The semiotics of critical literacy

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The semiotics of critical literacy Playing, in
tribute of Burke and Harste Jamie Myers May
2005 Examples from www.ed.psu.edu/k-12/ www.ed.p
su.edu/k-12/communitymovies http//piccle.ed.psu.
edu/
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Triadic and Dyadic Say what you mean, and mean
what you say. Juxtapositions a sequence of
signs in time and space thirdness
consciousness Mediation (transmediation) signify
the meaning of one set of signs with another
set of sings (the sign of a sign of a
sign) signs are layered with symbolic history
potential Critical literacy (critique) intention
to take up the interpretants
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a sign is something (sign) that stands for
something (object), in some respect or capacity
(interpretant) (Eco, 1979, p. 180)
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Hypermedia authoring provides material spaces and
Boundaries that facilitate the critique of
interpretants Able to bring multiple sign
systems into spatial proximity for time and
space juxtapositioning Implicit and explicit
critique of signs
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A Pedaogy for Intercultural Critical Literacy
PICCLE (supported by a grant from FIPSE EU-US
Cooperation Program) Open to all Faculty to join
at http//piccle.ed.psu.edu/ Goals --Bring
international students together to discuss shared
texts in order to examine their cultural beliefs
and assumptions that frame their
interpretation of the texts (to critique their
interpretants) --Reflect on the self in the
other through communication The following
semiotic analysis based on one threaded
discussion of 8 posts between Swedish and US
students
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Headline Checkmate From  Maria (Sweden)
Date 2004-05-27 16.28 I think the picture of
pawns in a lifegame controlled by others without
own active participation says a lot about the way
kids/people adapt thoughts and prejudices even
though they in their heart have another meaning.
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Headline Checkmate From  Michael (U.S.A.)
Date 2004-06-01 16.00 I agree that a lot of
times children get stuck doing what their parents
do even though their hearts aren't in it. But
these are 6th-graders, and adolescence has
started for them. My sister rebels against her
parents over things like makeup, car privileges,
boyfriends, dress code, etc. Obviously racism is
a different sort of beast. What makes it so hard
to resist this sort of thing? Why is it harder
for an adolescent to tell his/her parents that
they're wrong about their best friend than it is
to tell them they're wrong about makeup, dress
code, or boy/girlfriends?
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Headline Checkmate From  Sara (Sweden)
Date 2004-06-01 21.27 I tihink you got a
good taugt there! Cant it be that rasism is
something that young kids dont understand? Its
hard to rebell against something that you dont
fully now the meaning of. Sadly many kids also
adapt their parents values, wether theyre right
or not. Thats something for our generation to
think about!
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Headline Checkmate From  Todd (U.S.A.)
Date 2004-06-02 15.31 In a lot of the
postings, I have noticed that many
children/adolescents follow the beliefs of their
parents. I think that happens a lot in the US
too, but as Michael had mentioned, we also have
the idea of rebellion over here. Stereotypically,
this seems to occur more towards the adolescent
years. Is this common in Sweden at all? Is there
a typical age that kids begin to question their
parent's values?
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Headline Checkmate From  Anders (Sweden)
Date 2004-06-03 10.57 Well, I think it is
more or less the same here in Sweden too, given
the impression I have from the states. But as
someone else remarked It seems to be easier to
argue about clothes and curfews then over more
deeper values.
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Headline Checkmate From  Michael (U.S.A.)
Date 2004-06-02 15.31 I wonder if there are
cultural reasons behind our own views of how
children learn about racial differences. In
America, you become an adult when you take
control and become responsible for your own life
and choices. So adolescents are encouraged by the
media (especially TV) to rebel against their
parents and form their own identity by doing
their own thing. But in many cultures, adulthood
is not determined by autonomy and independence,
but by age and ritual. Adolescents reach a
certain age, they go through a ritual, and then
they're an "adult," but they have no autonomy
they do their fathers' or mothers' jobs, believe
what their parents believe, and live as their
parents live. The values of the whole population
are preserved there is less individualism and
autonomy. Iran is such a country Germany and
South Korea used to be. I'm not sure how Sweden
is.
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Headline Checkmate From  Carin (Sweden)
Date 2004-06-03 15.47 I do agree about what
michael says when children have to become audults
with responsibuility. You wondered if it is the
same in sweden... And it is... We become like
small adults when we do our parents jobs and we
have to take much more responsibuility of our
actions... Íts important to hold on to the fact
that children has to be children for a long
time... As an adult you have to teach them what
is right or wrong in this world but also teach
them that we are all the same, no matter what
colour our skin is..
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Headline Checkmate From  Anna (Sweden)
Date 2004-06-03 15.52 but the problem is
that every parent have different ideas of what is
right and wrong and you can\t stop them from
bringing up their children in the way that they
consider is the right way, even if it is terribly
wrong to you and me.
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The End For more explanation of my theory of
semiotic critique, please see the following
sources Myers, J. (1995). Moving readers'
response into cultural critique. Teaching and
Learning Literature, 4(5), May/June, 3-7. Myers,
J., Hammett, R. McKillop, A.M. (1998).
Opportunities for Critical Literacy/Pedagogy in
Student Authored Hypermedia. In D. Reinking,
L. Labbo, M. McKenna, R. Kieffer (Editors)
Literacy for the 21st century Technological
transformations in a post-typographic world,
63-78. Mahwah, New Jersey Lawrence Erlbaum
Associates, Inc. Myers, J. (2002). Semiotic
Assumptions in the Social Practice of Critical
Literacy. In L. Semali, Ed., Transmediation in
the classroom A Semiotics-Based Media
Literacy Framework, 133-148. New York Peter
Lang Publishers.