Chapter 3: “TPCK in K-6 literacy education It’s not that elementary!” By Denise A. Schmidt and Marina Gurbo

Chapter 3: “TPCK in K-6 literacy education It’s not that elementary!” By Denise A. Schmidt and Marina Gurbo

I really enjoyed this chapter! I have very little experience at the elementary level. My children are starting to get to the beginning stages of reading and I am fully intrigued by the process.

I really think educators that don’t believe in technology should read this book. “What it meant to be literate a decade ago is not what it means to be literate today or will mean for tomorrow’s children.” (p. 62) This is a very powerful statement. Educators that are still teaching the same way they did 10-15 years ago need to change their ways. They need to realize that they may be hindering our students education.

Technology has changed the way we do things. We need to teach kids critical media skills. As Schmidt and Gurbo describe as informational literacy, computer literacy, and film and video literacy. This chapter did give a few websites and ideas of how to incorporate these ideas into teaching.

K-6 literacy is more then just reading and writing it also incorporates other things. Visual literacy is an important part of today’s classroom. The author’s say that teachers should use digital still camera’s and video camera to help with their experiences.

Reading is not just linear. Teacher’s need to know how to deal with non-linear text. Hyperlinks are a very useful tool when researching and reading for information. The authors of this chapter as in other chapters made a strong point that educators need to know how to use technology. “Just knowing how to use a computer is not enough anymore for today’s k-6 literacy teacher.” (p. 69) I have said this over and over again on my responses that there is a huge need for professional development regarding technology.