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New E-Learning article

2008-01-22T13:27:00.000-08:00

REBECCA W. BLACK (2007) Fanfiction Writing and the Construction of Space, E-Learning, 4(4), pp. 384-397

Trackulous

2007-10-10T19:29:00.000-07:00

Check out Bill Tomlinson's new site. It was originally created to keep track of consumption of resources to promote environmental awareness; however, people are now using it to track all sorts of things.

Toronto JIC

2007-07-03T04:10:00.000-07:00

Wiki

Toronto Workshop

2007-07-02T15:40:00.000-07:00

Workshop Activities
21st Century Skills Grade Yourself
21st Century Skills on the Web

TeacherTube

2007-04-21T07:15:00.000-07:00

Here's a site with teacher-made, education-related videos.

New Literacies Sampler Online

2007-02-19T14:48:00.001-08:00

Peter Lang, progressive publisher extraordinaire, has allowed us to make the New Literacies Sampler, edited by Colin Lankshear and Michele Knobel, freely available here.

Contents:

Chapter 1: Sampling “the New” in New Literacies

Colin Lankshear & Michele Knobel

Chapter 2: “You Won’t Be Needing Your Laptops Today”: Wired Bodies in the Wireless Classroom

Kevin M. Leander

Chapter 3: Popular Websites in Adolescents’ Out-of-School Lives: Critical Lessons on Literacy

Jennifer C. Stone

Chapter 4: Agency and Authority in Role-Playing “Texts”

Jessica Hammer

Chapter 5: Pleasure, Learning, Video Games, and Life: The Projective Stance

James Paul Gee

Chapter 6: Digital Design: English Language Learners and Reader Reviews in Online Fiction

Rebecca W. Black

Chapter 7: Blurring and Breaking through the Boundaries of Narrative, Literacy, andIdentity in Adolescent Fan Fiction

Angela Thomas

Chapter 8: Looking from the Inside Out: Academic Blogging as New Literacy

Julia Davies and Guy Merchant

Chapter 9: Online Memes, Affinities, and Cultural Production

Michele Knobel & Colin Lankshear

Chapter 10: New Literacies

Cynthia Lewis

Web 2.0 ... The Machine is Us/ing Us

2007-02-06T08:46:00.000-08:00

Alice shared this very nicely-done video that both explains and demonstrates the implications of Web 2.0 for text, form, content, identity, etc.

Par-tippy-tip

2007-02-06T07:44:00.000-08:00

Look what Angela found for me!

Personally, I'm partial to the pink-snouted stare of disapproval from the Muppet version, but the partippy-tip is rather catchy!

NMC Online Conference

2007-02-06T07:37:00.000-08:00

NMC Online Conference on the Convergence of Web Culture and VideoMarch 21-22, 2007 -- via the Internet
Proposals for presentations for the NMC Online Conference on the Convergence of Web Culture and Video, a special 2-day, live online event to be held entirely via the Internet, are being solicited through February 23, 2007.
Keynoters: Henry Jenkins, Angela Thomas and Cynthia Calongne will be present for this 2-day examination of the Convergence of Web Culture and Video.
Go here for more information.

Fanfiction to Mainstream

2007-02-04T08:24:00.000-08:00

Colin, Michele, and Achariya-- who, unlike me, somehow manage to write lots of lovely pieces as well as stay abreast of current events and fashionable shoe and shrug choices <(.)(.)>-- shared fabulous news of the Chilean fanfiction author who is publishing her first novel. The 23 year old Chilean journalism student was contracted to write by Random House following the success of her online fanfiction story Harry Potter and the Decline of the High Elves. In an interview she says "All the things I know about literature, about writing, I learned in the fan fiction world." Read more... or listen to her story on YouTube.

Manamana

2007-01-30T05:53:00.000-08:00

ephemerality

2007-01-28T10:50:00.000-08:00

Is it wrong to change the name of the blog much like one changes the pairs of the shoes?

Handbook in Press

2007-01-28T08:42:00.000-08:00

Just got word that the Handbook of Research in New Literacies has gone to press and is slated for debut in Summer '07. It promises to be an influential volume, thanks to the vision and hard work of the editors, and includes chapters and reviews by an impressive group of scholars. Here's an overview of the lineup:

INTRODUCTION Central Issues In New Literacies And New Literacies Research; Editors
Julie Coiro, University of Connecticut; Michele Knobel, Montclair State University; Colin Lankshear, James Cook University; Donald J. Leu, University of Connecticut
SECTION I. METHODOLOGIES
An Introduction To Methodologies
Toward A Connective Ethnography Of Online/Offline Literacy Networks
Kevin M. Leander, Vanderbilt University, USA
Large-Scale Quantitative Survey Research On New Technology Uses
Ron Anderson, University of Minnesota, USA
Converging Traditions Of Research On Media And Information Literacies: Disciplinary, Critical, And Methodological Issues
Sonia Livingstone, Elizabeth Van Couvering, and Nancy Thumim, London School of Economics and Political Science, UK
The Conduct Of Qualitative Interviews: Research Questions, Methodological Issues, And Researching Online
Lori Kendall, University of Illinois, USA
The Case Of Rebellion: Researching Multimodal Texts
Andrew Burn, Institute of Education, University of London, UK
Experimental And Quasi-Experimental Approaches To The Study Of New Literacies
Jonna Kulikowich, The Pennsylvania State University, USA
SECTION II. KNOWLEDGE AND INQUIRY
An Introduction To Knowledge And Inquiry
Learning, Change, And Power: Competing Frames Of Technology And Literacy Mark Warschauer, University of California, Irvine, USA, Paige Ware, Southern Methodist University, USA
The Web As A Source Of Information For Students In K-12 Education
Els Kuiper and Monique Volman, Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Where Do We Go Now? Understanding Research On Navigation In Complex Digital Environments
Kim Lawless, University of Illinois at Chicago, USA, P.G. Schrader, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, USA
The Changing Landscape Of Text And Comprehension In The Age Of New Literacies
Bridget Dalton, Center for Applied Special Technology (CAST), USA, C. Patrick Proctor, Boston College, USA
Exploring Culture In The Design Of New Technologies Of Literacy
Patricia Young, University of Maryland, Baltimore County, USA
Multimedia Literacy
Richard Mayer, University of California, Santa Barbara, USA
Multiliteracies And Metalanguage: Describing Image/Text Relations As A Resource For Negotiating Multimodal Texts
Len Unsworth, University of New England, Australia
SECTION III. COMMUNICATION
An Introduction To Communication Mediating Technologies And Second Language Learning Steven Thorne, The Pennsylvania State University, USA Of
A Divided Mind: Weblog Literacy
Torill Elvira Mortensen, Volda University College, Norway
People, Purposes, And Practices: Insights From Cross-Disciplinary Research Into Instant Messaging
Gloria E. Jacobs, St. John Fisher College, USA
Gender In Online Communications
Jonathan Paul Marshall, University of Technology, Sydney, Australia
SECTION IV. POPULAR CULTURE, COMMUNITY, AND CITIZENSHIP: EVERYDAY LITERACIES
An Introduction To Popular Culture, Community, And Citizenship: Everyday Literacies
Intersections of Popular Culture, Identities, and New Literacies Research
Margaret C. Hagood, College of Charleston, USA
College Students And New Literacy Practices
Dana J. Wilber, Montclair State University, USA
Just Don’t Call Them Cartoons: The New Literacy Spaces Of Animé, Manga, And Fanfiction
Rebecca Ward Black, University of California, Irvine, USA
Cognition And Literacy In Massively Multiplayer Online Games
Constance A. Steinkuehler, University of Wisconsin—Madison, USA
Video Game Literacy: A Literacy Of Expertise
Kurt D. Squire, University of Wisconsin—Madison, USA
Community, Culture And Citizenship In Cyberspace
Angela Thomas, University of Sydney, Australia
New Literacies And Community Inquiry
Bertram C. Bruce and Ann P. Bishop, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, USA
SECTION V. INSTRUCTIONAL PRACTICES AND ASSESSMENT
An Introduction To Instructional Practices And Assessment
Digital Writing In The Early Years
Guy Merchant, Sheffield Hallam University, UK
Teaching Popular Culture Texts In The Classroom
Richard Beach and David O’Brien, University of Minnesota, USA
Using New Media In The Secondary English Classroom
Ilana Snyder, Monash University, Scott Bulfin, Australia
Learning Management Systems The Price Of Information: Critical Literacy, Education, And Today’s Internet
Bettina Fabos, Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, USA
Researching Multimodal Literacy
Pippa Stein, University of Witwatersrand, South Africa
Multimodal Reading And Comprehension In Online Environments
Claire-Wyatt Smith and John Elkins, Griffith University, Australia
New Literacies In Math And Science
Edys Quellmalz and Geneva Haertel, Center for Technology in Learning, SRI International, USA
Virtual Learning Environments: A Higher Education Focus
Colin Baskin and Neil Anderson, James Cook University, Australia
SECTION VI. MULTIPLE PERSPECTIVES ON NEW LITERACIES RESEARCH An Introduction To Multiple Perspectives On New Literacies
Savannah: Mobile Gaming And Learning?
by K. Facer, R. Joiner, D. Stanton, J. Reid, R. Hull, & D. Kirk
Being a Lion And Being A Soldier: Learning And Games
James Paul Gee, University of Wisconsin, Madison, USA
Savannah: Mobile Gaming and Learning: A Review Commentary
Susan Goldman and Jim Pellegrino, University of Illinois at Chicago, USA
The Nature Of Middle School Learners? Science Content Understandings With The Use Of On-Line Resources
by J.L Hoffman., H.-K Wu, J.S. Krajcik, & E. Soloway
Intertextuality and the Study of New Literacies: Research Critique and Recommendations
Peggy N. Van Meter and Carla Firetto, The Pennsylvania State University, USA Internet Pedagogy: Using the Internet to Achieve Student Learning Outcomes
Bob Bleicher, California State University Channel Islands, USA
Instant Messaging, Literacies, and Social Identities
by C. Lewis & B. Fabos
An Essay Review Of The Lewis & Fabos Article On Instant Messaging
Donna Alvermann, University of Georgia, USA
Thoughts On The Lewis & Fabos Article On Instant Messaging
David Reinking, Clemson University, USA
L2 literacy and the design of the self: A case study of a teenager writing on the Internet
by W.S.E. Lam
Critical Review: “L2 Literacy and the Design of the Self: A Case study of a Teenager Writing on the Internet”
Catherine Beavis, Deakin University, Burwood, Australia
A Commentary On “L2 Literacy, Electronic Representation of Self, and Social Networking”
Richard Duran, University of California, Santa Barbara, USA
The journey ahead: Thirteen teachers report how the Internet influences literacy and literacy instruction in their K–12 classrooms
by R.A. Karchmer
Researching Technology And Literacy: Thirteen Ways Of Looking At A Blackboard
Colin Harrison, University of Nottingham, UK
Internet Literacy Influences: A Review of Karchmer (2001).
Jackie Marsh, The University of Sheffield, UK

Abalone Cove

2007-01-23T08:59:00.000-08:00

Exploring the SoCal tidepools with Debbie and Jason Fields last weekend

New Literacies Sampler Published

2007-01-23T08:05:00.000-08:00

The New Literacies Sampler is out!

Many thanks to our fearless editors, the Colin of the Lankshears and the Michele of the Knobels, who write a bit about the text in their Everyday Literacies blog.

"Internet Killed the Video Star"

2006-10-18T11:31:00.000-07:00

According to popular lore, these YouTubers have never met but compile their music via YouTube video clips...

New PhD Program at UCI

2006-09-07T10:15:00.000-07:00

The Department of Education at the University of California, Irvine has started a new PhD program, and one of the program areas is Language, Literacy, and Technology. Check it out!

A clear bonus of entering this program is that it gives you the perfect excuse to buy and/or wear objects pertaining to anteaters (the UCI mascot).

Current Projects 8-7-06

2006-08-07T06:27:00.000-07:00

Digital Design: Reader Reviews in Online Fanfiction in the New Literacies Sampler.

A New Literacies Sampler
CONTENTS
Introduction: Sampling ‘the new’, Colin Lankshear & Michele Knobel
Chapter 1 "You won't be needing your laptops today": Wired bodies in the wire-less classroom, Kevin Leander
Chapter 2 Popular websites in adolescents’ out-of-school lives, Jennifer Stone
Chapter 3 Role play gaming, agency and authority, Jessica Hammer
Chapter 4 Pleasure, learning, video games and life: The projective stance, James Paul Gee
Chapter 5 Digital Design: English Language Learners and Reader Reviews in Online Fanfiction, Rebecca Black
Chapter 6 Narrative, literacy and identity in adolescent fan fiction, Angela Thomas
Chapter 7 Looking from the inside out: Academic blogging as new literacy, Julia Davies and Guy Merchant
Chapter 8 Online memes, affinities and cultural production, Michele Knobel & Colin Lankshear
Chapter 9 New literacies, Cynthia Lewis

Recent Publications 8-07-06

2006-08-07T05:40:00.000-07:00

My article Language, Culture, and Identity in Online Fanfiction was published in the most recent volume of e-learning. Contents listed below.

SPECIAL ISSUE
Digital InterfacesGuest Editor: ANGELA THOMAS
Editorial, pages 124‑125
Angela Thomas. ‘MSN was the Next Big Thing after Beanie Babies’: children’s virtual experiences as an interface to their identities and their everyday lives, pages 126‑142
Sally Humphrey. ‘Getting the Reader On Side’: exploring adolescent online political discourse, pages 143‑157
Barbara J. Guzzetti. Cybergirls: negotiating social identities on cybersites, pages 158‑169
Rebecca W. Black. Language, Culture and Identity in Online Fanfiction, pages 170‑184
Kevin Leander & Amy Frank. The Aesthetic Production and Distribution of Image/Subjects among Online Youth, pages 185‑206
Lalitha Vasudevan. Making Known Differently: engaging visual modalities as spaces to author new selves, pages 207‑216
Julia Davies. Affinities and Beyond! Developing Ways of Seeing in Online Spaces, pages 217‑234
Guy Merchant. Identity, Social Networks and Online Communication, pages 235‑244
Jonathan Paul Marshall. Categories, Gender and Online Community, pages 245‑262
BOOK REVIEW
E-Literature for Children: enhancing digital literacy learning (Len Unsworth), reviewed by Angela Thomas, pages 263‑264
DOI: 10.2304/elea.2006.3.2.263 VIEW FULL TEXT

Namesake

2006-08-06T14:46:00.000-07:00

For those of you that are not Gen Xers: Video Killed the Radio Star is... read more

After all these years, I still haven't figured out what she's doing in that tube...

California comes from fanfiction?

2006-08-06T13:59:00.000-07:00

According to Boing Boing, California got it's name from fanfiction:

"California is named after the island of California, home of Queen Calafia, her beautiful black amazons and their man-eating griffins, as all detailed in Garcia Ordonez de Montalvo's Las Sergas de Esplandian, which was the Sword of Shanarra of its day, a highly unauthorized but popular sequel to the much more highly respected Amadis de Gaul, more The Lord of the Rings of its day." read more...

Seems kind of fitting that I should be going there then...

Location Update

2006-08-06T12:45:00.000-07:00

I accepted a tenure-track position in the Department of Education at the University of California, Irvine.
Here's my faculty page.