Welcome to our second annual research mini-marathon” on the blog . This year our focus is on digital literacies and online and distance learning . Over the next 6 days we will post a description of an research report or project from the U.S. the U.K. and Scotland - and a link to the full document. Check them out and let us know what you think - use the “Vote” buttons- or post a comment – we re very keen to hear from you – your “votes” will help us to make sure that the content of the blog is useful and interesting to you.
You will also find the all these research posts and links by clicking on Research in our Tag Cloud.
Our first pick is…
Reconceptualizing Adult Basic Education and the Digital Divide by Elizabeth Hays in. Towards Defining and improving quality in adult basic education: Issues and challenges. New York: Lawrence Erlbaum.(2007)
In Reconceptualizing Adult Basic Education and the Digital Divide, Elisabeth Hayes draws on her experience as a founding member of the Games, Learning, & Society research collective at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and brings to gaming research a background in adult literacy education, adult learning and gender equity.
Based on the premise that computer-based instruction offers learners engaging, motivating, and effective learning opportunities, and that “digital literacies” play a crucial role for adults in accessing information, obtaining better jobs, and helping children succeed in school, she presents a compelling argument that adults without access to technologies are disadvantaged and that curriculum without their integrated use further reinforced the digital divide.
Hayes provides detailed examples of several key concepts, or ways of understanding digital literacies from a sociocultural perspective, and to suggest implications for digital literacy learning in ABE.
