogs, personal webpages make writing a very public activity. It is interesting to see how collaborative wikis are ... granted, one needs to check one's sources, but it is pretty cool, just the same.
ReplyDeleteYou are obviously very comfortable with digital media; your page is great.
Best,
Julie DeBold
Actually, Julie, I tried looking at your blog but I can't seem to find your posts. I use Facebook everyday, but I have to get used to blogging.
ReplyDeleteI also think Wikipedia is great. It gives everyone (that is online) a chance to share their knowledge on a topic. A farmer might not have a degree in Agriculture, for example, but may be the real expert in irrigation because of his experience. Through the Internet, his "voice" can be heard.