Metaliteracy in beta: A Southern Anecdote

Dr. Paul Prinsloo moderated MOOC Talk 3.2. He is an Education Consultant and Researcher at the University of South Africa (UNISA). The South African University, where Dr. Prinsloo lectures is a mega online, distance and e-learning institution with a student population of over 400,000 students. Paul's inter-disciplinary focus lies in the fields of Theology, Religious Studies, Online Studies, Business Management and Art History. It is therefore not surprising that Paul has a number publications in addition to his participation in a number of international conferences. He also happens to be the editor of Progressio, which is a resource for open and distance learning practices. His current research focus is in the areas of Learning Analytics, Student Profiling, Student Success and Retention, Graduate Literacies and Attributes.

Dr. Prinsloo began his presentation by providing some clarity on his personal position on the subject of metaliteracy. He provided a disclaimer which stated that his views were shaped by his location and a number  of authors including but not limited to Paulo Freire, Manuel Castells, Zygmunt Bauman, James Martin, Pierre Bourdieu and Pankaj Ghemawat. The published works of the aforementioned authors showcased in order in the presentation were as follows: Pedagogy of the Oppressed, Communication Power, Collateral Damage, The meaning of the 21st Century, Key Concepts, World 3.0, Globalization- The Human Consequences. Dr. Prinsloo then looked at the Metaliteracy Framework as presented by Mackey and Jacobson, 2011, 'reading  the world,' the importance of 21st century world discourses and being informed then finally came up with a proposal.

Information from time immemorial has always been dynamic and therefore it is necessary to view it as a field with players having diversified roles and a variety of rules, plans, power relations, inclusion and exclusion. In Dr. Prinsloo's interpretation of the Metaliteracy Framework by Mackey and Jacobson, 2011, he likened the newly developed literacies for cultural changes of Web 2.0 to solid changing from its original state to the liquid phase. I really liked that metaphor! Web 2.0 is incorporated into a universal library, global market of digital services and products, multimedia and audiovisual communication, hypertextual connection, social networks and virtual interactive environments. A deeper analysis of liquid metaliteracy brought about a side by side comparison between the work of Mackey and Jacobson(2011) and Area and Pessoa(2012) competencies including instrumental, cognitive-intellectual, socio-communicative and axiological. Liquid metaliteracy aligns with metacognition.

Critical consciousness as the foundation for metaliteracy as agency was a sub-topic I found very interesting during the presentation. According to Freire, learning to read and write starts from a deep understanding of the process of reading the world. In addition, being illiterate prevents individuals from reading and writing then renders them powerless and dependent according to Burbules and Berk(1999). In Dr. Prinsloo's summary of reading the world, it is imperative that an individual is aware of who shapes his or her world, the reasons behind it, how the shape affects his or her position and choices made, what the rules of his or her world and who benefits from those rules(including that person's adherence), and finally how that person disrupts and makes up other narratives for himself or herself as well as others. I really appreciated the fact that Dr. Prinsloo derived his own definition of critical consciousness from Freire and Burbules and Berk's works respectively. It is therefore not surprising that understanding the major discourses of this present and even future ages will help shape our understanding and appreciation of the scope and function of literacies.

James Martin's book, "The Meaning of the 21st Century," provides a vivid example of how two extremes- poverty and wealth, mass terrorism with nuclear and biological weapons, starvation, world wars, pandemics, religious conflicts might collectively create the new dark age, which in one way or the other will directly influence and determine how we live as human beings. Other discourses touched on in the presentation included but was not limited to rampant consumerism and destructive capitalism, a networked age, personal privacy and state security and local and global (dis)connections and arguments. In order to be a literate player in the 21st century, one has to completely understand the rules, field, the game, positions and skills required. Habitus refers to the people and past experiences that shape a person. Capital which may be economic, cultural, social and symbolic in addition to the field and other players help an individual to be literate in a networked and (un)flat world. The product of habitus and capital plus the field sums up to the practice or agency [[(habitus)(capital)]+field=practice/agency].

In conclusion, having a full grasp of our choices in particular instances is nurtured by the positions we have in the particular social field at that point in time. Complicating matters has in itself been shaped by other contexts and individuals in a complex chain of power play. Understanding social media in a broader sense of political, social, economic, technological, legal and environmental discourses and arguments is of the essence. Knowing the producers of information, the purpose and claims made, the supporters and exclusions are very important as well. Information is never neutral and there its production, sharing, remixing flow from existing discourses. Finally, critical and self-reflective agency as well as making up other narratives, disrupting standard discourses and asking new question has never been more critical as it is now