Technology the New Literacy?

It seems to me that the definition of literacy has changed. At one time it meant being able to read and write for the means of communicating with other people. In this new age literacy has many facets. There is mathematical literacy, visual literacy, and technological literacy. Since this is a technology class I want to talk about technological literacy. I am pretty sure that you can't have one without the other. Technology is the new literacy. A literate person enjoys reading and writing, and one would even say that they find both to be rather fun. In the world we live in today one needs to be technologically literate in order to share ideas and learn a wide range of information. Teachers are using technology to create more opportunities for students to read, write, and collaborate with their peers. Quickly or (for some) slowly we are changing the way informaton is giving, processed, and used. In turn changing the way that we read write and think.

Digital Books

I had so much fun using TarHeel Reader to create books for kids! What an amazing tool for teachers and students. TarHeel Reader is a site that allows teachers to make high interest books for struggling readers. My favorite thing about the site is flickr. It puts hundreds of thousands images at the push of a search button, making it super easy to add pictures to your pages. The entire site is easy to navigate; creating a book is a breeze, editing, and publishing all happen at the click of a button.

In the spirit of Christmas I created two books. Both books are repetitive thereby predictable. The first book that I created is entitled Christmas Is.... and the second book I created specifically with boys in mind. The title of that book is called There is No "I" in Team

Click here to view my books!

Christmas Is...

There is No "I" in Team

Facebook vs. Myspace

After a good friend begged me for several months, I finally took the plunge and joined Myspace and have been a happily addicted member for almost three years now. I am also a member of Facebook (going on a year and a half). I understand that Facebook is the preferred social network for college kids and that once you graduate high school you are "uncool" to have a Myspace. Thank goodness I am not in college, because I LOVE Myspace! I am addicted to decorating my page, seeing the bullentins that my friends post, and getting status updates. I appreciate the fact that I can click on a application without having to permanently add it to my page. I also appreciate the fact that only the people who are my friends can view my pictures and the comments that I write. For me Facebook is too "let's tell everybody your business". If I leave a comment on Friend Z's page, then I intended for only Friend Z and whoever chooses to visit his page to see it. I do check my Facebook because I have friends who choose to communicate with me in the avenue.

I do not see any need to introduce elementary students to Facebook or Myspace. In my opinion it is a recipe for disaster. I am not even sure I would use it in the middle school or high school classroom, simply because sometimes they can be just plain mean. We have a hard enough time trying to monitor bullying and gossiping in school without having to worry about internet teenage wildfire. I say let them social network on their own time, but let's provide them with internet etiquette classes.

Come visit my Myspace: My Little Space on the Net!