LIBE 477: Reading Review Assignment - Part B
LIBE 477
Developing Student’s Critical Digital Literacy Skills
The focus of my reading review will be on the topic of critically assessing digital and media sources. Perhaps being a primary teacher for the last decade, I have not really delved into the digital and media literacy aspect of learning.
In order to fully understand what critical digital literacy encapsulates, I did some research. According to BC’s Digital Literacy Framework, digital literacy is defined as:
‘the interest, attitude and ability of individuals to appropriately use digital technology and communication tools to access, manage, integrate, analyze and evaluate information, construct new knowledge, create and communicate with others”.
From the MediaSmarts website I learned that,
media issues are:
ways that media represents and sometimes misrepresents specific groups of people
how media influence our attitudes and behaviours
the ethical decisions we make daily as media consumers.
digital Issues are:
authenticating information
managing privacy
addressing cyberbullying
being safe online
Digital and media literacy is important as students are growing up in an ever-changing world of technology. There is no way to avoid the advent of digital and media consumption, but we as educators, can teach students to discriminate, question and challenge what they see and hear. There is now a need to teach how to critically respond to media, to ‘critically evaluate digital media so that we can make informed decisions about what we do and encounter online’ (MediaSmarts).
Engaging young students with meaningful media images and videos is a great way to introduce digital media to their repertoire. Talking about what we see and hear and how it makes us feel are important discussions to have when using media. Here are a few sites I would like to explore with students. We can ask questions and learn from each other and see how individual perceptions are unique.
Critical Literacy is the ability for students to use critical thinking skills to plan and conduct research, manage projects, solve problems, and make informed decisions using appropriate digital tools and resources (BC’s Digital Literacy Framework).
Source: BC Ministry of Education
Through previous coursework and searches of my own, a couple of videos that helped me understand the importance of critical literacy and how it can impact student learning include:
Allen Luke - Critical Literacy
Luke (2018) acknowledges that critical literacy can be about reading the world, learning how language and visual images work and finally, talking and having critical debates around text and images.
Critical literacy: children as changemakers in their worlds
Donna Kosak (2014) uses critical literacy as a way for students to look beyond just themselves and take on questions of power, inequality and social justice.
8 Science-Based Strategies For Critical Thinking
Einstein himself said, ‘Education is not the learning of facts, but the training of the mind to think’ (TeachThoughtStaff, 2019). Critical literacy allows students to engage with information they are given and instead of looking for answers, they are questioning the content.
This book can be used as a guide to help teachers instruct students on how to challenge, analyze, judge and recognize information for its credibility, biases and truths. It can be an effective resource to investigate social justice issues through the lens of critical literacy. Within the book there is a list of questions students can ask themselves as they are assessing digital resources which I think, through practice, will allow students to view media with a critical eye instead of just taking in information at face value.
Digital Literacy for Kindergarten
My search for digital and media literacy resources lead me to a digital literacy guide created by a UVic. Masters in Educational Technology student. The guide covers all of the concepts in B.C.’s Digital Literacy Framework that apply to kindergarten. It contains lesson ideas, discussion questions, and ways to model topics like online safety, digital footprints, privacy, time spent on technology, fake news and coding. I think it is a great tool to use for the primary years because the earlier students gain digital and media literacy skills the better they will be at navigating the issues through their elementary and secondary years.
As I begin my TL journey, I feel better equipped to help students develop their critical digital literacy skills. I can integrate the resources outlined in this assignment with BCs curriculum competency goals and also support my colleagues along the way.
References
B.C. Ministry of Education. (2023). Digital literacy framework. Retrieved from https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/education-training/k-12/teach/resources-for-teachers/digital-literacy.
Kellner, D. & Share, J. (2019). The critical media literacy guide: Engaging media and transforming education. Brill.
MediaSmarts. (n.d.). Digital & media literacy. Retrieved from http://mediasmarts.ca/digital-media-literacy
Schnellert, Leyton and Kozak, Donna. (August 1, 2018). "Critical literacy: children as changemakers in their worlds." UBC Okanagan. Retrieved from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yuamzeQX6c4
TeachThoughtStaff. (July 15, 2019). "8 Science-based strategies for critical thinking." Retrieved from: https://www.teachthought.com/critical-thinking/8-science-based-strategies-for-critical-thinking.
The Learning Exchange. (2018). Allen Luke: Critical literacy. Retrieved from https://thelearningexchange.ca/videos/allan-luke-critical-literacy-2/
Thinking. Building Student Success - B.C. Curriculum. (n.d.). https://curriculum.gov.bc.ca/competencies/thinking
Westwood, T. (n.d.). Digital Literacy for Kindergarten. What the Tech. https://twestwood-med.opened.ca/digital-literacy-for-kindergarten/
You have curated a strong list of varied resources to support your inquiry. I appreciate your thoughtful annotations. The multimedia elements enhanced your work. The Digital Literacy in Kindergargten resource is a good find! I haven’t seen that before. In your next post, you may want to add a few sentences in summary that share the next steps in your learning journey. This entices the reader to come back to your blog to interact with your posts.
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