The cry from the unemployed these days is that employers are looking for transliterate people to work for them - even though many people are not really sure what "transliterate" is.
Sue Thomas, professor of new media at De Montfort University, defines transliteracy as “the ability to read, write and interact across a range of platforms, tools and media from signing and orality through handwriting, print, TV, radio and films, to digital social networks.”
In case we think being transliterate is as easy as finding friends on Facebook, or tweeting on Twitter, Thomas clarifies the concept as “a unifying ecology of not just media, but of all literacies relevant to reading, writing, interaction and culture.”
The digital age has changed the way I communicate, and also with whom I communicate. I used to write letters and mail them to school friends, my Aunties in Milwaukee; it was also the form of communication I used in business. I still write letters to my Aunties, but with my friends and business associates I use email, Facebook, Twitter, and text messages on a regular basis.
Last week I hadn't answered an email from a buiness associate and so he went to Facebook and sent me his cell number to ask that I call or send him a text message with the answer to his question. Thank goodness he doesn't know I'm on Twitter!
Welcome to the age of transliteracy.
I used to use FB more for entertainment, but now I have 597 close friends, followers and business contacts to attend to everyday. It's a wonder I can get anything done. On Twitter I follow 1,945 fellow tweeps, and have 864 followers. I personally know less than 10 of the people I connect with on Twitter, and this group is totally different from my FB community. If I'm not transliterate yet, I better find out how to be pretty quick.
Here's the latest wisdom from one of the readings on our MOOC:
References:
http://crln.acrl.org/content/71/10/532.full
Transliteracy.com
http://nlabnetworks.typepad.com/transliteracy/
Sue Thomas, professor of new media at De Montfort University, defines transliteracy as “the ability to read, write and interact across a range of platforms, tools and media from signing and orality through handwriting, print, TV, radio and films, to digital social networks.”
In case we think being transliterate is as easy as finding friends on Facebook, or tweeting on Twitter, Thomas clarifies the concept as “a unifying ecology of not just media, but of all literacies relevant to reading, writing, interaction and culture.”
The digital age has changed the way I communicate, and also with whom I communicate. I used to write letters and mail them to school friends, my Aunties in Milwaukee; it was also the form of communication I used in business. I still write letters to my Aunties, but with my friends and business associates I use email, Facebook, Twitter, and text messages on a regular basis.
Last week I hadn't answered an email from a buiness associate and so he went to Facebook and sent me his cell number to ask that I call or send him a text message with the answer to his question. Thank goodness he doesn't know I'm on Twitter!
Welcome to the age of transliteracy.
I used to use FB more for entertainment, but now I have 597 close friends, followers and business contacts to attend to everyday. It's a wonder I can get anything done. On Twitter I follow 1,945 fellow tweeps, and have 864 followers. I personally know less than 10 of the people I connect with on Twitter, and this group is totally different from my FB community. If I'm not transliterate yet, I better find out how to be pretty quick.
Here's the latest wisdom from one of the readings on our MOOC:
'Why don't people write on toilet walls anymore?' 'Because they are too busy Facebooking or texting.' #transliteracy
References:
Introducing transliteracy
What does it mean to academic libraries?
by Tom Iprihttp://crln.acrl.org/content/71/10/532.full
Transliteracy.com
http://nlabnetworks.typepad.com/transliteracy/
Is there an etiquette/professionalism line somewhere - like saying thank yous or requests for recommendations have to be personally hand-written - or do you think the line of propriety is blurring now that we have so many available avenues for communication/connection?
ReplyDeleteI am wondering about the "proprietary" correctness, and from whose perspective, with etiquette/professionalism. If we take a look back into the 1800's, yes, even the 1900's, there was a different sense of proprietary etiquette/professionalism from one century to the next. Who decides and how do they decide 'proper etiquette" in a given situation? Just wondering ... calling cards were de rigeur for "courting" and a chaperone was required for all such "dating or even, meeting" encounters in days gone by in Western custom. This is still true for some cultures today ... even if dating is not the intent.
ReplyDeleteThe different perspectives, and different eras, tend to determine what propriety is accepted.
Perhaps, one question we should ask is ... how long does it take for the proprietary customs to change in the 21st century? Why do they change at all? Who are the agents of change? Is this a good thing? or not?
The resources cited in the transliteracy post are very helpful ones. Thank you. I wonder how visual literacy might included under the transliteracy umbrella. Visual communication is not only an important form of communication, it is the only form of communication when one does not understand the language of a culture in which they are immersed (i.e. for work or holiday). The ubiquitous universal icons are an interesting example. How long have they been in global use?
ReplyDelete