Reading and Discussion Week#12

“Though role playing may not seem like a necessary component of critical literacies education, it functions in several imperative ways. First it adds relevance to the curriculum in ways that the students are able to understand.”( Avila & Pandya , 2013)

I like this statement because this is enabling the students to take some responsibility for their education. It is not just the teacher dictating what they need to learn and them repeating back to the teacher what they memorized. In some cases role playing may be a luxury, but I think it could be utilized in the curriculum in small doses. This also gives the students a stake in their education, they learn to critically think, ask questions and listen to others.

We use role playing in the allied health field all the time. I have students be the therapist and patient. There are many  programs that have actual simulations to practice, and you can kill someone and not get into trouble.

Avila, J. , Pandya ,J.(2013). Critical digital literacies as social praxis. NY, New York: Peter Lang

 

 

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1. How did the Ask Anansi game support critical literacies?

The critical literacies were supported through social play. Students incorporated literacies of resistance and amplified their own emerging critical points of view through performance. This also encouraged students to approach future classes with questions, critically and playfully.

2. How did the Ask Anansi game support academic literacies?

The game allowed students to act, question and engage in critical and playful inquiry. This tool empowered the students in a learning experience that would help shape ways people participate and interact in the real world.

3. How did the Ask Anansi game support digital literacies?

Each class member was given an iPod Touch which centered around the basic features of most mobile devices. The students took notes, texted, conducted research and documentation through photo and video production. Quick response codes customized this information.

4. What is meant by the term "reading the word and reading the world and writing the world"? Give an example from the chapter.

I think this could mean that digital literacies go beyond the borders of the students’ homes, school or city. The whole world is open to them. There are no limits to the universe as defined by their own physical constraints. They need to learn to make literacies relevant to the larger context of society and culture. They learn to put meanings to events and process the everyday world and process ,reinterpret and reread the world.