Reflection on #literacies Chat: 12/6/12

My thanks again to Anna Smith for inviting me to host the last #literacies chat of 2012 focused on digital writing and the common core standards: “Broadening the Scope: Teaching Multiple Literacies in an Era of Common Core Standards.” Before reading much further in my reflections, you might be interested in catching up on the archived chat here. (Also, for kicks, I created a PDF of the full chat, too. 42 pages!) As shared beforehand, the chat was focused on a few main ideas:

While scholars of literacy studies push the envelope and explore ideas such as multi-modality, digital writing, and critical literacy, our colleagues in K-12 classrooms continue to face a number of challenges. Most notably, countless elementary, middle, and high schools are now preparing for the Common Core State Standards as well as the PARCC/SBAC assessments that will be implemented in the 2014-15 school year. What will these changes bring to an already narrow vision of literacy proffered by a years of NCLB-style “reforms?”

Throughout the chat, there were some “big questions” to consider, although none of them fit conveniently in 140 characters, so I am posting them again here:

• In this era of corporate education reform, where “educational technology” and “networked learning” are often euphemisms for standardized curriculum packages that can be sold and delivered online, how do we help students and colleagues maintain a broader vision of literacy?
• Given the reality of these new standards, how might we leverage the demand in the CCSS to “Use technology, including the Internet, to produce and publish writing and present the relationships between information and ideas clearly and efficiently” to teach multiple literacies?
• With the large variety of organizations that are touting plans for education reform, with whom can we ally our efforts? With which constituencies do we need to collaborate with as we try to broaden the vision of literacy — and the technologies needed to enable those broader visions — while still maintaining our core beliefs about literacy learning?

So, here I highlight a few of the more compelling interactions throughout the hour-long conversation, and also provide a list of the many links that my colleagues and I shared throughout (NOTE: because I am trying to keep similar threads together, these are not necessarily in precise order!).

Part 1: Broader Visions

A number of related questions and concerns came in this early part of the chat:

Part 2: Leveraging the CCSS

Here, I pushed the conversation into thinking about practical action. What is it that we can do, immediately, to support multiple literacies and digital writing? Anna and Emily had an interesting interchange here:

• Emily Pendergrass @Dr_Pendergrass ~ @writerswriting  @hickstro  broad  interpretation  it  is then,  right.  #literacies.  Risky  for  teachers.
• anna smith @writerswriting ~ @Dr_Pendergrass  What  do  you  see  as  risky  in  having interpretative  space  in  terms  of  #literacies  and  the #ccss?
• Emily Pendergrass @Dr_Pendergrass ~ @ryanrish  @amystorn  fear  of  being  different,  fear  of being  fired,  fear  of  taking  risks,  #literacies #tomanytooname

Also, a separate but related thread on how the tests are going to be constructed was summed up by Judy:

• JudyArzt @JudyArzt ~ @MrsT73199  I  assume  the  same;;  it’ll  be  hard  to  test  for multimodal  #literacies,  and  test-­makers  are  not  ready #literacies

And, Darren and Matthew were talking about implications of non-fiction reading and writing:

• Darren Crovitz @dcrovitz ~ Re:  nonfiction  issue,  David  Coleman  seems  to  think we’re  getting  all  anxious  over  a  misinterpretation bit.ly/RFtAK9  #literacies
• Matthew Hall @mhall78 ~ I  do  think  David  Coleman  thinks  nonfiction  writing  is more  important.  I’ve  heard  him  say  it.  What  does  that mean  for  MM?  #literacies

I then introduced the idea of “how  might  we  leverage  the  demand  in  the  CCSS  to  “Use technology,  including  the  Internet,  to  produce  and publish  writing  #literacies”

• anna smith @writerswriting ~ In  my  work,  I  have  found  admins  respond  to  concrete answers,  but  it  doesn’t  really  matter  what  those answers  are.Let’s  use  that!  #literacies
• Sean Connors @profconnors ~ The  question  the  students  I’m  following  are  taking  up this  quarter:  How  do  medium  and  format  shape  an author’s  message?  #literacies
• Darren Crovitz @dcrovitz ~ @profconnors  and  digital  composing  phenomena  are gaining  more  legitimacy  vs  traditional avenues…gradually  #literacies
• Ryan Rish @ryanrish ~ @writerswriting  @hickstro  Agreed.  Locating  the counter  narrative…#NWP,  literacy  practices framework,  etc.  #literacies
• Ryan Rish @ryanrish ~ I  do  think  that  the  concern  with  disciplinary  literacies is  a  promising  departure  from  focus  on  universal reading/writing  skills  #literacies
• Heather Rocco @heatherrocco ~ @hickstro  Digital  writing  gives  students  access  to  a wider  audience.  Allows  them  to  produce  more authentic  pieces.  #literacies
• Melissa Techman @mtechman ~ @writerswriting  @hickstro  I’m  leveraging  by  mixing ages,  using  quadblogging  -­  4th  and  5th  interview  1st and  K  students  for  blog  #literacies

There was another interesting side-thread that developed here, too, about “fake” digital writing:

• Kristen H.Turner @MrsT73199 ~ @heatherrocco  @hickstro  But  only  if  they  truly  engage with  a  real  audience.  Is  “fake”  digital  writing  good enough?  #literacies
  • When prompted to describe “fake” digital writing, Kristen replied: @8rinaldi  @heatherrocco  @hickstro  Writing  so protected  it  doesn’t  have  an  audience?  Inauthentic? Translation of trad to tech? #literacies
  • And, Heather replied: Using  tech  to  process  &  develop  writing  should  be  a closed  audience.  Publishing  should  seek  a  wider audience  when  possible.  #literacies
  • And Emily offered this: @MrsT73199  @heatherrocco  @hickstro  nope.  No  fake digital  writing,  please.  Old  school  if  not  writing  outside self  and  teacher.  #literacies

Part 3: New Constituencies

Here, I began by asking “#literacies  With  the  large  variety  of  organizations  that are  touting  plans  for  education  reform,  with  whom  can we  ally  our  efforts?”

• anna smith @writerswriting ~ @hickstro  Good  question.  Is  anyone  working  with  or know  anything  about  @NCLE?  #literacies
• Heather Rocco @heatherrocco ~ @writerswriting  @NCLE  is  a  developing  resource  w/ great  potential.  I  think  we  rely  on  @ncte  and @CELeadership  to  support.  #literacies
• JudyArzt @JudyArzt ~ @heatherrocco  @writerswriting  @NCLE  @ncte @CELeadership  Are  you  receiving  the  NCLE  Briefs  via email  or  other  means?  #literacies
• Troy Hicks @hickstro ~ Who  else?  What  about  local  literacy  groups?  Libraries? Adult  tutoring  organizations?  Who  else  do  we  need  to work  with  on  #literacies  ?
• Ryan Rish @ryanrish ~ @hickstro  we  need  to  pull  administrators  and department  of  ed  into  these  convos;;  can’t  just  be teachers/teacher  ed  #literacies
• Heather Rocco @heatherrocco ~ ? @hickstro  Definitely  parents. Maybe #literacies should join with #ptchat for a discussion. @joemazza #literacies
• Darren Crovitz @dcrovitz~ @hickstro  major  media  organizations  with  an  ed interest?  #literacies
• Sean Connors @profconnors ~ Meaningful  PD  strikes  me  as  important  tool.  More than  sitting  teachers  down  at  computers  and introducing  “cool”  programs.  #literacies
• JudyArzt @JudyArzt ~ @hickstro  The  issues  are  immense,  changing,  and complex-­-­we  need  extended  conversations,  resources, etc  #literacies

Last: Links and Such

• Links from Troy
  • Chippewa River Writing Project Workshops on CCSS Writing and Technology
  • Post Oak Elementary School Wiki
  • Websites and Apps for Teaching Digital Writing
  • Troy’s Sample Workshop Agenda, Constructed Collaboratively with Participants
• Additional Links
  • Kristen Turner shared “The Common Core Ate My Baby and Other Urban Legends” and Critical Essays on Resistance in Education
  • Anna Smith shared Dean’s “Strategic Writing Framework” and her book, Developing Writers
  • Ryan Rish shared the Georgia DOE ELA Maps and Howard Rheingold’s NetSmart
  • Darren Crovitz shared an article from the Washington Post, “Common core sparks war over words“
  • Judy Artz shared the idea of “Quadblogging,” explained in this Edutopia article
  • Emily Pendergrass shared her daughter’s blog

I think that Sean summed up my feelings about starting on my iPhone and having to switch over to the computer:

• Sean Connors @profconnors ~ Okay,  had  to  jump  on  my  computer.  Tweeting  on  a  cell phone  in  a  twitter  chat  is  definitely  not  one  of  my #literacies.

Indeed! I think it points to the fact that the tools we use are definitely a component of the literacies we are able to enact.

I offer a brief reflection here, both on the content and the process of the conversation. First, with the topic for this evening, I am reminded that there are other like-minded English educators and English teachers around the country, all thinking critically and creatively about how to introduce digital literacies into an already crowded curriculum. Also, I am reminded of the fact that “what’s measured is what’s treasured,” and that we all need to become keenly aware of how the CCSS will be assessed with the PARCC and SBAC tests.

Second, in terms of the process, I really enjoyed this conversation and I appreciate the ways that Twitter chats can actually help us focus on a particular topic and generate a variety of ideas in a short period of time. More than just random tweets or back-channeling, this kind of focused conversation gives many smart people the chance to “tweet aloud,” akin to the “think aloud,” and we are able to digress slightly from time to time in the conversation, generating even more useful ideas and links. As the host, I wanted to honor the time and topic, so I kept moving things along at regular intervals, but the conversation was rich and reviewing it this morning has been valuable for me as I wrap up this semester and plan for my methods class again in the spring.

Thanks again, Anna and everyone, for an invigorating conversation. After the day we had in Michigan last Thursday  I needed that healthy dose of collegiality and a reminder that we are still moving forward with worthwhile literacy reforms.

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