3 Fundamental Beliefs about Learning Literacy:

1. I believe literacy should be inclusive, going beyond traditional modes of comprehension (ex. Academic reading and writing exercises).
2. Literacy is multifaceted and fluid.
3. Literacy learning should encourage students to think critically about their own literacy skills.

3 Fundamental Beliefs about Teaching Literacy:

1. Tools (books, scholarly articles, youtube videos etc.) used in literacy instruction should be diverse in content and representative of the professor’s student population.
2. Professors must be consistent when encouraging students to develop their literacy skills/habits.
3. Professors must be open to student feedback regarding their own understanding of literacy, as it relates to his/her specific method of teaching.

How should literacy pedagogy respond to today’s technological world and to today’s digital learners?

I believe literacy pedagogy should respond to today’s digital learners by incorporating elements of technology within the assignments and projects given. It is important to meet students where they are. For example, if students are posting on facebook and twitter actively, teachers can create specific accounts that are connected to the course; thus, allowing students to post in relevant pictures, quotes from articles, or even have discussion posts on weekly course readings. Additionally, through using technology to teach literacy, some professors who are not extremely tech-savvy will possibly have an opportunity to learn from those students who may be more familiar with the software. By working together with technology, I believe literacy learning can be achieved by both students and professors.

One of my earliest memories of technology was in my elementary school computer class. Going to computer class was fun and interesting. We utilized a software called “Mavis Beacon Typing” and we had to follow prompts that guided us to place our fingers on the “home keys” (A,S,D,F,G,H,J,K,L) and practice typing various words and letters in a synchronized pattern. My computer teacher “Mrs. J” would give us a about 25mins-30mins of the typing software and then she would come around and check our progress. If we finished before everyone else, we were able to play a game where we had to direct a bear to create a birthday cake. In the game, we had to locate the ingredients for the bear and then make him mix and bake the birthday cake. I recall this game being soooo fun. Whenever I finished making my cake, I would be anxious to have anyone come and see it. On Fridays in computer class, we typically had a “free day”. This “free day” consisted of using the headphones along with the computer to listen to music and visiting the webpages of our favorite celebrities.  I recall a time in 6th grade where my computer experience got violent. I was sitting at the computer admiring the new website of my childhood crush “Lil Bow Wow”, when an 8th grader came and pressed “Esc” which automatically closed my screen. When I saw my beloved “Lil Bow Wow” disappear before my eyes, I was enraged and filled with adrenaline. SSSSMMMAAAACCCKKKK! I had slapped this 8th grader in the face. When I looked up, blood was on his shirt and I was told to go to the principal’s office. I was not remorseful at the time. In my mind, I wasn’t done with the computer and he knew that because the entire class was still sitting at their respective computers. Am I remorseful now? No. However, I am embarrassed that I let a celebrity whom I didn’t really know have such an effect on me that I would be upset when I was inadvertently dismissed from his website.

Another early memory I have of technology are the various game systems that my siblings and I owned. For example, I played sega genesis, PlayStation, PlayStation II, XBox, and Wii. One of the major differences of these game systems were the graphics of the games we played with them. Sega Genesis games were full of wide pixels. PlayStation games were more realistic. XBox graphics were even more realistic (characters’ hair blowing in the wind). Below is an example of “Asuka” from Tekken

Click the image and see the realistic graphics 🙂

I tried going tech free this weekend and it was a very difficult task. I did not realize how much I had become dependent upon technology until I did this exercise. It was really eye opening and I will have to try harder in the future to not be consumed by technology so much.

Thursday 9/22/2016

8:30am-9am

I typically begin my mornings with prayer and meditation….to gospel music. However, since I was going tech free, I had to do this in silence. This was not difficult to do at all. I believe it allowed me to be more cognizant of relaxing during meditation and prayer.

9:30-10:30

I showered and prepared for my commute to my assistantship in silence. I use the term silence because I have a small Bluetooth speaker that I use to listen to music while getting dressed. This was difficult because I am so used to listening to music while getting dressed for the day. However, I sang my favorite songs instead. I have to work on the lyrics to quite a few of them.

11am-12pm

I have to drive 45mins-1hr to my assistantship. Typically, I listen to gospel or R&B music while driving to and from; however, today I drove in silence and it was awkwardly refreshing. I was focused on the road as well as the natural beauty of the community I was riding through. It was especially nice to notice that some of the leaves had already begun to change.

12pm-8pm

During this time, I was at my assistantship, where I tutor students with their writing. I worked the entire shift with a student who needed help organizing a letter. Then I was bombarded with an influx of students who needed assistance with research questions. Thus, my entire shift tech free was painless since I was busy assisting students.

8pm-9pm

I drove home in silence. This was good to do because while I am already alert when driving from my assistantship at night, I was even more alert since I was not singing with the music. I am nervous when driving from my assistantship because it is dark and full of narrow, winding roads. Additionally, driving in silence allowed me to listen to my car and I believe I am almost due for an oil change.

9:15p-12am

When I had gotten to my apartment, I used the rest of my tech free time to prepare for my weekend trip to D.C. and read for class. I knew I wanted to take photos in the nation’s capital, so I opted to do my tech free day before I left. I prepared myself to return phone calls and respond to text messages in the morning.

I am amazed at how much I can actually get done without being distracted by technology. However, I really missed not being able to listen to music during this time. Music relaxes me and I listen to it frequently throughout the day. I think with practice, I can benefit greatly from not being so dependent upon technology.

Primary Blog Question

• When compared, the two film clips help illuminate a key question for this course: How has our relationship to technology changed over time?

After watching the two film clips, I believe our relationship with technology changed primarily within the area of accessibility. Today, one cannot go anywhere or do anything without some aspect of technology being involved. For example, when I go to the movies in Pittsburgh and I want a soda, I no longer have to physically pull the handle to release my desired beverage into my cup. Instead, there is a screen that has the logo/flavors of every drink offered and I simply use a touch screen and select the drink I’d like. Technology is more accessible, but it can also be considered a hindrance to our society by removing/limiting physical movement.

• Secondary Blog Questions
  • How has film technology changed?

I propose that technology has changed over time by becoming more advanced. As a result of various technological inventions (coupled with trial and error), technology seems to have adapted overtime in a way that is easier for people to utilize for whatever purpose they wish.

How has our understanding of time evolved?

When I think of time, I understand that it is indeed precious and as each moment goes by it is imperative that we use it wisely and on what we consider to be meaningful.

I am currently in my technology and literacy class. I believe that so far, it is a useful class and I hope to remember all of these fancy tech ideas once I finish and begin teaching again.

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