Technology's Contribution to Increased Literacy Skills

Basic literacy: This is defined as the ability to read, write, listen and speak as well as to compute numbers and solve problems. Scientific literacy: This is defined as a general knowledge and understanding of scientific concepts and processes. Economic literacy: This includes an understanding of basic economic concepts, personal finance, the roles of small and large businesses, and how economic issues affect them as consumers and citizens. Technological literacy: This includes an understanding about technology and how it can be used to achieve a specific purpose or goal. Visual literacy: This includes good visualization skills and the ability to understand, use, and create images and video using both conventional and new media. Information literacy: This includes the ability to find, access, and use information as well as the ability to evaluate the credibility of the information. Cultural literacy: This includes the ability to value diversity, to exhibit sensitivity to cultural issues, and to interact and communicate with diverse cultural groups. Global awareness: This is an understanding of how nations, individuals, groups, and economies are interconnected and how they relate to each other.

One of the additional things he discussed in this talk was that we often say, “These kids do not read,” but he quickly dismisses this as a fallacy.  In fact, Crystal goes further to say that kids that text read more than what we did as children because they have more access to writing.  Simply put, they do not read and write the same things that we did.  Looking at my own situation, I have actually read more “books” in the last little while than I ever have, as I carry around a huge book collection all the time on my iPhone and/or iPad.  The ease of access makes it a lot easier for me to read whether it is blogs, books, or yes, text messages and tweets.

Information Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education have been aligned with common behaviors on Facebook, examining each standard, performance indicator, and outcome for possible parallels in common Facebook tools and behaviors. These behaviors have then been connected to the process of conducting research in an academic context. Findings – Three Facebook functions – Feeds, Share, and Comment – emerged as the primary means by which information literate practices and behaviors are developed and exhibited on Facebook. In addition, information literacy in the age of social media requires a "meta-literacy": a critical awareness of why we do what we do with information. Research limitations/implications – This analysis (part one) presents the conceptual framework on which the data collection portion of the study (part two) is based. In doing so, it lays the groundwork for a reexamination of what it means to be information literate in light of social media practices and behaviors.

For one, “Using [these] sites to communicate, collaborate, and create means learners use and can develop a wide range of literacy skills,” the report suggests. Students, for example, learn about copyright issues and what kinds of permissions service providers require, important digital literacy skills that can help develop creative, social, or entrepreneurial skills.

A growing number of educators are also starting to recognize the benefits of other Web 2.0 tools, where users can include video and photo-management sites. “Educators and other professionals are increasingly using social networking services to form communities and connect to others who share their interests,” the report adds. “In addition to providing a whole community with useful information about a school, college, organization or event, a profile on a social network sends a clear message to learners that you are aware of the types of spaces they enjoy online.”

Social networking sites are also used to organize activities, events, or groups to showcase issues and opinions in order to make a wider audience aware of them. These sites can also hone debating and discussion skills in a local, national, or international context, the report says.

The social network is now at 1.06 billion monthly active users. In addition to a 25 percent increase in monthly users from last year

1 million — End of 2004. 5.5 million — End of 2005. 12 million — End of 2006. 20 million — April 2007. 50 million — October 2007. 100 million — August 2008. 150 million — January 2009. 175 million — February 2009. 200 million — April 2009. 250 million — July 2009. 300 million — September 2009. 350 million — End of 2009. 400 million — February 2010. 500 million — July 2010. 608 million — End of 2010. 750 million — July 2011. 800 million — September 2011. 845 million — End of 2011. 901 million — March 2012. 955 million — June 2012. 1.01 billion — September 2012.

The study randomly assigned half of the 16 kindergarten classes in the district iPads to use for 9 weeks. Each of the 266 students, were tested before and after the iPad introduction. According to the results, every class that had iPads outperformed the non-iPad classrooms in every literacy measure

The purpose of this report is to inform the public—and especially people in a position to affect policy—of the urgent need for technological literacy. The report and its recommendations provide only a starting point. The case for technological literacy must be made consistently, on an ongoing basis, in light of the technological developments of the time. As Americans gradually become more sophisticated with regard to technological issues, they will be more willing to support measures in the schools and in the informal education arena to raise the level of technological literacy of the next generation. In time, leaders in government, academia, and business will also recognize the value of widespread technological literacy to their own and the nation’s welfare. The journey promises to be slow and challenging but unquestionably worth the effort.

Change increasingly defines the nature of literacy in an information age.  Literacy is rapidly and continuously changing as new technologies for information and communication repeatedly appear and new envisionments for exploiting these technologies are continuously crafted by users. Moreover, these new technologies for information and communication permit the immediate exchange of even newer technologies and envisionments for their use. This speeds up the already rapid pace of change in the forms and functions of literacy, increasing the complexity of the challenges we face as we consider how best to prepare students for their literacy futures. Today, continuous, rapid change regularly redefines the nature of literacy.  This simple observation has profound implications for literacy education.

The continuously changing technologies of information and communication are largely driven by these global forces in the nature of work.  As individuals or organizations identify problems, gather information, and seek solutions, digital bits become faster and cheaper than atoms (Negroponte, 1995) and in a highly competitive context speed, information, and cost become paramount.  Most of the technologies of literacy are driven by these three considerations.  Successful information and communication technologies allow faster access to more information at a cheaper cost than alternatives. Moreover, the globally competitive context in which we find ourselves ensures that new technologies for information and communication will continually be developed, resulting in continuously changing literacies and envisionments for literacy.

Regardless of current realities, literacy in any context is defined as the ability "...to access, manage, integrate, evaluate, and create information in order to function in a knowledge society..." (ICT Literacy Panel, 2002) "....When we teach only for facts ... (specifics)... rather than for how to go beyond facts, we teach students how to get out of date." (Sternberg, 2008) This statement is particularly significant when applied to technology literacy. The Iowa essential concepts for technology literacy reflect broad, universal processes and skills.

While a certain amount of technical skills are important, the real goal should be in cultivating digital or new media literacies that are arising around this evolving digital nerve center. These skills allow working collaboratively within social networks, pooling knowledge collectively, navigating and negotiating across diverse communities, and critically analyzing and reconciling conflicting bits of information to form a clear and comprehensive view of the world. These new media literacy skills are expanding our definitions of literacy but must be cultivated from the foundation of traditional literacy. While traditional literacy is foundational, it is no longer solely sufficient.

The literacy of the future rests on the ability to decode and construct meaning from one’s constantly evolving environment — whether it’s coded orally, in text, images, simulations, or the biosphere itself. Therefore we must be adaptive to our social, economic and political landscape. Those of us living in this digital age are required to learn, unlearn and learn again and again.

Since their launch in February 2004, they've been able to obtain over 8 million users in the U.S. alone and expand worldwide to 7 other English-speaking countries, with more to follow. A growing phenomenon, let's discover Facebook.

Facebook is a massively successful social networking service that grew to prominence in virtually no time. It's not hard to see why: its features and tools are highly appealing, and Facebook users are extremely well networked in real life.

For more than four decades, American children and caregivers have counted on Sesame Street for their ABCs, 123s, and other academic skills, such as vocabulary, math, and science. In fact, Sesame is currently at the forefront of U.S. efforts to focus on science, technology, engineering, and math — fields in which American children have started to lag behind other developed countries, according to a global study

Over and over again, research shows that Sesame Street can and does make a difference in preparing children for academic success. One such study found that children who frequently view Sesame Street at age 2 score higher on school-readiness tests in kindergarten than those who don’t.