6 Must Read Books on Digital Literacies for Teachers

Digitality has radically redefined the concept of  learning expanding its breadth to unprecedented extremes. New epistemologies have seen the light and with them comes a bunch of new literacies, some call them digital literacies others call them 21st century literacies, but regardless of the nomeclature, these new literacies have rapidly morphed into learning forces driving much of the learning taking place in our current era. The purpose of today's post is to provide you with a list of some great books to help you learn more about digital literacies in terms of what they mean to us as teachers and educators, their theoretical foundation and the social practices constituting these literacies.




  1- Digital Literacies: Concepts, Policies and Practices (New Literacies and Digital Epistemologies) ,  by Colin Lankshear  (Editor), Michele Knobel  (Editor)

“This book brings together a group of internationally-reputed authors in the field of digital literacy. Their essays explore a diverse range of the concepts, policies and practices of digital literacy, and discuss how digital literacy is related to similar ideas: information literacy, computer literacy, media literacy, functional literacy and digital competence. It is argued that in light of this diversity and complexity, it is useful to think of digital literacies – the plural as well the singular. The first part of the book presents a rich mix of conceptual and policy perspectives; in the second part contributors explore social practices of digital remixing, blogging, online trading and social networking, and consider some legal issues associated with digital media.”

2- Understanding Digital Literacies: A Practical Introduction ,  by Rodney H. Jones  (Author), Christoph A. Hafner (Author)

“Assuming no knowledge of linguistics, Understanding Digital Literacies provides an accessible and timely introduction to new media literacies. It supplies readers with the theoretical and analytical tools with which to explore the linguistic and social impact of a host of new digital literacy practices. Each chapter in the volume covers a different topic, presenting an overview of the major concepts, issues, problems and debates surrounding the topic, while also encouraging students to reflect on and critically evaluate their own language and communication practices.”

3- A New Literacies Sampler (New Literacies and Digital Epistemologies) ,  by Michele Knobel  (Editor), Colin Lankshear  (Editor)

“The study of new literacies is quickly emerging as a major research field. This book «samples» work in the broad area of new literacies research along two dimensions. First, it samples some typical examples of new literacies – video gaming, fan fiction writing, weblogging, role play gaming, using websites to participate in affinity practices, memes, and other social activities involving mobile technologies. Second, the studies collectively sample from a wide range of approaches potentially available for researching and studying new literacies from a sociocultural perspective. Readers will come away with a rich sense of what new literacies are, and a generous appreciation of how they are being researched.”

4- Digital Literacy by Paul Gilster

“Now in paper! Digital Literacy provides Internet novices with the basic thinking skills and core competencies they'll need to thrive in an interactive environment so fundamentally different from passive media.”

5- Adolescents and Digital Literacies: Learning Alongside Our Students  by Sara Kajder

“Instead of focusing on where to point and click, this book addresses the ways in which teachers and students work together to navigate continuous change and what it means to read, write, view, listen, and communicate in the twenty-first century”

6- Literacy in the New Media Age (Literacies) , by Gunther Kress

“In this groundbreaking book, Gunther Kress considers the effects of a revolution that has radically altered the relationship between writing and the book. Taking into account social, economic, communication and technological factors, Kress explores how these changes will affect the future of literacy.”
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