Here is a PDF version of my work, I hope it helps others reflect on their educational practices relative to digital literacies as much as it has for me. Click the digital literacies button for a full version, introduction follows.
Introduction
The information revolution is currently in full force and consequently the growth of EdTech and other forms of digital technology during this generation has been staggering. In communication alone, we have graduated from reliance on landlines, the postal service and newsprint to mobile devices, e-mail and mass publication on internet platforms. We now interact at greater speeds, on multiple platforms and with more people than we could ever hope to meet face to face. Extending beyond the wildest dreams of generations past, we even receive tweets from the International Space Station and photographs from beyond Pluto. The globalization of society through the means of technology can be a great boon to all industries and is particularly valuable for those employed in education; collaborative thinking and sharing strategies is only the beginning of the advantages to be exploited. As with any new technology, digital, industrial or otherwise, there is a steepening learning curve as the sector reaches maturity. Successfully embracing this information revolution demands that we become digitally literate and that we pass on the best practices to our students.
As Wheeler (2012) explains, “Our comfortable practices are being disrupted by new technologies, and it is expedient that the teaching profession responds positively to this disruption by developing and mastering new ways to cope with the changes and challenges to which it is exposed.” (p.15) I find the use of the words comfortable and disruptive specifically meaningful in this case, as many teachers tend to develop skills in the beginning of their careers and are very adverse to change as it would mean redeveloping our entire course plan to suit a new practice. The benefits of technology in the classroom are however quite clear; consider that using e-learning tools can facilitate differentiated educational practices and thus accommodate all learning styles (Tsai 2011). As teachers, we must come to recognize that flexibility and adaptability to new technology and pedagogy are paramount to a successful and meaningful career. Although seen by some educators as a cumbersome addition to our overwhelming breadth of responsibility, digital citizenship can, and should be used to lighten and brighten the pedagogical load. As with the development of many new skills, it is hard to know where to start; the volume information available, the public yet pseudo-anonymous nature, the challenges of creating content and the multitude of possible platforms all pose potential obstacles for the development of an online education presence. Digital literacy in these domains is necessary to the flexibility and connectivity demanded of the 21st century teacher (Faiella 2013). The nine facets of digital literacy in education as seen by Wheeler (2012) are social networking, transliteracy, maintaining privacy, managing identity, creating content, organizing and sharing content, reusing or repurposing content, filtering and selecting content, and self broadcasting.
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