A10.4: Week 10 Participation Memo

Linsey Cushing
October 24, 2007

Week 10 Reflection

Aims and Objectives:
This week, my goal was to revise my project prospectus and get started on researching. I also wanted to get the week’s assignments posted before the weekend because it is Homecoming!! =)

Declarative Knowledge:
This week, I learned more in depth about reproduction literacy skills. Reproduction literacy skills involve taking information, such as text or visuals, that already exists and rearranging it into something new and creative. This type of literacy skill is basically a complicated form of copying and pasting. When using reproduction literacy skills with text, you must take something, such as a paragraph, that already exists. You then rearrange the words so that the paragraph brings about an entirely different meaning. When using visuals, you combine photographs, videos, or clip art so that a new visual emerges. A great example of visual reproduction literacy skills are the works done by Pop Art artist Andy Warhol. The other information I learned about involved my research on cochlear implants and how they facilitate learning literacy skills through the auditory channel.

Procedural Knowledge:
This week, I did not necessarily learn how to do anything I’ve never done before. However, I continued to use the researching processes I’ve learned in the past weeks while searching online for more sources. Overall, I am learning how to do a research project in small sections over a semester.

Conditional Knowledge:
This week, the majority of my focus has shifted from weekly assignments to my research project. I’ve had to adjust to this shift because it went from a list of readings and reflections that are due at a certain time to a more self-directed, research on your own time outlook. I’ve learned this week that I really have to make myself do research when I have some free time. I work better when I’m on a set schedule and have deadlines, so researching on my free time is not easy for me. However, the deadline for the rough draft is approaching way too quickly, so I am applying myself as best as I can.
By reading about reproduction literacy skills, I was once again reminded of the importance of digital literacy and the impact that technology is going to have on our future. As a student, I have never learned about reproduction literacy skills. However, in the future, this will be an essential skill that will be taught in schools. As I said in my post about reproduction literacy, ‘creative writing’ will take on an entirely new meaning as children are assigned to rearrange an existing passage into a completely different story rather than creating a story as we did in the past. Computer skills, both technical and conceptual, are changing our lives and will determine success in the future.
As a student, the information I’ve learned this week is already having an effect on me as far as my research for this project. The information about reproduction literacy skills opened my eyes to a new type of skill that I should become acquainted with. I suspect that at some point in my future as a student, I will have to apply reproduction literacy skills to some type of assignment. As a pre-professional, this information is useful because my profession is built upon evidence-based practice, so research is essential. I will use the skills I am learning today in the future when doing research. Also, the information I’ve learned about reproduction literacy may apply because I may have to teach a client how to utilize these skills within a classroom. Finally, as a citizen, this information is useful because it makes me more aware of what generations after me will be learning in schools so that I can be educated on the same information they will be. This will facilitate better communication between us and also allow me to keep up in the fast-paced technological world.

A10.3: Revised Prospectus

Linsey Cushing
October 23, 2007

Project Prospectus

1. Research Question / Foundation Questions:

Research Question:
In what ways do cochlear implants facilitate the development of literacy skills through the auditory channel?

Foundation Questions:
1. What literacy skills are learned through the auditory channel?

2. What do cochlear implants do?

3. What deficits exist in literacy skills?

2. Tentative Point:

I plan to prove that cochlear implants have a significant impact on improving deaf children’s literacy skills learned through the auditory channel.

3. Discussion:
I decided to research a topic concerning cochlear implants and literacy because I am very fascinated by cochlear implants and the literacy aspect is something I am unfamiliar with. Currently, I am learning about cochlear implants in my Aural Rehabilitation class. However, we are learning more of the technical aspects about how cochlear implants work and the parts on an implant. We also have looked at case histories of children who have cochlear implants and at the auditory-oral approach to therapy. This semester, I have also had the opportunity to watch several therapy sessions involving cochlear implanted children. I’ve discovered that I am very drawn to this type of therapy and find it very interesting and exciting. The fact that we, as speech-language pathologists, can take part in the process of helping a deaf child hear for the first time and make meaning out of those sounds truly astounds me. We have a cochlear implant preschool at Marshall called the Luke Lee Listening Language and Learning Lab, better known as the “L.” By observing this, I’ve realized that the impact cochlear implants have on these children’s abilities to communicate and understand language is amazing. I chose this topic in hopes that I will possibly discover my “niche.” I figure that there’s no better way to discover what type of clients I want to work with in the future than by observing them through classes and researching them.

I think that it will be a challenge to answer this question because cochlear implants are still a fairly new concept. Therefore, research is just starting to take off in this field. Although I thought that there would be more information out there about cochlear implants and literacy, I have discovered that a lot of the results that came up in my initial search do not pertain to my research. However, I have found quite a few articles that appear to be great sources for the questions I am asking. Basically, I think that the lack of research will be my biggest challenge, but this also could actually come to my benefit because I will not have to sift through a lot of information as I might have had to with other topics.

I am excited to see where this project will lead me in terms of my future interests. I hope that after completing this research, I will have a better idea about whether I would like to work with this population. Because of the lack of research in this field, I hope that through this project I will be able to contribute valuable information that will be useful to others who are wondering the same questions as I am.

4. Resources:

References

Boothroyd, A. (2002). Postimplantation audition and educational attainment in children with prelingually acquired profound deafness. The Annals of Otology, Rhinology & Laryngology. Supplement, 189, 79-84. Retrieved October 5, 2007, from the MEDLINE database.

Connor, C. M., & Zwolan, T. A. (2004). Examining multiple sources of influence on the reading comprehension skills of children who use cochlear implants. Journal of Speech, Language & Hearing Research, 47, 509-526. Retrieved September 19, 2007, from the Academic Search Premier database.

Easterbrooks, S. R. (1998). Association of college educators of the deaf and hard of hearing annual conference: Collected papers. Lexington, KY: Association of College Educators of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. 460444)

Fiori, A. (2006). Model oriented assessment of literacy performance in children with cochlear implants. Laryngo-Rhino-Otologie, 85, 489-495. Retrieved October 5, 2007, from the MEDLINE database.

Geers, A. E. (2002). Factors affecting the development of speech, language, and literacy in children with early cochlear implantation. Language, Speech & Hearing Services in Schools, 33, 172-183. Retrieved September 19, 2007, from the Academic Search Premier database.
Geers, A.E. (2003). Predictors of reading skill development in children with early cochlear implantation. Ear and Hearing, 24, 59S-68S. Retrieved October 5, 2007, from the MEDLINE database.

MacDougall, J. C. (1991). Current issues in deafness: A psychological perspective. Canadian Psychology, 32, 612-627. Retrieved October 5, 2007, from the PsycINFO database.

Marschark, M., Rohten, C., & Fabich, M. (2007). Effects of cochlear implants on children’s reading and academic achievement. Journal of Deaf Studies and Deaf Education, 12, 269-282. Retrieved September 19, 2007, from the ERIC database.

Spencer, L.J., Barker, B.A., & Tomblin, J.B. (2003). Exploring the language and literacy outcomes of pediatric cochlear implant users. Ear and Hearing, 24, 236-247. Retrieved October 5, 2007, from the MEDLINE database.

Vermeulen, A. M., van Bon, W., & Schreuder, R. (2007). Reading comprehension of deaf children with cochlear implants. Journal of Deaf Studies and Deaf Education, 12, 283-302. Retrieved September 19, 2007, from the ERIC database.

 

 

A10.1: Reproduction Literacy

Linsey Cushing
October 22, 2007

Reproduction Literacy

Reproduction literacy skills involve taking information that already exists and rearranging it to come up with something new and creative. Reproduction literacy skills are utilized mainly with text and visuals. With text, you use reproduction literacy skills to take existing text and manipulate it so that an entirely different story is told from the same words. Basically, you copy and paste the words until a different idea exists even though you are using the same words as the original. In regards to visuals such as art, reproduction literacy can be used to combine different pieces into a new piece, such as Pop Art artist Andy Warhol did. With the current digitalization of society, reproduction literacy is becoming an essential skill because everything is computerized. Although some original work still emerges, the majority of things out there are replications and transformations of previous works, all done through reproduction literacy.
Although I had never heard the term ‘reproduction literacy’ before, I have used this skill many times when writing papers. When I see information that I consider pertinent to my research, I paraphrase what the author says unless I want to have a direct quote in my paper. Therefore, I take the words, paraphrase it so that it is not plagiarism, and give credit to the author for the information I’ve written about. Even though I haven’t used every single word, I still used a form of reproduction literacy to maneuver, manipulate, and create my paper. Therefore, I believe that reproduction literacy skills exist and that they are essential for success in the future.
Reproduction literacy will have an impact on the curriculum involving computers in schools. Students need to be taught not only basic ‘copy and paste’ techniques, but also how to create and fine tune texts and visuals through reproduction literacy. For example, in the future, advertising agencies will need employees that can find existing photographs, clip art, or movies and manipulate them so that something unique arises for that specific company that will be memorable. Teachers must understand that computer skills not only involve the basics of how to operate and type on a computer, but also how to use creativity to produce new ideas using the computer as the tool. Creative writing could take on an entirely different meaning in this new era by using reproduction literacy to transform an existing piece into an incredibly different one.

Overall, I think that reproduction literacy has existed for quite some time, but not to this extreme. The digitalization of society has opened up millions of new doors for reproduction literacy to be used by people that exist around the world. Whenever something is published online, it is up for viewing and possibly using by others. Reproduction literacy offers a promising future for students because this gives these young artists a global canvas to begin their work on.

References

Aphek, E. (2007). Digital, highly connected children: Implications for education. Retrieved October 22, 2007, from http://www.creativityatwork.com/articlesContent/aphek/digital-literacy.html

Eshet, Y. (2002, June). Digital literacy: A new terminology framework and its application to the design of meaningful technology-based learning environments. ED-MEDIA 2002 World Conference on Educational Multimedia, Hypermedia & Telecommunications, 1-7. Retrieved October 22, 2007, from the ERIC database.

Eshet-Alkalai, Y., & Amichai-Hamburger, Y. (2004, August). Experiments in digital literacy. CyberPsychology & Behavior, 7(4), 421-429.

9.4: Week 9 Participation Memo

Linsey Cushing
October 19, 2007

Week 9 Reflection

Aims and Objectives:
This week, my goal was to figure out exactly what I am doing my research on and get started on my research. I also wanted to get all of my assignments finished on time, as always.

Declarative Knowledge:
This week, the majority of the information I looked at for this class involved either cochlear implants for my research or photo-visual literacy. I am learning a lot of information about cochlear implants and am planning on writing a section of my paper about general cochlear information facts. When looking at photo-visual literacy, I learned that this skill involves using graphics and icons to follow instructions rather than written text. Photo-visual literacy is being used today in video games and computer games as we learn how to play through visuals rather than written information. This form of literacy is easy to understand yet involves a good memory and critical thinking skills. Photo-visual literacy is also more interactive than graphic text. Another aspect I learned about was my project prospectus. I learned that when writing my main question, I need to be more specific in my questioning and actually put my intended point in the question. I also learned that my foundation questions need to be very specific to my main question and not be questions that could involve an entire research paper within themselves.

Procedural Knowledge:
This week, most of my focus was on obtaining knowledge rather than learning how to do something. If I had to pick one thing, I would say that I learned how to critique a project prospectus and change my research question and foundation questions into what I actually want to research. This was done by attending a conference with my professor and comparing my actual research question to my tentative point, discovering the difference between the two, and formulating a question that will involve my tentative point. After this, I had to formulate new foundation questions that would answer my main question.

Conditional Knowledge:
This week, I mainly learned that my original project prospectus needed some major improvements in order to portray what I actually intended for it to say. My main question was very general and did not ask what I wanted it to, which I discovered when I had my conference. I now realize how hard it is to formulate a question that is accurate when researching. However, after my conference, I had a much better idea and plan and I am ready to research! By reading more about photo-visual literacy, I realized that visual graphics are more important than ever and these will become the forerunners in education in the future. Within our digital society, photo-visual skills are essential for success. I think this is great because, as I said in my reflection on photo-visual literacy, icons and pictures do not have a language barrier. By enforcing photo-visual skills, we are making our world even more of a global community. As a student, the information I obtained this week is very useful in helping me to plan my research paper for this class and also for research in the future. I now realize that I should sharpen my photo-visual literacy skills so that I can keep up with our digital society. As a pre -professional, the photo-visual information was very useful because I could use icons and graphics on the computer during therapy so that my clients will be interested and can relate to the information I’m trying to teach them. As a citizen, this information is valuable because not everyone is photo-visually literate, so I could help others to understand this skill and make them feel like they are part of a global community.

9.1: Photo-Visual Literacy

Linsey Cushing
October 19, 2007

Photo-Visual Literacy

As society evolves digitally, the skills that we need in order to succeed are changing as well. Some of these skills did not necessarily exist before everything was done digitally. However, we are now realizing that such skills play a vital role in our success in the digital world. One of the new skills that has emerged through the digital age is photo-visual literacy. Photo-visual literacy involves using graphics and visuals rather than written words to follow directions. As we move from books to computers, we are moving from typed instruction to icons that indicate instructions. This is especially apparent when looking at computer games and video games that are so popular among young children. Typed directions are rarely the way that players discover how to play a game. Rather, the player uses icons and graphics to guide himself or herself through the game. When compared to literacy of graphic text, photo-visual literacy is easier to learn yet is still intuitive. Photo-visual literacy involves more visualization skills, more interactivity, and less time required to reach proficiency. As stated by Eshet-Alkalai , photo-visual literacy as applied today is basically an evolution of the picture communication used thousands of years ago in ancient cultures (2004).

Although I had never really thought about it, I agree that this skill exists and that it is essential in understanding today’s computer-based society. Because of its ease to understand, photo-visual literacy is appealing to all ages. It is also interesting to younger people because it involves graphics and icons that are appeasing to the eye rather than regular text. The fact that this makes the programs more interactive also adds appeal. I think that this ‘new’ type of literacy will change the way that schools educate children in the future. Already, schools are starting to teach very young children how to access the Internet and provide exciting computer programs that are educational yet fun. For example, my cousin who is in first grade was showing me how they taught her to see the globe at night by searching Google for pictures. Photo-visual literacy could even change the way that schools teach children how to read in the future. I think that graphics and icons will be used to facilitate learning how to read and write. In fact, this also is already being used because phonetically, children are learning to connect certain sounds with pictures. For example, when I observed a speech-language pathologist in a private practice, she used a computer program that required the child to repeat certain sounds when clicking on different icons. Because of the colorful, moving visuals, children see this as something fun rather than “work” and are therefore more willing to participate and learn.

Photo-visual literacy will definitely have an impact on the way that people learn in the future. I think that we will rely less and less on typed text and more on icons and graphics to express ourselves because icons and graphics do not have language barriers. Instead, anyone can understand a visual representation of something without having to know a certain ‘language.’ The language of photo-visual literacy is universal and represents a more unified future for all. As the world becomes intertwined due to digitalization, photo-visual literacy is an essential aspect that will unite us and educate us to become part of a larger community.

References

Aviram, A. & Eshet-Alkalai, Y. (2006). Towards a theory of digital literacy: Three scenarios for the next step. European Journal of Open Distance and E-Learning. Retrieved October 19, 2007, from http://www.eurodl.org/materials/contrib/2006/Aharon_Aviram.htm

Eshet-Alkalai, Y. (2004). Digital literacy: A conceptual framework for survival skills in the digital era. Journal of Educational Multimedia and Hypermedia, 13(1), 93-106. Retrieved October 19, 2007, from the ERIC database.

Eshet-Alkalai, Y., & Amichai-Hamburger, Y. (2004, August). Experiments in digital literacy. CyberPsychology & Behavior, 7(4), 421-429.

A8.6: Week 8 Participation Memo

Linsey Cushing
October 12, 2007

Week 8 Participation Memo

Aims and Objectives:
This week, my goal was simply to get everything done by the due date. I did not have the Internet for several days, so I did not reach my previous goal of getting everything done before today (Friday). I wanted to complete everything in this class so that I could enjoy my weekend because I’m going to the So You Think You Can Dance concert on Saturday…woohoo!! Another goal for this week was to get a better idea about my research project.

Declarative Knowledge:
This week, I learned about several different things. I broadened my knowledge about copyrighting through my online discussion with my group. I also continued to learn about digital literacy by reading an article for the second time. From this article, I learned that there are five different categories that make up digital literacy: photo-visual literacy, reproduction literacy, information literacy, branching literacy, and socio -emotional literacy. The study in this article proved that adults are stronger in some of these areas (reproduction literacy and information literacy) than high school and college students. I learned that even though younger generations have more experience with computers does not necessarily mean they have the skills to go with it. During the APA Review assignment, I learned a lot about citations in APA format. I did not realize the difference between ED and EJ for ERIC sources. ED stands for documents that are not found in journals and EJ stands for documents that can be found in journals. The way you cite an ERIC source depends on whether it is ED or EJ. I also learned that whenever you are citing a database, you need to put “the ____ database” at the end instead of just the database’s name. I also learned that a project prospectus was a tentative plan for a project (my research project).

Procedural Knowledge:
This week, I learned how to create a project prospectus. First, I recorded my research question and foundation questions. Next, I wrote my tentative point (what point I plan to make through my research). Then I wrote a 400-500 word discussion about my topic regarding what I already know, what am I learning about it, and what challenges do I predict in the future when answering my questions. Finally, I recorded all of my resources in APA format. I also learned how to correctly cite all of my sources in APA format. In our TappedIn class, I learned how to make myself an office.

Conditional Knowledge:
The skills I acquired this week will be of great help in the future. Most of my work centered around my research project, such as the APA format assignment and the project prospectus. Both of these assignments will help me in my research about cochlear implants and literacy. Rereading the article about digital literacy helped me to realize that I actually am becoming digitally literate (gasp!) as the semester goes on. Although I am definitely weaker in some areas, I believe that by the end of the semester, I will be able to classify myself as digitally literate. My group discussion on copyrighting really opened my eyes to how easy it is to infringe upon other’s copyrighting without even realizing it. This discussion made me more aware of copyrighting and will make me a more conscious person in the future. As a student, this information was beneficial because I will continue to write papers in APA format for the rest of my college career. Now that I know exactly how to cite, I will be able to do this with ease in the future. Also, I now understand how to do a project prospectus, so I can create one for future research projects. As a pre-professional, this information is helpful because I am now aware of copyrighting laws so that I do not infringe upon them. Also, I will probably use the research information in the future as I do research. Finally, as a citizen, the copyrighting information I’ve learned this week is of utmost importance because I need to be a model citizen for those around me so we can give people the credit (and money) they deserve for coming up with music, art, books, movies, etc.

A8.2: Project Prospectus

Linsey Cushing
October 12, 2007

Project Prospectus

1. Research Question / Foundation Questions:

Research Question:
How do cochlear implants affect a child’s literacy?

Foundation Questions:
1. What kinds of literacy problems do children with cochlear implants tend to have?

2. How do literacy skills of these children compare before and after the cochlear implant?

3. What methods or procedures exist for improving literacy with cochlear implant children?

4. What is the predicted literacy outcome for children with cochlear implants when helped by speech-language pathologists, educators, and family members?

2. Tentative Point:

I plan to prove that cochlear implants have a significant impact on improving deaf children’s literacy skills.

3. Discussion:
I decided to research a topic concerning cochlear implants and literacy because I am very fascinated by cochlear implants and the literacy aspect is something I am unfamiliar with. Currently, I am learning about cochlear implants in my Aural Rehabilitation class. However, we are learning more of the technical aspects about how cochlear implants work and the parts on an implant. We also have looked at case histories of children who have cochlear implants and at the auditory-oral approach to therapy. This semester, I have also had the opportunity to watch several therapy sessions involving cochlear implanted children. I’ve discovered that I am very drawn to this type of therapy and find it very interesting and exciting. The fact that we, as speech-language pathologists, can take part in the process of helping a deaf child hear for the first time and make meaning out of those sounds truly astounds me. We have a cochlear implant preschool at Marshall called the Luke Lee Listening Language and Learning Lab, better known as the “L.” By observing this, I’ve realized that the impact cochlear implants have on these children’s abilities to communicate and understand language is amazing. I chose this topic in hopes that I will possibly discover my “niche.” I figure that there’s no better way to discover what type of clients I want to work with in the future than by observing them through classes and researching them.

I think that it will be a challenge to answer this question because cochlear implants are still a fairly new concept. Therefore, research is just starting to take off in this field. Although I thought that there would be more information out there about cochlear implants and literacy, I have discovered that a lot of the results that came up in my initial search do not pertain to my research. However, I have found quite a few articles that appear to be great sources for the questions I am asking. I also plan to talk with our speech-language pathologists who work in the “L” because they could give me information about how literacy has personally affected the children with cochlear implants in the “L.” Basically, I think that the lack of research will be my biggest challenge, but this also could actually come to my benefit because I will not have to sift through a lot of information as I might have had to with other topics.

I am excited to see where this project will lead me in terms of my future interests. I hope that after completing this research, I will have a better idea about whether I would like to work with this population. Because of the lack of research in this field, I hope that through this project I will be able to contribute valuable information that will be useful to others who are wondering the same questions as I am.

4. Resources:

References

Boothroyd, A. (2002). Postimplantation audition and educational attainment in children with prelingually acquired profound deafness. The Annals of Otology, Rhinology & Laryngology. Supplement, 189, 79-84. Retrieved October 5, 2007, from the MEDLINE database.

Connor, C. M., & Zwolan, T. A. (2004). Examining multiple sources of influence on the reading comprehension skills of children who use cochlear implants. Journal of Speech, Language & Hearing Research, 47, 509-526. Retrieved September 19, 2007, from the Academic Search Premier database.

Easterbrooks, S. R. (1998). Association of college educators of the deaf and hard of hearing annual conference: Collected papers. Lexington, KY: Association of College Educators of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. 460444)

Fiori, A. (2006). Model oriented assessment of literacy performance in children with cochlear implants. Laryngo-Rhino-Otologie, 85, 489-495. Retrieved October 5, 2007, from the MEDLINE database.

Geers, A. E. (2002). Factors affecting the development of speech, language, and literacy in children with early cochlear implantation. Language, Speech & Hearing Services in Schools, 33, 172-183. Retrieved September 19, 2007, from the Academic Search Premier database.

Geers, A.E. (2003). Predictors of reading skill development in children with early cochlear implantation. Ear and Hearing, 24, 59S-68S. Retrieved October 5, 2007, from the MEDLINE database.

MacDougall, J. C. (1991). Current issues in deafness: A psychological perspective. Canadian Psychology, 32, 612-627. Retrieved October 5, 2007, from the PsycINFO database.

Marschark, M., Rohten, C., & Fabich, M. (2007). Effects of cochlear implants on children’s reading and academic achievement. Journal of Deaf Studies and Deaf Education, 12, 269-282. Retrieved September 19, 2007, from the ERIC database.

Spencer, L.J., Barker, B.A., & Tomblin, J.B. (2003). Exploring the language and literacy outcomes of pediatric cochlear implant users. Ear and Hearing, 24, 236-247. Retrieved October 5, 2007, from the MEDLINE database.

Vermeulen, A. M., van Bon, W., & Schreuder, R. (2007). Reading comprehension of deaf children with cochlear implants. Journal of Deaf Studies and Deaf Education, 12, 283-302. Retrieved September 19, 2007, from the ERIC database.

A8.1: APA Review

Linsey Cushing
October 9, 2007

APA Review

After checking over my resources and comparing them to the APA manual, I realized that I had made some mistakes. I found the basic form for online periodicals on page 223 under 4.07 General Forms. For every database, I did not know to put “the” ____ “database.” Originally, I only wrote the name of the database. I discovered this in 4.15 Retrieval Information: Electronic Sources on page 231 of the manual. I also discovered that I needed to change the format for one of my sources from a database to an ERIC format. I learned that when you find an article on the ERIC database, if it is listed as ED followed by numbers, you have to cite it as an ERIC document because this source does not appear in journals. However, if it says EJ, you can site it as a database just as you would other database sources. I found the information for the ED citation on page 257, titled 43. Report Available from the Educational Resources Information Center (ERIC). As I discovered, APA is a very specific citation system and you must be very careful when citing information to ensure that you are putting the right information into the citation. The best method to ensure success is by looking in the APA Publication Manual.

A8.3: Response to Eshet-Alkali & Amichai-Hamburger

Linsey Cushing

October 11, 2007

Eshet-Alkali, Y., & Amichai-Hamburger, Y. (2004, August). Experiments in digital

literacy. Cyberpsychology and Behavior, 7(4), 421-429.

 

This is the second time I’ve read this article, but after experiencing digital literacy for the past eight weeks, I have a different outlook on it. Because we were assigned this article during our first week in the class, I had no clue what digital literacy was. In fact, I remember doing a prompt on literacy in general and not really knowing what that meant. Now that I have read numerous articles, written multiple responses, and discussed this information with my classmates, I feel like I have a better grasp on digital literacy.

In the article, an experiment is conducted to determine who has better digital literacy skills: high school students, college students, or adults with a college education. The hypothesis is based on the idea that the younger generations have better computer skills and therefore are more digitally literate. The experiment covered five areas of digital literacy: photo-visual literacy, reproduction literacy, information literacy, branching literacy, and socio-emotional literacy. The participants were required to complete a task in each category. The results showed that the adults scored highest in reproduction literacy and information literacy. Therefore, adults are actually stronger than younger generations in some types of digital literacy.

I now see that the purpose of this article is to point out that there is a lot more to digital literacy than simply being able to work a computer. I can personally testify that even when I’ve figured out how to work something like a blog, wiki, RSS, or social bookmarking, that does not mean that I can successfully produce information on it. You have to have both the procedural knowledge and the cognitive ability to possess digital literacy. Once you find information on the Web, you have to have the skills to analyze it and determine whether the information is valid or a hoax before you use that information. Overall, after re-reading this study, I realize that you truly do need to be strong in all five of these areas to be completely digitally literate. If you are lacking in one, your overall performance will be hindered.

A8.4: Reflection on Discussion of 10/8/07

Linsey Cushing
October 9, 2007

Reflection on Discussion of 10/8/07

I really enjoyed meeting this week in small groups at Tapped In. It was a completely different experience than the week before. Overall, it was much less chaotic and the conversation was more in depth. This week, my primary contribution to the discussion was reporter. I was responsible for summing up our conversation and presenting it to the class at the end of the meeting. I also contributed to the conversations we had about this week’s topic: copyrighting. Because copyrighting is such a complicated topic, my group had many questions. We started out by discussing major copyrighting issues, which included a discussion about what copyrighting actually is and how it impacts us. We concluded that copyrighting involves giving ownership to the person who creates something so that they can receive credit for it and infringing on this would involve causing that owner to lose money or credit. This lead to a discussion about copyrighting of music, dance, and therapy techniques. We decided that as long as something is recorded or reported, it can have a copyright on it. In other words, err on the side of caution and always ask for someone’s permission before using anything that is not yours. As students, the major copyrighting issues involve research and music. As clinicians, it involves research and possibly therapy techniques. Although we had many questions about what would qualify as copyrighting and infringing on copyrighting, we were able to answer a lot of these questions through our conclusions as I discussed above. I will apply this week’s discussion to my own work by being much more cautious when doing anything involving someone else’s work. For example, we discussed how many times we’ve burnt Cd’s off of our friends. If you think about it, this is illegal. We realized that things we’ve taken for granted were actually illegal acts that we need to take notice of. Next time I go to download a song, write a research paper, or use a graphic in my work, I will credit the creator and try to contact that person to get his or her permission, if possible.