Phillips,+Andrea+Jenkins Reflection

I don’t think I would change my definition, but I would say that I am more accepting of the reality of needing to embrace the concept of “new literacies” as a teacher.
 * 1) 1. Now that you’ve had this professional development experience, how are you defining “new literacies?” How do you think your definition has changed or evolved this week?

2. Describe some new literacies that you learned about this week? What did you know about these topics before the week began and how has your experience this week contributed to your understanding of these new literacies? My favorite tool I learned about this week was online role playing. This particular experience was a break through moment for me. I realized that higher level thinking could take place while incorporating the new literacies. Prior to this, I thought of web 2.0 tools as merely cute introductions or final products. I loved learning ways my students could communicate in basically real time through technology so that it can be closed to only that particular class. Also, this was a great find for me, because my AP classes tend to have a small group who take over discussion, leaving no opportunity for other students to talk. With the tools I learned about, all my students will be able to voice their thoughts.

3. In what ways are the new literacies prompted by technology? How do they affect one another?

“…intellectual technologies change language more directly, and more deeply, by actually altering the way we speak and listen or read and write. They might enlarge or compress our vocabulary, modify the norms of diction or word order. Or encourage either simpler or more complex syntax. Because language is, for human beings, the primary vessel of conscious thought, particularly higher forms of thought, the technologies that restructure language tend to exert the strongest influence over our intellectual lives.” (Carr, Nicholas, //The Shallows,// p.50-51) I just happen to be reading this book, and it explains so well how technology through the generations has changed the world through our day to day patterns, or literacies.

4. How do new literacies affect the way we think about academic content? Describe an examples of how some specific academic content is affected by changes in the ways we reading write and thinking (i.e. new literacies). I am not sure. The content seems to stay the same but access to the content seems to be effected. As an AP English Language and Composition teacher, the only place I have seen content effected by new literacies would be in the synthesis essay portion. Students are give 5 -7 resources to consult and from which to write a research essay. The topics tend to be more modern than the normal lierature we read and come from more updated sources like [|www.townhall.com]. Students are asked to analyze editorial cartoons, graphs, and editorials. Other than how we access these materials, I personally haven't seen the actual content changed by new literacies.

5. How do new literacies affect the way we think about our teaching practices? How do they affect the development of new teaching practices or approaches to teaching? We have to keep up with the new technologies and understand they are not isolated from life and teaching. I use Facebook and twitter in my personal life, but really did not correlate with my teaching. (See answer 2 and 3)

6. During the week, you learning about several conceptual / theoretical frameworks for understanding the new literacies including, project-based inquiry, TPACK, Bloom’s revised cognitive theory, online identity, and #|global literacies (i.e. cultural competence, cultural awareness, cosmopolitanism). Describe your personal perspective on new literacies as it is informed by these conceptual and theoretical ideas. Literacy is ever evolving. I still have a difficult time thinking of planning with pbi, however BLoom's revised cognitive theory does resonate with me. Students need to be more involved. Classrooms need to be student centered for maximum learning to take place.

7. How does the design process you learned about in your design studio work and the video digging deeper session support your understanding of the creative process? It is more of a shifting of mindset. I have always incorporated a hands-on, creative process as a teaching method, but I am antiquated. I am excited about the tools I learned about to take the place of my ordinary paper and crayons. The skill sets my students will learn in addition to the objectives of the course will be way more beneficial in preparing them for the “real world.”

8. You learned this week about how to manage, and in some cases create, your online identity. What action steps will you take (are you taking) to manage and further extend your online identity? <span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">I am working on building, or filling out, my identity on edmodo. I uploaded my photo last week and am actually working on doing the profile. Outside of that, I am just not sure. I learned so much last week to help my students and that is my focus right now.

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">9. If you had one more day in the Institute, what would you like to learn more about and why? <span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 9pt;">I would just have like to have more time to solidify my understanding and use of some of the Web 2.0 tools with in the room live support before going out to incorporate and get my staff to do the same.