Saturday, July 9, 2011
Due September 17th- Cut and Paste Reflection chapters 8, 9, 22
Read Chapters 8,9,22 in Beyond Cut and Paste. Jamie McKenzie suggests that there are twelve or more categories of information with each one involving a literacy. Write one paragraph describing the literacies and one paragraph discussing the role these literacies play for 21st century learners. Posting should be 2 well-developed paragraphs. Rubric posted to blackboard.
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Emily Dietzschold
McKenzie suggests there are twelve different literacies a student will need to be successful. Out of these only two (numerical and text) are often used in the classroom, the rest are put aside for another day (McKenzie 2009). Some of the literacies, such as visual and artistic, are similar yet can also be distinct, depending on how they are being used. Another example of this is science and nature. There were two literacies that I had not previously heard of: emotional literacy and ethical literacy. I think we often try to teach these ideas in the classroom, but I had never heard them called a literacy before. I believe these would be useful skills for all students to know. I use emotional literacy daily, to judge how a student walking into my classroom feels and if they are ready to tackle the day or need a break for a few minutes. As a Geography and World History teacher, I love teaching about social/cultural ideas, so this literacy describes the classroom environment I hope to create.
The literacies are all about evaluating your world and using it to draw conclusions about the information around you. Since there are so many different literacies that require different strategies for understanding each one, a student needs a variety of skills to be successful in school and in life. This is a good thing for educators and librarians, because it means that rather than having to focus on just a few types of literacies, you can choose different activities to help
students become fluent in each. This can be achieved through “investigation stations” where students spend a bit of time at a station using one literacy, then move on to the next station and a new literacy. For learners this means a more careful evaluation of the world around them and a chance to use many skills, not just the numerical and text literacies that are common in classrooms now (McKenzie 2009).
McKenzie, J. (2009). Beyond cut and paste. Bellingham, WA: FNO Press.
McKenzie discusses a broad range of literacy’s in education today. I can honestly say that I was unaware there were twelve different types of literacy’s, and I was intrigued at how they all intertwine together. A common theme amongst these twelve literacy’s is more than just being able to read and write; it extends into the ability to comprehend, analyze, interpret, and interact with the various sources of information in our society.
After reading and digesting the information he presented, I began reflecting on my own teachings and the literacy’s that were prevalent. I concluded that there were a few that I found it difficult to really focus on and emphasize in my teaching, for example natural literacy and scientific literacy. I found these two more of a challenge because as a math teacher you are naturally more focused on the numerical and textual literacy’s. Unfortunately, by solely focusing on numerical and textual literacy’s I am doing a disservice to my students by not giving them a well-rounded education in all twelve literacy’s. When looking at McKenzie’s list of the twelve literacy’s, and reading more in-depth, it challenges us, as educators, to contemplate how we can incorporate all the literacy’s, either directly or in-directly into our curriculum.
Another intriguing topic McKenzie discusses is how Wikipedia is dominating our society in terms of a preferred researching platform. When teaching in a 5th grade class last spring I can remember a Social Studies project students were working on and how many times I was asked if Wikipedia was a valid source they could use. It was amazing to see students’ blind faith in a source they grew up with, and have had no reason to doubt the reliability. It goes to show how important our jobs are as teacher librarians to demonstrate and teach proper researching techniques to students. The information we provide them is crucial for students, in order to be able to assess the reliability of sources and look past the bias of our society.
McKenzie, J. (2009). Beyond cut and paste. Bellingham, WA: FNO Press.
Literacies
Susan Findlay
McKenzie describes literacy as “the capacity to analyze, interpret and understand information...” (pg.141), this information comes in a variety of categories and mediums. Each category requires specific tools, concepts and vocabulary needed to unlock the full meaning of the information required. (pg. 141) According to Mckenzie there are twelve of these literacy categories. Before reading this book I was aware of about half of these. Several of the literacies such as text, media, and numerical I would have grouped together as being a form of data. Artistic, visual and emotional literacy would also have been grouped as aesthetic skills. I realized that I had been using one umbrella to cover these different literacies and skill sets. All of these literacies are linked together because they all represent information, but information is a kind of toolbox and the literacies are the tools.
The role these literacies play to our students as 21st century learners is not optional. Students must be able to do more than just read words and numbers, they must understand the information put before them. The first time I read through Mckenzie’s twelve literacies I thought that students would never use all of them, and they wouldn’t if I limited it only to a classroom setting. I think that literacies are also situational and I needed to start thinking outside of the classroom. In my classroom students may never have to use natural literacy, but they may be taking a hunter’s safety course after school. The natural literacy from hunting may link to an environmental project in Science class. My job as a teacher librarian is to teach and develop critical thinking skills so that my students in any situation have the tools they need to collect, assess, and use information.
McKenzie, J. (2009). Beyond cut and paste. Bellingham, WA: FNO Press
Anne Hubbell
According to Jamie McKenzie (2009), literacy is “the capacity to analyze, interpret and understand information within a particular category of information or within a particular medium” (p. 141). The different literacies he identifies include natural, artistic, visual, media, ethical, text, social/cultural, emotional, organizational, environmental, scientific, numerical, and kinesthetic (McKenzie, 2009). The natural and environmental literacies are very similar and cover the abilities to read signs of nature as well as promote the sustainability of the earth and our natural resources. Scientific literacy addresses the need for citizens to understand the issues of biology, chemistry, physics, geology, and astronomy.
Artistic and visual literacies are also closely related and have to do with understanding and interpreting a piece of artwork or being able to analyze a variety of images. This can also overlap with media literacy because this requires the ability to analyze news images and critically look at other images in the media. Ethical literacy involves real world challenges and problem solving that looks at moral issues. When students can look at numbers and think critically about the data that is numerical literacy. Text literacy is being able to locate information in various texts. Social/cultural literacy is learning about various cultures and groups and developing a sense of tolerance and respect for others. Emotional literacy involves knowing how to read the feelings of others, while organizational literacy is the ability to understand the roles or norms in an organization or group.
The role these literacies play for the 21st century learner is critical. McKenzie (2009) wrote, “The well being of any democracy is threatened when young people pass through school with little awareness of the issues properly addressed within the scope of media literacy” (p. 47). Students need to understand the world around them and be able to critically think about multiple issues. Students need to respect our earth and the resources available in order to sustain them for the future and possibly find solutions to current environmental problems. They need to learn about each other and be able to work with others from various backgrounds and cultures. Students need to be question askers and problem solvers. As our world changes and information becomes available in many more places, students need to be able to be critical thinkers and know how to check the reliability of sources. Students still need to know how to read and find information in texts as well as understand and interpret data. However, students need to develop all of these different literacies in order to be good citizens of the 21st century.
McKenzie, J. (2009). Beyond cut and paste. Bellingham, WA:FNO Press.
Jamie McKenzie defines literacy as “the capacity to analyze, interpret and understand information within a particular category of information or within a particular medium” (pg. 141). While I am familiar with the term literacy and how it applies to education, I was completely unaware that there are so many different types of literacy. The different types of literacy that McKenzie discusses are: text, natural, artistic, kinesthetic, visual, numerical, media, environmental, cultural, social, ethical, emotional and scientific literacy (pg 47). I thought it was interesting reading about the various types of literacy and seeing that there is some overlapping between some of them, such as natural, scientific and environmental or artistic and visual literacy. I think it was important to point out the differences between artistic and visual literacy, that not all images are meant to be artistic, but should still be analyzed and understood. As teachers I feel that social/cultural literacy is an important one to make sure that we are teaching. Our students are coming from so many diverse backgrounds and cultures, it is important to spend time teaching about these cultures and tolerance and respect so that students will work together, not just in the classroom, but as they grow.
As 21st century learners, our students must have exposure to all the different types of literacies so that they are able to understand what is being taught to them on multiple levels. Teachers should not just be teaching students to read, write and do math problems, but we need to be showing students how to understand what they are reading and writing and how those math problems will translate into the real world. If we as teachers are incorporating all the types of literacy into our classrooms, students will be able to think critically about subjects and make their own conclusions, which are keys to 21st century skills and learning. Students need to know where to find information, and not just any information, but good information. We cannot have students depending on Google and Wikipedia to find their information, I personally find myself turning to Wikipedia for information on different topics and subjects, but I do know that it is something that is not a 100% reliable source and know how to find those that are. I thought McKenzie brought up a great point; we need to equip our students with the knowledge and strategies to be “crap detectors” (pg 56).
McKenzie, J. (2009). Beyond cut and paste. Bellingham, WA: FNO Press.
In Chapters 8 and 9, McKenzie wrote mostly about the importance of teaching media literacy. First, he focused on how reality is photoshopped by the media. Schools need to teach students how to analyze what they read or see. McKenzie states that students will be unequipped to make life decisions such as plan for their future or make sound choices when voting. In the next chapter, McKenzie focused mostly on the need of teaching students how to assess factual information when searching on the web. Wikipedia was used as an example of information that is readily available, but not always reliable since anybody can edit the content. Finally, in Chapter 22, McKenzie wrote about a dozen literacies. It seems that some of the literacies fall into the same type of category. Artistic, Media, Visual, Numerical, Text, and Scientific literacy require students to analyze the information presented. It may be in text, picture, graph or video form. They need to have the skills to look at information not only as it appears, but also consider who is generating the information, how it is being presented, and for what purpose. Ethical, Environmental, and Scientific literacies require students to be able to problem solve. It seems that Social/Cultural, Emotional, and Organizational literacies can be grouped together as well. These three literacies all deal with the ability to read people. It may be an individual or a group of people. Finally, Natural literacy seems to stand alone. Students need to be able to read text, photos or a landscape, like being able to understand signs when they are at the beach.
The Global Awareness theme in the P21 Framework is met by the Social/Cultural, Visual, and Media literacies. Being able to understand and appreciate the experiences and customs of other people in our country will help students to take other people’s viewpoints into consideration when looking for information. If we want students to become 21st Century Learners, they need to have the ability to consider where the information on the news, internet, radio, etc. is coming from. For example, somebody watching Fox News is going to hear a different viewpoint than from CNN. Students need to understand from where the information is originating. As 21st Century Learners students have to be able to communicate and collaborate with one another. Students skilled in Emotional and Organizational literacies are going to be able to work with others successfully. They will be able to read individuals or groups with whom they work. In my opinion, these are skills that many of my students lack. As a teacher librarian, I think that I would focus a fair amount of time working on Emotional and Organizational literacies. Lack of skills in these areas can leave students behind everybody else not only in academics, but in their personal relationships as well. Finally, I believe that in order to graduate 21st Century Learners, we need to teach students how to analyze media. I feel that students are not as strong in this area as we may think they are. I feel like tackling media literacy would be a good first step in creating 21st Century Learners.
McKenzie, J., Ed.D. (2009). Beyond cut-and-paste . Bellingham, Washington: FNO Press.
McKenzie’s text really added another dimension to 21st Century learning for me. It asks us to be mindful of these twelve literacies as we participate in a global society, sometimes simultaneously. It seems pretty overwhelming to have to consider all these components while trying to function on a daily basis with school, work, family, etc. However, what he is really asking us to do is to think and consider amidst all the information we bombarded with on a daily basis. As a school librarian, when I am teaching students to conduct research, it is my role to support them as they develop these literacy skills, as well as to support other teachers as they do the same. Skills for the 21st Century learner involve taking information, sifting through the reliable and the sensational, finding the truth and discarding the untruths while considering the implications of those untruths.
McKenzie describes twelve literacies in his text. Natural literacy is the recognition and understanding of the natural world. Artistic literacy is the understanding and interpretation of images. Media literacy is the ability to sift through distortion and manipulation to reach an understanding of the world portrayed in the media. Ethical literacy involved the understanding of the moral implications of issues often found below the surface of an issue. Visual literacy is the ability to interpret visual information such as maps, graphs, or documentary photos to find the truth. Numerical literacy is the ability to interpret numerical information and data in a meaningful and authentic manner. Text literacy is the ability to read and comprehend text, as well as to find answers within the text. Social/cultural literacy is the ability to understand how cultures function and interact within the community and globally. Emotional literacy is the ability to understand and empathize feelings and emotions in one’s life. Organizational literacy involves the understanding of how things and people are organized in any given situation. Environmental literacy is the understanding of the environmental changes and issues affecting our planet. Scientific literacy involves the understanding of science and its role in our world.
-Cynthia Stogdill
Many of McKenzie’s (2009) dozen literacies complement one another. Natural literacy, being able to “read” what is happening in nature through flora, fauna, and various signs, for example, can work closely with environmental literacy (keeping the planet healthy and sustainable) and scientific literacy. While scientific literacy is often assumed to be the umbrella under which the aforementioned literacies fall, it includes other important facets, such as understanding technology and how it impacts our lives, as well as questioning the process through which scientists discover, hypothesize, and theorize. Artistic literacy gives students the ability to analyze a piece of art, and realize what aspects should play a part in evaluating it. In a similar way, visual literacy empowers students to look at any visual item (chart, graph, photo, etc.) and ask, “What’s the story here?” (pg. 145). Ethical literacy and social/cultural literacy lend themselves to comparison. Students who are ethically literate are able to search below surface level information and apply moral principles to it. Ethical literacy can work hand in hand with social/cultural literacy, particularly when students are learning about a group of people with customs different than their own. Learning how to “read” emotions, attitudes, and moods is how a student can develop emotional literacy. Organizational literacy gives students the tools to manage groups of people, manage their own materials in a reasonable way, and manage expectations in a new setting. Text literacy means that students are able to read and think beyond the text in front of them. Numerical literacy not only means that students are able to maneuver numbers (computation), but understand how they relate and work together (number sense). Media literacy is a vital aspect of life today, as students need to be able to determine bias, authenticity, and reliability of sources in addition to being able to access information.
Grasping these literacies will play a huge role in the lives of 21st century learners. Reading about each of them brought a phrase to mind: renaissance man; someone well-versed in a great variety of areas. Students who are able to master these literacies will truly be “renaissance people.” While I agree that all of these literacies are important, two pairs of them jumped out. The first pair is natural literacy and social/cultural literacy. As a 5th grade teacher, I spend a great deal of time in social studies class discussing Native Americans. Native Americans have a variety of cultural traditions that vary from tribe to tribe. This fact would lend itself to a discussion of social/cultural literacy. Yet one thing that all tribes have in common, is a deep appreciation of nature. Learning about these groups of people and how much they respect the earth, would be a perfect way to teach about natural literacy and social/cultural literacy. Two other literacies raised a red flag for a particular population of students: organizational literacy and emotional literacy. Last year, I had two students in my class with aspberger’s syndrome. Organizational literacy is something neither one had a grasp of, though we worked tirelessly to develop it. Emotional literacy is a struggle for these students, due to their disability. Being unable “read” the way another person feels is an attribute of children with autism. I would be interested in finding out what suggestions are available for assisting this population of children in developing this literacy. Perhaps it is something that could be addressed on a student’s IEP. If our students are able to master these literacies, our 21st century learners will truly be renaissance people, able to shape and protect our world.
McKenzie, J. (2009). Beyond cut and paste: Engaging students in making good new ideas. Bellingham, WA: FNO Press.
Teresa Bell
McKenzie (2009) defines literacy “as the capacity to analyze, interpret and understand information within a particular category of information or within a particular medium” (p. 141). According to McKenzie (2009), there are a dozen or more literacies including natural, artistic, media, ethical, visual, numerical, text, social/cultural, emotional, organizational, environmental and scientific literacy (p.143-150). Jamie McKenzie (2009), in Beyond Cut-and-Paste, addresses the issue of nurturing intellectual curiosity and fostering students who “seek, use, and create knowledge” (p. viii). As educators, we are constantly trying to find ways to build those critical thinking skills however, the school system, at times, can hinder the fostering of creative and critical thinking skills by focusing only on text and numerical literacy (McKenzie, 2009). As McKenzie (2009) asserts,
Far too much attention in schools is devoted to the gathering of information without showing students how to assess the reliability of the sources. If we expect them to be media savvy, we must identify a repertoire of critical thinking skills that would sustain such savvy and then offer learning experiences that gradually nurture mastery of those skills as the students pass through our programs.(p. 47)
I see this lack of practical understanding continually as a substitute teacher. Students often participate in web-based research for in class activities however, there is no creativity in the hunt for information. Students use only the words provided to use in the search terms and there is never initiative taken to broaden the scope of their search and a general lack of curiosity to dig deeper into a subject. Students simply try to find the “right” or “acceptable” information as quickly as possible and regurgitate that information without editing it or evaluating it in anyway. However, by being aware of this “cut-and-paste” mentality teachers have a great opportunity to help build intellectual curiosity in students. Just these three chapters have made me realize what a box I have put myself into by my own misconceptions and narrow beliefs about what literacy means.
To be honest I was unsure about the meaning of the title Beyond Cut-and-Paste before reading McKenzie’s work however, I now recognize my own cut-and-paste mentality. After reading these three chapters, I think my professional practices will be affected by a re-dedication to cultivating the desire in students to ask questions. McKenzie’s work has provided a fresh perspective and revived the idea that teaching and learning are building processes and students need to know more than the facts they also need to know where those facts are coming from. It is our responsibility (as educators) to help students see how information is manipulated and instill the skills and knowledge in students needed to navigate their way through this sea of information (more of a tsunami today) and truly make up their own minds.
McKenzie, J., Ed.d. (2009). Beyond cut-and-paste; Engaging students in making good new ideas. Bellingham, WA: FNO Press.
McKenzie describes twelve types of literacies that students need to gather information through. The society we live in today expects children to learn to understand information through a variety of modes. Each different literacy requires specific tools to understand the information being presented. McKenzie focuses a lot of attention on media literacy since much of what children learn and hear comes from various media outlets. Even though media literacy is the largest provider of information for students, schools are narrowing their teaching focus to just two literacies--textual and numerical. This trend could prove to be catastrophic since students need to be able to interpret information from a variety of literacies in order to be well-informed and capable of making accurate decisions.
In chapter 8, McKenzie stated “It is evident that schools must equip all students with a dozen or more literacies, not just the simple and narrow numerical and text literacies” (pg. 47). When looking at 21st century skills that students need to possess, it is vitally important that adequate time be spent introducing students to all types of literacies. However; an introduction to the literacies is not enough. Students need to have a chance to dig deeper into the various literacies and be taught how to critically evaluate the information that they find. On page 47, McKenzie also states that students should be given ample amounts of time in various subject areas to look critically at news coverage from around the world. Students need to learn how to look at information from various perspectives and make informed decisions based on their findings. Students need to be taught how to look for bias’, balance in coverage, quality, reliability and currency when evaluated the information that they find. Schools need to also consider who is going to be responsible for teaching the content described above. It is often left to the media department or English teachers to teach; however, it is my belief that the entire staff must work together to educate our children about the various literacies and how to critically evaluate the information they find.
McKenzie, J. (2009). Beyond cut and paste. Bellingham, WA: FNO Press.
The twelve literacies mentioned in this book all focus on the idea that literacy is understanding knowledge in real world contexts. McKenzie (2009) mentions that each of these literacies may “require specific tools, concepts, and vocabulary to unlock the full meaning of the information provided” (p. 141).There are some juxtaposing between many of these literacies, but there are many different ways they can be organized to complement one another. Natural and environmental literacy involve understanding earth’s phenomena as well as the health of the planet. Ethical, organizational, social/cultural, and emotional literacy all focus on different aspects in the interactions between people or groups and how they work together. Numerical and text are about decoding data to find meaning. Artistic, visual and media literacies look at interpreting and analyzing different works in many forms and formats. Overall, some of these different literacies are new concepts for me as I used to consider them more of a skill that individuals develop according to interests and experiences. However, I realized they all involved taking specific data and evaluating, decoding, and synthesizing the information. Each entity has a specific set of skills associated it with it, but many different literacies are linked and can build upon one another.
Students need to be taught how to become critical consumers of information as well being able to ask the right questions and use powers of observation and discernment to make well-informed opinions and judgments. For each of these literacies, a teacher librarian can create lesson plans and activities that help students focus on learning the skills needed to be knowledgeable in that literacy. For example, students could watch news coverage and examine it using the different literacies. They can ask questions that are applicable to the situation such as was it ethical for that person to do that, why did that visual image get included in the story, and is there bias or misinformation. My role is to make opportunities available for students to practice these skills. Students need to become cognizant of how they process information and think through what they experience to make sure they are getting reliable and relevant information. For students to be successful, they need to be competent in all of these literacies and our students need to be prepared by being analytical evaluators of information. The AASL Standards for the 21st Century Learner focuses on how students need to think, inquire, and apply knowledge, and McKenzie’s ideas further shape what tasks and skills our students need to know to be literate. These twelve literacies form the basis of knowledge they can use throughout their academic, social, and professional lives. Students need to learn technology and be a part of the digital world, but they also need to understand how the natural world and personal interactions can be deciphered and understood.
McKenzie, J. (2009). Beyond cut and paste: Engaging students in making good new ideas. Bellingham, WA: FNO Press.
Samuel Johnson, the creator of the first English dictionary, was once quoted, "What we hope ever to do with ease, we must learn first to do with diligence." This quote rings true when discussing the importance of teaching multiple literacies to students. McKenzie (2009) defines literacy as, “the capacity to analyze, interpret and understand information within a particular category or within a particular medium” (p. 141). Based on McKenzie’s (2009) research, in order to unravel the full meaning of the information we provide students, we must develop and teach specific tools, concepts, and vocabulary that is well developed and clear while steering away from the trend of only teaching textual and numerical literacies. According to McKenzie (2009), there are twelve categories of literacy that are often being overlooked by teachers and schools need to begin accepting the challenge of incorporating what the literacies are and how to use them. To begin, natural literacy focuses on the need for people to tune into nature by enjoying it wonders but also understanding its vulnerabilities. Environmental literacy deals with the health of the plant while scientific literacy focuses on the need to grasp important issues and concepts when dealing with chemistry, biology, geology, physics, and astronomy. Media literacy teaches about the distortion and manipulation of the media today. Art literacy and visual literacy overlap since they both focus on analysis and interpretation. Ethical literacy focuses on teaching students how to research important issues, problems, and challenges to encourage moral action based on the students findings. Numerical literacy teaches how to develop critical thinking skills so students are able to properly interpret the data they obtain. Social/cultural literacy focuses on teaching students how to blend and develop tolerance and respect for other groups of people. Emotional literacy teaches students how to understand the feelings of others while reading, whereas organizational literacy helps develop and reinforce values, actions, beliefs, norms and sanctions so goals are achieved.
According to McKenzie (2009), many teachers expect their students to gather information; however the students are ill-equipped with the proper tools to access reliable sources. If we expect the 21st century learner to know how to obtain information, we must use the dozen literacies McKenzie defines to teach literacy pedagogy so the students are able to properly interpret and make sense of the information they find. Based on McKenzie’s (2009) research, students are confident not competent learners, meaning the students are using search engine tools (i.e., Google) where many of the sources the student accesses are distorted one way or another; thus, making credibility and reliability challenging. Teaching our students how to verify their sources by using the twelve literacies is pertinent to properly understanding the information they find. McKenzie (2009) states that media literacy must take precedence in district curriculum in the areas of language arts, social studies, and science. If we expect students to be media savvy, we must identify a repertoire of critical thinking skills that offer learning experiences that gradually nurture the mastery of thinking both critically and thoughtfully. McKenzie (2009) believes these skills will not only make the student successful researchers, but also allow them the ability to apply these skills outside of the classroom such as voting or life planning.
McKenzie, J. (2009). Beyond cut-and-paste: Engaging students in making good new ideas. Bellingham, WA: Fno.
As I read about the twelve different types of literacies, it occurred to me that I have never before considered most of them as “literacies”. Science and environmental literacies are closely connected and talk about citizens being aware of important science topics in our world today. Natural literacy connects with these two because people’s perception of natural literacy influences their opinions of how to take care of nature. Numerical literacy deals with being able to detect when the media or companies are trying to use numbers and statistics to persuade us into believing something that is not entirely true. Media literacy is the ability to see past biases and lies in the media. It helps students to learn about a community or the world. Literacies such as social/cultural, organizational, emotional, and ethical all require the use of different skills and all are extremely important as teachers are developing students to be successful employees and citizens. Visual and artistic literacies are closely related. These literacies require us to look deeply, think and communicate about what pictures, music and other forms of art mean.
Each of these literacies is important to the 21st century learner for very specific reasons. Many students would do well in school without the use of some of these literacies, but they would not do well outside the walls of our school buildings. Isn’t that our job? Our job is to teach students to be successful outside of school, to learn to be good citizens and to be successful so they can be providers for their families and communities. These literacies discussed in the book Beyond Cut-and-Paste are essential in our world today and it is our job as educators to make sure our students leave our schools with each skill.
McKenzie, J. (2009). Beyond cut and paste. Bellingham, WA: FNO Press.
Raelynn Buffington Reflection of Chapters 8,9 and 22 Due Date: 9-17-11
McKenzie states that there are twelve plus different literacies within the realm of informational literacy. Some of these literacies are more recognized than others. The twelve literacies identified in this book are; Natural literacy, Artistic literacy, Media literacy, Ethical literacy, Visual literacy, Text literacy, Social/cultural literacy, Emotional literacy, Organizational literacy, Environmental literacy and Scientific literacy. Several of these literacies have characteristics that overlap. Each of these literacies emphasizes the ability to gain a wealth of knowledge available if the active learner is aware of what to look for and of the right questions to ask. Not all these literacies are taught in the schools; in fact, there is a global trend to recognize only two of the twelve, that being Text and Numerical literacy. McKenzie also warns of bias and spins of the author. It’s important to understand that all information is to be questioned as to the information’s reliability. Students need to spend time evaluating text for relevance, accuracy, and authority. It is even suggested that the greater amount of people who believe the information released on popular websites, whether real or no, the more it is viewed as a true source.
For the 21st century learners it is imperative they are given the tools to understand all twelve literacies. I would not be able to walk into a forest without looking at it differently, now that I understand how to gain knowledge from nature. Some of the literacies are understood by educators. I think it is the literacies that we are not as familiar with that need to be used and talked about in a language that everyone understands. Wikipedia has become the go to place for information. Students need to know how to examine the information they are given. They will need to be able to evaluate the reliability and understand how the information fits into the real world. Before going on a field trip to the art museum, it would be ideal time to teach Artistic and Visual literacy. We want our students to gain real knowledge, not popular information. One way each literacy could be taught is by setting up units followed by true experiences that allow the learner to practice each literacy, It is not just the teacher librarian that needs to be concerned with the twelve literacies but every adult that teaches students will want to understand them and use them in the classroom. Collaboration will be the key to success of these literacies with the classroom teacher and the teacher librarian.
McKenzie, J. (2009). Beyond Cut and Paste. Bellingham, WA: FNO Press.
Deb Kendall
My first response to Jamie McKenzie’s suggestion that there are twelve or more categories of information literacy was to feel, in a word, yikes! There is so much to teach and so little time! Then I stepped back and looked at some of the examples in relation to the evidence of instruction already taking place in my school. There is a dedicated effort in our weekly teacher inservice for the content area teachers to work collaboratively to increase literacy in their particular discipline. They focus on identifying essential vocabulary, process skills and higher level thinking skills along with effective teaching strategies to help their students understand and internalize these processes. The piece that McKenzie does for me is to help me reframe this process by labeling these, to this point in my mind, random skills, as literacies. As educators, we know what is involved in literacy. So, by identifying these skills as literacies, I can begin to break these large tasks into manageable pieces, see what processes are already in place and locate areas which need attention. For example, the Math PLC, Professional Learning Community, has made a concentrated effort to guide students from a basic understanding of numeracy toward real life application and critical thinking. A piece we may be missing with our students is the discussion about ways people distort the facts with numbers and charts. Students need to be aware that, as McKenzie says, “Numbers don’t lie, but people lie with numbers.” (p. 146) I think as a society we have tried to protect our children from the deception of adults. In fact, by doing this, we do them a vast disservice. They would be much better served by making them aware of bias and spin techniques and arming them with critical thinking skills to free them to think for themselves. In addition, by honoring skills such as; being able to “read the forest” (p. 142), the ability to deeply analyze a piece of art, to “cut past the manipulation and distortions” of the media (p. 143), being able to think through the ethical issues of decisions, to being able to understand and appreciate cultural subtleties, developing empathy, and understanding ways to function within organizations, as literacies, we validate them. This validation can then give them a respected place in the curriculum so that they are not just the “fluff”, the “nice to know” stuff we can teach if we get through the rest of the content. It reframes them as essential for a productive life from which no child should be left behind.
The other piece I will take away from the reading is a clearer understanding and perhaps, appreciation of Wikipedia as a both a positive and negative tool for research with my students. My program relies heavily on research so, I have always required my students to have multiple sources for their research in an effort to verify facts and fill in for omissions. I had encouraged students to use print and online encyclopedias because of their credibility. I knew that there were omissions because choices had to be made in deference to space and there is bias inherent in all choice. What I had not realized is that “much of the writing is done by junior staffers.” (p. 54) Recently, I have allowed students to use Wikipedia for some projects because print sources and online encyclopedias had very little to offer. Armed with McKenzie’s explanation of the shortcomings of Wikipedia, the “quality, reliability, and language, the bias and balance, and currency” issues (p. 56) along with a refined caution of traditional sources, I will now place a higher priority on questioning and evaluating all sources of information. I am making a poster of the questions on page 52 as an anchor chart for my classrooms and to share with my colleagues who may be struggling with the Wikipedia question as well.
McKenzie, J., Ed.D. (2009). Beyond cut-and-paste: Engaging students in making good new ideas. Bellingham, WA: FNO Press.
In the book, Beyond Cut and Paste, Jamie McKenzie (2009) defines literacy as “the capacity to analyze, interpret and understand information within a particular category of information or within a particular medium”. (p.141). Schools focus on two literacies – textual, which is getting information by using the text, and numerical, which is using numbers and data to understand the world. Instead of just getting their information from books and through numbers, today’s learner gets their information by using many different literacies. Ethical literacy involves moral implications of decisions and a consideration of the greater good. Natural literacy is the ability to read and understand your surroundings, while environmental literacy is care of the planet and its’ resources. Scientific literacy involves an understanding of different scientific concepts and how they impact us. Visual literacy is the interpretation of images and artistic literacy is the interpretation of something that is artistic in nature. Media literacy wants the reader to not only see the images presented, but also to find the hidden meaning. Organizational literacy involves an understanding of the rules, structure and climate of different groups and organizations. Social/cultural literacy studies the behaviors and customs of different groups to build tolerance and respect across cultures. Emotional literacy uses the ability to read people’s emotions by using not only their words but their body language. Using this literacy helps us to understand other people’s viewpoints.
The best way to see students is to look at the strengths they bring to the table and understanding the different literacies helps us to identify those strengths. The 21st Century Standards asks students to inquire, think critically, and gain knowledge. By embracing these new literacies, we can understand the many ways a student can do this. When you understand the strengths a student has, you can use those strengths to promote even greater learning.
McKenzie, J. (2009). Beyond cut-and-paste. Bellingham, Washington: FNO Press.
I was actually very glad to have read these chapters on the various literacies. As I have heard them brought up in classes before now, I have not been terribly clear on what was meant. McKenzie (2009) brought each of his 12 literacies down to an easy to understand level. He defines a literacy as, “One’s capacity to analyze, interpret and understand information within a particular category of information or within a particular medium” (McKenzie, 2009, p. 141). I felt that a common theme between all of them was developing a sense of deeper understanding of the world around you. I don’t think that a person can be completely in tune with each type, and some personalities will probably lean towards one more then the others, regardless it would be good for us to all be aware of each. As teachers, I feel that there are many of these that we can graze upon during our year as a student’s teacher, and in some cases have the opportunity to dive further, but do not. Ethical literacy, for instance, can be touched upon often throughout the year. We don’t have to address the big global issues in order to point out decisions made on a daily basis, and talk about why they were good or poor ones.
The area I felt that was most relevant to my teaching and the AASL 21st century skills, and that McKenzie (2009) spent a good deal of time on, was media literacy. He says, “…a number of studies have emerged painting a less encouraging picture of the information skills of young people” (p.59). Schools often emphasize finding information, but students have no means of deciphering its credibility. There are a few major corporations that, in essence, own what the media portrays to us, and are able to spin the information until it says what they want it to. In elementary they have little to no free reign on the information they see on the Internet. This does make for a safer environment for them to search for what they need, but it doesn’t give them a sense as to why that information is credible and how they could have found it on their own. It is important for us to help develop their critical thinking skills, so they can one day make up their own minds, and not what the media depicts. The same can be held true for each of the literacies. The AASL 21st century skills are technologically based, but they also call for critical thinking and good communication. The standards and literacies are highly intertwined in many, many ways.
McKenzie, J. (2009). Beyond cut-and-paste:
Engaging students in making good new
ideas. Bellingham, WA: FNO Press.
Lorie Adams
TED 8716
Fall 2011
Cut and Paste reflections chapter 8,9,22
This class is broadening my understanding of literacy. My view of literacy was the ability to read the written word and comprehend what was read. Jamie McKenzie, defines literacy “as the capacity to analyze, interpret and understand information within a particular category of information or within a particular medium.” (p.141). He discusses several different types of literacy. Natural, emotional and social literacy require the ability to read and understand the surroundings, people and cultures. For example; looking at the sky to predict what the weather would be like on that day or watching a person’s facial expressions to determine their current mood. Visual and artistic literacy both involves the analysis and interpretation of images. Media and number literacy can distort the truth. Ethical literacy involves the “identification of the moral dimensions of issues and decisions (p.145).” Organizational literacy “involves the understanding or reinforces values, actions, beliefs, norms and sanctions so the goals of group are advanced rather than bogged down or subverted (p.149).” Environmental literacy and scientific literacy deal with chemistry, biology, geology, physics, astronomy and the heath of the planet.
As a special education teacher I ask myself what skills will the student need to be successful in the future. Social or emotional, social/cultural, natural and organizational literacies are skill most of the students need to improve just to navigate the world of high school, work and home. The 21st century learner will also need to able to determine what is true and ethical. Teaching media and ethical literacy can be taught in all core classes.
McKenzie, J., Ed.D. (2009). Beyond cut-and-paste. Bellingham, Washington: FNO Press
Amanda Gregory
Beyond Cut-and-Paste Reflection
According to Jamie McKenzie in his book, Beyond Cut-and-Paste (2009), there are thirteen different literacies in which students need to be proficient. The most commonly taught are text literacy and numerical literacy, which refer to reading and math, respectively. Though these are certainly important, there is so much more students should know before venturing out into the world. McKenzie focuses mainly on media literacy, which involves interpreting the media outlets such as news, ads, and entertainment, on television, online, in print and on radio, and determining their validity. There are natural and environmental literacies, in which we learn to “read” the earth, and work to take care of it, as well as artistic and visual literacies, in which we learn to interpret pictures and other works of art to determine the meaning behind them. Ethical literacy teaches students to “move from ‘What can be done?’ to ‘What should be done?’”(McKenzie, 2009, p. 144) while social and cultural literacies involve learning about other cultures from our own, and celebrating the good aspects of each. Emotional literacy is learning to read other people’s faces and emotions and be able to interpret them, as well as understanding one’s own emotions. Organizational literacy entails reading the hierarchy and flow of an organization and lastly, scientific literacy teaches students to understand important current issues in the science field.
Having a good grasp on all of these literacies will give students the decision making and “crap-detecting” skills they need to survive today, in this world full of “spin” and photoshopped news (McKenzie, 2009). While reading and math are certainly vital skills for today’s students, one would not be able to lead a productive adult life without being knowledgeable in the other literacies as well. I work with a second-grade student with autism who has a really hard time with emotional literacy. He cannot read other’s emotions nor does he always know which emotion is appropriate to display, and though we work on it constantly, I continually look for a better way to teach this. In the future, as a school librarian, I may have a tendency to work mainly on text literacy, but I need to be sure I promote as many literacies as possible, both to students, and in working with other educators, to eventually create well-rounded adults.
McKenzie, Jamie. (2009). Beyond cut-and-paste: Engaging students in making good new ideas. Bellingham, WA: FNO Press.
Stephanie Schnabel
Jamie McKenzie defines literacy as “the capacity to analyze, interpret and understand information within a particular medium” (pg. 141). There are 12 literacies described in the book: natural, artistic, media, ethical, visual, numerical, text, social/cultural, emotional, organizational, environmental, and scientific. Many of these literacies are overlapping in either medium or content but all are essential skills for people (students and non-students) to be productive members of society. As I read through these chapters I found myself comparing the multiple literacies we teach our students to the multiple intelligences that our students bring to the classroom. Some students come to us having many experiences with these literacies and some students come having never experienced or witnessed these skills in use. Knowing and teaching these literacies to students, help educators focus on developing the whole student, not just one that can succeed in answering reading and math questions on a high stakes test.
These literacies are crucial for our 21st century learners to succeed. As McKenzie stated, students now need to develop “crap detectors” (pg. 53) to handle all of the information that they are inundated with on a regular basis. For students today, it takes more than being able to decode a passage or solve an equation to function. Students need to be able to read multiple circumstances at once and assess how to handle it as a whole. I think as educators we are already addressing many of these literacies. As a math teacher I not only worked with students to improve their numerical and text literacies, I also worked with students daily to improve their social/cultural, emotional, and organizational skills. None of these literacies fall into one single content area, they are all overlapping and need to be taught in all classroom areas.
McKenzie, J. (2009). Beyond cut and paste. Bellingham, WA: FNO Press.
Kelly Eby
Jamie McKenzie, the author of Beyond Cut and Paste: Engaging Students in Making Good New Ideas, names 12 literacies in chapter 22, Reading Across a Dozen Literacies. Many of the literacies overlap into one another. Natural Literacy is what we understand about nature and how we relate it to issues in our world or life experiences. It relates closely to environmental and scientific literacies. Environmental literacy identifies not only the health of the planet, but “what we must all do to promote that well being and work to promote sustainability.” Scientific literacy has more complexities in that first we must understand the realms of chemistry, biology, geology, physics and astronomy. Then be able to use the knowledge to assess what we need to do to live good lives in our natural world. The author names several other types of literacy: artistic literacy, visual literacy, ethical literacy, numerical literacy, text literacy, social/cultural literacy, emotional literacy, organizational literacy and media literacy. Literacy is the “capacity to analyze, interpret, and understand information within a particular category of information or within a particular medium”, as it is defined by Jamie McKenzie in this chapter.
Each literacy in its own rite has its own identity relating to its definition. One similarity between all literacies is the connection to how it affects life in the real world. Each area helps us to gain perspective so we can act on the information. We think critically, and decide how different situations will affect our lives and humanity. Standards for the 21st century learner name the 4 areas of focus as: skills, dispositions in action, responsibilities and self-assessment strategies. I believe all of these areas are significant in the role the dozen literacies named by the author, affect the 21st century learner. We have the great privilege of helping develop a generation of learners. It is our responsibility to make sure the literacies are understood so these learners have a complete understanding of our world when making future decisions that will affect generations to come.
McKenzie, J. (2009). Beyond cut and paste. Bellingham, WA: FNO Press.
There are several literacies which I had never heard of that I found could play an intrical part in learning in the classroom. First, I was quite amazed how many literacies there were. I had assumed that most literacies fell in categories together, but as it turns out, there is almost a category for each. I really did not expect emotional literacy to be a type of literacy, but when described in the book, it makes sense that it is by itself.
Students must be able to sort out the "crap" as the author says and also to pick out what information is important and what is just for entertainment. Having an understading of all of the literacies, or at least most of them, gives students the ability to write a paper with substance behind it. I will also allow students to continue to perform correct methods of research in the future. This allows them to keep using the information they obtain in elelmentary or secondary school throughout their lives.
Kristina Peters
Jamie McKenzie (2009) defines literacy as “ the capacity to analyze, interpret and understand information within a particular category of information or within a particular medium” (p. 141). The majority of schools focus on text literacy, the ability to read and comprehend text, and numerical literacy, the ability to read and understand numbers. There are many other types of literacy that must be considered for students to be considered well-rounded and prepared for today’s global and digital world. Media literacy involves news, entertainment, and advertising communicated through various mediums all in effort to shape the way in which we see the world and affect our behavior (McKenzie, 2009, p. 51). Students today live in an age of sensationalism where information is glossed over and positively spinned in order to appeal to the masses. It is our job as educators, not just librarians, to effectively teach media literacy so that students become successful “crap detectors” and can research credible information that they can then synthesize and communicate with others.
In my current role as an ELL teacher, I find it even more imperative to help my students with the various forms of literacy listed, but particularly media literacy. ELL students are already at a deficit when they enter school because of language barriers and sometimes, cultural differences. Exposing students to various forms of media and checking on its credibility must be modeled and explicitly taught for them to understand that not everything online or read in a magazine or book is valid. While this generation may be comprised of digital natives, too often the first page of Google results are the only sources that are used without question to credibility. It is my job now, and as a future librarian, to ensure that students understand the importance of questioning the source to know if the information is credible.
McKenzie, J. (2009). Beyond Cut and Paste. Bellingham,WA: FNO Press
Response to Susan Findlay's Cut and Paste Reflection:
I like how Susan explains that all 12 literacies “are linked together because they all represent information,” and that” information is a kind of toolbox and the literacies are the tools.” I do believe the literacies are the tools for teaching students a well-rounded, meaningful skill set that will help them use 21st century skills. The information that the literacies offer is priceless.
Susan G. Harder
I broke the literacies into three categories: Geographic-based, Subject-based, and Learning Style-based Literacies. Environmental, cultural, social, ethical, and emotional literacies are Geographic-based literacies that vary for people living in different geographic areas and based on different backgrounds. These are the literacies that are defined most readily by how one is raised and what one’s family values during developmental years. Artistic, numerical, text, media, and scientific literacies are subject-based literacies. Being able to learn and learning how to apply issues through various forms of art or to evaluate art, to use reading or writing, understanding scientific concepts, evaluating various media based concepts as well as math/numeric concepts is closely tied to specific academic subjects or classes. Visual, natural, and kinesthetic literacies though are more closely related to learning styles.
As I further review the thirteen literacies, I see correlations and inconsistencies to Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences (visual-spatial intelligence – visual literacy, bodily-kinesthetic – kinesthetic literacy, musical – artistic literacy, interpersonal – social literacy, intrapersonal – ethical or emotional literacy, linguistically – text literacy, and logical-mathematical – numerical and scientific literacies). Gardner saw that different people had different areas of intellectual strength. I see various people are more in tune with different literacies and others require more work to apply the different literacies. If we are to prepare our students as 21st century learners, we have to understand that not all areas will be as readily understood by all students. Computer skills and surfing the ‘net doesn’t make students learn the same way. Some students will look for the easy out, taking the first website they find instead of researching to validate their information. These students are those who will not necessarily do well in a lab science classroom as they do not want to take the time to do all steps of the experiments and go back and double check their results or perhaps they are just not as adept with logical-mathematical intelligence. Thus it behooves teachers/librarians to remember that computers and the web-based tools that are developing are only tools that will help students more quickly access information than did their predecessors. However, they do not replace the need to have highly qualified educators available to facilitate the access to these tools. Teachers have to evaluate how students use tools and whether or not they are really understanding or merely doing the minimum. This I equate to a teacher assigning workbooks to be filled in because they are expected to cover the whole book during the year, but never once opening the books to see if the students actually get the right answers. Whether you hand a student a slate, a parchment and quill, a piece of paper, a worksheet, or a computer, teachers have to evaluate the final product. So, in some ways, all the advances in technology is actually just making our job more difficult because for everything we assign, we have to stay one step ahead to ensure we are able to evaluate our students.
On a side note, I note one possible omission. Is there an auditory literacy? Isn’t it just as important that we teach students to learn to filter what they hear as well as what they read? Do we not expect students to take notes from lectures? Shouldn’t we be training our students early on listen and evaluate what they hear from instructors as well as we expect them to evaluate what they “hear” in the media?
McKenzie, J. (2009). Beyond cut and paste. Bellingham, WA: FNO Press.
Smith, Mark K. (2002, 2008) 'Howard Gardner and multiple intelligences', the encyclopedia of informal education, http://www.infed.org/thinkers/gardner.htm.
McKenzie White
Beyond Cut & Paste Reflection (Ch. 8,9,22)
Reference Resources & Services
What does it mean to be literate? A decade ago, being literate may have referred only to one being able to analyze and comprehend textual languages. According to Jamie McKenzie (2009), today’s 21st century learner must exhibit mastery of the following literacies: text, natural, artistic, kinesthetic, visual, numerical, media, environmental, cultural, social, ethical, emotional, and scientific (p.51). As each literacy is broken down by McKenzie, it reveals its specific value and purpose in today’s media rich society. Upon reflection, McKenzie’s literacies closely relate to Howard Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences and the 16 Habits of Mind. All three of these educational theories relate to the many viewpoints of components relating to internal/external vs. self/world connections and the ability of individual analysis of these literacies, intelligences, or habits.
For the 21st century learner, McKenzie’s literacies provide the framework for an intricate balance of self-awareness and critical analysis of the world surrounding them. In order for our students to be prepared for their futures, they will have to be educated in these literacies. As McKenzie (2009) notes, “even though many governments are stressing text and numerical literacy, they often set the bar too low and fail to emphasize challenging levels of comprehension” (p. 146). I also find it interesting that schools highlight reading/writing and math as the subjects of utmost importance-creating assessment focus and mania that excludes other areas of education and student success. Maybe future assessment tools can reflect these literacies more effectively to suit the needs of 21st Century students.
Costa, A., & Kallick, B. (2000). Habits of mind: A developmental series. Retrieved from
http://www.instituteforhabitsofmind.com/
McKenzie, J. (2009). Beyond cut-and-paste. Bellingham, WA: FNO Press.
Smith, M.K. (2008). Howard Gardner and multiple intelligences. Retrieved from
http://www.infed.org/thinkers/gardner.htm
In McKenzie’s book, "Beyond Cut and Paste" it is suggested that there are twelve different literacy’s that students need to use in the world today. This wasn’t something I had latched onto yet, but the further along I read, the more I realized why there are twelve instead of two we recognize. It is important as educators to remind ourselves that there is more to educating students beyond knowing and understanding their numbers and text. We use emotional literacy everyday when we asks the students how they are feeling about their morning, afternoon, or day and, we never really stop to think that what we are doing could be considered a literacy. The emotional stability of an entire class depends upon the students and how productive that day is going to end up being. It was also interesting to me that there is a nature literacy because it has to do with something that to me, always seemed more instinctual and not entirely classroom related. . Then I stopped and reminded myself that we aren’t only educating students for their work in the classroom, but for the world as a whole. Sadly in the world today less children are aware of the great possibilities in the natural world, and do not have a great understanding of anything outside the four walls in which they reside.
McKenzie also talks about Wikipedia and how it has over taken our other information researching devices. Whenever students are asked to look up a certain topic online whether it be a person, place, object, or an idea; the very first link that comes up is Wikipedia. As educators we have let our students think and use Wikipedia as a reliable source. I myself use it when I want a summarization of an event, but know that not everything they are saying is a complete fact. McKenzie made a great point when he said that we need to equip our kids with “crap detectors” (56). Moving on into the 21st century as educators we need to help our students in understanding that all the information on the internet isn’t factual. We need to educate them so when they find a site like Wikipedia, they know that it has its purpose, but it isn’t the place to balance all their information.
McKenzie, J. (2009). Beyond cut and paste. Bellingham, WA: FNO Press.
McKenzie White
Beyond Cut & Paste Classmate Reflection
Reference Resources & Services
Response to Teresa Bell’s McKenzie (Ch. 8,9, 22) Reflection:
I agree that our students are used to being “spoon fed” information: location, validity, and acquisition. I am also “guilty” of choosing to limit students’ choices (especially when working with younger students) as a means of being more effective or ensuring the yield of more reliable information. I definitely see the dwindling of students’ internal curiosity in the classroom, and also feel the responsibility to foster this curiosity through means like McKenzie’s literacies.
McKenzie White
Beyond Cut & Paste Classmate Reflection
Reference Resources & Services
Response to Sydney Peters’ McKenzie (Ch. 8,9, 22) Reflection:
I also found it informative to read McKenzie’s breakdown of each “literacy.” Personally, I frequently “lump” together various literacies as multiple literacies, so McKenzie’s analysis of each area of literacy was a great reminder of the uniqueness that resides within each one. I like how you pointed out that, as educators, it is much easier to focus on each of the literacies on a smaller scale-making it more meaningful (especially for younger students).
Sandra Fey
McKenzie describes multiple categories of information and its associated literacy. I was interested to read about each literacy and immediately understood the need to educated students on all of the them. Previously, I thought all of these literacies fell under the title of information literacy. Text and numerical literacies are the two that are most commonly taught in school. Thinking about the standardized and criterion-reference tests that I give my students, these are the ones that they focus on. When I think about students as a whole I am reminded that they will need all of these important literacies to make sense of their world. I see a link between visual, artistic, and natural literacies. Each of them has a separate purpose but in the same way, students will use the images (including many mediums and real life) to learn and appreciate information. Media literacy is the ability to receive news and be able to judge its accuracy, source, and relevance. I thought it was very important to note how news reporting has changed over the years and how perception dictates quality news. Emotional and social/cultural literacy are interesting because students will need to be able to read the behaviors of others. Organizational literacy is a literacy that some students seem to understand without teaching, but when they don’t, it seems to cause problems. I see this often in the classroom when you have a new student and they don’t quite know the role that everyone plays in the classroom dynamics.
All of the literacies described by McKenzie are important for 21st century learners to understand. The problem lies with how and when they are taught. With so much information being available, students have an urgent need to comprehend and use it. A few of the literacies stick out to me; emotional and media. Before reading these chapters, I didn’t realize how much of our news is geared towards sports, entertainment, and high interest. Although these are fun to read, are they really valuable to students? Will students be better people because they read them? 21st century learners need the ability to analyze each news report that they read so that they know if it is a reliable source and information. Teachers need to take the time to help students make the connection between the source of information and the perspective that is portrayed. Often times, students will take the first thing that they see and it will become their fact without finding out more information. Emotional literacy is important because it will help students understand other people. Teaching in an elementary building, I am reminded of this everyday. So many times problems come about because students don’t take the time to look at the clues that would help them understand how another person is reacting to their behavior. Teaching students about emotional literacy will help them to understand other people and become more aware of how they affect others.
McKenzie, J. (2009). Beyond Cut and Paste. Bellingham, WA: FNO Press
McKenzie, J. (2009). Beyond cut-and-paste: Engaging students in making good new ideas. Bellingham, WA: FNO Press.
In the past, when I planned lessons for my students I considered a variety of things. Some of the twelve literacies, as described by Jamie McKenzie, were not on my list of things to consider. At least I did not previously think of them as independent pieces of a student’s literacy development. Drawing attention to the need to consider and include all the literacies is McKenzie’s (2009) stance that, “Each category may require specific tools, concepts and vocabulary to unlock the full meaning of the information provided.” If I do not equip my students with this base knowledge to decode the information given in various formats, how can I assume they will be able to use that information? As a librarian, I do not believe that simply checking out a book means they have read and understood the information from that book. I know for a fact that many of my students, as inner city students, have no idea what it is to be naturally literate. After reading our text, that is one thing I am definitely going to incorporate into my library by using some of the other literacies like artistic, visual, and ethical literacy. Then on the other hand, maybe their “natural” literacy is different than that of a quiet secluded forest or beach as McKenzie suggests and more of the rough, challenging streets that they live on and have learned to navigate. They could teach me about their literacy as I teach them about McKenzie’s natural literacy.
Our 21st Century Learners must be equipped to deal with multiple aspects of literacy. I was not completely surprised by McKenzie’s (2009) claim from the New Zealand study that our students are “’more confident’ than ‘competent. ’” Many times I will ask a student if they know how to format their paper or would they like help; their answers are always “I can do that.” However, when I watch them attempt to write the paper, they are doing all the work manually when the program could do the spacing, indentations and margins with just a couple of clicks. The students think they know what I am asking when they actually have no idea. I have seen students “double space” a paper by having two spaces between each letter rather than an extra line between lines. Students hear in literal forms and we as their teachers and literacy instructors need to break that code for them. (The student I am speaking of was a freshman in high school.) This also demonstrates the importance of teaching them how to evaluate information. If they learn to question the information, “Why would my teacher want two spaces between each letter?” Then they should be able to discern that they need more information to complete the task. McKenzie makes teaching critical thinking and questioning a primary task for all teachers and not just library media teachers. These are skills our students need to survive in a global market, as well as, their neighborhoods in the 21st Century.
McKenzie admits a lot of the literacies overlap. He writes about twelve separate ones which are summarized here. Natural literacy has to do with being aware of our natural world, like using the stars to navigate on the ocean or knowing which berries are poisonous to eat. Artistic literacy is more than writing about art, but rather “reading” a piece of art to understand what it means. Ethical literacy deals with skills for making moral choices. Visual literacy encompasses evaluating what we see, which overlaps with artistic literacy (but not everything we see is art) and media literacy (what we see may have been altered and therefore not true). Numerical literacy is the ability to validate numerical data and recognize when numerical information is being slanted in such a way so that people arrive at the conclusion the authors’ want rather than what is true. Text literacy is more than finding an answer within the text, but rather comprehending what’s “between the lines.” Social literacy and cultural literacy are so similar McKenzie wrote about them together. They encompass being able to “read” and respect various people groups and their customs, while also discerning if any of their practices need to be rejected, like dog fighting. Emotional literacy is being able to perceive the feelings of others which leads to sympathy and better relationships. Organizational literacy is not the skills of organizing a business or classroom. It is the “reading” of what is expected of a person (like a nurse or student) who belongs to an organization (like the hospital where she works or the high school he attends). Environmental literacy is being aware of what can or needs to be done for the overall health of our planet. Scientific literacy is an understanding of important ideas in the many areas of science, including geology, biology, chemistry, physics, etc. In the chapters assigned, McKenzie never specifically writes about his thirteenth literacy, kinesthetic literacy, that appears in his chart (p. 47) which deals with movement of the body for understanding. Media literacy is the author’s central literacy because it deals with being able to analyze the validity or truth of everything that comes to us through TV, radio, billboards, internet, texts, email, print, etc. This involves all the literacies.
Before the digital age, before television, if a student was labeled literate, it meant they could read. So literacy then meant a person had the skills to read words and also to understand what the words meant. People wanting to be teachers spent time in college learning how to teach students all the things they needed to be able to read with comprehension. Back then, the only things they had to read were printed material, such as books, magazines, newspapers, billboards, legal documents, letters, etc. But in our digital age, there is much more to “read” that is not printed material, such as computer programing codes, videos, Wikipedia, blogs, internet addresses, forwarded emails, images, websites, etc. And to compound the differences from the pre-digital age, these new things we are “reading” are not always produced from a reliable, trustworthy person or organization. So everyone needs different skills and abilities to find the information they need and to separate valuable from silly, useful from a waste of time, real from fake, and true from false. The role of all the literacies is basically the same as the first literacy of reading comprehension. The literacies help break down all the many areas of learning into parts that require the same skills and abilities. People wanting to be teachers and veteran teachers can learn what is needed for the grade level, subject, and standards they are teaching, and then develop or find 21st century lessons to match. The literacies assist in making everyone more aware of what students will need to succeed in a quickly changing world.
McKenzie, J. (2009). Beyond cut and paste. Bellingham, WA: FNO Press.
Amber Blair
Beyond Cut-and-Paste Response
Chapters 8,9, & 22
McKenzie, J. Beyond cut-and-paste: Engaging students in making good new ideas. Bellingham, WA: FNO Press.
In chapter 22 of Beyond Cut and Paste, Jamie McKenzie describes twelve literacies that are essential for our 21st century learners to understand in our media focused society. Natural literacy is the ability to read the signs of nature. McKenzie suggests that students may have a “greener” approach to issues if they are more in tune to nature. Artistic literacy is the ability to understand elements of the arts and use inference to interpret its meanings. Media literacy is the ability to think critically when faced with all types of media. Ethical literacy is the awareness of issues revolving around moral and ethical decisions. Visual literacy is related to artistic literacy and media literacy. This includes the ability to evaluate charts and photos of current events. Numerical literacy is the ability to look at data and studies to make interpretations and think critically about the information. Text Literacy is the ability to read and comprehend text. Students need to be able to find meaning using inference and higher order thinking skills. Social/cultural literacy is reading the behaviors and customs of diverse groups. We can learn to tolerate, respect, and even celebrate certain differences in cultures around the world. Emotional literacy involves analyzing body language and facial expressions. With emotional literacy, we can learn to empathize with others, work more effectively, and build relations. One thing I ask myself is: Are our students missing out on this because of our growing technological and social media culture? Organizational literacy is the ability to read our surroundings to know roles and expectations of self and others. This helps us to look after the health of the group. Environmental Literacy is reading the health of the planet. Environmental literacy is related to natural and scientific literacy. Scientific Literacy is the ability to understand the issues of the various branches of the scientific world. I think this also should include the understanding of the scientific process.
Being literate in these described literacies is essential for our 21st century learners to become global citizens with the skills they need to compete in our ever changing, technological world. Twenty first century learners need to become critical thinkers, rather than passive readers, when faced with several types of information. Each of the described literacies helps 21st learners become 21st century thinkers that can problem solve, make informed decisions, and participate in our global society. According to McKenzie, the definition of literacy is “the capacity to analyze, interpret, and understand information within a particular category of information or within a particular medium.” Taking this into account, I can see that in order for our students to become literate in several areas, we need to teach higher order thinking skills. McKenzie says that media literacy is a large chunk of what we need to teach our students because media is such a large part of our lives. I also see a connection with media literacy to the other 11 literacies, with media literacy as being almost central to the other literacies. Taking this into account, I think it would be beneficial to teach each literacy skill with an emphasis on media literacy.
The title of Jamie McKenzie’s book, Beyond Cut-and-Paste: Engaging Students in Making Good New Ideas (2009), reminds me of the importance of turning information into original ideas. However, the creation of original ideas is no easy feat, and in order to effectively accomplish this, students must first be able to correctly interpret the information in front of them, regardless of how that information is presented. This act of accurately interpreting information is the basis of literacy. In his book, Mr. McKenzie (2009) identifies twelve categories of literacy: natural, artistic, media, ethical, visual, numerical, text, social/cultural, emotional, organizational, environmental, and scientific. Although incorporating each of these into our curriculum might seem like a daunting task, I would argue that this is much easier to accomplish if we are striving to educate the whole child. As I reflect on my experiences as a classroom teacher of second graders, I see that the integration of these literacies were (in part) the natural result of my work with children throughout a typical day: updating the weather on the calendar or going on a nature walk on the school campus (natural and environmental literacy); taking a picture walk before reading a new story (artistic and visual literacy); participating in classroom activities and in the school environment as a whole (organizational literacy); learning about one another and about the different people in our communities (social/cultural literacy); following classroom rules, such as no lying, cheating, stealing (ethical literacy); recognizing when we have hurt someone (emotional literacy). While any lesson involving the core subjects would involve text literacy - the media, numerical and scientific literacies would require the most intentional planning when working with young children. In the end, I now have the knowledge to ensure that these experiences are no longer just happenstance; rather they will be intentionally incorporated into my future lesson plans.
We have information coming at us from every direction; some of this information is credible, some of it amounts to nothing more than sensational nonsense, and some of it can be downright harmful. McKenzie (2009) suggests that our “society is filled with masters of deception…” (p. 57), and technology allows these masters access to our children nearly 24/7. For this reason, it is imperative we teach our students that they cannot passively accept all information as truth, and that they must engage in critical thinking whenever they are presented with information. Children are naturally impressionable and vulnerable; therefore, it is essential to their safety and well-being that they have the ability to call upon and apply these literacies in a variety of situations. However, we cannot assume that children have an intrinsic ability to decipher information, nor can we assume that someone else will perform the job of teaching them. As educators, we must assign ourselves the task of equipping our students with the critical thinking skills that will enable them to analyze and then decide for themselves what is real, and we must accept that this assignment is no longer optional. Our students are growing up in what is being called the information age, and having the ability to critique information in every form will serve our children throughout their lives - as students, citizens, professionals, and future heads of household. Furthermore, our students are living in a time and place where cultural diversity is the norm - and acceptance, understanding, and appreciation of our differences are the goals. In order to be successful in school and in life, 21st century students must be fluent in each of the twelve literacies listed above so they are able to navigate the sea of information, build relationships with those around them, and ultimately discern between the credible and the crap (McKenzie, 2009).
McKenzie, J. (2009). Beyond cut-and-paste: Engaging students in making good new ideas. Bellingham, WA: FNO Press.
Response to Leah Dicke-
Wow! I just loved reading how you described the different literacies and how they are intertwined with one another. You also did a great job explaining the importance of teaching children how to critically analyze information and make informed decisions only after they have taken a good look from all angles of the issue.
Response to Deb Kendall-
I love the beginning of your first paragraph when you said that your first thought about the 12 literacies was "Yikes! We have too much to teach already!" This is so true. We all feel overwhelmed with the amount of information that we need to help students acquire in the short amount of time they are with us in the classroom. I also found interesting the part where you talked about the math PLC in your building and how they may need to focus more on how numbers can be made to look a certain way. We also have PLC's in our building and I too wonder if this is an area that we need to work on as well. :)
Response to Susan Findlay
I found myself agreeing with what you had to say about thinking outside the classroom and how the literacies are situational. As a classroom teacher working towards becoming a teacher librarian, I have to look past my own subject area and consider the skills needed in all subject areas. Students need to be proficient in all literacies, not just the ones that apply to my subject area. I really liked the last line of your reflection. I agree that as teacher librarians it is our job to make sure students have the necessary tools to be successful in any situation, no matter what the literacy.
Response to dlnichols
Like you, I was also not surprised by the statement that our students are more confident than competent when it comes to their information literacy skills. I also teach at an urban high school and I have seen students do things like format a paper in the most difficult way possible. When asked if they need any help, most students insist that they know what they are doing. I thought you made a good point at the end of your reflection. You stated that if students can learn to question why a teacher would want double spaces between letters, then they could assess the situation and know that they needed more information to complete the task. That's a great example of why as teacher librarians we need to teach all students how to evaluate and assess information in a critical manner.
Response to Deb Kendall
I also enjoyed the discussion on Wikipedia in Chapter 9. There seems to be a general consensus that nothing on Wikipedia is valid.This morning on the Today Show an author was being questioned about his reliability because excerpts from his book matched a Wikipedia article almost word for word. I do not believe that Wikipedia has ever promoted itself as a primary source of information and clearly states that the site postings are self-policed for accuracy. I like the poster idea because I think that it really gives our students a chance to use those questioning and evaluation skills on all sources of information.
Reply to Sandra Fey
The media literacy really does need to be tackled when we are discussing reliable sources and information. Students grab so much "news" from soundbites and video clips, and much of this information is given from the perspective of pundits and comedians, not journalists. With so very many sources available it has become so sensationalized and as you said is fun to read, but what do students take away from it?Does Jon Stewart have the same credibility as Tom Brokaw when discussing the debt ceiling? Do students know the difference? Teaching perspective and fact is getting harder because everything seems to have a spin to it.
Raelynn Buffington's respose to Amanda Ziegenbein's post: I was also amazed at how intertwined the twelve literacies worked together. I believe one way to assist in teaching all the literacies is to as for time at a staff meeting and take a few minutes to explain to your faculty about the literacies and how they can effect learning with their student's. I know that I would have been open to learning something new that would increase knowledge with my students. I also am amazed at how blindly people in general believe what they read on the web without any knowledge of bias or validity.
Response Kim Blankley: I teach second grade and hadn't thought about the fact that I too teach these literacies daily. I think it would be important to teach the students the language. For example when you take them on a nature walk, explain that they will be using nature literacy. Discuss what that is and what it looks like, just like we do with our objectives. I will also keep these literacies in mind when creating my lesson plans. I don't think second grader's are too young to understand that not everything you read is true. We have discussed this in computer lab when I was teaching computer safety.
Anne Hubbell
Beyond Cut and Paste response to Stephanie Schnabel:
I liked the comparison of the literacies defined by McKenzie to the multiple intelligences. Stephanie shared that some students have been exposed to many experiences and have already developed many of the twelve literacies. Other students may have little or no experiences and development. I agree with you that as educators know more about these literacies, they will be able to help their students develop in multiple areas, not just being successful at taking tests. I also appreciated how you wrote about teaching students not only academically, but also helping them improve their social/cultural, emotional, and organizational literacies. I agree and think it is extremely important for teachers to explicitly teach and consistently provide opportunities in the classroom for students to cooperate, and learn how to be respectful of others even when they disagree.
Anne Hubbell
Beyond Cut and Paste response to Susan Harder:
I appreciate that you divided the twelve literacies into three categories. I think this is an example of the type of thinking we want to encourage for our students. You mentioned the three categories as geographic-based, subject-based, and learning styles-based. You also mentioned Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences and some correlations as well as inconsistencies. I think the concept that some students have strengths in different intelligences is similar to the idea that some students naturally develop some literacies more easily than others. Our role as teachers and school librarians is to help students learn about the different literacies and encourage them to develop their skills and strengths. I also like the addition of auditory literacy. With all the noise and gadgets in our world, do our students really know how to listen? I agree that we all should be able to really listen and evaluate the messages we hear.
Response to Sandra Fey:
I really liked how you tied various literacies into what you see in the classroom on a daily basis. It was interesting to think of organization, not just as keeping a neat desk, but the unspoken organization of the students’ roles. I agree that students can be very pliable and believe the first thing they hear. With so much media (not news) around it is easy to get caught up in that. I think that one thing that could help in the classroom is for teachers to not always have to be right. Maybe if we look at different viewpoints and give praise for drawing attention to them, students could begin to see that it is all right to not take everything at face value.
Response to Anne Hubbell:
I really liked the parts of this post that highlighted some reasons why students need to develop these literacies. It is not just a saying that they are our future. They will be the ones solving our big and small issues like environmental problems, running our government, or simply solving problems for their own families and neighborhoods. I agree if they have at least a background in each literacy they will make a more competent and well-rounded 21st century citizen. To do this we must teach them to be accepting of all, and as was said, “be question askers and problem solvers.”
Response to Kim Blankley:
I experienced a bit of an “Aha!” moment while reading your post, Kim. I appreciated your comments about striving to educate the whole child. There is so much more to education than teaching reading, writing, and math. The ways that you use the various literacies in your classroom forced me to reflect on my own teaching in my 5th grade class. While I am able to come up with a variety of examples, such as studying a piece of artwork before beginning a social studies unit (artistic literacy), or discussing the way that Latin cultures dance (“They shake their pockets!”) while teaching ballroom dancing (social/cultural literacy), I agree that having a deeper understanding and appreciation of each literacy will allow me to be more intentional while planning lessons. My goal is to touch on each literacy weekly within my classroom, helping to educate the whole child, and make them fully literate!
Response to Susan Harder
I appreciated your note of possible omission, Susan. While I did not think about auditory literacy while reading, your post made me wonder how I could have possibly missed it! I fully agree that teaching students to filter the information that they hear and determine its authenticity and reliability is paramount. This year, in my 5th grade classroom, I am making a concerted effort to teach listening skills. I cannot tell you how many times I have stopped in the middle of teaching and reminded students, “Where should your eyes be?” Students not only need to be able to master the twelve literacies that McKenzie discussed, but also auditory literacy.
Teresa Bell
Response to Emily Dietzschold
I think you summed up the literacies quite well- “The literacies are all about evaluating your world” What a great way to conceptualize something so vast. I suppose that is what good teachers do – break up large concepts for investigation and deeper understanding. I really appreciate how positive your take on the literacies is as well. It is easy to be overwhelmed by the amount of material and skills students need however; your response just reminds me that all of these skills and tools are at our disposal as teachers and should enhance our teaching as well as student learning and understanding.
Teresa Bell
Response to Debra Wake
I had not considered the impact incorporating multiple literacies would have on greater student success until I read your reflection! By trying to identify a students’ strength you can promote and foster those critical thinking skills, which can and will lead to curiosity and creativity. My eyes are continually being opened through this exercise thank you for your insight!
Deb Kendall Response to McKenzie White
I agree with McKenzie White’s comment that schools focus on reading and math to the exclusion of other areas of education. The assumption, I am sure, is that people who can read, write and do computations will naturally teach themselves the rest of the skills they need to know to function in our society. The reality is that we are stopping too soon. We are neglecting to teach students how to think, ask questions, and locate information which would answer their questions. This is has been evident in the attitude of many educators in reference to the more able learners for many years. I have heard, “Just focus on the low and middle. Get their scores up so that we are not listed as ‘Schools in Need of Improvement’! The top students will teach themselves.” The reality is that none of the students are being taught to learn how to learn, which is, in a nutshell, the purpose of 21st Century skills. Over the past few years I have witnessed evidence of this unfortunate trend and attitude as the Standardized test Scores of the top students fall off. If we don’t turn this trend around, the scores at all levels will fall off and, worse, we will have a generation of citizens who can read and write, but can’t think.
Response to Ann Maass-
One part I really liked about your response is how you explained that students need to understand the source of their information (i.e. comparing Fox News and CNN). I think it would be interesting as a class activity to take some event in the news and look at the differences in the reporting from two or more sources. Students would have to critically think and compare what approach was taken by the reporter and how media can sensationalize or underplay certain aspects of the story. It might really show students how media can be “photoshopped” to fit the interests and ideology of the news station or reporter. It might be a good way to start a conversation with students about sources, biases, and being good evaluators of information.
Response to Teresa Bell
I appreciated your comment about students’ lack of practical understanding and creativity when searching for information online. I have also seen that when students are looking online or even putting in search terms for finding a book in the library catalog. If the use a certain term and no relevant hits come up, they stop and don’t try different words or phrases. Your post made me starting thinking of things I could do get out of the cut and paste routine including such simple things such as talking to students about how to start a web based search and having students initially come up with words and phrases besides what was given to them to broaden the scope of their search.
Response to Amanda Ziegenbein
So many teachers dismiss Wikipedia as being unreliable. I believe McKenzie did a good job of pointing out that some of the information on Wikipedia is not only reliable but can be traced to the original source, a place other than Wikipedia. Often when a student asks me if the information is reliable or a good source I ask them, “Can you find that information in at least two other spots? Would one of those other sources be more widely accepted as an academic resource?” Then yes, use that information but credit it to one of the original sources. I think Wikipedia is a great place to start a search but it cannot be the definitive source.
Response to Stephanie Schanbel
Many of the posts mention the need for students to become “crap detectors.” Stephanie is so right in stating that our students are inundated with information on a daily basis. Many of the students think that if they see it on television or read it on a computer then it must be true. They always ask me, “Why would they put it on television or the computer if it was not true?” I usually answer, “Good question!” However, take it deeper. If it is enough for you to wonder then check it out or ask, “What could be the reasoning behind reporting this in this way?” I want them to be that expert crap detector and to question everything but then I better be ready because everything I say then becomes something for them to question, also!
Deb Kendall
Response to Teresa Bell
I agree with Teresa when she expresses concern about the way students try to find information as quickly and easily as possible. There was an example of this in my classroom this afternoon. On a task designed for critical thinking in research, some of the students became frustrated when the answers were not immediately obvious. They didn’t want to read the article on the web sites, they wanted to give up. It is not their fault really, they have not been taught research and critical thinking strategies. Even more distressing is the fact that teachers lack the skill to write tasks which require more than a cut-and-paste response from students. While it is distressing, it can be a great opportunity to for us to begin to work with teachers, to help them design better tasks which require students to practice critical thinking.
Amanda Gregory's
Response to dlnichols:
I loved what you said about your students’ natural literacy being different from other students, because of the environment in which they live. I have taught for the past four years, not in “inner city,” per se, but in a very low-income area, and my students certainly had a lot they could teach me about their natural environment. And vis versa. Some of them had never left their neighborhood, so I could teach them a lot about the natural world McKenzie spoke of. In the same way, students who grew up in or around farming communities would have a wealth of knowledge to share with their peers and teachers. It is important for us, as educators, to think about where our students are coming from, and try to stretch and grow their knowledge in areas they may not be as familiar with.
Response to Susan Harder:
I completely agree with your idea of adding an auditory literacy to the list. Though I had not thought of it before reading your post, I believe it is critical that students develop “crap-detecting” skills for things they listen to as well as things they read or view. It does relate to media literacy, since most of what they hear will come from some sort of media outlet, but it can also deal with class lectures, as you said. Students need to know what is important enough to actually write down. Just the other day, I made up a word problem for a group of 5th graders I was working with. I said it aloud and expected them to only write down the numbers they would need. One student, however, spent about 5 minutes copying down the entire story problem, and asked me to repeat it about three times. It wasn’t until the third time that I realized what she was doing. I thought she just wasn’t processing the whole thing right away. Afterwards, I helped her figure out what information was actually important enough to record, and she breathed an audible sigh of relief!
Response to Kim Blankley-
I think Kim brought up a great point, that in order for students to turn information into original ideas, they have to be able to interpret and understand that information first and this is based on the literacies. I think this is a key component and one that maybe sometimes gets forgotten or it is just assumed that a student understands something when infact they may not have the skills to do so. I also thought it was great that Kim thought of the different literacies and how she already incorporates them into her school day, she had some great examples and things that I would not have thought of as being an example of the literacies.
Response to Leah Dicke-
I thought that Leah had some great ideas as to how teachers can incorporate the different literacies into the classroom. She also said that it is her role to make these opportunities available for students to practice these skills, which I think is an excellent point, we cannot expect that someone else will teach students these skills, we need to take ownership in our classrooms or libraries.
Steph Schnabel response to Amanda Ziegenbein
Amanda wrote that the twelve literacies “extend into the ability to comprehend, analyze, interpret, and interact with various sources of information in our society.” This is a great summation of what the literacies are about. I think by being aware of all the different literacies, teachers could use them to help students get to higher level thinking questions about their content. I appreciate the honesty in acknowledging that it is hard to incorporate multiple literacies into core content areas. This made me think about when I taught math, how students need visual literacy to be able to interpret graphs with information, scientific literacy to be able to put the math into a real world applications, which is in addition to the numerical and text literacy we often think of. It is amazing how much we are responsible for teaching as educators.
Steph Schnabel response to Ann Mass
I found myself reflecting on the McKenzie’s statement that you discussed, that students will be unequipped to make life decisions. This brought up many questions and conflicting thoughts. Are we truly preparing our students to be critical thinkers in the standardized testing phase that we are in? How do we as educators encourage thinking, questioning, re-evaluating information and prepare students to answer tests that have only one right answer? Non-school life is about getting information, evaluating a situation, making a decision, and then starting the process over again. I think the literacies discussed in these chapters can help us get that focus back. You stated that 21st century learners need to have the ability to consider where the information is coming from. I agree and believe that students need to acknowledge where information is coming from and that it all has a bias; even what bias we are bringing to the information as the reader. I think as educators it is one of our most important jobs to make students aware of this since they get so much information away from the school (and quite frankly to even look at the information they are getting in school).
Response to Susan Harder
I liked how you divided the literacy areas into three categories. This makes it easier to remember and to incorporate into daily lessons. I was impressed with your inclusion of auditory literacy. Listening and making sense of what they hear is one of the biggest struggles in my Title Reading classroom and for all students. We are constantly bombarded with what we hear and we need to learn to make sense of that. Congratulations for expanding your thinking and reminding me to also include auditory literacy in my planning.
Response to Michelle Phillips
I liked, that as a teacher, you find out your students’ biggest literacy needs and then you help them develop them. Helping your students with Aspergers syndrome to develop emotional and organizational literacies was probably what helped them the most the following year. You reminded me to look at my students individually, determine their greatest literacy needs and then work to increase that knowledge.
Response to Emily Dietzschold:
I think Emily summed up the twelve literacies very well by stating, “the literacies are all about evaluating your world and using it to draw conclusions about the information around you.” I agree that as educators we need to incorporate all the literacies so that students have a broad perspective of the world and are prepared to be successful in our society. I thought the idea of “investigation stations” is a great idea in teaching the twelve literacies. Through the use of “investigation stations” students are able to be hands on while learning about the different literacies in a fun and educational environment.
Response to Rachel Gordon:
I enjoyed reading Rachel’s post and agree with her in that, “We cannot have students depending on Google and Wikipedia to find their information…” There are too many reliable sources on the web today to allow students to solely rely on Google and Wikipedia for their research. I acknowledge that from time to time it is nice to utilize Google and Wikipedia for random web searches and to satisfy your curiosity about topics, but not necessarily for educational research. Also, I agree with the term “crap detectors” and that it is definitely something our students need to learn in order to sort through all the information that is on the web.
Lorie Adams
Response to Michelle Philips
Social skill is usually one of the goals incorporated into the IEP for students with Asperger’s syndrome. Expanding this goal to include organizational, emotional, and social/ cultural literacy skills is essential to their long term growth and development. Practicing these skills in the regular education classroom is also crucial to their development.
Response to Teresa Bell
I am guilty of not challenging the students by using cut and paste techniques in my lessons. The continuing education classes that I had the opportunity did not address new and creative ways to challenge the students. Taking this class is helping to open my eyes to many other types of literacy that I can include in the lessons and different approaches to take to teach the lessons.
Response to Kim Blankley:
Kim, I like the way you reflected on how you have inadvertently taught the more obscure literacies McKenzie described. Now you see the importance and can be more mindful when planning your lessons. But how do you teach these literacies when so much of our time is needed to teach students the standards so they can pass the standardized tests? We need to look for the teachable moments and mindfully incorporate it into our core subject lessons when possible.
Response to Willa Grange:
Our students do indeed need to be able to check their sources when researching. Many students are quick to believe everything they read without giving it a second thought. For example, if they see a picture of something on the web, their first inclination is to believe it is real without thinking that it could be photo shopped. While it is true that information is found in more formats than ever before, needing to check your sources and thinking critically about what we read is something that is not new to our now digital-age. However, authorship is open to just about anyone who has access to the Internet, no matter what their intentions are. While what information our students read cannot be restricted, we can give them the tools they need to think critically about the information.
Jayme Prisbell’s response to Leah Dicke:
Leah, I agree with you on the importance of where we should begin to place our FOCUS. This focus must start with the lesson plans we develop and teach. Our lessons need to teach each student how to become critical thinkers and observers in order to make well informed opinions and judgments. It is vital for us to keep in mind the different background knowledge each student has as it relates to the proper channels of research and how to teach our students to properly weed out the bias and misinformation on websites. I also agree when you say we must incorporate the real world and academic world to allow students to use their knowledge throughout their academic, social and professional lives. This life skill will not only help them continue to grow as researchers and students, but also allow them to continue to fine tune and grow as they begin their college and professional careers.
Jayme Prisbell’s response to Jennifer LaFleur:
I couldn’t agree more with you Jennifer when you state, “An introduction to the literacies is not enough.” Students must divulge into the twelve literacies while being taught how to critically evaluate the information they find. Often, we as educators do the evaluating for the students or assume they know how to do it on their own. We must stress the importance to students on how to research and use news coverage from around the world so they are exposed to various perspectives while being able to make informed not bias decisions based on their findings. Last but not least, I couldn’t agree with you more when you state teaching these literacies should not be left to the media and English teachers. Students are creatures of habit and when they only see literacies being taught in one or two disciplines, they assume they only apply in these two areas which makes it even more important we the teacher librarian are educating not only the student body but also our staff on what these literacies are as well as how to properly use them.
Jayme Prisbell’s response to Leah Dicke:
Leah, I agree with you on the importance of where we should begin to place our FOCUS. This focus must start with the lesson plans we develop and teach. Our lessons need to teach each student how to become critical thinkers and observers in order to make well informed opinions and judgments. It is vital for us to keep in mind the different background knowledge each student has as it relates to the proper channels of research and how to teach our students to properly weed out the bias and misinformation on websites. I also agree when you say we must incorporate the real world and academic world to allow students to use their knowledge throughout their academic, social and professional lives. This life skill will not only help them continue to grow as researchers and students, but also allow them to continue to fine tune and grow as they begin their college and professional careers.
Jayme Prisbell’s response to Jennifer LaFleur:
I couldn’t agree more with you Jennifer when you state, “An introduction to the literacies is not enough.” Students must divulge into the twelve literacies while being taught how to critically evaluate the information they find. Often, we as educators do the evaluating for the students or assume they know how to do it on their own. We must stress the importance to students on how to research and use news coverage from around the world so they are exposed to various perspectives while being able to make informed not bias decisions based on their findings. Last but not least, I couldn’t agree with you more when you state teaching these literacies should not be left to the media and English teachers. Students are creatures of habit and when they only see literacies being taught in one or two disciplines, they assume they only apply in these two areas which makes it even more important we the teacher librarian are educating not only the student body but also our staff on what these literacies are as well as how to properly use them.
Isela Padilla
In responding to Jennifer LaFleur I would like to say that I am in complete agreement with students needing to learn how to dig deeper and how to critically evaluate the information that they find. In order to do this they must be taught the 12 literacies discussed by Jamie McKenzie in Beyond Cut-and-Paste. McKenzie also gave various examples of how one might teach Media Literacy such as using articles to critique the math or science behind the headlines (p.48), or using the website Numeracy in the News to evaluate the findings reported (p.49). This type of teaching, I feel, provides practice in the literacy. In these examples the main objective might be to teach media literacy, but the students will also be practicing Numerical, Cultural, Social and Scientific Literacy. I feel that the practice is the key. One learns better by doing, and finding that there is a connection between many of the things taught in school, regardless of what they may be called. Only through looking at various perspectives and being allowed to make informed decisions as Jennifer suggested will students actually learn to evaluate the information they find. I feel that by allowing students to practice these skills we are teaching them “how to look for bias, balance in coverage, quality, reliability and currency” (LaFleur) when they find information. Of course we must also present the information in various formats, so as to include as many literacies as possible.
Along the same idea of practice, I think Susan Findlay put it very well when she talked about transferring learning to life activities. She talked about students learning natural literacy in her science classroom and finding that they can apply that learning to a real life situation. Susan used the example of a hunter transferring learning from what may be a hobby to the classroom or vice-versa. The important thing is that the link be made. This particular link, I think, is a very plausible one here in Nebraska. There are several students I know of at Skutt Catholic that hunt. Also there are quite a few others that do Trap Shooting, which may or may not do some hunting. In some instances just mentioning a possible link may get a student interested enough to really learn a literacy. We have to get to know our students well enough to know how to connect, perhaps hook them, so that what they learn in the classroom transfers not only from year to year, but for a lifetime. This is what a 21st Century Learner is.
Response to Stephanie Schnabel
I agree that the multiple literacies need to be considered just as we consider the multiple modalities of learning. Also, it is so true that some students have been exposed to some or all of the literacies while many have experienced none of them. I to want to help students to become thinkers not just successful test takers. In order to to that, those literacies need to be addressed in a meaningful manner.
Response to Raelynn Buffington
It is so true that students need to have the skills to evaluate the information that is presented to them. I believe that often take things at face value. How are they to know any different if we don't model and teach them how to evaluate the information they come into contact with. I agree with Raelynn's comment regarding collaboration. It is so critical that we keep our ears open to opportunities to work with teachers in order to teach those literacies within their curriculum and authentic learning experiences. This makes the student learning much more meaningful and lasting.
Kim Blankley
Response to Amber Blair:
Amber, I fully appreciate the following point you make: “Emotional literacy involves analyzing body language and facial expressions. With emotional literacy, we can learn to empathize with others, work more effectively, and build relations. One thing I ask myself is: Are our students missing out on this because of our growing technological and social media culture?”
I worry that with so much time spent on technologies such as facebook and texting, our children and our students are missing out on the experiences that are required in order to create true and meaningful connections with one another. I have to wonder if their relationships are more superficial as a result. Yes, maybe they have 443 “friends”, but how many of them do they truly know and care about? As I’ve said before, I believe the technological tools that we have at our fingertips are providing rich learning experiences for our students; however, we have to remember that it is also important to provide experiences that will allow our students to get to know one another on a more meaningful level. I believe these experiences will provide the opportunities for emotional literacy skills to be practiced and perfected.
Response to Deborah Nichols:
Deborah, I too was not surprised by the results of the New Zealand study which found our students “more confident than competent”… but I will add that I hated seeing it on paper. As a first and second grade teacher, I was rather fortunate in that the kids of that age group are still rather humble, and (generally speaking) they don’t mind admitting when they don’t know how to do something, or asking for help when needed. Some of the older kids I’ve worked with seem to be so prideful, and act as if not knowing something somehow reflects poorly on them as a person. Do we, as adults, inadvertently teach children (through our own actions and attitudes) that inexperience equates to weakness? Or, do children assume that adults have all of the right answers and therefore they should as well? In the section on emotional literacy, Jamie McKenzie refers to a book about emotional intelligence. I have to wonder if emotional intelligence is not at the core of emotional literacy. Maybe, in order to effectively teach emotional literacy, we have to test our own emotional intelligence, assess why we behave as we do, and encourage our students to do so as well.
Kristina Peters
Response to Blog Post
Response to Sydney Peters:
I think that the word literacy does get used often and many people do not truly understand its meaning. More than that, people do not realize the amount of literacies there are. As humans, we do not realize just how much we do and that to do all of these things we have to be literate in each area.
I too think that we could easily incorporate more of these literacies in our classrooms to make students aware. Angela Maiers, and education consultant, has used a three step process called Name it, Claim it, Sustain it for her work. This could easily be applied to the various literacies in the classroom. Name the literacy and ask students help define it. Claim it by modeling and guiding students in their own learning of the literacy. Sustain it by reminding students to be aware of the literacies at all times. If the one that's most relevant to your teaching is media literacy, then start there. I believe that's where I might have to start as well!
Response to Jennifer LaFleur:
I agree with McKenzie because students do need to be introduced to the multiple literacies. Moreso, I agree with you that the literacies shouldn't be taught in a superficial manner where the idea is presented and then we go back to our regular way of teaching from the math or reading series. Instead, teachers across grade levels and disciplines should look at the literacies and see how they can incorporate them in their lessons. Of course this is in an ideal situation where this occurs because all too often the burden is placed on librarians and technology teachers to teach multiple literacies. How would you suggest we start collaborating to make staff members aware of the literacies and encourage them to integrate the literacies in their curriculum?
Response to Findaly
I agree that children may not use all of the literacies in class, but they may use them in their lives outside the classroom. I think children are too used to going to school to study “school things” ie; math, social studies, science, english etc., and don’t realize they can take what they learn from school and use it their everyday lives. I also liked when you said “information is a kind of toolbox and the literacies are the tools.” I hadn’t thought about it that way before.
Response to Teresa Bell
I agree with your statement about making children aware of the information they use and/or borrow. I work with 8th graders and when they were asked to make a citation of a book, they were clueless as to what to do. Even after showing them the formula/example they were unsure where to look for the information. Then it became a “spoon and feed it to them” even then they couldn’t remember to indent or to underline the title. We have forgotten the importance of a citation and what it means to borrow someone else’s information.
Response to dlnichols
I like your thoughts on natural literacy and how it might be different for different people. I think there are different types of natural literacy. Just like your example of your students who can navigate streets I wouldn’t want to walk down, I think different lifestyles call for different types of natural literacy. My dad grew up on a farm and could tell me all about making a living from growing crops and raising livestock, that is a type of natural literacy I know nothing about. It is important that you become literate in the area that you will encounter in your life. It is hard for me to imagine teaching my students how to navigate with the stars or to survive in the wilderness but their life will involve different types of natural literacy that they will need to learn.
Susan Harder (third time's the charm!)
In response to Teresa Bell: First off, I would like to say that I LOVE your ending metaphor about the sea of information and the tsunami! Then I would also concur that our responsibility lies not only in teaching the facts but in dissemination and application of these same facts. I too have observed students who get stellar grades but have troubles transferring information to new scenarios. These are the students who are lacking in proficiencies in various literacies but have learned well to follow direction. This led me to wonder whether McKenzie’s definition of literacy, as you noted, “capacity to analyze, interpret and understand” goes far enough. Perhaps to be adept in a literacy requires one to take McKenzie’s definition and go one step further to application. Rather than focusing on teaching the literacies, we may need to look at how students can apply the literacies. Now I am thinking this would correlate more with outcomes based learning and be more readily measured without contrived objectives.
In response to Susan Findlay: I really like the fact that you examine the world as the larger classroom when considering locations wherein students will find opportunity to exhibit their proficiencies in some of these literacies. However, I also suggest that you do not limit either your students or yourself in what literacies are “taught” within your classroom. Particularly in the ever widening arena of the school library, 21st century teacher librarians will have a broader scope of possibilities from which to teach and as a result, a greater prospect of being able to address and assist students in a wider range of literacies. Some literacies may appear more easily addressed, but if we keep our minds open and remain flexible (ever watchful for that teachable moment) we will surprise ourselves with what opportunities present themselves in our classrooms.
Sandra Fey
Response to Susan Findlay
I agree that we need to think outside the box in regards to student literacies. To meet the needs of our students we need to think about their lives and information they will need outside of our class. One of my first thoughts about the twelve literacies was how can there be so many. But each one was described and I soon saw the need for all of them. The thoughts on the role of the teacher librarian shows how these literacies fit perfectly with the goals we have in mind.
Response to Megan Wismer
The connection between fostering different literacies and skills of successful employees and citizens struck a chord with me. Sometimes in school (especially in elementary schools) we are so focused on teaching specific standards and testing that we forget to realize what all of it means in the “real world”. Students need to have multiple literacies to be successful outside of the class. Although, as Megan pointed out, students can do well in the classroom without have the skills of all of the literacies. Teacher librarians, as well as all educators, need to remember that our purpose is to give students the skills they will need beyond the classroom.
Response to L. Matthews.
You stated that when students find a site like Wikipedia "they know that it has its purpose, but it isn’t the place to balance all their information." I am not sure exactly what you meant by "balance all their information," but I think that we need to go further than that. As a Social Studies teacher, I tell students when they begin any project they are not allowed to use Wikipedia in any shape or form. Part of the reason is that any entry can be edited by anyone and the reliability is questionable. The second is one that has already been discussed on the blog and that is giving students the skills to succeed post high school. I can remember being in a class that was just reamed by our professor because some students used Wikipedia as a source. Wikipedia is not acceptable in the academic world and allowing students to use it in any capacity will only make things more difficult for them as they continue their education.
Response to Amanda Gregory
I completely agree with your observation that we must help prepare students for the "real world." I also liked that you stated you would do more to incorporate all of the literacies into what you do as a teacher-librarian in the future. It got me to thinking that maybe we should all not only try to do better ourselves, but also do our best to help our fellow educators incorporate more literacies in their classrooms. I think that a combined effort would do amazing things for students and that we as teacher-librarians are in a great position to lead this push into multiple literacies in the classroom.
Response to Michelle Phillips
I thought Michelle brought up the interesting idea of comparing students who can “master these literacies” to the people of the Renaissance who challenged themselves to develop their skills in multiple areas, like Copernicus and da Vinci. Her writing got me thinking. Should we be concerned that our young people will feel even more pressure at school if we expect all our students to graduate as Renaissance people? Will there come a point when, to graduate from high school, students must pass tests in each literacy?
Response to Deb Kendall
Deb wrote, “The piece that McKenzie does for me is to help me reframe this process by labeling these, to this point in my mind, random skills, as literacies. As educators, we know what is involved in literacy. So, by identifying these skills as literacies, I can begin to break these large tasks into manageable pieces, see what processes are already in place and locate areas which need attention.” I appreciate what she wrote because it helped me see how, as a future teacher librarian, I might be able to help teachers unfamiliar with all the multiple literacies view how the literacies fit in with what they already know and do, and how they can “break these large tasks into manageable pieces.”
Susan Harder
Responding to Amanda Gregory's response to my post:
Amanda - you hit the nail on the head! This is exactly what I see in class on a regular basis. In math there are key terms we expect students to know (especially at the secondary level). The terms that are crucial to solving the problems. But if they never fully understood these terms when they were younger, it is little wonder that they get so easily frustrated in the secondary classrooms now. It isn't just the math terms, it is how to take notes from lecture, what information will help or hinder in a science lab, how to comprehend what is being read to them, how to identify the symbolism in literature, how to sift through the platforms of political candidates, making decisions about second opinions by doctors etc. Learning to pick what needs to be heard and/or identify what is true versus what is sensationalism (my brother would term it my "bs detector") might even be one of the more critical components of the literacies - whether in written OR spoken word. Keep up the good work - it is teachers like you who "get it" and see what their students are not comprehending that will ensure our students not only make it, but excel.
I wish Blogger had a like button. Some of these comments are incredibly thought provoking and I wish I could get into a discussion with the writers!!!
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