Publishers of traditional print literacy have been in the position to take advantage of the current testing trends. The newest texts are aligned with state standards and teachers/administrators are eager to purchase print material that will increase district test scores. In contrast, media literacy is relatively new to the classroom setting. The easy connections and justifications for classroom teachers are not present. I also see teacher attitudes that would view the media literacy as "extra" or "fun".
Students are the ones missing a valuable tool. E-stories would be engaging and could go beyond the usual limitations of print. The uses are numerous and varied unlike the traditional print. I see medial literacy as a literacy that should and can be utilized by every classroom teacher. Print and media are both important to the learning process, after all we are preparing a generation that will need to function in multiple literacies.
I agree that many teachers consider technology as “extra” and don’t see much need to incorporate it into lessons. I think many of them have the attitude, “We didn’t learn from technology when we were in school, and we received all the education we needed. Why fix something that’s not broken?” These teachers don’t realize, however, that our country has been transformed by technology and students today need to have experience using media if they want to succeed in their future careers. Since some teachers were never given sufficient preparation to use technology in the classroom, many of them do not realize the support that it provides to them while teaching. Some of the difficult concepts that they are trying to get across to students can be explained through media literacy.
ReplyDeleteYou have some great ideas Rachel!