Creative tensions in teaching new texts and new literacies

Matthewman, S., Blight, A., & Davies, C. (2004). What does multimodality mean for English? Creative tensions in teaching new texts and new literacies. Education, Communication & Information, 4(1), 153-176.

Background

Within schools in England, there has been a government-led imperative to integrate information and communications technology (ICT) into all subjects. The predominant practice was to embed ICT into the existing curriculum. This created a sharp awareness amongst teachers that new technologies were fundamentally transforming literacy practices in- and out-of-school contexts.

Aims

This case study investigated how working with multimodal texts created tensions for English teachers as well as creative opportunities for pupils, and explored what to assess in multimodal texts.

Sample

The participants were 12 pupils at John Cabot City Technological College, two experienced teachers of English confident in teaching using ICT, and one of the researchers, Adrian.

Method

The data included pre- and post-study interviews, a diagnostic test, the pupils’ planning sheets and multimedia products. Pupils’ work and oral presentations were also video-recorded. The data was analysed with the pedagogy of a multiliteracies framework – a four-pronged approach to teaching and learning that encompassed situated practice, overt instruction, critical framing, and transformed practice.

Findings

The results indicated that the teachers selected texts and immersed the pupils in experiences that suited the students’ interests. There was also freedom for the students to explore and to work collaboratively at different phases of the lesson. In relation to a critical framing, teachers were able to role-model the analysis and meta language that pupils would be expected to use for their multimedia products. In terms of transformed practice, the study provided opportunities for pupils to integrate and apply their knowledge of English and ICT out of school. The video data suggested that the pupils were highly engaged. Their presentations indicated awareness of multimodal features in relation to audience and purpose. However, the teachers tended to focus on the visual and hence limited the amount of overt instruction that could be given to the language modes, such as reading and writing. There was also no satisfactory method of assessing the pupils’ multimodal work within the formal assessment systems for English in England which represented the greatest limitation to the teachers continuing to explore this wider concept of literacy.

Implications

The authors recommended that the understanding of multimodal design be increased by focussing more on overt instruction time that could be given to the language mode. This suggests that teachers have to prioritize the elements of tasks (e.g., reading and writing) to be taught while allowing pupils to navigate their learning.

Original article retrieved from Taylor and Francis.