Examining the Use of Technology and Non-Traditional Texts in the Contemporary ELA Classroom

Abstract

Abstract In today’s educational climate, it is more prevalent than ever to take into consideration the texts and mediums that we include in our ELA curriculums and also how we utilize technology to transform student learning. The use of multimodal and non-traditional texts in classrooms has been widely controversial among ELA educators and legislators. The value of these texts, whether they be in the form of video or film, graphic narratives, podcasts, tweets, memes, infographics, etc., is being evaluated against the common core and state standards, and what skills students in the ELA classroom should be learning. This paper evaluates these non-traditional texts as educational tools, and examines how they are being used to scaffold, supplement, and transform methods of best teaching practice. Keywords: multimodal, non-traditional, technology, education, teaching