Week 5: Part 2

Summarise and reflect on your own significant learning from this module. Identify its implications for your future role as an English or IT subject leader

The module has completely enlightened my understanding of just how much technology is rapidly changing our lifestyle, and the potential of technology in education. As a future English specialist, the most significant and important learning for me has been how English and technology can be combined to ensure children are developing both standard literacy skills ,and digital literacy to establish a well-rounded education that prepares children, ‘digital natives’ for increasingly technological world we live in today.

Perhaps the most enlightening part of the module was the visit to Shirley Warren, where I got a first-hand view at just how digitally advanced children are today. Observing their independence, speed and competence in using the iPads to create a truly multimodal presentation was something I’ve never seen children so young be able to do. I saw how using technology engaged and motivated the children; they were keen to add as much to the task as they could, and they never lost focus or behaved inappropriately. This is not the first time I have seen children so engaged by technology; even very young children (Year R) are motivated by technology as I have observed on two occasions of phonics. However, for me the lesson I attended to at SW would only have been successful if they could operate the iPads as well as they could carry out the maths tasks. Because they had already done the calculations for their statistical data, I wasn’t able to compare their mathematical abilities with their technological abilities. This reflection has informed my future practice that I will only implement digital technologies in the classroom if it does not hinder their progress/ development in their ‘main’ learning (which I consider to be the National Curriculum subjects), or it supports learning in those other areas.

In terms of how I have seen ways digital literacy and standard literacy being equally developed using technology, I have observed this mostly through using apps; both at Shirley Warren, and in our seminars. The app I would most likely use in teaching is ‘Book Creator’;  the user is required to consider many different semiotic resources to create a story which go further than can be found in a normal, hardcopy book, for example, the user can add sound, so this is the ‘digital literacy’, multimodal element of the learning. The process of imagining a story line, and typing it out supports the more traditional elements of literacy. My only concern with apps in literacy, no matter how many different skills they develop, is that everything needs to be typed. If I had the time, I would ask children to write out their story first and then type it out on the app, to ensure they are still developing writing skills.

Exploration of the module has definitely made me view digital technologies in a much more positive way. As an English specialist, I have always held value over more traditional ways of learning literacy as this is how I was taught, and English has always been a strong subject of mine. However, in order to make the learning relevant to the children, teachers must consider the rapid advancements in technology which has a huge place in the lives of these ‘digital natives’ to ensure that they possess ‘the skills to navigate this complicated, hybrid world’ (NFER, 2010) and ‘take a full and active part in social, cultural, civic and intellectual life now and in the future’ (Palfrey and Gasser, 2008).

Bibliography 

Palfrey, J and Gasser, U (2008) Born digital: understanding the first generation of digital natives. New York: Basic Books

NFER (2010) Futurelab. Available at http://www.futurelab.org.uk/resources/digital-literacy-across-curriculum-handbook accessed 31/10/14