Introduction

Social skills defined in literature as the “ability to interact with others in a given social
context in specific ways that are socially acceptable or va;ued and at the same time personally
beneficial, mutually beneficial, or primarily beneficial with others.”

Intended Learning Outcomes

At the end of the lesson the students are expected to:

1. develop understanding of the working definition of social literacy;

2. explain the roles of parents and teachers in teaching social skills to children; and
3. discuss and examine issues in social literacy.

Discussion

SOCIAL LITERACY

Social literacy concerns itself with the development of social skills, knowledge and
positive human values that enable human beings to act positively and responsibly in complex
social settings. It is the knowledge of how to behave and treat people in a way that is morally
upright, just, and equitable, with a view of promoting positive and productive relations that
are free from unfair prejudices, hate, and discrimination.

● By morally upright, we refer to thoughts, speech, actions, and motivations that adhere
to a standard of right and wrong.
● Just refers to speech, actions, and behaviors that are in-line with a fixed standard of
justice - a system that promotes and rewards good and at the same time punishes
wrongdoing. Any system of justice, whether national, regional, or local, requires a
body of rules or laws by which to measure and administer rewards and punishments.
● Equitable are the speech, actions, behaviors, and decisions that treat others fairly,
regardless of background or circumstances. Not to be confused with equality, which
connotes a fixed standard of treatment for all people, equity seeks the good of others,
and labors to find means by which everyone gets “what they need” rather than simply
“everyone gets the same thing in the same amount.”

In the statement of Arthur, Davidson and Stow (2000), peers and schools play a formative
role on the social skills development of children. These social skills are often expressed as
consisting of three interrelated components: social perception, social recognition, and social
performance.

There are several types of social skills that must be mastered for a child to be socially
adept. These range from the ability to initiate, maintain, and end of a conversation to reading
social signals to more complex skills such as solving problems and resolving conflict
(Lawson, 2003).

Module 3 (week 5-6): Social Literacy

 The following represent some of the fundamental principles of relating well to others.
Children with social skills deficits can be taught these skills directly by parents, teachers,
and/or professionals using the strategies of modeling, role-playing, rehearsal, and practice.

1. Greetings – children develop relationships with peers by interacting with them. The
first step in a social interaction is greeting someone. Greeting others is done not only
with words but with facial expressions, tone of voice, and gestures such as a nod or a
wave. The nonverbal part of greeting someone is just as important as the words. It is
not so much what one says but how he/she says it that lets people know he/she is glad
to see them.
2. Initiating Conversation – in order to carry on a conversation, a child must be able to
initiate, maintain and close conversation appropriately. This requires good listening
and attention skills, as well as the ability to take turns for missing information. Being
a good conversationalist requires turn-taking and reciprocity. Children have to listen
as well as talk.
3. Understanding the listener – once a conversation is initiated, it has to be maintained.
In order to do that, it is important to understand the audience one is talking to. A
socially adept child quickly and unconsciously identifies and categorizes his listener,
measures what he/she has planned to say against the anticipated response of the
listener, and then proceeds, alters, or avoids what she has planned to say. To do this a
child must pretend that he/she is the listener and think about what he/she needs to hear
to understand what is being said.
4. Empathizing - empathy is more than perspective taking; it means that one is able to
feel what the other person feels. Empathy allows one to really connect with other
people. Other children often think of children who lack empathy as mean, unkind, or
self-centered.
5. Reading social cues – it is very important to read social cues in a conversation. Cues
are the hints and signals that guide us to the next thing to say or do. Social cues can be
verbal or nonverbal. Verbal cues are the words that another person is saying. Tone of
voice is an important part of verbal cues. Good detectives pay very close attention to
nonverbal cues.
6. Previewing or Planning – conversations also require that one previews or thinks
about what effect the words or actions may have on the listener before she says or
does them. If the impact will be negative, one can adjust what she might say or do.
7. Problem Solving – problems and conflict are often a part of social interactions.
Someone may not agree, get angry, insult, or become aggressive at something that one
says. How one reacts to these conflicts depends on how good her problem solving
skills are. Conflicts cannot be avoided and are often necessary to “clear the air.”
Turning a conflict from a “win-lose” situation to a “win-win” situation is the best way
to resolve conflict. This requires negotiation and compromise, give and take that
results in a situation where all parties can live with and help maintain friendships.
8. Apologizing – everyone makes social mistakes at one time or another. A person with
good social skills is confident enough to make a sincere apology for her error. This is
a courageous act and is the quickest and easiest way to correct a social blunder.
Apologizing is a sign of humble and mature character when one commits mistakes.

The Role of Parents and Teachers in Teaching Social Skills to Children

Parents

Module 3 (week 5-6): Social Literacy

 Parents typically play the major role in teaching children’s social skills. Parents can
directly teach social skills by modelling, role-playing, and providing opportunities for their
child to rehearse and practice new skills.

They should encourage and praise the child for successfully using a new skill.
Professionals typically intervene only when children are having substantial social difficulty
with peers. These individuals can implement structured, guided, and effective programs that
often involve group work with peers. Children must then generalize the skills they learn in
the group to school and other personal social situations.

Teachers

Schools are the place where children spend the majority of their time with peers. It is,
therefore, a natural and perfect setting for children to learn and practice social skills. While
teachers do not have to teach a class in social skills, they can take advantage of every
opportunity to help children improve their social skills. They should be alert to teasing and
bullying and aware of children that are rejected or ignored by their peers.

They should work cooperatively with the children’s parents to prevent the
humiliation, embarrassment, and distress that befall these children. Pairing a socially inept
child with a socially adept one, involving children in cooperative instead of competitive
learning exercises, identifying and acknowledging the strengths of all children, understanding
social weaknesses, and creating an environment in which diversity is accepted and celebrated
can greatly enhance all children’s social abilities, sense of belongingness, and self-esteem,
not just in the classroom but in life as well.

Issues in Teaching Social Literacy

There are two distinct ways of answering the question on how children learn to live
socially with each other and with adults. The first view is normative and communal. From
their culture, children learn customs that provide them with a guide to act in ways that
minimize conflict. The second view is pragmatic and individualistic. The social order of
children is created by explicit and implicit agreements entered into by self-seeking
individuals to avert the worst consequences of their selfish instincts (Arthur, Davison, &
Stow, 2000).

The child in this normative view will not only know the correct behavior but will
perform the role without any need for regular, conscious reference to the rules governing it.

Teaching social literacy in schools is not easy as it appears to be due to subjective

standards of morality and inherent human capacity to judge and make excuses.

Subjective Standards of Morality

The natural outcome of postmodern philosophers is that truth and morality are
considered subjective and open to individual interpretation. This can be seen in the current,
where actions and behavioral patterns that were once considered bad have now become
acceptable – so much so that many now consider them to be even good.

Module 3 (week 5-6): Social Literacy

 When the standard of measure between good and bad changes, this gives us license to
change as well and opens the gates to all kinds of abuse. This, in effect, pulls the rug out from
under any and all attempts at true justice and equitability, since they themselves rely on a
fixed moral standard.

Many of those who insist on a subjective moral standard will be the first to demand
for a fixed moral standard when they themselves fall victim to subjective morality’s
inevitable outcome.

Human Nature

While we would all like to believe that people are inherently good, experience has
taught us that the inherent goodness of humanity is, at best, unreliable: Sometimes it is there,
often it is not. We are quick to champion the cause of moral uprightness, justice, and equity,
but balk when our words and actions come under their scrutiny.

In other words, we insist that others be judged according to a fixed moral stand, but
invoke a subjective one when our own behavior is questioned. We demand justice when we
perceive ourselves to be victims of wrongdoing, but we surround ourselves with excuses
when we do wrong. We insist that others treat us equitably, but are reluctant when treating
others with equity cost more than we expected.

Modern Age

Today’s students have grown up with the Internet that they have become inseparable
from their gadgets. Blake (2017) offers helpful reminders to young professionals in terms of
social skills in the modern age. This situation underscores the importance of educating
students in what could be called social literacy to ensure their academic and career success.

● Situational Awareness in the Workplace

While casual office attire has become the norm in many offices, job interviews typically
require more formal dress and behavior to demonstrate a level of respect. Stories prevail of
young adults showing up to interviews in casual, clothing, texting, or using phones during job
interviews or even bringing their parents with them. Such behaviors demonstrate a lack of
situational awareness about what is appropriate to do in different social circumstances.

While college classrooms or the actual office atmosphere may allow for a more casual
dress code, students need to be taught what is socially acceptable in terms of dress or
behavior for them to stand out above their colleagues. An ability to read social situations
illustrates strength to employers – quickly picking up on a client's mood or expectations in
various business or cross-cultural situations can be the difference between success and
failure.

● Social Intelligence in Technological Communication

Module 3 (week 5-6): Social Literacy

 Text-speak and technology use have affected many young people’s ability to
communicate. While email has deformalized much of the communication process, students
still need to ensure their writing denotes respect and provides enough context for professors
(or future employers) to readily respond.

In text-speak has reduced students’ ability to communicate using correct grammar.

Through studying particular communication genres and what they demand, students can learn
more about what individual situations demand in terms of the formality of communication.
For example, if a professor signs an email with “Dr. Smith,” this is a fairly good indication
that he expects to be addressed as such and not informally by his first name.

● Social Intelligence in Traditional Communication

While email has taken over as the primary method of communication, traditional modes
of discourse still exist. For example, many employers still expect cover letters in addition to
resumes, and the lack of a thank you note for a gift is often perceived as more than a simple
social oversight.

An ability to craft these types of documents illustrates an understanding of social

expectations and denotes a level of respect or appreciation. While not related to the
traditional educational canon, learning to properly write a cover letter or business letter or a
thank you card not only teaches students that these documents exist and are often necessary
but also shows them how to craft such documents, saving them time and energy.

Summary

● Social literacy concerns itself with the development of social skills, knowledge, and
positive human values that enable human beings to act positively and responsibly in a
range of complex social settings.
● Social skills range from the ability to initiate, maintain, and end a conversation to
reading social signals to more complex skills such as solving problems and resolving
conflict.
● The modern age calls for young professionals to develop situational awareness and
social intelligence in both technological and traditional communication to succeed
their academic and career endeavors.
● Peers and schools play a formative role on the social skill development of children.

Name: Date:

Course/Yr/Section: Score:

Module 3 (week 5-6): Social Literacy

Exercises

Read the questions and instructions carefully. Write your answers in the space
provided. 5 pts each.

1. Are you more of a listener or a talker? Which social skill/s do you think you need to
develop? In what ways can you develop it/them?

2. If you will become a parent or if you were a parent at this time, what would you teach
your children on social literacy? How would you teach them?

3. How do teachers educate children of social literacy nowadays? What specific content
and learning experiences are there in the curriculum that develop social literacy?

Learning Activity

Make a list of Do’s and Don'ts in the school and the workplace in relation to social
literacy. Present it creatively through an infographic. 20pts

Reflection

How do computer technology and social media affect your social skills and that
of your peers? Cite positive and negative impacts of digital technology to
communication. Write your reflection consisting of minimum 100-150 words. Be careful
about your spelling, grammar, format, and organization of ideas. (30pts)

Suggested Readings

Module 3 (week 5-6): Social Literacy

Erickson, K., & Koppenhaver, D. (2020). Teaching Students Significant Disabilities to Read
and Write. Comprehensive Literacy For All.

Resources and Additional Resources

Alata, E. & Ignacio, E. (2019). Building and enhancing new literacies across the curriculum,
first edition. Rex Book Store, INC.
Andreotti, V. (2006). Soft versus critical global citizenship education. Policy and Practice: A
Development Education Review, 3(Autumn), 45-51.
Arthur, J., Davison, J., & Stow, W. (2000). Social literacy, citizenship education, and the
national curriculum. London: Routledge Taylor & Francis Group.
Blake, C. (2017). In the age of smartphones, students need help with social literacy.
Retrieved from https://education.cu.portland.edu.
Cohen, C. (2000). Raise your child’s social IQ: stepping stones to people skills for kids.
Silver Springs, MD: Advantage Books.
Lawson, C. (2003). Social skills and school. Retrieved from https://www.cdl.org.
Oxfam. (2015). Global citizenship in the classroom – a guide for teachers. Oxford: Oxfam
GB. Retrieved from https://www.oxfam.org.

Module 3 (week 5-6): Social Literacy