Straddling the Digital Divide | W8 Q1 | Forum

Scholar-teachers must develop a wide range of literacies to function effectively in the rapidly changing environments in which they find themselves. Mills (2010) on page 249 identifies a common feature of new literacies as when, “…participants engage with written words in the process or product of their textual engagements, while frequently drawing on other modes of communication.”. In the age of social media and ubiquitous technology and internet access multimodal forms of literacy are becoming increasingly important. Scholar-teachers must be aware of the way readers of their research consume content, and the way that their students learn. In the digital age meaning-making happens across a range of media including text, images, videos, and others. Therefore, when communicating scholarly research scholars should consider multi-media modes of communicating their findings, and a variety of avenues for dissemination (Mills, 2010). Teachers should acknowledge that students no longer make meaning from primarily written words, and in order for instruction to be successful a variety of media must be included in learning activities (Greenhow & Gleeson, 2014).

Another literacy which is important to scholar-teachers is social media. Social media has the ability to impact both research and teaching practices. Greenhow and Gleason (2014) state that scholars commonly interact over Twitter and provide explicit review of scholarly work. Explicit review invites anyone to publicly evaluate and criticize scientific research (much different from the traditional review process). Some evidence also suggests that the use of Twitter may help to connect instructors with their students and to extend learning beyond the classroom (Greenhow & Gleason, 2014). Social media literacy has quickly become a way for scholar-teachers to distinguish themselves and extend the reach of both their pedagogy and research.

The Ajayi (2017), Rich (2008), and Tate (2014) articles highlight many of the cognitive, social, and emotional issues raised by the integration of digital media into mainstream society. The Rich (2008) piece highlights the changing conception of what constitutes meaningful and useful reading. With the advent of blogs, social media, and websites adolescents are no longer constrained to long, linear books. They may now scan several websites, blogs, and view several social media accounts to learn about a topic of interest instead of reading multiple books. Educational researchers should examine if and how this drastic change in the way people consume information impacts the cognitive processes by which people learn.

I was especially struck by the Tate (2014) piece as I have a 2-year-old daughter and I envision myself in the author’s place in a few years time. The emotional strain on parents attempting to raise children without knowledge as to how a childhood steeped in technology impacts adulthood cannot be understated. Both adults and adolescents will feel the emotional effects as negotiations around the proper use of technology for youth is debated in the decades to come. Addressing this issue is beyond the scope of educational researchers alone (indeed beyond any one discipline alone), and will require Greenhow and Gleason’s conception of Social SOI to fully address.