William Cope
Nithin Kalorth
Jako Olivier
Ida Brandão
Mitchell PetersMultimodal Literacies MOOC’s Updates
Section 8.1: Introduction
Welcome to this Literacies Learning Module. Using Scholar, we prompt a number of different kinds of interaction between course participants, all of which use digital media and collaborative writing processes. Our Scholar medium is our Multiliteracies message!
So, what is 'Multiliteracies'? This term captures two aspects of meaning making in the era of our contemporary communications environment, two kinds of 'multi', if you like. The first is the multimodality of contemporary meaning making in which text, image, sound and other media are used together and the same time to make meaning. Just look at a social media activity feed, and Scholar's activity stream, and you will see this mutlimodality at work. The second is the multiplicity of different ways of meaning. Once, literacy was just about correct spelling and grammar, as if there was one best and correct way to communicate. Now, we explore literacies in the plural. A social media post is different from a report on a science experiment, is different from a personal opinion blogpost, is different from an email, is different from a text message. Literacies are about creating a message that is right for the context and medium, and contexts and media are always different.
Scholar is a web discussion and writing environment that supports multimodal literacies. As well as text, your 'writing' in Scholar can include images, videos, audio, dataset, and even embedded web media—which means that you can do traditional literacy here, and also broaden out your meaning-making to create multimodal communications. Scholar is also very social. In this Learning Module, you will be discussing literacies issues and topics with your peers in the Community Area of Scholar. You will be taking surveys. You will also be creating multimodal works in the Creator area of Scholar, peer reviewing each others works, then revising for submission to your community admin, and publication to your personal portfolio page in Community. You will not only be exploring the subject of literacies. In the spirit of our time, this will itself be a very multimodal and very social experience of literacies.
Comment: Discuss the ways in which literacy is changing, and why the word 'literacies' might be more appropriate today. Read over each others' comments as they come through in the comments area and respond to each other's thoughts by mentioning the other person, @Their Name.
As a language educator in this age of new media, I'm witnessing a fascinating transformation in how we approach literacy instruction. You see, traditional language skills, the ones that have been taught for years, are expanding beyond just reading and writing, as mentioned in the introductory video. Personally, to me, multimodality is a game-changer. It lets us educators use different ways of communicating to really engage our students. By exposing them to a mix of media, we can help them understand context, tone, and those little nonverbal cues that are so important. This not only makes them better at understanding languages, but it also sharpens their thinking as they learn to break down messages that are made up of different bits and pieces.
And I'd like to inform everyone on this platform about the situation we have in Indonesia. As of July last year (2022), we implemented a new curriculum called Kurikulum Merdeka, in which the Ministry of Education infused explicitly the word 'multimodal' into the document. The recent implementation of this new curriculum has brought an exciting wave of change to the education landscape, especially in the context of language learning. And I cannot wait to be part of this.
Throughout the course of a typical day, one is invariably immersed in the multifaceted landscape of multimodal communication. This reality punctuates my personal experiences, underscoring the profound intricacy and diversity of contemporary communicative practices.
Consider the case of my mother, with whom I maintain regular telephonic correspondence. Our dialogues, conducted in our native Bengali, represent a distinct modality of communication. Simultaneously, interactions with my sister often materialize in the form of text messages that incorporate emojis and an amalgamation of languages, reflecting our multilingual abilities. These instances exemplify the complexity of modern communication, where language, digital media, and socio-cultural elements coalesce to form unique modes of expression.
Further exemplifying this multiplicity is my communication with my non-bengali girlfriend. Our interactions oscillate between textual exchanges and the sharing of images, culminating in the utilization of video chats. Each mode requires the deciphering of distinct semiotic codes, reinforcing the argument that contemporary communication necessitates a broad spectrum of interpretative skills that transcend traditional literacy.
Historically, literacy was confined to the ability to read and write text; however, such a definition seems ill-suited to the complex realities of the 21st-century communication landscape. The examples provided illustrate this point - the asynchronous and multilingual text communication with my sister, the visual literacy required to interpret images from my girlfriend, and the cultural and linguistic nuances involved in speaking with my mother. It becomes apparent that traditional literacy provides only a narrow view of the communication happening daily, primarily focusing on written forms, akin to the letter writing of my grandfather's era.
Hence, a more comprehensive approach, facilitated by multimodal analysis, seems necessary. Such an approach does not only consider the content (the what) but also places equal importance on the mode of communication (the how). It broadens the conceptual understanding of literacy by encompassing the myriad ways through which meaning is conveyed, acknowledged, and negotiated. This is in direct contrast to the conventional notion of literacy, which was largely mono-modal, centering on reading and writing as primary meaning-making activities.
By expanding the scope of literacy, the multimodal perspective offers a richer, more nuanced understanding of the wider field of literate practice. It acknowledges and embraces the diversity inherent in human communication, accommodating the multifaceted nature of communication modalities. Therefore, it fosters a more comprehensive, culturally responsive, and contextually relevant understanding of literacy in the digital age, equipping individuals to engage meaningfully within and beyond traditional literate environments.
As a student, multimodal communication is one of the most essential abilities for us to communicate better. In short, it is what we do almost every day. In today's activity, I learned the different modes of communication in a much deeper sense. Multimodal analysis is useful because we use and see it almost every day, whether it be in formal, professional, casual, or everyday means of communication. It is about having more types of communication modes. In today's generation, technology has been taking over in our everyday lives. Compared to the traditional notion of literacy, its purpose is still the same. However, due to innovation, we are expected to do more and adapt to the new technology, resulting in a combined or multi-mode of communication. We are already living in a more advanced world. Based on my experience with multimodal communication, it helped me express myself more. For example, on some social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and more, I can create and share my ideas visually and by text. One of its advantages, as well, is by means of learning. Having text, graphics, and visual tools makes learning easier and more fun. I can say that this transformation in communication has been a great help in our society. The process of developing ideas has become less complicated. Currently, I am taking a course that is somewhat related to design and communication, and I realized that due to this innovation, different job opportunities arise. One of it is my dream job as a multimedia artist, and I believe that this topic has been a great help in adding core knowledge that I will need in the future. Literacy during the old times was just about reading and writing, but as time passes, literacy gains different views and meaning. Literacy in today's generation has now become a part of a bigger picture where even in the basic aspects of life, literacy is still used.
hai Johairah,
It's very eye-opening to read a commentary from the perspective of the student. I am glad that you found multimodality/multimodal literacies fun and that it helped you express yourself better. I hope you find your way to achieve your dream, best of luck!
Being a primary teacher, I realise how more complex and meaningful young children's experiences are in our days. When a 4 years old joins reception ( UK based system), what they are bringing in the classroom space is a variety of meanings acquired through digital experiences such as videogames, social media or online educational learning i.e. phonics play. However, although technology moves fast and so does the experience of young children constantly exposed to new and faster technology, the school system seem to struggle to keep up with this change and therefore make itself more appealing and useful to children's learning experiences. Generally speaking, mainstream schools ( and educators) are holding on to a system of monoliteracy that unfortunately does not integrate with children's experiences. Personally, I believe that this constitutes an educational failure for not taking into account children's multimodal literacies and the meaning they bring to their own educational experience.
Mulimodal literacy can really help in order to enhance learner's ability to communicate especially in my class. By the use of different symbols,images, and even the senses, learning can take place. It is vital nowadays because we are in the period where technology and information are available anytime and anywhere. Literacy is not something to do in knowing how to write and read, but the ability to interpret, manipulate , perceive analyse information.
Literacy means nowadays to be involved not only in decoding letters but sounds, images, symbols and even smells. We are surrounded by many inputs and that prompts us to be in multimodal literacy involvement
I think we have lost our some of our feelings since we started to use smartphones, apps, and social media. We are all in hurry and it also affects our communication habits. We use abbreviation or emoji instead of words. we send audio messages. we don't give importance to spelling rules or literacy while communicating with each other. I like still reading classical books but I am not sure young people will read them. They have no patience to read such books.
I think, nowadays we can not consider literacy as the intelligence indicator due to digital media and high technologies. All of us have our own smartphones, laptops and other digital stuff and we have special functions like autocomplete. Cause of that we do not have to worry about literacy of our messages or information. Additionally, people stop using traditional writing method , instead of that humanity prefers audio or emoji.
These days, digital illiteracy is nearly as debilitating as traditional illiteracy. Digital devices like smartphones, tablets, and laptops have permeated every corner of our lives from work to school to personal relationships, and part of a well-rounded education includes being able to use these devices to achieve a variety of goals.
The introductory material was on representation (thinking or communicating to oneself using notes, diaries, basically writing down) and then communication. Next, instructors discussed on design, designing (ongoing process) and redesign. The design helps as long as the meaning is coherent to disturbance less living.