Production 2: New Literacies & Popular Culture - critical essay
In this week’s reading, Alverman writes about and defines both traditional and new literacies. New Literacies/New Literacy Studies (NLS) differs from traditional literacy teaching because it includes multi-modal forms of literacy (such as technology, images, sounds, etc.) as opposed to just written and linguistic information to interpret ideas and form discussions. “A broadening in the literacy field’s definition of text to include more than the linguistic mode (e.g., imagery, sound, and performance) is likely another factor that accounts for the current interest in popular culture’s intersection with traditional and new literacies.” (page 1) NLS takes into consideration one’s social environment as impacting communication between individuals. A specific example of NLS is using emojis when sending a text message. There are many different ways to interpret what a smiley face, for instance, truly means when it is sent to someone in a text message. An emoji is easily understood by many people as it is one way of communicating without using words. It is interpreted differently each time because of the social context associated with the emoji. Take a look at the emoji in the left hand corner. This my friends, is not just a smiley face... It's an upside down smiley face! This emoji is used to represent sarcasm, believe it or not! Here's how most of you have probably used this emoji when texting a friend...
Friend: Hey girl, have you finished the reading for tomorrow?
Me: Hey... No. I'm working until 11:30 tonight and probs won't be home on time to even shower let alone finish this 50 page reading **here is where you would insert a minimum of 10 upside down smiley emojis to emphasize the fact that you are ANNOYED, TIRED, and feeling HELPLESS**
Friend: I feel you. Trust.
In addition, there are opportunities for harnessing ‘popular culture’ practices in ways that express the New Literacies approach to socially-contextualized learning. Popular culture practices embrace different forms of communication within a socially constructed, or 'pop culture' context. Alverman wrote: "Beyond these two influences is the ubiquitous technological means for transporting young and old alike into virtual worlds where the distinction between online and offline spaces is sometimes blurred to the point that popular culture texts produced and consumed in one space for fun and relaxation often become objects of intense study and work in another"
Response to Debate #3: A Question of Identity Politics
Alverman discusses three debates in her essay, and the one that resonated with me the most was debate #3. Alverman makes reference to Dolby who challenges researchers studying young people’s constructions of identity through popular culture texts to "view the politics of identity construction as potential sites of engagement for moving toward a more just and equitable world." (page 22) Young people express themselves on social media platforms such as Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook (to name a few). These social media platforms provide their users with opportunities to project their lives, update their social circle on what they are up to via picture posting and status changing, in addition to giving them a personalised space to speak their truth, share opinions and tell their story. I agree with Alverman's ideas on this topic of young people because often times, social media outlets, blogs, chat rooms, etc. give young people a safe space to discuss/share things they may not be able to linguistically or in person with their group of friends, family or colleagues.
Friend: Hey girl, have you finished the reading for tomorrow?
Me: Hey... No. I'm working until 11:30 tonight and probs won't be home on time to even shower let alone finish this 50 page reading **here is where you would insert a minimum of 10 upside down smiley emojis to emphasize the fact that you are ANNOYED, TIRED, and feeling HELPLESS**
Friend: I feel you. Trust.
In addition, there are opportunities for harnessing ‘popular culture’ practices in ways that express the New Literacies approach to socially-contextualized learning. Popular culture practices embrace different forms of communication within a socially constructed, or 'pop culture' context. Alverman wrote: "Beyond these two influences is the ubiquitous technological means for transporting young and old alike into virtual worlds where the distinction between online and offline spaces is sometimes blurred to the point that popular culture texts produced and consumed in one space for fun and relaxation often become objects of intense study and work in another"
Response to Debate #3: A Question of Identity Politics
Alverman discusses three debates in her essay, and the one that resonated with me the most was debate #3. Alverman makes reference to Dolby who challenges researchers studying young people’s constructions of identity through popular culture texts to "view the politics of identity construction as potential sites of engagement for moving toward a more just and equitable world." (page 22) Young people express themselves on social media platforms such as Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook (to name a few). These social media platforms provide their users with opportunities to project their lives, update their social circle on what they are up to via picture posting and status changing, in addition to giving them a personalised space to speak their truth, share opinions and tell their story. I agree with Alverman's ideas on this topic of young people because often times, social media outlets, blogs, chat rooms, etc. give young people a safe space to discuss/share things they may not be able to linguistically or in person with their group of friends, family or colleagues.