SAINT TONIS COLLEGE INC.
Formerly: Kalinga Christian Learning Center
United Church of Christ in the Philippines
Purok 4, Bulanao Centro, Tabuk City, Kalinga
Philippines 3800
Tel No. (074) 627-5930), Email Address: sainttoniscollege@[Link]
Name:
Course /Year:
Subject: Building and Enhancing New Literacies Across the Curriculum
Module No: 1
I. INTRODUCTION:
This chapter explores several definitions of literacy and what being literate means in the multiplicity of contexts in the 21st
century, with the goal of raising awareness in readers who might be presently unaware of the evolving perspectives on literacy and
giving teachers the opportunity to pause and reflect on their own literacies even as they attempt to teach the new literacies to their
students.
II. OBJECTIVES: At the end of the lesson, the students will be able to develop a clear and practical understanding of the following:
a.) Definitions of conventional literacy; and,
b.) Expanded views of literacy in the 21st century.
III. SUBJECT MATTER: Introduction to 21st Century Literacies
IV. LESSON PROPER:
A. DISCUSSION
LITERACY
- “literate” derived from Latin word “literatus”
- The ability to read and write ‘LETTERS”
CONVENTIONAL VIEW OF LITERACY
MILLER (1973) divides this conventional concept of literacy into three sub categories:
1. Basic Literacy - It is the ability to recognize letters and words even without understanding what it means.
2. Comprehension Literacy- It is the ability to understand the meaning of what is being read.
3. Functional or Practical Literacy - It is the ability to read (i.e.. decode and comprehend) written materials needed to perform
everyday vocational tasks. This is the equivalent of reading the text "Ang bata ay nagbabasa." and being able to understand that basa
here refer to reading and not to being wet.
Based on this conventional view of literacy, LITERACY involves
(1) a text (consisting of symbols and grammar) to be read; and
(2) a meaning or message being communicated by the text for the reader to extract. Without a text, there would be nothing to read;
without meaning, the text is reduced to series of incomprehensible doodles.
EXPANDED VIEWS OF LITERACY
Despite the popularity of American films in the Philippines, many Filipinos cannot follow the actors' dialogue, and thus resort
to guessing the overall story based on the actions onscreen.
In 2004, UNESCO formally defined literacy as "the ability to identify. understand, interpret, create, communicate, and
compute, using printed and written materials associated with varying contexts. Literacy involves a continuum of learning in
enabling individuals to achieve their goals, to develop their knowledge and potential, and to participate fully in their
community and wider society."
In this vein, Mkandawire (2018) more succinctly posits that literacy is "a form of knowledge, competence, and skills in a
particular field or area”.
This shift in the definition of literacy from "reading and writing" to "knowledge" is especially important as we explore the
"new" literacies of the 21st century.
An Institution of the United Church in the Philippines (UCCP)
Member: Association of Christian Schools, Colleges and Universities (ACSCU)
UCCP Church Related Educational Action Towards Empowerment (UCCP CREATE)
Cordillera Schools Group (CSG)
SAINT TONIS COLLEGE INC.
Formerly: Kalinga Christian Learning Center
United Church of Christ in the Philippines
Purok 4, Bulanao Centro, Tabuk City, Kalinga
Philippines 3800
Tel No. (074) 627-5930), Email Address: sainttoniscollege@[Link]
Reading and Writing Knowledge
LITERACY UN THE 21ST CNETURY
When viewed from the perspective of literacy as knowledge, the new literacies begin to make sense as they are the skills and bodies of
knowledge" that are necessary for survival and productivity in the information age.
The new literacies are not "new" as in the sense that they never existed before. Rather, we consider them to be new because the
contexts in which old skills and knowledge are being employed are new, both in nature and in scope. The ability to translate textual
information into images is not a new skill, but it is the ability to do so in a way that is concise, complete, and clear that is certainly
new, given that it will be how ninety percent of the population will be informed on the issue. Similarly, being able to verify the truth-
value and veracity of a document is not a new skill-but being able to do so when there are a hundred similar documents available to
you online is.
In the Victorian era, there was such a thing as the "Language of Flowers." where the kind, color, and arrangement of a bouquet of
flowers were used to communicate messages that could not otherwise be spoken aloud in Victorian society (Greenaway. 1884). For
example, a bouquet of oak leaves (representing strength), purple roses (sorrow). White lilies (resurrection), and pale yellow tulips and
rosemary (memory or remembrance) would altogether communicate a message of sympathy, usually over the death of a loved one.
Successfully interpreting these "visual languages" required a kind of "visual literacy" to understand the message being presented and
to manage the information encoded therein-skills which, as following chapters will further reveal, are coming into use again in the
21st century literacies. The difference is that now we are not analyzing smoke signals or bouquets, but rather sounds, texts, and images
from a hundred different sources at a nearly non-stop rate to the point where accuracy, validity, and reliability of the messages we
interpret form the basis for some very important personal and collective decision-making.
Another difference involves the question of necessity: One did not need to be literate in the language of flowers to live a fruitful and
fulfilled life in Victorian era England, but to be not media or digitally literate in the 21st century makes one vulnerable to
manipulation by those who are, and such manipulation can easily cost an individual time, money, property, and even life.
These so-called "new" literacies arose from the increasing availability of communication technologies that were once unavailable to
the average individual. Technologies like blogging and vlogging, social networking, and even text-messaging change and expand both
the extent and the form of our communication-blending text, sound, and images in ways unforeseen and unprecedented (Richardson,
2014). Never before have the opinions of a twelve year-old child in an unheard-of town in an unheard-of country been available for
everyone on earth to read and hear, and while adults might scoff at a child's opinions, that child might have more than a thousand
online subscribers who certainly think his or her opinions are important, maybe even more so than the opinions of adults.
Simply put, three things have been critical in the rise of the new literacies:
1. Increased Reach - We are communicating with more people, from more diverse cultures, across vaster distances than ever before.
2. Increased Means of Communication - We are communicating in more ways and at faster speeds than ever before.
3. Increased Breadth of Content - We are communicating about more things than ever before.
QUESTIONS that you might be asking:
1. How do we work together with people of different cultures who might have vastly different perspectives on communication,
work ethics, values religious beliefs, and worldviews What do we do when some of these might be mutually exclusive to our
own?
2. In an age where information is power-where knowing more and knowing first can spell the difference between success and
failure-how do we leverage both current and emergent technologies so that our endeavors are both productive and profitable?
3. Moreover, how do we navigate and manage the veritable minefield of information that was once considered taboo and private
and is now online, for all the world to see and judge, whether we like it or not?
Answering such complex questions requires new sets of skills and knowledge ones that our school system have never had to teach
before. With these changes in with whom, how, and why we communicate, new literacies are required not only to make sense of the
changes, but also to use these new technologies and paradigms in meaningful and productive ways-something. required not only of
students, but of teachers as well.
An Institution of the United Church in the Philippines (UCCP)
Member: Association of Christian Schools, Colleges and Universities (ACSCU)
UCCP Church Related Educational Action Towards Empowerment (UCCP CREATE)
Cordillera Schools Group (CSG)
SAINT TONIS COLLEGE INC.
Formerly: Kalinga Christian Learning Center
United Church of Christ in the Philippines
Purok 4, Bulanao Centro, Tabuk City, Kalinga
Philippines 3800
Tel No. (074) 627-5930), Email Address: sainttoniscollege@[Link]
To better address the need for teachers to be literate in these new literacies. This COURSE discusses and explores them in the
ensuing chapters, namely:
Globalization and Multicultural Literacy discusses how our increasing ability to communicate with almost anyone, anywhere, in
real time requires new skills and attitudes in interacting with people with cultures, perspectives, worldviews, and priorities different
from our own, particularly with the end-view of not only peace and understanding, but also mutual benefit and productivity.
The chapter on Social and Financial Literacies meanwhile explores the need for the ability to navigate our own social networks-of
both the online and off-line variety-to not only communicate clearly, but also to leverage resources which we ourselves might not
possess. At the same time, the chapter addresses the notorious problem of short-sightedness in Filipino culture regarding personal
finances and how this must be addressed at an increasingly earlier age to help mitigate the ever-widening gap between the rich and the
poor.
Media and Cyber/Digital Literacies explore the emerging need to locate verify, and ultimately manage online information,
especially in an age where information is power and where having the right (and wrong) information and the ability to communicate it
with others and use it to address real-world problems easily spell the difference between both personal and career success and failure.
Eco literacy and Artistic and Creative Literacy explore the emerging demands for knowing how to effectively and sustainably
manage the natural resources that our increased industrialization and demands for productivity are so rapidly eating up. The chapter
also explores how this increase in productivity also brings with it an increased demand for arts and aesthetics and the need to develop
ways of effectively communicating through the creative arts in industries dominated by objective data.
Finally, Critical Literacy addresses the increasing need to discern the underlying (and often tacit) messages behind the new "texts" of
the 21st century, particularly in an ever-increasingly multicultural society where ideas cultures, and ideologies vie with one another for
power and dominance in the minds of the masses.
One of the ways students can be trained in the new literacies is to engage them in digital storytelling, wherein the students take part in
the traditional process of storytelling, but with some digital enhancements. They choose a topic, conduct research, write a script,
develop a story, and through the use of multimedia, create something that can be played online or on a computer.
Digital Storytelling can be broken down into following six steps:
1. Writing - Write about a particular story from your life. The story must have a central theme.
2. Developing a Script - Develop a script that identifies the important points of your story.
3. Creating a Storyboard - Create a storyboard that visually organizes the flow of the story. Assign a particular image to portions of the
script.
4. Locating Multimedia- Use search engines to locate photos and videos. Photos and videos from one's personal collection may also be
used. Creating the Digital Story Record the voice over for your movie.
5. Create the movie using the software that is available to you.
6. Sharing and Uploading - Share your story in class and upload your work online.
Wrap Up
Traditional Literacy is the ability to read and write.
The traditional or conventional concept of literacy can be divided into sub-categories:
1. Basic Literacy, which is the ability to recognize letters and words.
2. Comprehension Literacy, which is the ability to understand the meaning of what is being read; and
3. Functional/Practical Literacy, which is the ability to read written materials needed to perform everyday vocational tasks.
Modem views of literacy equate it with knowledge.
New literacies have risen due to increased reach, increased means of communication, and increased breadth of content. These new
literacies are globalization and multicultural literacy, social and financial literacy, media and cyber/digital literacy, Eco literacy,
artistic and creative literacy, and critical literacy.
V. EVALUATION:
An Institution of the United Church in the Philippines (UCCP)
Member: Association of Christian Schools, Colleges and Universities (ACSCU)
UCCP Church Related Educational Action Towards Empowerment (UCCP CREATE)
Cordillera Schools Group (CSG)
SAINT TONIS COLLEGE INC.
Formerly: Kalinga Christian Learning Center
United Church of Christ in the Philippines
Purok 4, Bulanao Centro, Tabuk City, Kalinga
Philippines 3800
Tel No. (074) 627-5930), Email Address: sainttoniscollege@[Link]
Read the questions and instructions carefully. Write your answer in the space provided.
1. Compare and contrast
TRADITIONAL LITERACY MODERN LITERACY
BASIC LITERACY COMPREHENSION LITERACY
2. Describe the changes in the 21st century that have led to the rise of new literacies.
VII. REFENRENCE/S:
Alata, Elen Joy P.,Ignacio, Eigen John T. (2019). Building and Enhancing New Literacies Across the Curriculum. Rex Bookstore
Prepared by:
CARLENE RUTH B. BATTIKIN
Faculty
Noted/Recommending Approval by:
MINDA B. KUB-ARON. PhD
Dean, College of Teacher Education
Approved by:
ROSIEBILLE C. GALBAN, PhD
VP for Academic Affairs
An Institution of the United Church in the Philippines (UCCP)
Member: Association of Christian Schools, Colleges and Universities (ACSCU)
UCCP Church Related Educational Action Towards Empowerment (UCCP CREATE)
Cordillera Schools Group (CSG)