About literacy

We need to think about what literacy means to us. For this century it is important to accept the idea that literacy is a lot more than 'read' (decoding text, really) and 'write' (encoding text). Nowadays blogs, forums and twitter are popular among students and we face some resistance when we present in classroom traditional ways to get information (texts). So we need to consider that in the 21^st Century the nature of communication has changed and it has gained a great amount of complexity. Actually information come from a great variety of resources and we have to grasp messages in all of them.

But if we take into account UNESCO's recommendation for Education, we will see that literacy is a word that fits in many areas of knowledge.

Multiple Literacies for the 21^st Century

                       The Arts and Creativity Literacy         Financial Literacy                                                                                                               Ecoliteracy                                                             

                                   Media Literacy                                    

                                                           Cyberliteracy

Social/Emotional Literacies       

     Physical Fitness and  HealthLiteracies

                           Globalization & Multicultural Literacy

worried

                                                             http://www.21stcenturyschools.com/What_is_21st_Century_Education.htm

What can English teachers do in the classroom?
Should English teachers be worried about multiple literacies?

Using Newspapers in the Classroom

By Lindsay Clandfield and Duncan Foord

Newspapers are much more current than coursebooks, they make an excellent springboard for lessons, and they feature different types of language (narratives, stories, letters, advertising, reports, etc.).

If you plan to use a newspaper, keep the task authentic. One aim of reading newspapers should be to encourage students’ reading outside the classroom. If you TEFLise a text too much, you run the risk of killing the enjoyment from it.

Here are six suggestions for using newspapers in class:

1. Use English language newspapers produced for the local community if you are teaching in a country where English is not an official language. Many large cities have a newspaper in English. The topics within these papers are likely to have more of an impact on the learners than topics that are specific to the British or American press.

2. Allow learners to select an article that interests them; they can read it and report back to other learners.

3. Be clear on aims. Is it reading or speaking you want to practice? Or both?

4. Encourage learners to read outside class as much as possible.

5. Make your tasks as authentic as the material. Tasks like “underline all the verbs in the past” are of limited value and should be used sparingly. Think about what people do when they read newspapers in their own language.

6. Help students to become better learners. Reading is a great way of acquiring language. If you can get your learners to regularly dip into English newspapers, their reading skills, writing skills, and vocabulary will improve. Talk about reading and comprehension of English texts with your learners as well, and share strategies that they can use when reading. How often do they use a dictionary for example? At the end of a course, do they feel they are reading faster or better?

 http://www.transitionsabroad.com/publications/magazine/0601/teaching_english_overseas_using_newspapers_classroom.shtml

Using the Internet for Teaching English

The Internet is very useful for teaching English. Teachers can use it for gathering information for their classes, including teaching plans and materials for classroom use. They can subscribe to mailing lists related to TEFL/TESL, and exchange information with other teachers. They can subscribe to electronic journals or newsletters either by e-mail or using the World Wide Web and keep up with new trends of English teaching, finding new or interesting publications. They can consult with publishers on teaching materials.

                                                                   http://www.cis.doshisha.ac.jp/kkitao/online/internet/art-use.htm