Research

 [|Going with the Flow]: How to Engage Boys (and Girls) in Their Literacy Learning by Michael W. Smith and Jeffrey D. Wilhelm An important element for enticing and maintaining engagement for adolescent readers is including the opportunity for social connection in their literacy activities. In their research, Smith and Wilhelm found that the importance of social relationships was cited as extrememly important by their adolescent subjects. In fact, social relationships can be more powerful than following rules; an example they cite is of a student who was grounded for a whole year for not doing his homework, but he read every book his best friend recommended. Students related that they read so that they could talk with their friends, their parents, siblings, classmates, etc. Obviously, online forums are an excellent means of providing opportunity for students to socially interact, especially students who don't speak up much in class or stuents who didin't get the opportunity to share their ideas during class. 

[|Classics in the Classroom:]Designing Accessible Literature Lessons by Carol Jago In her book, Jago outlines seven guiding principles for literature teachers. Principle #3 states, "Don't simply assign difficult texts; teach them."  Using the online forums allowed us to combine in-class instruction with students teaching students in a manner that works. Without even realizing it, the older students did a really nice job of addressing the younger students' learning needs in their Zone of Proximal Development. They are not substitutes for expert teachers, but they are a great complement to strong and effecctive classroom instruction and grade level curricula.

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Literacy has always been a collection of cultural and communicative practices shared among members of particular groups. As society and technology change, so does literacy. Because technology has increased the intensity and complexity of literate environments, the twenty-first century demands that a literate person possess a wide range of abilities and competencies, many literacies. These literacies—from reading online newspapers to participating in virtual classrooms—are multiple, dynamic, and malleable. As in the past, they are inextricably linked with particular histories, life possibilities and social trajectories of individuals and groups. Twenty-first century readers and writers need to =====  [|NCTE STANDARDS] National Council of Teachers of English
 * Develop proficiency with the tools of technology
 * Build relationships with others to pose and solve problems collaboratively and cross-culturally
 * Design and share information for global communities to meet a variety of purposes
 * Manage, analyze and synthesize multiple streams of simultaneous information
 * Create, critique, analyze, and evaluate multi-media texts
 * Attend to the ethical responsibilities required by these complex environments


=**American Association of School Librarians - Common Beliefs** = A Division of The American Library Association
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif;">Reading is a Window to the World
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif;">Inquiry Provides a Framework for Learning
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif;">Ethical Behavior in the Use of Information Must BeTaught
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif;">Technology Skills are Crucial for Future Employment Needs
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif;">Eqitable Access is a Key Component for Education

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<span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif;">[|AASL LEARNING STANDARDS] American Association of School Librarians Standards for the 21st Century Learner ======

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==<span style="text-align: center; display: block; font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif;">**The following online information is available via the Delicious link on the Home Page** == Seven Things that You Should Know About - Educase Learning Initiative Forging New Connections: Building Online Peer-to-Peer Collaborations - Edutopia National Educational Technology Standards - ISTE Students as Contributors: The Digital Learning Farm - Alan November Creating a New Culture of Teaching and Learning - Alan November e-learning 2.0 - How Web Technologies are Shaping Education - ReadWriteWeb