Teaching Multiliteracies Across the Curriculum.

Teaching Multiliteracies Across the Curriculum. by Len Unsworth Audience: Teachers (K-8) searching for units of work which exemplify goodpractice in the teaching of multimodal texts. Teachers and scholars searching for a metalanguage to describe theways in which text and image work together to construct meaning. Anybody with interests in Visual Literacy Visual literacy is the ability to interpret, negotiate, and make meaning from information presented in the form of an image. Visual literacy is based on the idea that pictures can be “read” and that meaning can be communicated through a process of reading. , Systemic FunctionalLinguistics, Multiliteracies and Multimodality. A sociocultural philosophy of literacy development underpins thisnew and timely text. Reflecting the new hybrid genres of textsdeveloping in a rapidly changing technological society, an examinationof the changing and emerging contexts of the use of written and visualtexts in classroom practices is undertaken. Unsworth argues that theadvent of the digital datasphere is providing a plurality of literaciesthat impact upon our construction of meaning making within our worlds.These multiliteracies that shape our worlds and indeed our identitiesrequire close examination and explicit teaching if our students are tobecome active participants in society. Unsworth insists that suchinquiries must include the development of understandings about howlinguistic, visual and digital texts are deployed to make meaning, asboth independent systems and interactive systems. A metalanguage fordeveloping such understandings is outlined and Unsworth providesin-depth theoretical perspectives, practical insights and case studiesto exemplify theory into practice. A Hallidayan (Halliday 1985) construction of functional linguisticsis used by Unsworth to provide a framework for developing a metalanguagefor describing and interpreting written texts. The three meaning-makingsystems of text are used: ideational i��de��ate?v. i��de��at��ed, i��de��at��ing, i��de��atesv.tr.To form an idea of; imagine or conceive: "Such characters represent a grotesquely blown-up aspect of an ideal man . . . meanings (related to field);interpersonal meanings (related to tenor); and textual meanings (relatedto mode). Each is explained and discussed using examples from a range ofchildren's texts. Kress and van Leeuwen's (1996) framework for analysing themeanings of images (which itself is based upon the same Hallidayanframework of the three meaning-making systems mentioned above) is thenconsidered. To illustrate the ways in which visual images are used toconstruct different types of meanings, a wide range of children'sresources are included, such as picture books, subject specific factualtexts, CD-ROMs, internet sites, electronic games Electronic Games was the first video game magazine published in the United States and ran from 1981 to 1985. Co-founded by Arnie Katz, Joyce Worley and Bill Kunkel, it is unrelated to the subsequent Electronic Gaming Monthly. , photographs, andcartoons. As subjects of a visual culture (Jenks 1995) we are surrounded bytexts that are multimodal in nature, that is, they contain combinationsof written texts, visual texts, sound effects sound effectsNoun, plsounds artificially produced to make a play, esp. a radio play, more realisticsound effectsnpl → efectos mpl sonoros , flashing, scrolling,montage, hot spots hot spotsacute moist dermatitis. , animation and other types of hybrid texts. Toaccount for this, Unsworth overlays the two frameworks described (verbaland visual) to produce a clear, familiar, yet distinct theoretical baseto describe our contemporary texts. This description is elaboratedthrough examining typical school genres across a number of key learningareas. Subsequent to these investigations, much of the remaining sectionsof the book are devoted to exploring a number of case studies of unitsof work trialled in classrooms. Consideration of a range of practicalissues is provided, for example, the need to adapt material in the unitsof work to children experiencing learning difficulties. These unitsclearly exemplify how teachers can effectively work with multimodaltexts in the classroom, using the theoretical framework establishedearlier. Pedagogical ped��a��gog��ic? also ped��a��gog��i��caladj.1. Of, relating to, or characteristic of pedagogy.2. Characterized by pedantic formality: a haughty, pedagogic manner. practices described will be familiar to teachers,with an emphasis placed on: use of the curriculum learning cycle;modelled, guided and independent literacy practices, involving childrenin the four literacy practices (roles) as described by Luke and Freebody(1990, 1999), as well as a range of other common teaching strategies. The principal merit of this book is the way in which Unsworth hasdeveloped practical units of work for use in the classroom, from theearly to later years of schooling, based on a substantial theoreticalbase. Examples of lessons, which examine literary techniques such asforeshadowing (in both text and image), may seem complex in theory yetare simple in their application. The use of grammatical resources suchas the examination of `theme' in text and `given' in image areclearly tasks accessible for young children and offer a `way in'for children to understand the complexities of text/image relationshipswhen first examining multimodal texts. In addition to developing thegrammatical resources required to understand multimodal texts, thechildren involved in the case studies were also encouraged to use a widevariety of print- and screen-based resources to construct their ownresponses to tasks. This book is readable and accessible for a wide audience. Icertainly intend using it as an exemplar ex��em��plar?n.1. One that is worthy of imitation; a model. See Synonyms at ideal.2. One that is typical or representative; an example.3. An ideal that serves as a pattern; an archetype.4. for teaching multiliteracies touniversity students in their final years of study. It is current andpertinent for educators not only in the teaching of English andLiteracy, but for teachers in cross-disciplinary areas. At first glanceit might seem overwhelming, but Unsworth successfully unpacks the theoryand its classroom applications in a gentle manner. He reminds us of whatwe already know, and pushes us further; showing us how we can mosteffectively teach children the texts that they need to know in order tobe effective and active citizens. References Freebody, P. & Luke, A. 1990, `Literacies programs: Debates anddemands in cultural context', Prospect: Australian Journal ofTESOL TESOLabbr.1. Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages2. teaching English to speakers of other languages , vol. 5, no. 7, pp. 7-16. Freebody, P. & Luke, A. 1999, `Further notes on the fourresources model', Reading Online. International ReadingAssociation, http://www.readingonline.org/research/lukefreebody.html#freebodyluke Halliday, M.A.K. 1985, An Introduction to Functional Grammar,Edward Arnold Edward Arnold can refer to: People: Edward Arnold (actor) Eddy Arnold (country singer) Other: Edward Arnold (publisher) a publishing house. , London. Jenks, C. (ed.) 1995, Visual Culture, Routledge, London. Kress, G. and van Leeuwen, T. 1996, Reading Images: A Grammar ofVisual Design, Routledge, London. Len Unsworth is Associate Professor and Head of the School ofDevelopment and Learning and the Division of Graduate Studies in theFaculty of Education at the University of Sydney The University of Sydney, established in Sydney in 1850, is the oldest university in Australia. It is a member of Australia's "Group of Eight" Australian universities that are highly ranked in terms of their research performance. . He has publishedextensively in journals dealing with literacy education and has editedand authored a number of books including Literacy Learning and Teaching,Researching Language in Schools and Communities and TeachingMulti-literacies across the Curriculum. Address: Faculty of Education, University of Sydney, NSW NSWNew South WalesNoun 1. NSW - the agency that provides units to conduct unconventional and counter-guerilla warfareNaval Special Warfare 2006Email: l.unsworth@edfac.usyd.edu.au