assignment 3: report on literacy/numeracy & learning project web view17assignment 3: report on...

Assignment 3 – Report on Literacy Project3012VTA – Literacy at Work

Course Convener: Dr Ann Kelly

Submitted by: David Martin

Student #2636349

[email protected]

Date Submitted: 29 October 2007

mailto:[email protected]

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Assignment 3: Report on Literacy/Numeracy & Learning Project

Introduction

The literacy project addressed the needs of students undertaking the nationally

recognised competency Produce Business Documents (THHGGA04), specifically the

skills and knowledge needed to create a Report on Office Equipment and

Documentation. Over a nominal 20 hours of contact time this competency teaches and

assesses written communication skills, research ability, design and presentation

techniques for business documents and proof-reading/editing skills. This is done by a

range of in-class activities, after which the students research and create a written report

on office equipment and documentation used in the hospitality industry. There are

several types of literacies required to perform the tasks involved within the competency.

Firstly, functional literacy is built on from the students’ previous experience or training.

Technical literacy is also involved, document writing techniques specific to the vocation

are included. Critical literacy is a large component of this competency, with the student

expected to research information and apply it to a written assessment piece.

Technology literacy is another main focus of this competency, with the work to be

performed on computer hardware and software. Further, the actual topic of the

assessment, the student is technological in nature. However, emerging multi-literacies

and the rapid change of what it is to be literate has also been considered.

Technological literacy is becoming a more predominant need for modern workers, due

to a number of factors changing vocational environments. A key outcome for the

competency under review here is competent business literacy and communication skills

David Martin Student #2636349 3012VTA – Literacy at Work

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using technological literacy skills. Technological literacy is also required to use the word

processor and/or spreadsheet to create a business document using pre-existing

guidelines, specifically a report. The topic of the assessment, business technology and

documentation, continues along the technology literacy concept. Technological literacy

is also applied when using the web browsing software, simple web search and hypertext

navigation techniques.

This project was designed firstly to analyse pre-existing teaching strategies, resources

and assessments in relation to literacy. Secondly, to provide examples of improvement

using teacher directed e-learning, specific design implementations and finally, to

demonstrate that literacy is a part of teaching that should be built into the curriculum.

The results have helped show that while improvements of teaching strategies,

resources and assessments have been made, there are still literacy issues that need to

be considered in the design and delivery of the competency. Further, this information

will be used to make improvements and changes where necessary and possibly to

teaching resources and methods. The findings are also transferrable in general ways to

other competencies that I teach.

Literature Review

Current learning environments, especially in regards to literacy are under constant and

rapid change. Literacy and being literate are routinely redefined through the innovation

of new technology. (Mautino & Biancaniello, 2005, p. 50). As a teacher using technology

as part of my delivery process, I have found that these changes need to be responded

to using an electronic approach to teaching resources. Firstly creating a web based e-


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learning environment, designed to be used with teacher interaction giving students a

new, yet familiar platform to learn existing and emerging technological literacies.

Vocationally, technology literacy can be broken into several topics, including data

management, communication and office automation (Chang & Lim, 2005, p. 43) which

this competency covers.

The electronic resources analysed in this project have been built on the concept of

multi-modal methods of information delivery, which requires special literacy skills. It has

traditionally been the case in modern western society that the most serious and highly

valued information has been monomodal (Kress, 1998, p. 186), however the newest of

literacies is starting to challenge this concept. Content on education, news and politics

are being transmitted many multimodal ways, for example political speeches on

youtube.com, a web site that is full of video content of every sort. Another example is

news and current affairs sites that are offering traditional text along side video content.

However, text is still the primary conveyor of the majority of published works on

educational topics (Kress, 1998, p. 186). This report will examine how electronic

resources helped develop multi literacy skills, which have a need to be developed and

to be seen as useful in education.

We are now in a world of electronic commerce, termed a knowledge economy, which

requires ever increasing skills to manipulate more and more information (Beven, 2003,

p. 111). Vocational education is seen as a sector that is able, and somewhat obligated

to provide people with these skills and problem solving abilities that can be adapted to

new literacy situations as they arise in the future (Snyder, Jones, & Lo Bianco, 2005, p.

34). The OECD has described digital literacy as more than the ability to use computers


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in a simple way, but includes information handling skills and critical judgements on

internet searches (OECD cited in Kearns, 2002, p. 7). Regardless of how definitions

change, literacy will remain an important and integral part of education and this report

shows how the project helps to develop these new literacies.

Kress regards newspaper front pages as complex signs which require an initial read

followed by a more detailed examination (Kress, 1998, p. 187). I argue that web pages

are similar in this that readers are looking for signs of where to go next and are required

to make quick and detailed analyses of the information and links. Therefore special

consideration needs to be taken with the design of web pages used within an education

framework, not only for valid content, but also to ensure students are directed by the

signs they see on the screen. There is a tendency to see technology as a new and

improved solution that will bring results in literacy and other study areas. However,

teachers need to be aware that non-technological methods of teaching functional

literacy are at least as effective as methods using new technology (Snyder, Jones, & Lo

Bianco, 2005, p. 14). Further, literacy is part of every subject and should be built in, not

bolted on, which is the difficult part (Gee, 1996). Therefore e-learning, web pages and

multimedia, if used, needs to be seamlessly integrated into the teaching environment to

be of any real benefit to students.

Literacy needs to be integrated into the design of delivery of vocational qualifications,

taking into consideration the needs of students as well as other stakeholders, while

remaining within the framework of the competency specifications (Darveniza, 2001, p.

35). This is a difficult task that often requires skills that are outside the range of regular

teaching knowledge. Professional development and consultation with specialist


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teachers and other stakeholders can help bridge the gap. At a meeting with a literacy

and learning support teacher a number of issues and ideas were discussed for this

project. Firstly, that delivery should be done in chunks, allowing students to more easily

absorb information and offer time for interaction. Secondly, presenting information in

diagrammatic form with minimal amounts of text offers advantages to international

students over dense written texts. Thirdly, the use of leading activities, such as mix and

match activities, multiple choice questions; making the questions harder and directing

more independent learning with each subsequent set of activities. I was also provided

with a number of unreferenced example handouts and activities. These strategies seem

consistent with other readings in the literature review.

When designing resources, the audience that the document being created for needs to

be taken into account (Eagleson, 1990, p. 106) and the use of plain English should also

take into account the context of the reading. Further, using plain English means that the

material must be able to communicate the idea that is intended, not just be easy to read

(Salter, 1999, p. 11). Uses of specific literacy resources found on external websites,

http://www.bbc.co.uk/skillswise/e3/words/grammar/ were also of great use in the project,

with so many students with English as their second language. The website provided an

electronic version of verb usage, sentence construction, spelling and punctuation

activities that students could use.

The assessment in this competency is primarily summative, based on a portfolio style

document along with some in-class observations. Performance based assessment is

most appropriate when used in a way that has context and purpose (Cumming & van

Kraayenoord, 1996, p. 11), and in most cases multiple assessments are required to


http://www.bbc.co.uk/skillswise/e3/words/grammar/

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obtain an accurate result. This project does not analyse the assessment in detail,

instead focussing on the delivery, teaching and learning components.

Methodology

This project was designed to investigate ways of improving my own delivery of the

Produce Business Documents competency in a live teaching environment. The project

was run in a TAFE classroom, with sixteen international students in the class. All except

two have English as their second language; typical of half the classes that I have taught

over the past two years.

This report analyses the advantages and disadvantages of creating computer-based

resources for students and whether the delivery methods and resources are working.

The methods used firstly involved analysis of existing materials, based against the

findings of the literature review. Secondly, general observations of students using the

electronic resource were performed, including any problems and feedback. Student

assessment is a part of the delivery of the competency, and has been used as a

measure of the success of the teaching strategies. Finally, surveys were also performed

before and after the delivery, allowing students to self-rate their abilities in areas of

critical and technological literacy. See Appendix 2 for a list of survey questions used.

These questions were aimed at specific competency outcomes and generic software

features that align with ideas on critical and technological literacy.

When first engaged as a teacher in the TAFE institute, I was given a copy of a delivery

plan, the textbook and a collection of handouts and other resources. At that time the

mode of study was predominantly self paced where learner directed one-on-one


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coaching was required. The delivery method I am moving to is now more teacher led

instruction, coupled with both individual and group activities based around electronic

resources. The content of the resources has stayed primarily the same, but they were in

different formats, some were word documents, some printed, some links to websites,

they are now in a consistent web-page style format with links between sections.

Assessment was performed through observation of completed tasks and submission of

a written research report on business technology and documents used in the hospitality

environment. Appendix 3 shows the extract of the assessment task description given

to students.

Results

This group of students lacked high level critical and functional literacy in English to read

and use dense technical texts. I observed students skimming handouts that were solid

pages of text rather than reading and using the information presented. Talking through

or using diagrams to highlight the main points of a topic was more successful at

transmitting the information in a meaningful way, Observations of students using the

web-page based study guide indicated that the majority of students were able to

navigate through the electronic study guide with little or no extra teaching. Using

hyperlinks and web pages posed no extra challenge in presenting this information for 14

of the 16 participants. The others did require extra coaching and instruction to

successfully and quickly navigate this type of media. Throughout the delivery time,

usage was reinforced with use of other web sites, therefore the resources supplied to


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the students, and the ones they find for themselves have very similar literacy

requirements.

Observations, assessment and survey results showed an improvement in technological

literacy. Table 1 shows the number of students with no or limited knowledge decreasing,

while working knowledge increased. This supports the observations and results of

assessment in the class.

None Limited Working Knowledge

Advanced Expert0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

Table 1: Technological LiteracySurvey results of overall knowledge (self-rated)

Before CourseAfter Course

Resp

once

(%)

Survey results from before and after teaching the competency showed a marked

improvement in critical literacy skills as well. Table 2 shows responses to self-rated

critical literacy, such as research and course specific skills like responding to feedback

and what type of documents are used in business. Basic research skills, using web and


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library searches, analysing sources of information and referencing were also observed

and are integral to completion of the assessment item.

None Limited Working Knowledge

Advanced Expert0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Table 2: Critical LiteracySurvey results of overall knowledge (self-rated)

BEFOREAFTER

Resp

once

(%)

All of the students except one were deemed competent at the end of the delivery and

assessment, having completed activities and submitted the assessment in the required

format. This student still lacks the technological literacy to be able to complete the

assessment within the time frame allowed. While he had improved knowledge and

gained confidence with using technology for written communication, within the

educational framework he could not be deemed fully competent.

Analysis of data

A challenge that I face with a group of international students is my lack of cross-cultural

knowledge with the students. I am reliant on observation of the procedures they use to

operate the computer and the finished work product as immediate feedback on my


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personal communication methods with the students. Professional development in the

area of cross-cultural literacy and communication would be a great advantage to

teachers across our faculty, due to the high level of international students whose

nationality and cultural backgrounds change from one enrolment period to the next.

Computer based learning resources need to be created with as much, and in some

case more care than traditional written texts because multimodal literacy skills are

different to functional literacy skills like reading text. Further, similar to Kress’s analyses

of newspapers, web pages and hyperlinks are visual cues that need special

consideration (Kress, 1998). Resources need to be designed to take into account a

wide range of existing literacy levels in students. Taking the audience into account when

designing resources is valid and important (Eagleson, 1990). Using group activities also

allowed students to talk amongst themselves to interpret information and tasks. A

disadvantage of using the electronic resource is that they were not readily accessible

outside the classroom, students needed to be connected to the TAFE computer

network. However, the teaching methods and resources used addressed these needs

successfully.

Critical literacy is part of the expected underpinning knowledge of this competency and

there are several tasks for the students. The survey results support the assessment and

general observations that students did lean critical literacy skills. Students that reported

limited or no critical literacy skills improved to have a working knowledge, or at least a

limited understanding of research related activities.


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Some specific problems were found with the resources, firstly, some electronic

presentations needed to be printable so that the students could easily refer to them

while completing activities. I have converted the on-screen presentation into a web

page format that can easily be printed. Further, many students would follow hyperlinks

without reading the context, the links need to be designed with this in mind.

Conclusion

The findings of this report confirmed that the strategies being implemented are for the

most part in line with current research about technological implications on literacy.

Electronic resources need to be formulated carefully and in ways that enhance the

learners ability to interact in a meaningful way. Traditional concepts of literacy are still

valid and need to be used in conjunction with new ideas.

Literacy is continually being redefined. This idea is important due to the rapid changes

in technology and the literacy and vocational needs in this area. Our economy is

changing from an industrial to a knowledge based economy. Technological and

information literacy are important in the workplace as well as education and personal

life, and not being literate in these areas is going to become more disadvantageous as

time goes on.

Further development of resources in line with the findings of this report will help with

future delivery of the covered competency, as well as related teachings. As a teacher

my resources and methods of delivery need to reflect the changing needs of society and

the many uses of literacy.


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Reference List

Beven, F. (2003). Developing information literacy. In J. Stevenson (Ed.), Developing

vocational expertise: principles and issues in vocational education (pp. 110-134).

Crows Nest: Allen & Unwin.

Chang, K. T.-T., & Lim, J. (2005). Technology Literacy Applications in Learning

Environments. In D. Carbonara, Technology Literacy Applications in Learning

Environments (pp. 28-49). Idea Group, Inc.

Cumming, J. J., & van Kraayenoord, C. E. (1996). Assessment: making a difference in

adult literacy and numeracy learning. In J. J. Cumming, & C. E. van Kraayenoord

(Eds.), Adult literacy and numeracy: assessing change (pp. 8-17). Melbourne:

Language Australia.

Darveniza, M. (2001). Every vocational trainer is a literacy teacher. A literacy odysee,

ACAL 24th National Conference Proceedings (pp. 34-38). Melbourne: Australian

Council for Adult Literacy.

Eagleson, R. (1990). Plain English: Simple of simplistic. Vox (4), 106-110.

Gee, J. P. (1996). Discourses and Literacies. In J. P. Gee, Social linguistics and

literacies: Ideologies in Discourses. Second Edition (pp. 122-129). London: Taylor

& Francis.

Kress, G. (1998). Front pages: (the critical) analysis of newspaper layout. In A. Bell, &

P. Garrett, Approaches to Media Discourse (pp. 186-219). Blackwell: Oxford.


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Mautino, R. M., & Biancaniello, S. L. (2005). Technology-Infused Instruction: A New

Paradigm for Literacy. In D. D. Carbonara, Technology Literacy Applications in

Learning Environments (pp. 49-77). Hershey: Information Science Publishing.

Salter, K. (1999). What's wrong with Plain English. Good Practice in Australian Adult

Literacy and Basic Education , 6, 10-12.

Snyder, I., Jones, A., & Lo Bianco, J. (2005). Using information and communication

technologies in adult literacy education: new practices, new challenges . Retrieved

August 11, 2007, from http://www.ncver.edu.au/research/proj/nr3L08.pdf


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Appendix 1: Survey for Students (self-rated)


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Appendix 2: Description of report requirements given to students

Prepare a report consistent with an industry standard layout. The report

will be on 3 pieces of office equipment and 3 types of documentation

used in the tourism or hospitality industry. As part of the report a

bibliography needs to be created. This list of references or bibliography

needs to be in an accepted format, and include materials from both

internet and print.

This report must address all of the following areas for each piece of

equipment:

Purpose, Importance, Features, Purchase Cost & Running Costs,

Advantages and disadvantages

This report must also address the following areas for each type of

documentation.

Purpose, Importance, Features, A sample document
