We Are The Future, We Are The 21st Century!
What is literacy? Being a part of the 21st century, literacy has become so much
more than the two words, reading and writing. It is a constant change. Students
not only need to read texts, but also need to read the world in different ways and
perspectives through multiple literacy skills. It is important for students to
understand that learning in the 21st Century is not just about reading a writing,
but composing and creating.
As a future teacher, it is one of my many roles to incorporate this new digital world, as effectively as I can, into my own classroom. Kids today are all about the ipod, ipad, youtube, iphone, nook, kindle etc. and the list goes on; coming into a classroom and reading only print texts is not enough anymore. We need to engage these students with what they already know continuing their education through a technological lens effectively, efficiently, and ethically. They are going to do it anyways, so why not bring it into the classrooms in a fun and safe way, building off of what they know in an academic way?
Through the ISTE S Standards web 2.0 is essential in a 21st century classroom. We are not only teaching reading and writing, but also, master learning, information fluency, collaboration, digital citizenship, creativity and critical thinking. The world is changing, therefore education needs to change. It is
important to integrate multi-modalities as well as multiple literacies into all curriculums.
We aren't kicking traditional ways out, we are just integrating the new ways in; they
are far superior because the students are learning by doing, engaging with the world
outside the classroom, and everything is authentically done. Life is no longer about
being just on paper, a digitized world is before us, so it is only significant that this
way of life be integrated into our classrooms for the sake of our students and
ourselves as learners in the 21st century!