Educational Technology

Mills, K. A. (2010). A review of the ”digital turn” in the new literacy studies. Review of Educational Research, 80(2), 246–271.

This article reviews a decade of empirical work in New Literacy Studies, specifically addressing sign-making practices using digital technologies, thus identifying the shift toward research of digital literacy applications. Notably, the article essentially addresses some of the central tensions in the education field: the boundaries of “literacy,” the relative merits of researching digital practices in informal versus formal learning sites, emerging features of digital practices globally, pedagogical concerns, the contributions of critical sociology, and the contention that the New Literacy Studies focuses on the digital practices of the dominant middle-class. Recommendations are given to strengthen the links between New Literacy Studies research and literacy curriculum, assessment, and accountability.

The author identifies common patterns across new literacy practices through cross-comparisons of ethnographic research in digital media environments. Moreover, the study examines how this research considers power and pedagogy in normative contexts of literacy learning using new media. The article synthesizes the current corpus of empirical studies of digital practices within the New Literacy Studies. Furthermore, the author emphasizes that the most recent, significant shift in this field has been what could be called the “digital turn,” that is, the increased attention to new literacy practices in digital environments across a variety of social contexts, such as workplaces and educational, economic, and recreational sites.

The timeframe of 1999 through 2009 was specified within the database search for this study. The data was retrieved using major educational search engines (e.g., ERIC, Ebsco, Proquest Education, and Google Scholar)—the search located peer-reviewed studies that explicitly acknowledged the influence of a sociocultural literacy approach. Ninety peer-reviewed journal articles were identified, whereas thirty-nine papers reported observational research. Since the “digital turn,” the authors suggest that research in this theoretical tradition has demonstrated how innovative and productive forms of learning can occur with digital media in peer- and interest-driven networks oriented toward social communication and recreation. A key finding of the Digital Youth Project, which has arisen in other studies, is the changed dynamic between youth and adult interpretations of what counts as authoritative knowledge. Unfortunately, the research results and findings must be clearly defined and described. Overall, the article was not an easy read; for example, tables were not used to segment the data. This would have focused on different parts of the text, especially with an article of this length. Additionally, I preferred to see the details concerning the ninety peer-reviewed journal articles in a table. However, the article provides a basis and transition regarding the evolution of traditional and new literacy studies. The biggest takeaway from this study pertains to my institutional work environment: traditional literacy contexts remain the authoritative source of valid and trustworthy information for its practitioners and target audience. From somewhat informal applications with an authoritative context, innovative digital media must refer to traditional sources describing policies, regulatory guidelines, and procedures. For example, narrative context would be provided on a social media page, or another website must cite the official, authoritative source, chapter, section, page, etc., at the bottom of the narration. This ensures that the presented information does not degrade the integrity of the approved source.

Ito, M., Horst, H. A., Bittanti, M., Herr Stephenson, B., Lange, P. G., Pascoe, C. J., & Robinson, L. (2009). Living and learning with new media: Summary of findings from the digital youth project (p. 128). The MIT Press.

This whitepaper continues with a topic theme from the previous article and provides a study conducted by the MacArthur Foundation for the Digital Youth Project stakeholders. There is a call to arms, “no child left behind,” regarding education technology resources. The implications of new media ecology weigh heavily on parents and educators alike, who worry about the changes new media may present for learning and literacy and for growing up in American society. The authors present empirical data on new media in the lives of American youth to reflect on the relationship between new media and learning. Notably, the research was designed to address a gap in the literature surrounding the role of digital media in the lives of American youth.

The study was motivated by two primary research questions: (1) How are new media being taken up by youth practices and agendas? (2) How do these practices change the dynamics of youth-adult negotiations over literacy, learning, and authoritative knowledge? The three-year qualitative ethnographic study examines young people’s participation in the new media ecology. The authors used four key concepts that characterize how youth live and learn with new media in framing the analysis of their research and include new media ecology, networked publics (participation
in public culture), peer-based learning, and new media literacy. Moreover, aside from distinctions based on given categories such as gender, class, or ethnic identity, the framing of youth engagements with new media in terms of emerging practices or genres of participation is presented. Specifically, these genres include friendship-driven participation (day-to-day negotiations with friends and peers) and interest-driven participation (specialized activities, interests, or niche and marginalized identities). These assisted the researchers in interpreting how media intersect with learning and participation, allowing them to focus on the activities and perspectives that motivate or drive young people’s use of new media.

The researcher’s ethnography approach incorporated multiple sites and research methods, varying from questionnaires, surveys, semi-structured interviews, diary studies, observation, and content analyses of media sites, profiles, videos, and other materials. They conducted 659 semi-structured interviews, 28 diary studies, and focus group interviews with 67 individuals. Interviews were conducted informally with at least 78 individuals. Furthermore, they participated in more than 50 research-related events, such as conventions, summer camps, award ceremonies, and other local events. Complementing their interview-based strategy, they carried out more than 5,194 observation hours, which were chronicled in regular field notes. They collected 10,468 profiles, posts from 15 online discussion group forums, more than 389 videos, and numerous materials from the classroom and after-school contexts.

Overall, the authors do a great job summarizing their research findings concerning implications for learning, education, and public participation. They present four critical conclusions. First, robust participation in networked publics requires a social, cultural, and technical ecology grounded in social and recreational practices. Secondly, networked publics provide a context for youth to develop social norms in the context of public participation. Thirdly, youth are developing new forms of media literacy that are keyed to new media and youth-centered social and cultural worlds. Lastly, peer-based learning has unique properties that drive engagement in ways that differ fundamentally from formal instruction.

This resource is one of the most extensive qualitative and ethnographic studies of American youth culture and can be used as a practitioner’s reference point. The authors examined what sociality among young people looks like in this new media ecology during this period and how the emergence of networked public culture may shape and transform social interaction, peer-based learning, and new media literacy among young people. Notably, the authors identified three sub-genres corresponding to different levels of commitment and intensity in contemporary media practices: hanging out (casual social time with one another), messing around (focusing on the workings and content of technology and media), and geeking out (more expertise-centered forms of interest-driven participation). These are important to know to relate to the younger generation.