Chapter 3

Social Literacy

Objectives:
At the end of this chapter, you should be able to:
● develop understanding of the working definition of social literacy;
● explain the roles of parents and teachers in teaching social skills to
children; and
●

Discuss and examine issues in social literacy.

Explore
 Social literacy concerns itself with the development of social skills,
knowledge and positive human values that enable human beings to act
positively and responsibly in a range of complex social settings. It is the
knowledge of how to behave and treat other people in a way that is morally
upright , just, and equitable, with a view of promoting positive and
productive relations that are free from unfair prejudices, hate, and
discrimination. These three descriptions will be explained below.
By morally upright, we refer to thoughts, speech, actions, and
motivations that adhere to a standard of right and wrong. On the other hand,
it just refers to speech, actions, and behaviors that are in-line with a fixed
standard of justice-- a system that promotes and rewards good and at the
same time punishes wrongdoing. Any system of justice, whether national,
regional, or local, requires a body of rules or laws by which to measure and
administer rewards and punishment. Equitable are the speech, actions,
behaviors, and decisions that treat others fairly, regardless of background
or circumstances. Not to be confused with equality, which connotes a fixed
standard of treatment for all people, equity seeks the good of others, and
labors to find means by which everyone gets “what they need” rather than
simply “everyone gets the same thing in the same amount.”
 Peers and schools play a formative role in the social skills
development of children. These social skills are often expressed as
consisting of three interrelated components: social perception, social
cognition and social performance (Arthur, Davison, & Stow, 2000). Increasing
emphasis has been placed on the last component, particularly in terms of
outcomes. Social skills is defined in literature as ‘the ability to interact with
others in a given social context in specific ways that are socially acceptable
or valued and at the same time personally beneficial, mutually beneficial, or

primarily beneficial to others.’

There are several types of social skills that must be mastered for a
child to be socially adept. These range from the ability to initiate, maintain,
and end a conversation to reading social signals to more complex skills such
as solving problems and resolving conflict (Lawson, 2003). The following
examples represent some of the fundamental principles of relating well to
others.Children with social skill deficits can be taught these skills directly by
parents, teachers, and/or professionals using the strategies of modeling,
role playing, rehearsal, and practice.
● Greeting - Children develop relationships with peers by interacting with
them. The first step in social interaction is greeting someone. Greeting
others is done not only with words like “Hi!” or “How are you?” but with
facial expressions, tone of voice, and gestures such as a nod or a
wave. The nonverbal part of greeting someone is just as important as
the words. It is not so much what one says but how he/she says it that
lets people know he/she is glad to see them.
● Initiating Conversation- In order to carry on a conversation, a child
must be able to initiate, maintain and close conversation appropriately.
This requires good listening and attention skills, as well as the ability to
take turns and probe for missing information. Being a good
conversationalist requires turn-taking and reciprocity. Children have to
listen as well as talk. If they do not show an interest in what the other
person has to say, they probably will not be interested in talking.
Impulsive children often have trouble knowing when to talk and when
 to listen.
● Understanding the listener- Once a conversation is initiated, it has to
be maintained. In order to do that, it is important to understand the
audience one is talking to. A socially adept child quickly and
unconsciously identifies and categorizes his listener, measures what
he/she has planned to say against the anticipated response of the
listener, and then proceeds, alters, or avoids what she has planned to
say. He/She knows that talking to authority figures is not done in the
same way when talking to peers. A misread of the listener often leads
to a misunderstood message and potential social rejection. To
converse in a socially appropriate manner, children must be able to
take the perspective or point of view of the other person,i.e., think the
way they think. To do this a child must pretend that he/she is the
listener and think about what he/she needs to hear to understand
what is being said.
● Empathizing- Empathy is more than perspective taking; it means that
one is able to feel what the other person feels. Empathy allows one to
really connect with other people. Other children often think of children
who lack empathy as mean, unkind, or self-centered.
●

Reading Social Cues- It is very important to read social cues in a

conversation. Cues are the hints and signals that guide us to the next
thing to say or do. Social cues can be verbal or nonverbal. Verbal
cues are the words that the other person is saying. Tone of voice is an
important part of verbal cues. Good detectives pay very close
attention to nonverbal cues.
● Previewing or Planning- Conversations also require that one previews
or thinks about what effect the words or actions may have on the
listener before she says or does them. If the impact will be negative,
one can adjust what she might say or do.
● Problem-Solving- Problems and conflict are often a part of social
interactions. Someone may not agree, get angry, insult, or become
 aggressive at something that one says. How one reacts to these
conflicts depends on how good her problem solving skills are.
Conflicts cannot be avoided and are often necessary to “clean the air.”
Turning a conflict from a “win-lose” situation to a “win-win” situation is
the best way to resolve conflict. This requires negotiation and
compromise, give and take that results in a situation where all parties
can live with and help maintain friendships.
● Apologizing- Everyone makes social mistakes at one time or another.
A person with good skills is confident enough to make a sincere
apology for her error. This is a courageous act and is the quickest
and easiest way to correct a social blunder. In reality, other people
usually have a higher opinion of someone who apologizes for making
a mistake. Apologizing is a sign of humble and mature character
when one commits mistakes.

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The Role of Parents and Teachers in Teaching Social Skills
to Children
 Parents typically play the major role in teaching children social skills.
Parents can directly teach social skills by modeling, role- playing, and
providing opportunities for their child to rehearse and practice new skills.
They should encourage and praise the child for successfully using a new
skill. Professionals typically intervene only when children are having
substantial social difficulty with peers. These individuals can implement
structured, guided, and effective programs that often involve group work with
peers. Children must then generalize the skills they learn in the group to
school and other personal social situations.
School is the place where children spend the majority of their time with
peers. It is, therefore, a natural and perfect setting for children to learn and
practice social skills. While teachers do not have to teach a class in social
skills, they can take advantage of every opportunity to help children improve
their social skills. They should be alert to teasing and bullying and aware of
children that are rejected or ignored by their peers. They should work
cooperatively with the children’s parents to prevent the humiliation,
embarrassment, and distress that befall these children. Pairing a socially
inept child with a socially adept one, involving children in cooperative instead
of competitive learning exercises, identifying and acknowledging the
strengths of all children, understanding social weaknesses, and creating an
environment in which diversity is accepted and celebrated can greatly
enhance all children’s social abilities, sense of belongingness, and self-
esteem, not just in the classroom but in life as well.

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Issues in Teaching Social Literacy
How children develop their social literacy is intrinsically a contextual
matter and is not something that can be easily traced in a linear or
developmental fashion. The acquisition of social literacy is a complex
process that is historically and culturally conditioned and context-specific.
Children learn through social practices, both explicit and implicit, and
become human through social interaction. Nevertheless, it is also the case
that children engage in social activity before they are taught it; in other
words, children are disposed to be social before they learn what sociability is
all about.
 There are two distinct ways of answering the question on how children
learn to live socially with each other and with adults. The first view is
normative and communal. From their culture, children learn customs that
provide them with a guide to act in ways that minimize conflict. The second

view is pragmatic and individualistic. The social order of children is created

by explicit and implicit agreements entered into by self-seeking individuals to
avert the worst consequences of their selfish instincts (Arthur, Davison, &
Stow, 2000). In this last view, social order is dependent on sanctions and
formal agreements. Rules are obeyed because they confer personal
advantage on a child. In the normative view, children are persuaded of the
moral force of acting socially through their voluntary associations with others,
both in their immediate circle, such as the family, and in the wider community,
for example, through membership of a church or club. The child in this
normative view will not only know the correct behavior but will perform the
role without any need for regular, conscious reference to the rules governing
it.
Teaching social literacy in schools is not easy as it appears to be due
to subjective standards of morality and inherent human capacity to judge and
make excuses.

Subjective Standards of Morality

The natural outcome of postmodern philosophies is that morality is

considered subjective and open to individual interpretation. This can be seen
in the current culture, where actions and behavioral patterns that were once
considered bad have now become acceptable-- so much so that many now
consider them to be even good. When the standard of measure between
good and bad changes, this gives us license to change as well and opens
the gates to all kinds of abuse. This, in effect, pulls the rug out from under
any and all attempts at true justice and equitability, since they themselves
rely on a fixed moral standard.
Interestingly, many of those who insist on a subjective moral
standard will be the first to demand for a fixed moral standard when they
themselves fall victim to a subjective morality’s inevitable outcome.

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Human Nature
While we would all like to believe that people are inherently good,
experience has taught us that the inherent goodness of humanity is, at best,
unreliable: Sometimes it is there, often it is not. We are quick to champion
the cause of moral uprightness, justice, and equity, but balk when our words
and actions come under their scrutiny. In other words, we insist that others
be judged according to a fixed moral standard, but invoke a subjective one
when our own behavior is questioned. We demand justice when we perceive
ourselves to be victims of wrongdoing, but we surround ourselves with
excuses when we do wrong. We insist that others treat us equitably, but are
reluctant when treating others with equity costs more than we expected.

Enhance
 Todays’ s students have grown up with the internet that they have become
inseparable from their gadgets. Blake (2017) offers helpful reminders
to young professionals in terms of social skills in the modern age. This
situation underscores the importance of educating students in what could
be called social literacy to ensure their academic and career success.

Situational Awareness in the Workplace

While casual office attire has become the norm in many offices, job
interviews typically require more formal dress and behavior to demonstrate
a level of respect. Stories prevail of young adults showing up to interviews
in casual clothing, texting, or using phones during job interviews or even
bringing their parents with them. Such behavior demonstrates a lack of
situational awareness about what is appropriate to do in different social
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circumstances. While a college classroom or the actual office atmosphere
may allow for a more casual dress code, students need to be taught what is
socially acceptable in terms of dress or behavior for them to stand out
above their colleagues. An ability to read social situations illustrates
strength to employers-- quickly picking up on a client’s mood or
expectations in various business or cross-cultural situations can be the
difference between success and failure.

Social Intelligence in Technological Communication

Text-speak and technology use have affected many young people’s

ability to communicate. While email has deformalized much of the
communication process, students still need to ensure their writing denotes
respect and provides enough context for professors (or future employers) to
readily respond. In addition, text-speak has reduced students’ ability to
communicate using correct grammar. Through studying particular
communication genres and what they demand, students can learn more
about what individual situations demand in terms of the formality of
communication. For example, if a professor signs an email with “Dr. Smith,”
this is a fairly good indication that he expects to be addressed as such and
 not informally by his first name.

Social Intelligence in Traditional Communication

While email has taken over as the primary method of communication,

traditional modes of discourse still exist. For example, many employers still
expect cover letters in addition to resumes, and the lack of a thank-you note
for a gift is often perceived as more than a simple social oversight. An ability
to craft these types of documents illustrates an understanding of social
expectations and denotes a level of respect or appreciation. While not
related to the traditional educational canon, learning to properly write a cover
letter or business letter or a thank-you card not only teaches students that
these documents exist and are often necessary but also shows them how to
craft such documents, saving them time and energy in the future.

Reflect

Wrap Up
● Social literacy concerns itself with the development of social skills,
knowledge, and positive human values that enable human beings to
act positively and responsibly in a range of complex social settings.
● Social skills range from the ability to initiate, maintain, and end a
conversation to reading social signals to more complex skills such
as solving problems and resolving conflict.
● The modern age calls for young professionals to develop situational

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awareness and social intelligence in both technological and traditional communication to
succeed in their academic and career endeavors.
● Peers and schools play a formative role in the social skill development of children.
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Evaluate
Read the question and instruction carefully. Write your answers in the space provided.
1. How do computer technology and social media affect your social skills and that of your
peers? Cite positive and negative impacts of digital technology to communication.

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Activity 3
1. Make a list of Do’s and Don'ts in the school and the workplace in relation to literacy.
Present it creatively through an infographic in long size bond paper.

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