Preparing our students with 21st Century skills

Nowadays there is a growing awareness of the importance of new media literacies in educative contexts. Many schools around the world are supplementing the traditional three Rs (reading, writing and 'rithmetic) with the implementation of media literacy skills.

Hockly, N. (2013) "Digital Literacy". 

Before stating our point of view on this new phenomenon, we consider necessary to explain what digital literacies are. According to Hockly (2013), they refer to our ability to effectively make use of technologies at our disposal; not only technical skills but also the social practices that surround the use of new media. That is, for example, not just how to create a blog but also how to use it, and to whom it is directed.
The author suggests that digital literacies can be divided into four main areas: 

• Those with a focus on language:  Despite the fact texting literacies are believed to have a negative effect on the students ‘development, they should be considered as important as print literacies.
• Those with a focus on connections: these kind of literacies allow learners to make appropriate use of social networks to participate in social communities not only in their close context but also around the world.
• Those with a focus on information: Since there is a huge amount of information available in the web, students will need the ability to find information and to identify which sources are reliable and which ones not.
• Those with a focus on (re)design: this last form refers to the ability to create something new from the materials and resources that the social media provides. 

So, why should they care us? If we teach students how to use and how to take advantage of the new digital literacies, students will have useful skills and tools to use in their future. Let us give you an example, if we include researching activities in our lesson plans teaching students how to recognize a reliable source or how to find relevant information, they will be prepared to take profit of the online resources for any professional or academic matter in the future.

Now that you have an idea of what digital literacies are and why they are important today, we hope you can learn and benefit from these new tools and employ them in your future lessons. 

References 

Hockly, N. (2013) "Digital Literacies: What are they and why should we care" Retrieved from https://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/article/digital-literacies-what-are-they-why-should-we-care