Children's literacies in changing times

I gave a talk at the Camdem Campus of Rutgers University yesterday (9 November, 2011) on "Multimodality: impact on children's literacies". Ways of knowing and modes of communication have changed with the advent of technology. This implies that we cannot take for granted the visuals (and other modes) that inundate us on a daily basis. Do we know what they mean and do we have a langauge to talk about them? The real issue however is how these multiple modes connive to create meaning. If we don't, we might consider ourselves illiterate (digital refugees!).

Let's start from the beginning of things: Is there a relationship between the letters MAN and the concept/signified "man"? The relationship, if any, is arbitrary and children know this already even before they lean how to speak, write or read. They want to deal with CONCRETE represenation of reality. They choose drawing and creating pictures to communicate and represent real life objects. Just give them a writing pad and a pencil to see, but we probably may not see and understand that language...adults are in this connection  considered visually illiterate.  The least we can do is to provide writing spaces and tools even if we don't understand.

Suprisingly, most  adults attempt to mis-educate the kids and support the education system that has made up all these squiggles of letters that do not make sense in real life. Instead of building on their strength, the school system gradually takes away opportunities for multiliterate development  and frustrate intelligent kids. This is in the same way that I understand why some education systems ask children to "swim" or "sink" through the medium of a language they do not understand as early as grade 4. This is a transition from concrete operations to abstract thinking. Is it really possible to do abstract thinking in the language one does not understand? Where else is this happening except in Africa? Doesn't this explain, at least in part, why South African kids read at 35% at grade 3 and then regress to 28% at grade 6? Hmmm, something cognitively criminal is smelling....Cognitive effects that set up the children for failure in life.
Just to show how conservative we are in the larger scheme of things, I asked a group of American students today if they could consider using sms language, promote it and use it as official if they were in a position to change policy...there was a resounding NO eventhough literally everyone one them uses this "dialect-free" language. If you agree with them, wait for the next 30 years to be proved wrong. Literacies have shifted with time....we the illiterate ones (adults) should try catch up with them and be ahead of the game instead of being gatekeepers.