Description
Book SynopsisThis book provides activities and examples that use technological tools to help students learn how to create digital texts. This book also provides a basis for creating novel classroom activities that encourage students to define purpose and audience, make textual links, collaborate, gain new perspectives, and construct identities through writing.
Trade ReviewThis book promotes authentic reading and writing opportunities through use of digital tools—e.g., blogs, wikis, websites, annotations, Twitter, mapping, and forum discussions—that can be easily adapted for any secondary and college classroom activity. The text provides excellent links among the theoretical reasons underpinning technology’s use in the classroom, research-based supports of technology’s coursework relevance, and the practical implications for adopting technology—mainly online applications and programs—into individual lessons and throughout units. New educators or those leery of entering the digital education maelstrom will find helpful suggestions and models to aid them through the transition. Educators who consider themselves digital natives will find refreshing new perspectives and perhaps even new digital tools to enrich their teaching. . . .Summing Up: Recommended. Faculty, professionals, and practitioners. * CHOICE *
An important book! Educators will find Understanding and Creating Digital Texts a valuable tool: The authors provide extensive explanations of digital activities, which expand the learning environment through the use of a variety of digital tools. In using these activities, students increase their ability to navigate the internet as they develop real world reading and writing skills. -- Carol Wickstrom, University of North Texas; director of the North Star of Texas Writing Project
Understanding and Creating Digital Texts helps educators intentionally connect digital reading and writing tools with real-world literacy practices. It lays out both the whys and hows of designing inquiry-based learning spaces that encourage students to use digital tools and purposeful literacy practices to collaboratively weave their own perspectives and identities into co-constructed understandings of texts created by others. Each chapter also links suggested activities to relevant research, Common Core State Standards, digital tool sets, assessment ideas, and teachers’ stories of how digital literacy practices play out in real classrooms. -- Julie Coiro, University of Rhode Island
This is a valuable resource for every teacher’s bookshelf! Offering expert advice and compelling examples, Beach and company provide insights into effective pedagogical practices, as well as a wealth of tools to engage students in digital reading and writing. In addition, Understanding and Creating Digital Texts: An Activity-Based Approach provides connections related to the Common Core State Standards and a compendium of materials in an online repository. -- Kristine E. Pytash, Kent State University
This book is as comprehensive as it is inspirational! By introducing engaging activities and classroom examples, the authors brilliantly demonstrate how digital tools can be used to enhance literacy instruction and transform teaching and learning. The framework advanced for both accessing online information and constructing digital texts lends supportive guidance in planning and assessment of important digital literacy skills. Understanding and Creating Digital Texts is a must read for pre-service and in-service teachers alike. -- Jill Castek, Portland State University
Table of ContentsPreface Acknowledgements Chapter 1. Introduction Chapter 2. Planning for an Activity-Based Approach to Understanding and Creating Digital Texts Chapter 3. Accessing Information for Constructing Knowledge Chapter 4. Curating, Organizing, and Summarizing Information Chapter 5. Networking and Connecting with Others through Note-taking, Social Bookmarking, and Social Media/Networking Chapter 6. Engaging in Online Discussions Chapter 7. Co-constructing Knowledge through Collaborative Writing Chapter 8. Composing Multimodal Texts through Use of Images, Audio, and Video Chapter 9. Designing and Editing Texts for Audiences Chapter 10. Using New Technologies for Formative Response to Writing Chapter 11. Summative Assessment of Digital Reading and Writing Chapter 12. Professional Development for Teachers References Index About the Authors
