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NEW LITERACIES AND GLOBAL/MULTICUTURAL LITERACY
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INTRODUCTION TO 21st CENTURY LITERACIES

INTRODUCTION
This explores several definitions of literacy and what being literate means in the multiplicity of
contexts in the 21st century, with the goal of raising awareness in readers who might be presently
unaware of the evolving perspective on literacy. It also gives them the opportunity to pause and
reflect on their own literacies even as they attempt to teach the new literacies to their students.

OBJECTIVES
At the end of this module, the students should be able to:

1. definitions of conventional; and

2. expanded views of literacy in the 21st century
As a student, you are expected to read, to comprehend, and to study each lesson. In addition, you have been
compelled to answers all the assigned activities in each lesson. Do not plagiarize. If you copy someone’s
research or work, please do cite them at the end of your papers. It is also important to follow instructions.
Should you need any further information, do not hesitate to ask your teacher.

Lesson 1: Traditional or Conventional Literacies

Literacy is defined by dictionaries as the state of being able to read and write.
Although it is the ultimate thesis of this module that such a traditional definition no longer suffices in
the information age, a thorough understanding of literacy and its past nuances will give us a solid
foundation in exploring and discussing the “new” literacies of the 21st century and why possessing
them is now mandatory for both teachers and students in all levels of education.
Traditional or Conventional Literacy
The word “literacy” stems from the word “literate”, which first appeared in the 15th century and is in
turn derived from the Latin word litteratus, meaning “(a person) marked with letters” — that is,
“distinguished or identified by letters” — and it carried with it the idea that such a person was cultured
and educated.
Since the subjects of the time (e.g., grammar, logic, arithmetic, geometry, etc.) all had written texts
(which were composed of letters) that had to be studied, the ability to read and write was therefore
of prime importance, leading to the strong association of being “literate” with the ability to read and
write.
 Miles (1973) divides this conventional concept of literacy into three categories:

1. Basic Literacy
 Ability to correspond visual shapes to spoken sounds in order to decode written materials and
translate them into oral language.
 Ability correspond letters and words.
2. Comprehension Literacy
 Ability to understand the meaning of what is being read.
3. Functional or Practical Literacy
 Ability to read (i.e., decodes and comprehend) written materials needed to perform everyday
vocational tasks. It stresses the acquisition of appropriate verbal, cognitive, and computational skills
to accomplish practical results in specific cultural settings dubbed as survival
literacy and reductionist literacy.
 Ability of an individual to take part in significant activities in professional, social, political, and cultural
aspects in a society, where he/she lives using his/her literacy skills.
 A new functional literacy aspect, called, specific literacy, is becoming a trend, in which the job of the
student is analyzed to see exactly the literacy skills needed and those that are only taught to prevent
job-skill mismatch.
 Manuyo (2019) reported that based on the 2013 Functional Literacy, Education and Mass Media
Survey(FLEMMS), the country registered a 90.3 % rate which means that nine out of every 10
FIlipinos aged 10- 64 were functionally literate.
Based on this conventional view of literacy, we notice two things for reading (and therefore literacy)
to exist: (1) a text (consisting of symbols and grammar) to be read; and (2) a meaning or message
being communicated by the text for the reader to extract. Without a text, there would be nothing to
read; without meaning, the text is reduced to series of incomprehensible doodles.
It should therefore be noted that even in Miller’s definition of literacy, the act of reading implies a
level of understanding. Simply knowing how to say a word (or a series of words) is not the same as
being able to understand that it means. Without understanding of the meaning of the words, reading
has not taken place. Based on this, Schlechty (2001) defines concept of functional illiteracy as the
state of being able to read, but not well enough to manage daily living and employment tasks that
require reading skills beyond a basic level.
As the rest of this chapter will argue, this synchronicity between decoding textual symbols and being
able to extract and understand their meaning is a necessary part of being literate, even as the new
contexts of the 21st century change the nature of what the “text” is, and what it means to “read and
write.”

Lesson 2: Expanded Views of Literacy

Despite the ubiquity of the traditional view of literacy, Roberts (1995) notes that “in the past fifty
years, hundreds of definitions of ‘literacy’ have been advanced by scholars, adult literacy workers,
and program planners,” with even the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural
Organization (UNESCO, 2006) acknowledging that literacy as a concept has proven to be complex
and dynamic, it being continually defined and interpreted in multiple ways.
In 2004, UNESCO formally defined literacy as “the ability to identify, understand, interpret, create,
communicate, and compute, using printed and written materials associated with varying contexts.
Literacy involves a continuum of learning in enabling individuals to achieve their goals, to develop
their knowledge and potential, and to participate fully in their community and wider society.”
Note that “reading” does not appear in UNESCO’s definition of literacy. Instead, literacy has taken
on a definition more akin to “knowing about something and what to do with it.”
In this vein, Mkandawire (2018) more succinctly posits that literacy is “a form knowledge,
competence, competence, and skills in a particular field or area,” being supported by UNESCO
(2006), Barton (2007), and Mkandawire, Siooaya Mudenda, & Cheelo ( 2017), which acknowledged
that— as we have just pointed out— modern views appear to equate literacy with knowledge.
This shift in the definition of literacy from “reading and writing” to “knowledge” is especially important
as we explore the “new” literacies of the 21st century that seem far-removed from the contexts upon
which conventional literacy is based.
‘'

Lesson 3: Literacy in the 21st Century

When viewed from the perspective of conventional/traditional literacy, the concept of “new” literacies
is a bit of a misnomer, as even these new literacies of the 21st century make generous use of being
able to read and write, rather than supplant them skills necessary for survival, However, when
viewed from the perspective of literacy as knowledge, the new literacies begin to make sense as
they are the “skills” and bodies of knowledge” that are necessary for survival and productivity in the
information age.
In the same vein of reasoning, the new literacies are not “new” per se— as in the sense that they
never existed before. Rather, we consider them to be new because the contexts in which old skills
and knowledge are being employed are new, both in nature and in scope, The ability to translate
textual information into images is not a new skill, but it is the ability to do so in a way that is concise,
complete, and clear that is certainly new, given that it will be how ninety percent of the population
will be informed on the issue. Similarly, being able to verify the truth-value and veracity of a
document is not a new skill— but being able to do so when there are a hundred similar documents
available to you online.
Case in point: Throughout history, humans have communicated on levels part from the spoken and
written word, for example, visually, using the long-distance communication system of smoke signals
used by the ancient Chinese, the ancient Greeks, and the indigenous people of North America.
In the Victorian era, there was such a thing as the “Language of Flowers,” where the kind, color, and
arrangement of a bouquet of flowers were used to communicate messages that could not otherwise
be spoken aloud in Victorian society (Greenaway, 1884). For example, a bouquet of oak leaves
(representing strength), purple roses (sorrow), white lilies (resurrection), and pale yellow tulips and
rosemary (memory or remembrance) would altogether communicate a message of sympathy,
usually over the death of a loved one.
Successfully interpreting these “visual language” required a kind of “visual literacy” to understand
the message being presented and to manage the information encoded therein— skills which, as
following chapters will further reveal, are coming into use again in the 21st century literacies. The
difference is that now we are not analyzing smoke signals or bouquets, but rather sounds, texts,
and images from a hundred different sources at a nearly non-stop rate to the point where accuracy,
validity, and reliability of the messages we interpret form the basis for some very important personal
and collective decision-making.
Another difference involves the questions of necessity: One did not need to be literate in the
language flowers to live a fruitful and fulfilled life in Victorian-era England, but to be not media or
digitally literate in the 21st century makes one vulnerable to manipulation by those who are, and
such manipulation can easily cost an individual time, money, property, and even life.
These so-called “new” literacies arose from the increasing availability of communication
technologies that were once unavailable to the average individual. Technologies like blogging and
blogging, social networking, and even text-messaging change and expand both the extent and the
form of our communication— blending text sound, and images in ways unforeseen and
unprecedented (Richardson, 2014). Never before have the opinions of a twelve year-old child in an
unheard-of town in an unheard-of country been scoff at a child’s opinions, that child might have
more than a thousand online subscribers who certainly think his or her opinions are important,
maybe even more so than the opinions of adults.
 Simply put, three things have been critical in the rise of the new literacies:

1. Increased Reach
 We are communicating with more people, from more diverse cultures, across vaster distances than
ever before.
2. Increased Means of Communication
 We are communicating in more ways and at faster speeds than ever before.
3. Increased Breadth of Content-
 We are communicating about more things than ever before.

How do we work together with people of different cultures who might have vastly different
perspective on communication, work ethics, values, religious beliefs, and worldviews? In an age
where information is power— where knowing more and knowing first can spell the difference
between success and failure— how do we leverage both current and emergent technologies so that
our endeavors are both productive and profitable? Moreover, how do we navigate and manage the
veritable minefield of information that was once considered taboo and private and is now online, for
all the world to see and to judge, whether we like it or not?
Answering such complex questions requires new sets of skills and knowledge— ones that our school
system have never had to teach before. With these changes in with whom, how, and why we
communicate, new literacies are required not only to make sense of the changes, but also to use
these new technologies and paradigms in meaningful and productive ways— something required
not only of students but of teachers as well.
To better address the need for teachers to be literate in these new literacies , the definitions are
provided below.
Global and Multicultural Literacy
 It discusses how our increasing ability to communicate with almost anyone, anywhere, in real time
requires new skills and attitudes in interaction with people with cultures, perspective, worldviews,
and priorities different from our own, particularly with the end-view of not only peace and
understanding, but also mutual benefit and productivity. An understanding on ethnic groups that
comprise the population and focuses on complex issues of identity, diversity and citizenship.
Social Literacy
 It explores the development of social skills, knowledge and positive values in human beings to act
positively and responsibly in sophisticated complex social settings.
Media Literacy
 It refers to the ability to access, analyze, evaluate, and create media.
Financial Literacy
 It addresses the notorious problem of short-sightedness in Filipino culture regarding personal
finances and how this must be addressed at an increasingly earlier age to help mitigate the ever-
widening gap between the rich and the poor.
Cyber/Digital Literacy
 It is the ability to effectively use digital devices for purposes of communication, expression,
collaboration, and advocacy in a knowledge-based society.
Eco-literacy
 It explores the emerging demands for knowing how to effectively and sustainably manage the natural
resources that our increased industrialization and demands for productivity are so rapidly eating up.
It refers to the understanding of principles of ecosystems toward sustainability.
Creative Literacy
 It explores how this increase in productivity also brings with it an increased demand for arts and
aesthetics and the need to develop ways of effectively communicating through the creative arts in
industries dominated by objective data.It Is the ability to make original ideas that have value and the
ability to see the world in new ways.
Critical Literacy
 It addresses the increasing need to discern the underlying (and often tacit) messages behind the
new “texts” of the 21st century, particularly in an ever-increasingly multicultural society where ideas,
cultures, and ideologies vie with one another for power and dominance in the minds of the masses.

WRAP UP
This module introduces you to the various concepts of the 21st century literacies. We have also
discussed the traditional or conventional notion of literacy which can be divided into subcategories,
namely basic literacy, comprehension literacy, and functional/practical literacy.
New literacies have risen due to increased reach, increased means of communication, and
increased breadth of content. These new literacies are globalization and multicultural literacy, social
and financial literacy, media and cyber/digital literacy, eco-literacy, arts, and creativity literacy, and
critical literacy.