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Internet Literacy: Young People’s Negotiation of New Online Opportunities - A review of Sonia Livingstone's 2008 article

Original Article: http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/4257/

In the paper on Internet Literacy we are given a very personal view into the research from Livingstone as she recounts experiences with three individual learners and their personal environments in conjunction with research done in the UK Children Go Online Project.

Livingstone gives us a lot of practical examples and data into what is described as the inflated perception of the internet-savvy teenager. There are three key points discussed in this paper. Firstly that there is a widespread lack of understanding about the meaning of literacy regards digital media, secondly that with a clearer understanding that different approaches to define literacy are necessary, and finally that when we consider these first two points that the common perception of a highly literate internet generation is not as true a perspective as people may think.

The author firstly tries to clarify what literacy can mean an that we can no longer define it in terms of reading and writing, even saying that culturally we would face challenges to define what is literacy as it is an English speaking concept. Livingstone provides us with a broader definition of literacy as knowledge with clear continuity across communicative forms and knowledge that bridges individual skill and social practices.

Livingstone then explains that to assure digital literacy new skills need to be taught, from the UK Children Go Online Project a massive 40% believed everything they read online. Standard literacy is no longer enough according to Livingstone, the skills of information searching, navigation, sorting, assessing relevance, evaluating sources, judging reliability and identifying bias are now essential tools to ensure the correct usage of internet information. Livingstone supports this by recalling an observational session where with three family members over a ten minute period a thirteen year old could not access a site required for school.

Finally the Author discusses the perceived notion of younger generations being more naturally gifted with technology and opposes this view with examples showing how and avid eighteen year old college user still struggles with effect search techniques and key words. Yet contrast this with a twelve year old who uses a quite restrictive piece of educational writing software but when given a blank page can produce highly literate materials. This is a major point of the article as it is demonstrated that information literacy is not just a skill, but a combination of a skilled user with an appropriately designed interface.

I found this to be an excellent article, well balanced as Livingstone will tell us about enthusiastic users that can be demonstrated but contrast it to how some users do not engage in the environments as some others do, showing us some of the limitations to these tools. I did find the conclusion a bit contradictory as Livingstone agrees with the need for regulations but finds that it can be restrictive, also stating that the burden of responsibility is shifted from the provider to the consumer, meaning that policy may not be needed as much as consumer education.

More of Professor Livingstone's articles can be found here: Professor Sonia Livingstone

Are you racist?

The teachers out there will be familiar with the fantastic "blue-eyed/brown-eyed" exercise created by Jane Elliott, but for those of you in the work place or interested in diversity training I would highly recommend watching the experiment below. Be warned though that at some parts it can be quite upsetting in how people react.

Jane Elliot is a a pioneer in equality activism, and does not encourage the attitude of being colour blind but rather taking a stance that accepting that people are different, and appreciating that is real diversity.

This is a great study and worth at least the 15 minutes of your time it would take you to watch it.

Thanks to the great people at Upworthy for reminding me of this piece, and don't forget to visit Jane Elliott's site to find out more on this experiment.

Motivation - RSA Drive (You need to see this)

We all think we know what motivates those around us, but are you sure you even understand what motivates yourself. 

If you can spare 10 minutes in your day and your really should, I cannot express how much that this fantastic piece of animation could really open up your eyes to what drives us as individuals. This is a fantastically factual and insightful piece.

The full lecture can be found below, but I recommend the animated video first.

Literature Review - Multicultural Barriers

The difficulties we initially face when we consider any scenario involving Multicultural learning partially come about due to the fact that no one can enter into a scenario without also being part of a culture themselves (Whitfield, Klug and Whitney, 2007). This means that even in culture will commonalities, there is a potential for misunderstanding because of assumptions and minor cultural differences. Guirdham explains these assumptions and differences can be related to the factors that provide meaning to a communication.
In high- context cultures (HCCs), people rely heavily on the overall situation to interpret messages – and so the messages which are explicitly spoken can be elliptical; in low-context cultures (LCCs) people rely more on the explicit verbal content of messages (Guirdham, 1999).

As with personal assumptions, assumptions about other cultures or stereotyping can be a barrier to the multicultural learning environment. Yet it can also be a tool for taking a generalised approach in how a teacher can communicate to an individual in a group. Stereotyping is just another word for overgeneralization (Scollon and Scollon, 2001), Scollon and Scollon argue that the difference is that stereotyping carries with it and ideological position, this is to say that they are not only used to apply to the group but are also taken to have some exaggerated negative or positive value. The negative aspect they go on to explain is that stereotyping limits understanding of human behaviour and intercultural discourse because they limit the view of the individuals in a group to one or two significant dimensions. Scollon and Scollon describe this in relation to communication stating that there is a risk to status and esteem of both people involved in any scenario. Guirdham relates to this in his research regarding discrimination in a similar light to the negative aspects of stereotyping and in losing face stated by Scollon and Scollon. Guirdham comments that this behaviour creates a barrier to communication with not only with the victims but to all individuals who observe and condemn it (Guirdham, 1999). Some educators may choose to identify these biases as a starting point however and use them to create a more justice orientated thinking as the expectation of discrimination is already there with the teacher (Miretzky, 2010). Does this in itself create a stereotype thought, as on one side the teacher may be being prepared to deal with discrimination yet in preparing for it has set precedence for it to exist?

In a study by Molesevich and Stefanou in 2010 on the perspective of a group of Spanish-speaking students and how their cultural relationships with school personnel, affected their attitudes and insights about education. Eight Hispanic high school students were participants in a qualitative research where they answered questions about their educational experiences, specifically their relationships with teachers and educational support resources, educational opportunities, and degree of cultural awareness at school (Molesevich and Stefanou, 2010). This a particularly relevant example as due to the select criteria needed a small sample size is used in the research, this is similar to the needs of our research as we will be looking at subject matter experts and a potentially small sample size. The study recognises the limitation of the small sample size group however and explains that further analysis and research may resolve further or even different data.

In identifying the barriers Whitfield, Klug and Whitney in their research that there may be a disconnect between the cultural values and identities of the teacher and those of the class. The research states that the challenge for educators, particularly in western nations, is to understand the complexity of educational dynamics in multicultural classrooms, to examine their own experiences with multicultural groups especially regarding culture, race, ethnicity and social class (Whitfield, Klug and Whitney, 2007). Although this study is aimed at understanding and developing interpersonal communication skills the focus is more on identifying cultural mismatches between student and teacher rather than overcoming them. The most notable aspect of this study however is the noted tendency towards favourable attitudes about diversity yet an unfavourable view towards needing to meet a student’s unique needs. This view can lead to a contrast between willingness for a multicultural learning scenario but a lack of desire to cater to each individual in the class which relates back to the multicultural definitions of acceptance of culture being the basis of the multicultural learning scenario.

In identifying the barriers to education though we need to consider the possibility that some differences may be irreconcilable. Whitfield, Klug and Whitney consider that there may be a lack of willingness or even ability on the part of the teacher to cater to each individual student in a learning scenario. In Ramaekers’ article in on multicultural education he clearly states that it is a case that some differences are irreconcilable, but claims the challenge for a curriculum in multicultural education is to give the other culture a place without placing it (Ramaekers, 2010). Again this provides the view that it is not necessarily about catering or adjusting a teachers approach to the class but rather that it is best to accept the variety of cultures and understand the constraints and limits of teachers own cultural background in a classroom setting.

This is further supported but the research of Schwieger, Gros & Barberan who refer to the current multicultural scenarios for learning as a marketplace of both contrasting and coexisting ideas and cultures (Schwieger, Gros & Barberan, 2010). They go on to say that this change is in both educator and learner, and will allow educational institutions to become forums where remarkable ideas emerge and intersect from the variety or approaches from the participants if individuality is encouraged. The concern initially was that all with a mono-cultural background that it could be a hindrance and even a source of insecurity in delivery of the training yet in practice it was found to be an invaluable component in creating an interactive, learning experience for both educator and learner. This has been identified by other studies as a benefit especially in the question and answer format in a classroom to promote communication and discussion (Gagliardi, 1996).

An article by Parrish and Linder-VanBerschot presents cultural differences in the cultural dimensions of learning framework, which goes about describing a set of eight cultural parameters regarding social relationships, epistemological beliefs and temporal perceptions, illustrating their variability as they might be exhibited in educational scenarios (Parrish, Linder-VanBerschot, 2010). While no attempt is made in the article to classify cultures according to these dimensions they do provide substantial demonstration of how specific national and regional cultures vary.

In single cross-cultural instances, in which instruction is being designed for a culturally homogeneous set of students but from a culture different than that of the instructional provider, accommodation should include as much adaptation as possible based on the cultural analysis, without compromising the fidelity of the content and underlying necessary instructional principles (Parrish, Linder- VanBerschot, 2010).
The article instead chooses to stress the spectrums of variability rather than the generalized differences between cultures. The focus of the article is to consider accommodation as a means to reach the class on a common ground and even go so far as to say that the offering of alternatives is perceived primarily to be the best method of accommodation of a multicultural group.

What we can see from the current literature is that the culture that can impact the training is not just that of the participants themselves, but of the trainer too. Stereotyping can work both ways and is not necessarily a negative aspect to be involved in training if appropriately used. They can in fact bring a closer relationship and understanding between student and teacher. The important element to consider is that they should not be used in a negative light with negative connotations as this can reflect badly on both the individual targeted and the trainer themselves. When we consider the barriers to multicultural training we need to look at both intrinsic and extrinsic factors. 

Literature Review - Multicultural Techniques

Even as we can see that the focus of studies would seem to focus on the need of the student the focus of many of the studies however that do address the teachers needs simply refer to cultural competence (Ansley, Ervin and Davenport, 2010)(Leighton, 2010)(Johnson, 2010). The discussions we see are around teacher preparation yet none of these articles discuss the preparation need for the teacher. Self awareness, culture specific awareness, and effective communications (Ansley, Ervin and Davenport, 2010) are the continually highlighted needs associated with the teacher, however bar this need for understanding and self reflection the idea seem to be that any barrier or challenge can be overcome with these elements. Yet if this is the case how is it that there are still such difficulties in the management of multicultural learning scenarios.

Effective communication requires both sending messages and understanding messages that are being received. Teachers often focus on sending messages, but rarely consider understanding messages that are received. There is an extensive literature on the characteristics found to be common among those who are successful in cultural communications (Giles & Franklyn-Stokes, 1989).

Below is one studies guideline for improved cultural communications (Lynch & Hanson, 1992).

• Respect individuals different from ourselves.
• Make continued and sincere attempts to understand the situation/issues from others’ point of view.
• Be open to new learning.
• Be flexible about how to get things done or resolve issues.
• Incorporate a sense of humour.
• Increase your tolerance for ambiguity.
• Approach others with a desire to learn.

But when we consider these guidelines mentioned above, is there any real difference between these and the standard guidelines for interaction from a teacher. Giles & Franklyn-Stokes introduce an interesting variation in the need to focus on the receipt of information and that even more so in a multicultural setting the need is to focus on communication rather than just the delivery of information. This brings about the concept that in a multicultural setting the class may need to be student-centric as a lecture based format might not be appropriate.

A view put forward by Schenk is that currently educators have not yet been able to develop a framework that synergistically integrates the strengths of multiple educational strategies (Schenk, 2010). Schenk believes that the curriculum is one of the primary factors currently affecting the success of multicultural learners. Traditional curricula are seen to be Anglo-centric, focusing solely on history from the dominant American culture in his study. Schenk believes that this failure is in no small part due to the fact that cultural elements were infused into instruction, rather than comprehensively overhauling the existing curriculum.

On a contrary view to Schenk, a Jones, Jones and Vermette believe that an integration of current frameworks can lead to a best practice approach you engaging all students. They believe that in integrating structures rather than overhauling the educational strategies all together, educators are provided with new strategies to motivate, inspire and achieve academic success for all students (Jones, Jones and Vermette, 2010). The approach seems to be that rather than starting from scratch the ideal scenario is to find the aspects of the strategies that complement each other which will allow for the multiple strategies to reach the diverse selection of individuals in the group. The view is that in the classroom when such instances of theory and practice amalgamate that students come to understand that learning, discovery and inquiry is not the way of school but the way of life (Jones, Jones and Vermette, 2010).

As the classroom in many learning scenarios has become more diverse it has been perceived that educators are currently presented with an entirely new set of challenges and opportunities that have been introduced to the educational system. In an attempt to address these changes and better serve the needs of all the students, it has advocated that every level of education should be substantially reformed and educators must acquire new knowledge and skills (Vescio, Bondy and Poekert, 2009). Vescio, Bondy and Poekert suggest that the call for teachers who are prepared to teach culturally diverse students demands teacher educators who are capable of preparing them. The point is that to actually apply any new changes or frameworks an educator needs to be re-educated as to the needs of a culturally diverse group. Despite the best intentions educators are likely to be restricted by a limited cross-cultural experience, understanding and their own immersion in the dominant culture of their own surroundings.

When we consider the techniques of the trainers there is a stark contrast in the belief that we need to develop an entirely new structure compared to re-education of ourselves to use the best of multiple approaches. The literature available to both shows both positives and negatives to their approaches. However the commonality would appear to be that a re-education to the individuals providing the teaching or training is unavoidable, as there needs to focus on flexibility in approach and tolerance are much more pervalant in a multicultural scenario.