Literacy in the 21st Century

As we continue our focus on the 21st century educator, I want to discuss the topic of literacy this week and how the definition has changed over the past few years in regards to what makes a student or person literate in our world today. Most everyone understands the definition of literacy as being able to read and write. This is great and teachers should fulfill the duty of teaching their students proficiently how to be literate in this sense, but is this all students need to be able to do in today's world? In a world that is constantly changing, using technology in almost every aspect of life, and using new skills in the workforce?

Literacy's definition has changed because our world has changed. According to the NCTE (National Council of Teachers of English), literacy is defined as being able to be proficient in these aspects:

Gain proficiency with tools of technology

Develop relationships with others and confront and solve problems collaboratively and cross-culturally

Design and share information for global communities to meet a variety of purposes

Manage, analyze, and synthesize multiple streams of simultaneous information

Create, critique, analyze, and evaluate multimedia texts

Attend to the ethical responsibilities required by these complex environments

These aspects do not just reflect on reading and writing, which is implied in the guidelines, but also shows the expectations for successful and active citizens in the 21st century. As future teachers, we must be able to teach our students these requirements , in order to produce truly literate citizens in our world.

An article I found entitled "Deeper Learning: Twenty-First Century Literacy" takes these points listed above and expounds upon them. For example, it specifies that gaining proficiency in technology means being able to filter what is relevant information on the Internet and being able to use this skill in the workplace. It also takes the two points "Manage, analyze, and synthesize multiple streams of simultaneous information" and "Create, critique, analyze, and evaluate multimedia texts" and explains the significance of students being able to exhibit these skills: "Schools need to be preparing students to masterfully navigate, judge, and create this type of sophisticated communication -- and do so quickly and efficiently."

Literacy in our world has truly changed and is constantly changing. There are many different types of literacy today (environmental, economical, digital etc.) and many diverse types of skills associated with these literacies. What does this new definition of literacy mean for teachers in the 21st century and for the teachers' classrooms? Teachers now have a duty to fulfill in teaching students how to be literate in the 21st century, not merely teaching them how to just read and write. If teachers want to be successful, meaningful, and powerful 21st century educators, they must fulfill this task and embrace it.

Links:
http://www.ncte.org/positions/statements/21stcentdefinition
http://www.edutopia.org/blog/twenty-first-century-literacy-deeper-learning-rebecca-alber