Into the Driver's Seat

Many elementary school teachers love to teach reading and writing, but are less comfortable with science and math. It’s not a hard and fast truth, of course, but learning to read is a big focus of the early school years, so it makes sense that teachers who gravitate toward elementary school like teaching literacy. But it’s also important to expose kids to science early and get them excited about the practices that define scientific inquiry. And literature may be the perfect starting point. Stories are full of tension, conflict and dilemmas that make wonderful departure points for engineering projects that weave subjects together.

This week UNESCO launched a framework illustrating its Five Laws of Media and Information Literacy (MIL).
This global strategy marries the large, but often separated, disciplines of information literacy and media literacy and creates a common vocabulary for folks in multiple areas of knowledge to engage in conversation. It also positions these critical literacies as a combined set of competencies–knowledge, skills and attitudes–central for living and working in our world today.

Preparing a child for the world that doesn’t yet exist is not an easy task for any teacher. Step back and look at that picture from a broad perspective. What are the critical 21st-century skills every learner needs to survive and succeed in our world? What abilities and traits will serve them in a time that’s changing and developing so rapidly?

They want to be challenged and inspired in their learning. They want to collaborate and work with their peers. They want to incorporate the technology they love into their classroom experiences as much as they can. In short, they have just as high a set of expectations of their educators as their educators have of them.

How Are Educators Responding?

The Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority, (ACARA), have identified the following as the General Capabilities they see as essential for learners:

Critical and creative thinking

Personal and social capability

Ethical understanding

Intercultural understanding

Information and communication technology capability

Literacy

Numeracy

Learn more / En savoir plus / Mehr erfahren.

http://www.scoop.it/t/21st-century-learning-and-teaching/?&tag=modern-education

Let's apply the 2Ls of Media Fluency to begin understanding how having media literacy as a skill prepares our students for an exponentially changing world.

Empowerment of people through Media and Information Literacy (MIL) is an important prerequisite for fostering equitable access to information and knowledge and promoting free, independent and pluralistic media and information systems.

Media and Information Literacy recognizes the primary role of information and media in our everyday lives. It lies at the core of freedom of expression and information - since it empowers citizens to understand the functions of media and other information providers, to critically evaluate their content, and to make informed decisions as users and producer of information and media content.

Learn more / En savoir plus / Mehr erfahren:

http://www.unesco.org/new/en/communication-and-information/media-development/media-literacy/mil-as-composite-concept/