I was surprised to read that “Young people or digital
natives, who are born into a technology rich world, interact in online
environments in fundamentally different ways to the older generation of digital
immigrants” (Adlington & Hansford, 2008, pg.3). Prior to reading this article, I believed
that all age groups generally use the computer for similar means. However, after evaluating my use of
technology, I find that I predominately use digital technologies as tools to
enhance what I already now, rather than use it to gather ideas to use in new
situations or for new purposes as do many digital natives (Adlington & Hansford, 2008).
In the article, “Digital Spaces & Young People’s Online
Authoring,” it states that one of the main differences between in-school and
out-of-school text is that “school text focuses on endorsement of linguistic and
cultural masteries and the locus of control is located away from the teenage
author” (Adlington & Hansford, 2008, pg.4).
This video demonstrates how the
use of instructional blogs provide students with choices and, therefore, inspires them to use their
voice through written word, images, and collaboration to create positive social
change as well as to teach others about various topics.
Why is it important for teachers to use digital media to support writing instruction in school?
Many reluctant school writers spend hours participating in self-directed writing activities such as blogging and creating webpages while at home (Adlington & Hansford, 2008). By adapting digital media for school use, student motivation may be increased. Furthermore, with the use of their students' prior technology experiences, teachers may identify their students' writing strengths and use this knowldege "to build on the strengths that young people bring to their learning from their out-of school experiences with technology" (Adlington & Hansford, 2008, pg. 10).
What are the differences between writing online and writing in school?
In online writing, the student takes initiative and ownership in their published work. In-school writing is usually directed by the teacher and focuses more on formal writing techniques and mastery of lingustics.
How should teachers use digital spaces to support writing instruction in school?
Teachers should not necessarily seek to replicate extracurricular digital activities within school, using and building on students' background knowledge and digital experiences will help students find success in their in-school instructional writing tasks. By investigating the motivation behind students' online writing activities, teacher may also be able to channel that motivation into engaging and authentic writing tasks for their students.
What are some of the challenges to using digital spaces for writing instruction in school?
I believe one of the hardest challenges to using digital spaces for writing instruction is teaching students to adjust their writing genre according to their audience and purpose. Students must understand that writing has multimodal aspects and that grammar and linguistic expectations vary per task (Adlington & Hansford, 2008). Other challenges include creating meaningful technology tasks "that will interest and challenge students into writing effective pieces for significant purposes (Adlington & Hansford, 2008, pg. 7) and creating assessment goals practices that reflect 21st century goals (Adlington & Hansford, 2008).
Example of digital text to support learning in school:
In this video, 4th and 5th grade students use blogs to write and upload artwork. Their teacher, Jon Schwartz, notes that he has noticed an increase in his students writing and that they are now writing voluntarily on the weekends and evenings as well as in school. Not only are these students writing but they are also trying to attract an audience with their writings. As one previously reluctant writer noted, "It's really cool because they are not actually looking at me but they are actually looking at my writing." Readers are allowed to comment on their blogs so they are able to "utilize peer-evaluation ratings systems to establish their own reputations, ratify others' reputations and discriminate between reliable and unreliable sources (Adlington & Hansford, 2008, pg. 3).
Fox Video:
Student Blog Example:
Resources:
Adlington, R. & Hansford, D. (2008). Digital spaces & young people's online authoring. National Council of Teachers of English and Literacy. Retrieved from http://www.englishliteracyconference.com.au/files/documents/AdlingtonHansford-Digital%20spaces.pdf
Schwartz, J. (2011, Jun. 9). Elementary student blogs: Innovative classroom technology. Retrieved from: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OTToERnTKB4
The Blog of Hooverneb. (2011). Retrieved from http://hooverneb.blogspot.com/
I never thought of teaching the kids to write to a certain audience as a challenge. It does make sense, I just never thought of it.
ReplyDeleteThe Fox News report is a great example of how teachers are starting to use digital spaces to improve student motivation to write! This was the vision back in the 90 when computers were first introduced into classrooms. Interestingly, what this teacher is doing is still very rare. In a 2010 report by the U.S. Department of Education less than 9% of teachers allowed students to use any kind of social media for writing instruction. 90% of teachers still use computers only for students to prepare a "good" copy of something they had written first with pen and paper.
ReplyDeleteI think you made a valid point with the difference between writing online and in schools. If students know and understand who their audience is they are more likely to take more pride in their work. I wonder if the concern of using "informal" uses of technology in the classroom is fear of students not mastering linguistics?
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