The education of adolescents is a constantly changing landscape. Teachers all across the nation continuously search for new and better ways to immerse students in the learning process. Recently, the topic of adolescent literacy has taken center stage, due to new studies and research. Adolescent literacy is not just about being able to decode words—in fact, it rarely is. The research regarding the topic is both inspiring and discouraging in different locations, at different levels, and within different subjects. How can anyone know what adolescents need in terms of literacy? The truth is, however, that adolescent literacy has come a long way in the more recent years, but there is still plenty of room to grow and change as the needs of students
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In some ways, the needs of students remain unchanged while the ways in which literacy is taught has changed drastically. In other ways, adolescent literacy itself has evolved into a new, three-dimensional creature with its own rules and expectancies. Reading, writing, speaking, and listening are skills that are used in every classroom and beyond that into the workforce. However, over time, education professionals have come to realize that the ways in which students read, write, speak, and listen differ from discipline to discipline. The demands of a social studies text varies greatly from a text in health class, or in environmental science. Students must have different ways of knowing in order to do well in their different classes. The International Literacy Association notes that “students will not develop the ability to make sense of the specialized reading demands of mathematics, history, science, or technical subjects in an English class” (2015, p.3). This is true; students are expected to engage with different kinds of reading and writing, and while English class will help develop some of those skills, it cannot account for all of the tricks of the trade each discipline requires. Education researchers have learned this, and the people in charge of setting curricula have reacted to attend these newly perceived …show more content…
The vast majority come to the classroom with some exposure to online reading and writing, thanks to social media, search engines, and publicly accessed informative databases like wikis. This affects how students read and write in the classroom. Biancarosa points out that “adding to the complexity of the literacy landscape after 3rd grade, the last decade has seen an explosion in the range of devices and mechanisms available for interacting with texts” (2015, p.25). Students can easily look up the answers to their questions, they can engage with professionals and other learners across the globe, and they can access new kinds of learning materials simply from one device. This has both enhanced and hindered literacy because of the multifaceted access students have. “Literacy has evolved from a traditional view of print-based reading and writing to one that recognizes the multiplicity of literacies that vary across time and space.” (Vacca, Vacca, & Mraz, 2014, p.32). Having this new kind of literacy has definitely given students a new, rounded way to become literate, but there are still obstacles. They must be instructed on how to use the technology to support their learning, not just for social
In some ways, the needs of students remain unchanged while the ways in which literacy is taught has changed drastically. In other ways, adolescent literacy itself has evolved into a new, three-dimensional creature with its own rules and expectancies. Reading, writing, speaking, and listening are skills that are used in every classroom and beyond that into the workforce. However, over time, education professionals have come to realize that the ways in which students read, write, speak, and listen differ from discipline to discipline. The demands of a social studies text varies greatly from a text in health class, or in environmental science. Students must have different ways of knowing in order to do well in their different classes. The International Literacy Association notes that “students will not develop the ability to make sense of the specialized reading demands of mathematics, history, science, or technical subjects in an English class” (2015, p.3). This is true; students are expected to engage with different kinds of reading and writing, and while English class will help develop some of those skills, it cannot account for all of the tricks of the trade each discipline requires. Education researchers have learned this, and the people in charge of setting curricula have reacted to attend these newly perceived …show more content…
The vast majority come to the classroom with some exposure to online reading and writing, thanks to social media, search engines, and publicly accessed informative databases like wikis. This affects how students read and write in the classroom. Biancarosa points out that “adding to the complexity of the literacy landscape after 3rd grade, the last decade has seen an explosion in the range of devices and mechanisms available for interacting with texts” (2015, p.25). Students can easily look up the answers to their questions, they can engage with professionals and other learners across the globe, and they can access new kinds of learning materials simply from one device. This has both enhanced and hindered literacy because of the multifaceted access students have. “Literacy has evolved from a traditional view of print-based reading and writing to one that recognizes the multiplicity of literacies that vary across time and space.” (Vacca, Vacca, & Mraz, 2014, p.32). Having this new kind of literacy has definitely given students a new, rounded way to become literate, but there are still obstacles. They must be instructed on how to use the technology to support their learning, not just for social