Prompt #3- Are Alternative Texts Making Us Stupid?

There are many advantages to the internet such as the constant access to information and the sheer breadth of information available. There is no longer a point of asking someone a question when you can Google the information. There is also a speed and efficiency in finding information that in a sense enriches lives. We are constantly connected to each other through this medium for better or for worse and it is easier to find out information about anyone and anything.

There are also disadvantages to this technology as well. Some examples are the lack of concentration and focus many of us have gained from attempting to multitask and absorb all this information since everything can be found so quickly. As Carr describes it "Once I was a scuba diver in the sea of words. Now I zip along like a guy on a Jet Ski" (Carr, 57). Traditional text based literacy allows for more time with words and learning as there needs to be more time to decipher text. Whereas, the internet and Google allow for text to be passed through quickly and the actual absorption of knowledge is questionable. I too, have noticed my attention span with books decreasing which is surprising considering how much I love books and how much I used to read. It is becoming increasingly more difficult for me to sit through a book unless it is really good. Often when articles or books are longer I will attempt to skip over them which is a little bizarre. I have become very proficient at skimming reading that is longer much like the article states. I am not sure if it is due to laziness or some form of efficiency. Either way I am not sure if it is beneficial to my learning process. Also, we do not have to remember many of the facts that we look up as it is easy to look them up again if we forget. This might be making us more stupid as our working and long term memories do not have to be as sharp. With the internet it is important to keep our brains sharp in order to be avoid being drawn in by websites such as the bimbo site where girls are told that being dumb, blonde, skinny with a boyfriend to take care of you is the ideal.

So the question at hand is: are alternative texts making us stupid? I would say no. I think that they are making us lazier when reading and interpreting texts.  Yet, this can be avoided by combining alternative texts along with traditional texts. Alternative texts do not have to include written word either they can include video and audio as well. As I have stated in previous posts this aids different learners in opening up traditional texts to those who previously would not have been able to read them. Also, if critical thinking is taught wading through the vastness of information will not be as scary and concerning for those who have to interpret and teach from them.

Prompt #2- Multimodalities

Mill's article Shrek Meets Vygotsky: Rethinking Adolescents' Multimodal Literacy Practices in Schools discusses multimodalities and how multimodal text gives recognition to the outside world. It expands the notion of what composition is and how it can come in different forms not simply through pen and paper. Multimodal thinking gives recognition to the outside world of school as the majority of students are online constantly. However, not all students are digital natives. Often those who are the most proficient at online modalities are those who can afford to have the technology readily available or they are in a location where there is internet hookups. Students do not magically know how to use these technologies. They need to learn them along with everyone else. Also, it is essential as educators to foster creative thinking so students can decipher the constant flow of information on the internet as much of the information online is inaccurate or simply false.

Miller's article English Teacher Learning for New Times: Digital Video Composing as Multimodal Literacy Practices discusses the importance of multimodal literacy and how digital video composing is just as important as writing as an essay as it provides a way of composing and expressing without the written word. This is a powerful tool as it allows for a different creative outlet for students.

A working definition of multimodalities from both articles is: Two or more forms in representation: linguistic, visual, audio, gestural and spatial that often includes various forms of technology. These forms of literacies are often deeply rooted in new social contexts and practices.

This framework is key as it expands the notion of what composition is and that composition can come in all sorts of forms not just in five paragraph essay format. Students can still be assessed on various forms of multimodalties while being unconfined and creative.

Multimodalities is essential in education so that students are taught things that are interesting with technology as many of them are on the computer all the time. Also, all students learn differently whether visual, auditory or kinaesthetic and multimodalities allow for them to play upon their strengths. The main strength of multimodal technology is that it allows for creativity to be fostered and for different formats to be explored. One of the most important skills that students can learn is creativity. Challenges for educators who are interested in multimodalities are keeping up with the various technologies and finding the resources to actually use these technologies. Many schools are not even equipped with current computers and wifi which challenges educators who want to stay current.

Prompt #1

Manguel

From the article The Last Page by Manguel the quote "We read to understand, or begin to understand. We cannot do but read. Reading, almost as much as breathing, is our essential function"(Manguel,7) This quote is essential as there are words everywhere and it is incredibly difficult to avoid them. Reading is an essential function in understanding.

The other significant quote from The Last Page article is "I don't think I could live without reading. Reading- I discovered- comes before writing. A society can exist- many do exist- without writing but no society can exist without reading"(Manguel, 7). Many people learn to read before they can write. It is hard to escape reading but it can be easy to escape writing as it is not a function that is used as frequently.

For Manguel reading is a personal connection to the author and a place to escape from the real world. Reading is a place of learning and adventure. It is also constantly evolving through the texts that are being written and from what is being read.

Birkerts

In The Gutenberg Elegies: The Fate of Reading in an Electronic Age, Birkerts describes the difference between print order and electronic order. "Print communication requires the active engagement of the reader's attention, for reading is fundamentally an act of translation" (Birkerts, 122). Whereas, "electronic communication can be passive as with television watching or interactive as with computers"(Birkerts, 122).

The transition from print to electronic order will drastically change how we view media and how people speak, read and communicate. Also, electronic order allows for more access into the private self as anyone can post anything about themselves and we can be online almost all the time whether we are present or not.

Connection to Digital Readers


Both of these articles discuss the experience readers have with text and how it constantly changes regardless of whether it is electronic or not. However, the rising trend is towards reading digitally. It is possible to read extensively without picking up a book whether online or through audio books. The experience of reading is different through each format but in the end the reader can still say that they have read something. The written word is everywhere it is impossible to avoid.

Myself As A Reader


For me reading books is an escape where I can imagine different worlds and learn about different things that I wouldn't ordinarily experience. As a child I was an obsessive compulsive reader. Reading was essentially all I did besides go outside. I wouldn't pay attention in school because I was reading books that I wanted to read rather than learning math or science. I read a lot of history books as well as stories. However, the majority of my reading came in some form of historical books. I also read books such as The Hobbit, Charlotte's Web, Anne of Green Gables, The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe and Number The Stars among many others. To this day still I highly enjoy young adult fiction for the sheer imagination and escapism of it.