A lively discussion ensued at Kitchen Table Math (http://kitchentablemath.blogspot.com/2009/02/literacy-20.html) among readers who believe that Jason Ohler suggested that "literacy no longer means reading" in his March 2009EL article ("Orchestrating the Media Collage").<BQ>Without a solid foundation in real literacy—being able to read and write fluently and correctly, construct a coherent train of thought and a solid argument, and adjust writing for different audiences—none of the digital media is going to matter. "Digital literacy" is easy compared to real literacy; images, videos, and mashups are simple to learn to produce and manipulate. The tricky parts, like the ability to evaluate online resources for accuracy and value, all have their basis in reading and thinking clearly.<ATTRIB>—Jean</ATTRIB>Notice that the dialogue is being shifted? No longer do they prate about digital tools making it easier to educate children. Now, it's, "We don't need the old stuff." A tool is being transformed into a way of life that supplants the old order.<ATTRIB>—Cranberry</ATTRIB>Students of the "old literacy" must produce documents using their own words. They must spell, link words with grammar, and link grammar with logic. If students really studied the "new literacy," they would be screenplay writers and directors of sound and moving images. Alas, in reality they become simply editors and plagiarists, and never really learn to create the things they enjoy.<ATTRIB>—Rocky</ATTRIB></BQ>
The Age of Plagiarism
A social studies teacher e-mailed Rebecca Moore Howard and Laura J. Davies these comments on their article, "Plagiarism in the Internet Age":Students have been plagiarizing forever. I'm certain it was going on in ancient Rome. However, the Internet is unique in many ways. My current high school students simply don't remember a world before cut and paste on the Internet. This generation actually thinks that downloading gigabytes of movies and music is not stealing but their God-given right even though people are constantly fined and sued for doing just that.In the "old days," students had to actually hold the book open with one hand while typing/copying with the other. They knew they were cheating and it was hard work to do so. Today, copying can happen in a nanosecond, leaving little time for guilt.When I call my students out for cutting and pasting entire paragraphs (usually with the active links and sometimes even footnotes attached and in a different font), they give me a blank stare and argue that since it is on the Internet, they should be able to use it. Typically, I have to fail someone before the rest of the class gets the message.The point you make on assigning small Internet research tasks is an excellent one, and I plan on implementing it. It would be much easier to create a learning tool from such an assignment.<ATTRIB>—Chris Ferraro</ATTRIB>
