References

Allen, J. (2009). Diverse families, welcoming schools: creating partnerships that support learning. In Compton-Lilly, C. (Ed.) Breaking the silence: recognizing the social and cultural resources students bring to the classroom. 125-140.

Cope, B. & Kalantzis, M. (2012). Literacies on a human scale. Literacies. 21-40. New York

Cope, B. & Kalantzis, M. (2012). Literacies as multimodal designs for meaning. Literacies. 173-205. New York

Martin, K. (2008). The intersection of Aboriginal knowledges, Aboriginal literacies, and new learning pedagogy for Aboriginal students. In Healy, A. (Ed.) Multiliteracies and diversity in education: New pedagogies for expanding landscapes. 58-81. South Melbourne, VIC: Oxford University Press

Oxford University Press. Lifeworld. Retrieved from: http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/lifeworld

World Maps, 2013. World Literacy Map. Retrieved from: http://www.justmaps.org/maps/thematics/literacy.asp

Literacy in the Classroom

Before children know how to read and write, they are already literate in multiple different modes, they can crack codes of meaning to make sense of their experiences. These abilities and understandings make up students' virtual backpacks which can help or hinder their learning success depending on the school's cultural capital.

Cultural capital includes the values, behaviours, and skills that are valued in the community as well as the policies and procedures put in place for citizens to follow. Cultural capital in schools is often made known by enforcing rules, but is also taught through the hidden curriculum - the expectations and morals indirectly taught to the children as the result of being in that environment.

An example where this may be problematic for the student's learning experience is the expectations of classroom behaviour. A common value taught through the hidden curriculum in schools is to look at the teacher when they are speaking. A child from an Aboriginal upbringing might find this expectation difficult and confusing to uphold as it is a sign of respect to turn your face away from the speaker and direct your ear to their mouth to show you are listening. This behaviour while intended as a sign of respect, may be interpreted as the exact opposite by a teacher unaware of that child's lifeworlds. Consequences of unaddressed diversity in the classroom are explained in 'The intersection of Aboriginal knowledges, Aboriginal literacies, and new learning pedagogy for Aboriginal students' (Martin, 2008), specifically the difficulties Aboriginal students face in the education system and what we, as teachers, can do to help.

Some of the literacies I have observed in a year 1 classroom have been included in the following mind map.

Image created on iPad app.: Inspiration Map

There is a wide variation of skill levels within a wide range of literacies. With such diversity of skills and abilities in a classroom it is evident that home school connections are extremely important. With an understanding of a students' home lifeworlds, teachers can employ pedagogies and strategies in their lesson plans giving more children a better chance of understanding and engaging in the lesson.

Photo taken by Chloe Mountford of a year 1 classroom in Brisbane

I have included a link to a YouTube clip of my favourite movies: School of Rock. An unemployed man poses as his best friend and acts as a substitute teacher. Without any knowledge of how to teach, Dewey teaches the children how to throw a rock show and casts students as band members, managers, and set designers. The movie addresses the issue that there is more to the schooling purpose than teaching traditional literacy and numeracy.


School of Rock clip

Please Note: An advertisement may play before the clip will start. If the link does not work please copy the following URL into your browser

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fvLg4v_nPO4

or search for "school of rock zach's song" on www.youtube.com

Lifeworlds

Oxford Dictionaries definition:

noun

Philosophy

• all the immediate experiences, activities, and contacts that make up the world of an individual or corporate life.

origin

1940s: translating German Lebenswelt

Insight into a child's lifeworld can make a positive difference in their literacy and learning experiences. By making home-school connections, teachers may gain an understanding of why a student is excelling or having difficulty at school. I have created a map of some of my lifeworlds and how they affected my literacy or learning experiences. 

Image created on iPad app.: Inspiration Map

 My education and lifeworlds provided me with a virtual backpack suitable for the cultural capital of all the schools I attended. Knowing a students lifeworlds and virtual backpack can increase a child's likelihood for success by engaging with the student and employing pedagogies they will relate to. Home-school connections are critical in knowing the students' lifeworlds and I experienced a wide range of home-school connections including;

• Weekly/monthly newsletters
• Emails
• Report cards every term
• Parent teacher conferences twice a year
• Parents and faculty meetings fortnightly
• Notes home in homework diaries
• Phone communication when given awards
• School projects to take home when finished
• Weekly assemblies where parents are welcome, and
• Events like battle of the bands, plays, concerts, talent show, chapel, award nights, etc

These means of communication created many home-school connections and in Dhahran High School (American curriculum) the teachers were encouraged to visit students' homes and build a relationship with the family not just the student. I think organising home visits at the beginning of the year and possibly throughout, would positively influence the child's schooling experiencing by creating relationships. Knowing their lifeworlds can provide insight into a child's behaviour, motivators, success or failure, and preferred learning style.The importance of these home school connections are outlined in Literacies (2012) and have been reflected in my professional experience practicum visits and observations.

My Literacy Practices

I've always thought of my literacy skills as relatively advanced - I've had a good education and tried to make the best of it by challenging myself and maintaining my skills. Now that my definition of literacy is expanding, so too is my self-awareness.

During the last couple of weeks I have been taking notice of the literacy skills I use and which modes I am dominant in. I walked around my unit and grouped things I saw into which mode of literacy they indicate I am literate in. Here is a mind map I made, synaethesing with my visual and written literacies.

Image created on iPad app.: Inspiration Map

When making this mind map I realised I am heavily dominant in written literacy. I found countless things all over my unit that require written literacy which supports my self-image of being highly literate in the traditional sense. This dominance reflects my schooling experience which was heavily focused on learning to read and write competently from an early age of 5 and building on these skills throughout my education. Completing years 1 to 5 in an English curriculum gave me the benefit of high standards of speech and elocution, and even high standards of written communication. Grammar was consistently taught, and we were given many opportunities to build our literacies through assignments, games, lessons and homework. I then completed year 6 in an Australian school which put me behind in my written and visual literacies when I returned to an English curriculum in year 7. Years 8 and 9 I completed in Australia and years 10, 11, and 12 I completed in an American curriculum. I think the British curriculum gave me strong written and oral literacies and I also think my schooling experience developed my visual and gestural literacies.

My travels exposed me to diversity in the education system as well as culturally. Having spent time getting to know people from all over the world in a variety of situations gave me knowledge of different cultures and religions. I believe this understanding has given me insight into why people do the things they do. Exposure to different languages has also developed my gestural literacy as I have been able to communicate using body language and significant gestures to indicate intentions. This literacy was not evident in my unit but I plan on taking note of my social activities in the coming days to find out if and when I use this literacy.

Here is a map showing what percentage of the country's population is literate based on a deficit view of literacy (a view categorising people unable to read and write as illiterate), and based on data collected from 2005-2013.

World Literacy Map (World Maps, 2013)

Multimodal Literacies

Out with the old and in with the new,

Illiteracy's a deficit view.

I can read and write and talk and hear,

But that's not all - no where near.

There's gestural, spatial, tactile too,

Communication between me and you.

Everyone uses literacy,

Girls and boys and birds and bees

Meaning-making; that's the key,

That's the modern literacy.

The definition of literacy has evolved from meaning the ability to read and write, and now includes all domains where meaning is interpreted. Everything we see, hear, smell, touch or taste is registered in our minds, and we recognise what it means. This recognition is the skill of literacy and can be as abstract as seeing a large rectangle in front of us with a small sphere attached and recognising a door which can be opened and closed. With such a broad definition of literacy, I asked myself:

"Is it then possible to be illiterate?"

Photo taken by Chloe Mountford on 25/12/2012. In photo: Anthony Mountford

I thought about traditionally illiterate people - people who were unable to read or write, but they would still be literate in a number of different modes including gestural, visual, spatial, etc. So I moved on to thinking about my pets, but they can understand commands such as "sit", and "stay", which means they are aurally and gesturally literate. My family pet Pandy (above) is also visually literate as she often watches TV, bobs her head to the music of the ads and goes crazy when another dog comes on screen.

I have come to appreciate that all people and animals are literate in their own way, and as teachers it is our job to recognise students' literacies and therefore learning styles, even if they are not included in our school's cultural capital.