EDF4016

Using digital technologies in literacy education

Dr Ilana Snyder

6 points ^l 2 hours per week ^l Second semester ^l Clayton

Objectives: Upon successful completion of this subject, students should:
* Have developed a broad understanding of teaching and learning literacy with digital technologies
* Be familiar with literacy and technology policies for schools
* Be familiar with the benefits and limitations of using the new technologies for literacy education
* Be able to use the technologies for a range of literacy purposes
* Understand how the new technologies fit into the conceptual framework of a literacy curriculum
* Understand how the new technologies may be used to augment the teaching and learning of literacy
* Understanding the potential the new technologies offer to initiate change in traditional literacy classrooms
* Understand the issues of public and professional debate in relation to the use of the new technologies

Synopsis This elective subject is designed for students interested in the use of digital media and telecommunication technologies in literacy settings. The subject has both a theoretical and practical base. Relevant theory and research is introduced and its implications for teaching and learning with the new technologies discussed. Students also have the opportunity to use the technologies for a range of literacy purposes including an electronic journal to record responses to the readings, lectures and the use of the technologies in the practical sessions. A range of applications including word processing, e-mail, the Web, hyperfiction, MUDs and MOOs are provided for students' use in a lab setting. The subject considers the implications of the use of the technologies for classroom culture. It considers ways in which the technologies may be effectively integrated in the literacy curriculum and classroom practices. There is no single prescribed text.

Assessment Tutorial presentation: 20% - Research paper (2000 words): 80%

Recommended texts

Snyder I Hypertext: The Electronic Labyrinth Melbourne Melbourne University Press 1996
Snyder I Page to Screen: Taking Literacy into the Electronic Era Allen & Unwin 1997

Back to the 1999 Education Handbook