Digital Literacy Paper 1

Abigail Hunke
Dr. Rick Cypert

Digital Literacy Paper 1
Preparing Students for Civic Duty in the Digital Age
For this case study I have chosen to focus on my 4th period Honors U.S. History
class, a group of 30 9th graders of various reading levels. I selected areas of weakness
based off of MAP Reading data. The average RIT score, which is the scale used by
NWEA MAP to measure student achievement and growth, is 230-241 for the class. This
means most students can analyze multiple main ideas in one informational text;
successfully summarize informational text and political speech; and determine details
that support and inference in literary nonfiction, evaluate evidence that supports a
concept presented in informational text, and analyze theme in a piece of literary
nonfiction. The blatantly obvious weakness in their literary abilities exposed through the
MAP Reading test, it that although students are successful understanding the main idea,
theme, moral, and argument of a piece of literature or informational text, they cannot
successfully compare the main idea, theme, moral, and argument between multiple texts
from different sources. In middle school, comprehension is emphasized in reading much
more than interpretation.
My goal as a 9th grade teacher, is to improve my students’ complex reading skills,
so they are not simply locating information from a text. Higher level reading and
historical analysis requires its practitioners to be well versed in identifying assertions an
author makes and recognizing reasons that support a claim in persuasive text. In
Honors U.S. History, we consistently read speeches from prominent politicians to
apprehend the political climate during significant time periods and evaluate the
different sides of polarizing debates in the past. Presidential campaigns, Senate
hearings, and public addresses feature speeches are always lined with bias. Information
is manipulated and phrased in such a way as to grant the speaking individual control
over the audience’s perception in the present and the historical narrative studied in the
future. If students cannot delineate between adequately supported claims and
inadequately supported claims in argumentative text, they are left with an incomplete
account and one-sided interpretation of a historical event.
In order to ensure, we are creating a generation of intentionally well-informed,
diligently well-rounded, and skeptical but well-intentioned citizens they MUST be
trained to compare and contrast viewpoints in multiple texts. Only consulting one
source, accepting generalizations, and failing to corroborate stories has led to the
obnoxious and disgracefully misleading rhetoric convoluting and dividing Americans
today. Partisan, for-profit news outlets masquerade opinion as fact and unassuming
audiences are trapped in this endless loop of reaffirming arguments presented with
flimsy, even downright fraudulent supporting evidence that would not hold up with
deliberate media consumption and consideration. My hope is that if students are taught
how to compare and contrast claims from multiple argumentative historical texts, they
will be better equipped to sift through the abundance of persuasive literature digitally
available to them, now in the real world. One of the biggest aims of Social Studies
education is to encourage citizenship and civic participation. The majority of the
resources that students access regularly are online, so it is particularly important for
them to have the skills to assess the validity of information online, especially if this is
their only means of being an informed voter and contributing member of society. This is
where digital literacy curriculum comes in. As I have observed so far, my students are
easily duped by false information and struggle with the critical thinking required to
evaluate content. Digital literacy training can help students learn to read laterally
meaning they have a healthy sense of skepticism and check their sources across multiple
platforms. Also, with proper digital literacy skills, students will be able to identify biases
that might exist in some articles, just as they practice in my class identifying an author’s
purpose and prejudice in historical texts.

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Abigail Hunke

Dr. Rick Cypert

Preparing Students for Civic Duty in the Digital Age

concept presented in informational text, and analyze theme in a piece of literary

from different sources. In middle school, comprehension is emphasized in reading much

more than interpretation.

My goal as a 9th grade teacher, is to improve my students’ complex reading skills,

Honors U.S. History, we consistently read speeches from prominent politicians to

different sides of polarizing debates in the past. Presidential campaigns, Senate

future. If students cannot delineate between adequately supported claims and

account and one-sided interpretation of a historical event.

In order to ensure, we are creating a generation of intentionally well-informed,

diligently well-rounded, and skeptical but well-intentioned citizens they MUST be

obnoxious and disgracefully misleading rhetoric convoluting and dividing Americans

education is to encourage citizenship and civic participation. The majority of the

purpose and prejudice in historical texts.

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