Reading and Discussion Three

Main Arguments:

The main argument in this article is how to extend literacy education into this new multimedia age. Classrooms still revolve around printed text, but the outside world is much different than that. New literacies are developing, and educators need to embrace them.

“Even though such divisions are seen by some educators as unnecessary and superfluous, it is important to recognize that the call for differentiated skills in particular literacies are situated with specific practices” (Semali, 2001). This quote brings up another argument. A vast amount of new literacies have been developed. As educators, we need to learn these new skills and take the time to expand our knowledge. Then, we need to take these own practices into our classrooms and introduce these new literacies to our students.

Agree or Disagree:

I full-heartedly agree with these arguments. As a young teacher, I feel comfortable going into a classroom and discussing these new literacies. On the other hand, I know it can be very intimidating for those who do not know much about them. That doesn’t mean we can shy away from teaching these subjects in our classroom. Just like we teach science, math and reading, we need to also teach these many new aspects of literacy. Children are exposed to these things every day, therefore we need to teach them strategies and proper techniques when using these forms of literacy.

Issues with the Media:

Sadly, the media plays a huge role in violence in men and low self-esteem in women. Look at the first video, UFC fighters make it seem like “tough men” are the only real men. When asked what defines a real man, not one individual listed knowledge.

As the lady stated in the second video, advertising shows us that the most important thing about women is how they look. Images are splashed all over the media with either beautiful women, or downgrading remarks about how certain women look.

With media like this, what do we expect? Of course men will have violence and women will have low self-esteem. We have all fell victims to this! As the author of the article states, “I advocate a more critical approach to visual literacy, one that goes beyond the impact that visuals have on individuals. Thus, for me, visual literacy refers to multiple abilities to read, view, understand, evaluate, and interpret visual texts including artifacts, images, drawings, or paintings that represent an event, idea, or emotion” (Semali, 2001). If all educators could just read and agree with this quote, we could teach our students how to analyze media, and how to interpret what is true and false. This expansion of their knowledge will help them to realize that violence does not signify a real man and women aren’t just known for beauty.

Sources:

Semali, L. (2001). New Literacies: Defining new literacies in curricular practice. Retrieved from http://www.readingonline.org/newliteracies/semali1/index.html

Tough Guise: Violence, Media & the Crisis in Masculinity. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=3exzMPT4nGI

Killing Us Softly - Woman are used like pieces of meat. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=KVmcmePRqSk