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Multimodal Literacy
Let's get you started with a few key concepts!
Multimodality vs Multiliteracies
Did you know that multimodality and multiliteracies are interlinked despite them being independent concepts? Multimodality is about understanding how each semiotic mode makes meaning independently and in combination (Lim & Tan, 2018). Multiliteracies focus on developing students into discerning readers who have the ability to view multimodal texts critically and represent their ideas effectively through multimodal production (Liang & Lim, 2020).
As such, multimodal literacy is about the choices made across semiotic resources to “fulfill the purposes of the text, the audience and context, and how those choices work together in the organization and development of information and ideas” (Lim & Tan, 2017).
How does this affect how we teach?
There has been a greater emphasis on the need for students to develop broad repertoires of literacy practices, such as the exposure to texts that are multimodal in nature, which are not confined to the traditional ability of reading and writing (Cope & Kalantzis, 2009). This challenges the conventional paradigm of verbal and nonverbal communication, where language is typically privileged as the dominant semiotic resource. As such, this demands that the English curriculum “assume a more facilitative and all-encompassing persona” (Chan, Chia & Choo, 2017), which warrants the need for schools and teachers to integrate the teaching and learning of critical literacy skills into the curriculum.
Key changes made in the syllabus
Singapore’s Ministry of Education English Language Syllabus has broadened its focus to include viewing and representing as aspects of language learning in recognition of the importance of multimodal literacy (Lim, 2018).
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