According to Richardson (2009) teachers have multifaceted roles to play in 21st century classrooms--the teacher as connector, teacher as collaborator, teacher as content creator, teacher as coach and teacher as change agent; I believe that these roles can also be extended to us reading specialists. We are not just about Literacy 1.0 (reading and writing print text)but Literacy 2.0 (reading and writing using digital media and web 2.0 tools)
Well the course ICT in Reading is almost over and now seems like a good time to reflect on all that I have learnt, for instance...'it is not enough to provide teachers with new technology; they need to learn how to integrate these tools meaningfully into their classroom learning...Silverman pg 118.
To be successful in this course I have had to stretch myself beyond my comfort zone of learning so I can begin to understand how difficult it will be for teachers who may not be net-savvy or who may be technophobes.
The course has really opened my eyes to the capacity of Web 2.0 technologies to be incorporated seamlessly into reading instruction for the benefit of students' learning.
The challenge will be as a reading specialist to find the time and space during the school day for professional development where teachers can plan and deliver lessons that integrate technology.
Stacey,
ReplyDeleteThe course is coming to an end but it is up to us now as Reading Specialists, to be equipped with best practices in teaching Reading and the skills needed to integrate Web 2.0 tools, into teaching and learning.We need the time to become more acquainted with the tools but I guess we have to start with what we know and practice will make us better.To give us courage, we have to remember that according to (Dale, 1946), students learn through direct participation or concrete experiences with the content. ‘Computer screens are spaces for encountering multiple modes and forms of meaning making that converge in powerful ways to enhance children’s language and literacy acquisition by making content memorable.’(New London Group, 2000).This includes the use of visuals, which consists of images, layouts and graphics which can be appealing to children because of the colour and interactivity.
Hi Jennifer
ReplyDeleteThank you for commenting on my blog. The journey really now start, while this course may becoming to an end we need to start thinking about where we go from here, some of our other colleagues have started the discussion: join in with your take here What will happen to us
Will we have to hit the ground running or will we have space to formulate our Reading Specialist persona? Are we ready? That is why I have started to reflect and I would advise you do the same.