"Research by social psychologists shows that people who grow up in different cultures do not just think about different things, they actually think differently. The environment and culture in which people are raised affects and even determines many of their thought processes" -Marc Prensky, 2001

Thursday, April 3, 2008

Why is it important for children to learn?

It is extremely important for children to learn about cultural literacy. They need to know where the things they say came from and the significance they had. Also, children will come across cultural events in text books they may need to read for school, or even in articles and other books they may read. I personally know it is frustrating when I'm reading a news article on the war in Iraq and they may refer back to a previous war in Iraq that I am unfamiliar with. I am not culturally literate in this area and it can be frustrating for me to read. When I come across something that I am not culturally literate in, I usually google it (new cultural term) or ask a person who is culturally literate in that area (my mom).

The traditional literacies of reading, writing, speaking, listening, and viewing all play a part in cultural literacy. Everything that we read in books, magazines, journals, etc. all have cultural literacy in them. I believe viewing plays the largest role in today's society, because children all play video games, which is definitely a viewing stimulation, watch movies and television shows, which is where they pick up on many aspects of our culture. If you think of what we see when we watch commercials, we could probably judge a lot form our culture just from the advertising on television and billboards. Also, listening is another aspect that children use to learn about cultural literacy, because they all listen to music. They may love the new hip hop or pop song on the radio, but that song reflects the culture and society that we live in.

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