The Changing Face of Literacy and Learning in 1-1 Laptop Csasrooms: The New Literacies of Online Reading Comprehension

MassCue Session 5 -

Keynote: The Changing Face of Literacy and Learning in 1-1 Laptop Classrooms: The New Literacies of Online Reading Comprehension
Donald J. Leu, Prof and Director, New Literacies Research Lab, U of Conn
J. Gregory McVerry, W. Ian O’Byrne, Lisa Zawilinski, U of Conn and the New Literacies Research Lab

Internet is a reading comprehension and learning issue – not a technology issue.
Internet is this generations defining technology for reading and learning and requires new literacies. Where are the standards?

1 out of 4 people, nearly 25% of world’s population has internet connectivity. Projection is that in 10 years every erson will be covered.

Internet World Stats - Internet World Stats is an International website that features up to date world Internet Usage, Population Statistics and Internet Market Research Data, for over 233 individual countries and world regions.

We are small potatoes compared to saturation in other areas of the world. This is a global phenomenon.
2005 was the tipping point year when students spent more time reading online than in books. Updated data not yet available.

• Ireland re-tooled their education system 10 years ago and now have a highly trained workforce, are the number 1 global creator of software, and are importing workers. A boom economy in Ireland right now.
• Mexico has a national plan for integrating the Internet into every home and school. 15 year systematic plan. e-Mexico details the plan.
• Japan provides Internet connections for all households 16x faster, at $22/month to support Internet integration at national level.
• How many states in the US measure student ability to read search engine results on state reading assessments? 0. Our students use a click strategy.
• 0 states allow students to perform assessments using a word processor, despite the data that shows that students would preform better if they were allowed to use a word processor. Boston College did this research.
• 0 states assess online reading comprehension in state assessments. This is an important reading task. (Extend info literacy skills to source evaluation.)

LMS are central to schools as we shift from page to screen. These will be school leaders and these positions should be protected.

Internet is defining technology for this generation, and other nations are adapting policy and education systems. They see it, and the US does not. NCLB assessments do not include new literacies.

Achievement Gap - our policies are increasing these gaps. Poor students have less access, and come to poor school districts. These schools are under pressure to improve NCLB reading scores without access to technology. Pressure to get students ready to pass an irrelevant test. The poor are left further and further behind in developing Internet reading comprehension skills. The rich are getting richer, the poor are getting poorer.

The Internet requires new literacies - focus on online reading comprehension. 10% lowest performing readers are actually quite good at reading on the Internet. They are more functionaly in online environments - text units are very short. When they get to info the text expands but they have skills in plave (controlF) to manage their content. They get to choose what they read based on links they follow - and this builds engagement.
Also very good at reading pictures - strong visual skills and they can exploit this extra info to build their comprehension.

Their data shows no corelation between assessed reading skills and online reading skills. New literacies are Internet skills.

• reading to define problem
• reading to locate information
• reading to evaluate information
  
• reading to synthesize information
  
• reading and writing to communicate information

Kids are great at certain technologies, but not good with information skills. Use semantic skills and ".com" strategy. They don't incorporate search engines in their inquiry process.

Model for teaching online reading comprehension in 1:1 latptop classrooms
Predict within 10 years we will have total shift to 1:1 environment - Maine already made this shift. May need to be a decsiion at state or federal level.
Everything changes in content when you make this shift.

(Apple Remote desktop for in class space so thumbnail allows oversite of student activity)

Phase I - Teacher-led Basic Skills
(nuts and bolts - 2 weeks)

• teacher-led deomontsrations of basic Internet use skills and cooperative learning strategies
• explicit modeling by teacher
• largely whole class instruction
• mini-lessons as transition to Phase II.

Phase II - Collabortaive modeling of online reading strategies
(reading skills of evaluating sources)

• students presented with information problem to solve
• work in small groups to solve problem
• exchange strategies as they do so
• debrief at end of lesson
• initally: location and critical evaluation
  
• later: synthesis and communication

Phase III of IRT (Internet Reciprocal Teaching)

• inquiry - initially within class
• then with others around the world (ePals - good child-safe digital environment)

"Help the last become first." - Make them the leaders, privilege them in powerful ways.
Include email in your curriculum. It is the primary method of communication in the business world.