BUILDING AND ENHANCING NEW LITERACIES

ACROSS THE CURRICULUM

MODULE 2
21st Century Literacies

Introduction

With the wealth of information that can be easily accessed through various media
- the Internet, TV, radio, printed materials, formal and informal instruction - how do we
guide our students in learning skills or competencies that have great use for them to
adjust to the demands of the 21st century? As a 21st century teacher, you must be
familiar with the new literacies, or new areas of learning, that you have to emphasize
and prioritize when handling teaching and learning activities. But first, you need to
develop these literacies yourself before you can impart them to your students.
Intended Learning Outcomes
At the end of this module, you are expected to:
1. explain the features and critical attributes of the 21st century literacies; and
2. express your understanding of the lesson through a poster.
A. 21st Century Literacies and Skills
21st Century Literacies

1. The Arts and Creativity

This literacy can be manifested in creative ways of problem-solving and expressed
through the production of various art works. Teachers and students need to be more
adept in the arts and manifest creativity in various activities.
2. Eco literacy
This entails acquiring knowledge about climate change, pollution, loss of natural
habitats and biodiversity as well as the impacts of environmental problems on human
lives. Moreover, solutions on how these environmental problems could be addressed
must also be practiced. Teachers and students need to develop awareness of the
environment.
3. Cyber-literacy/Digital Literacy (Information and ICT Knowledge)
This competency is based on the reality that societies and workplaces have now
become more information-driven. Workplaces of the 21st century rely heavily on
electronic (digital) forms of data storage and management as well as in the area of
communications. Teachers and students need to develop familiarity and skills in the use
of computers, the internet and other information technologies.
4. Financial Literacy
Teachers and students are expected to be knowledgeable about the basics of
economics and financial management. This way, you as a teacher, can extend the skill
into livelihood activities, entrepreneurship, and wise handling of personal finances.
5. Media Literacy
Teachers and students are expected to be knowledgeable and skilled in the area of
communications particularly the media. Teachers and students must learn how to
discern news and information based on the form and content as to how this information
being transmitted via various forms of media.
6. Social/Emotional Literacies
You and your students need to acquire social skills that are attuned to the norms of your
current society. Emotional intelligence must also be developed to be able to effectively
manage the stresses of a fast-paced 21st century society.
7. Globalization and Multicultural Literacy
You and your students need to develop a culture of respect for cultural diversity. There
is value in having a perspective as a global citizen whose local actions can have an
impact on the wider global arena. You also have to understand how world events may
also affect you and your community at the local level
(iflex.innotech/GURO21/module1/l1_25.html).
 Respect for humans no matter their race, gender, religion or political perspectives.
 Respect for diversity and various perspectives.
 Promoting sustainable patterns of living, consumption, and production.
 Appreciate the natural world and demonstrate respectful towards the rights of all living
things.
Multicultural Literacy consists of the skills and ability to identify the creators of
knowledge and their interests (Banks, 1996), to uncover the assumptions of knowledge,
to view knowledge from diverse ethnic and cultural perspective, and to use knowledge
to guided action that will create a humane and just world (Boutte, 2008).
Multicultural Literacy then, brings attention to diversity, equity and social justice to foster
cultural awareness by addressing difficult issues like discrimination and oppression
towards other ethnicities (Boutte, 2008). According to Boutte (2008) education for
multicultural literacy should help students to develop the 21st century skills and attitudes
that are needed to become active citizens who will work towards achieving social justice
within our communities. Because of the growing racial, language and ethnic diversity in
our country, Multicultural Literacy needs to be transformed in substantial ways to
prepare students to function effectively in the 21st Century (Boutte, 2008).
By making small changes within the classrooms, it can create big changes globally
(Boutte, 2008). As diversity grows, there is a need for the emergence of multicultural
education that is more representative of the students in today’s classrooms. By teaching
students to be advocates for multiculturalism, we are also sending a message of
empathy and tolerance in schools as a need to develop deeper understanding of others
and appreciation of different cultures (Banks, 2003). With this being said, in order for
students to develop these attitudes and skills, it requires basic knowledge prior to
teaching students how to question assumptions about cultural knowledge and how to
critique and critically think about these important cultural issues, which is what
essentially makes Multicultural Literacy a 21st Century Literacy (Banks, 2003).
How are Multicultural and Global Literacy Interconnected?
Every classroom contains students of different race, religion, and cultural groups.
Students embrace diverse behaviors, cultural values,
patterns of practice, and communication. Yet they all share one commonality: their
educational opportunity (Guo, 2014).
Teachers should teach their students that other cultures exist and that these deserve to
be acknowledged and respected. Integrating a variety of cultural context into lessons
and activities, teaches students to view the world from many angles, creates a respect
for diversity and enables students to learn exciting information. As classrooms become
increasingly more diverse, it is important for educators to acknowledge an address
diversity issues and to integrate multiculturalism information into the classroom
curriculum (Guo, 2014).
Globalization and Multicultural Literacy
It is knowledge of cultures and languages. We live in multicultural societies, teach in
multi-cultural settings, and our students interact with those who come from a different
place. Awareness of and sensitivity to culturally determined norms promote
understanding. In fact, when students embrace the principle that difference does not
equal deficiency, they gain an appreciation for the wealth of diversity that surrounds us.
 Surry County Schools is located in a rural community. In order for their students to
achieve success in the 21st Century, they provide opportunities for them to be bilingual
and to interact with other cultures. Surry County Schools is developing bilingual
students through the use of:
1. Rosetta Stone- This bilingual program was purchased for all elementary and middle
schools in the district. Elementary school computer lab teachers set up a wonderful
learning environment for elementary students. In the middle schools, students are
learning multiple languages through the use of Rosetta Stone on their laptops through
the 1:1 Laptop Initiative. Students are learning to speak Spanish or Mandarin Chinese in
the elementary grades and any chosen language in the middle grades.
2. Virtual High Schools -(North Carolina Virtal Public High School)-is committed to
raising achievement and closing learning gaps with 21st Century innovations. The
mission is to provide skills, student support, and opportunities for learners to succeed in
a globally competitive world. Seventy- two (72) courses are provided including world
languages. In this spring 2010 semester, the school district has 60 students enrolled in
almost 40 different courses. Over 200 students have taken courses from the NCVPHS
since its inception.
3. Skype- This technology is utilized throughout the school district to allow students to
gain experiences about other cultures by contacting and seeing other people from
different countries. They are putting their language skills
author of Teaching the Media, calls it "critical autonomy" or the ability to think for oneself
Why Teach Media Literacy?
Why teach media literacy? Here are ten good reasons:
1. Media literacy encourages young people to question, evaluate, understand and
appreciate their multimedia culture. It teaches them to become active, engaged media
consumers and users.
2. Media education brings the world into the classroom, giving immediacy and relevance to
traditional subjects such as History, English, Health, Civics and the Creative Arts. It
serves as a perfect bridge for subject integration and interdisciplinary studies.
3. Media education embodies and furthers current pedagogy, which emphasizes student
centered learning, the recognition of multiple intelligences, and the analysis and
management – rather than just the simple storing – of information.
4. Media education is grounded in the sound pedagogical approach of starting learning
where kids are at. The media – music, comics, television, video games, the Internet and
even ads – are a part of life that all kids enjoy. Media create a shared environment and
are, therefore, catalysts for learning.
5. Media education encourages young people to use multimedia tools creatively, a
strategy that contributes to “understanding by doing” and prepares them for a workforce
that increasingly demands the use of sophisticated forms of communication.
6. In a society concerned about growing youth apathy to the political process, media
education engages young people in “real-world” issues. It helps young people to see
themselves as active citizens and potential contributors to public debate.
7. In a diverse and pluralistic society, the study of media helps youth understand how
media portrayals can influence how we view different groups in society: it deepens
young people’s understanding of diversity, identity and difference.
8. Media literacy helps young people’s personal growth and social development by
exploring the connections between popular culture – music, fashion, television
programming, movies and advertising – and their attitudes, lifestyle choices and self-
image.
9. Media literacy helps children critique media representation, teaching them to distinguish
between reality and fantasy as they compare media violence and real-life violence,
media heroes and real-life heroes, and media role models and real-life roles and
expectations.
10. With most Canadian students turning first to the Internet for research, media education
is an essential component of Information Communications Technology education,
assisting young people in developing critical thinking skills and strategies for optimizing
searches, evaluating and authenticating information and examining issues of plagiarism
and copyright.
media smarts/digital-media-literacy/general-information/digital- media-literacy
fundamentals/media-literacy-fundamentals

E. Financial Literacy
Financial literacy is the ability to understand and effectively use various financial skills,
including personal financial management, budgeting, and investing. The lack of these
skills is called financial illiteracy.
Strategies to Improve Your Financial Literacy Skills
Developing financial literacy to improve your personal finances involves learning and
practicing a variety of skills related to budgeting, managing and paying off debts, and
understanding credit and investment products. Here are several practical strategies to
consider:
Create a budget —Track how much money you receive each month against how much
you spend in an excel sheet, on paper, or in a budgeting app. Your budget should
include income (e., paychecks, investments, alimony), fixed expenses (like
rent/mortgage payments, utilities, loan payments), discretionary spending (non-
essentials such as eating out, shopping, travel), and savings.
Pay yourself first —To build savings, this "reverse budgeting" strategy involves
choosing a savings goal—say, a down payment for a home—deciding how much you
want to contribute toward it each month, and setting that amount aside before you divvy
up the rest of your expenses.
Manage your bill-paying —Stay on top of monthly bills so that payments consistently
arrive on time. Consider taking advantage of automatic debits from a checking account
or bill-pay apps, and sign up for email, phone, or mail payment reminders.

4 Principles of Digital Literacy

1. Comprehension
The first principle of digital literacy is simply comprehension–the ability to extract implicit
and explicit ideas from a media.
2. Interdependence
The second principle of digital literacy is interdependence–how one media form
connects with another, whether potentially, metaphorically, ideally, or literally. Little
media is created with the purpose of isolation, and publishing is easier than ever before.
Due to the sheer abundance of media, it is necessary that media forms not simply co-
exist, but supplement one another.
3. Social Factors
Sharing is no longer just a method of personal identity or distribution, but rather can
create messages of its own. Who shares what to whom through what channels can not
only determine the long-term success of the media, but can create organic ecosystems
of sourcing, sharing, storing, and ultimately repackaging media.
4. Curation
Speaking of storing, overt storage of favored content through platforms such as
Pinterest, pearl trees, pocket and others is one method of “save to read later.” But more
subtly, when a video is collected in a YouTube channel, a poem ends up in a blog post,
or an infographic is pinned to Pinterest or stored on a leanest board, that is also a kind
of literacy as well–the ability to understand the value of information, and keep it in a way
that makes it accessible and useful long-term.
Elegant curation should resist data overload and other signs of “digital hoarding,” while
also providing the potential for social curation–working together to find, collect, and
organize great information.
Teach thought/literacy/4-principals-of-digital-literacy/
G. Eco-literacy Arts and Creativity Literacy
 Eco-literacy is the ability to understand the natural systems that make life on earth
possible. It is the power that comes from the knowledge and consciousness of how
nature's living systems operate. To be eco-literate means understanding the principles
of organization of ecological communities, constructive collaboration between members
of a community, and using these principles for creating sustainable human
communities.
Fresh vista/2018/what is Eco literacy/
Artistic literacy is a human right and a teachable skill. It is the ability to connect both
personally and meaningfully to works of art and, through this process, to forge
connections to our humanity and the humanity of others.
Creative literacy is a concept that looks beyond sitting with a book. It is a “holistic”
approach, in that it incorporates activities that can strengthen reading skills, but are
more focused on broader learning. In many cases it is an activity that on the surface
doesn’t even look like it’s related to literacy or learning to read.
A couple quick examples:
1. Holding crayons helps develop fine motor skills later used for writing.
2. Drawing is a way to visually represent ideas and stories. Kids can build entire stories
around a single object they drew. Scribble has meaning to them, too.
3. Singing songs (especially rhyming ones) reinforce letter sounds and build vocabulary.

Post Test.

Essay. Answer each item comprehensively.

1. What features and critical attributes of the 21st century literacies?

2. How are Multicultural and Global Literacy Interconnected?

3. Why Teach Media Literacy?

4.How this 4 Principles of Digital Literacy enhance the new literacies across the curriculum.

Prepared by:

DEXTER R. STO. DOMINGO Ed.D

College Instructor