Chapter 3: Social Literacy

Social Literacy
Objectives

At the end of the chapter, you should be able to:

 Develop understanding of the working definition of social literacy;

 Explain the roles of parents and teachers in teaching social skills to children; and
 Discuss and examine issues in social literacy

In this chapter, you will get a deeper understanding on social literacy. Everybody has a social
skit. It is applied when we communicate and interact with each other. Since we, human beings, are
sociable creatures, we have developed several ways to send our messages, thoughts and feelings
with others.

No man is an island. Every individual needs someone to live. You can’t stay in this planet earth
if you have no skills in communicating with others. Everyone has to communicate and be connected
with others. We may not know that what we are already socially literate but the way we do things
shows that we are.

Based on the thoughts mentioned above, how well are you when it comes to social literacy?
How do you deal with other people? Is social literacy needed to be understood thoroughly?

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 range of complex social
settings. It is the knowledge of how to behave and treat other 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 the thought, speech, actions, and motivations that adhere to a
standard of right and wrong. On the other hand, just refer 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

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same time punishes wrongdoing. Any systems of justice, whether national, regional, or local,
requires a body of rules or laws by which to measure and administer rewards and punishment.
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.”

Peers and schools play a formative role on the social skills development of children. These social
skills are often expressed as consisting of three inter-related components: social perception, social
cognition and social performance (Arthur, Davison, & Stow, 2000). Increasing emphasis has been
placed on the last component, particularly in terms of outcomes. Social skill is defined in literature
as the ability to interact with others in a given social context in specific ways that are socially
acceptable or valued and at the same time personally beneficial mutually beneficial, or primarily
beneficial to others.

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 a conversation to reading social signals to
more complex skills such as solving problems and resolving conflict (Lawson, 2003). The following
examples represent some of the fundamental principles of relating well to others. Children with
social skill deficits can be taught these skills directly by parents, teachers, and/or professionals using
the strategies of modeling, role-playing, rehearsal and practice.

 Greeting – 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 like “Hi”
or “How are you?” 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.
 Initiating Conversation - In order to carry on a conversation, a child must enable to initiate,
maintain and close conversation appropriately. This requires good listening and attention skills
as well as the ability to take turns and probe for missing information. Being a good
conversationalist requires turn-taking and reciprocity. Children have to listen as well as talk. If
they do not show an interest in what the other person has to say, they probably will not be
interested in talking. Impulsive children often have trouble knowing when to talk and when to
listen.
 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. He/She knows that talking to authority figures is not done
in the same way when talking to peers. A misread of the listener often leads to a misunderstood
message and potential social rejection. To converse in a socially appropriate manner, children
must be able to take the perspective or point of view of the other person, i.e. think the way they
think. 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.

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 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.
 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 think to say or do. Social cues can be verbal or
nonverbal. Verbal cues are the words that the other person is saying. Tone of voice is an
important part of verbal cues. Good detectives pay very close attention to nonverbal cues.
 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.
 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 all help
maintain friendships.
 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. In reality, other people usually
have a higher opinion of someone who apologizes for making a mistake. 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 typically play the major role in teaching children social skills. Parents can directly teach
social skills by modeling, 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 reflective 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.

School is the place where children spend the majority of their time with peers. It is, therefore, a
naturel 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. Paring 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.

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Issues in Teaching Social Literacy

How children develop their social literacy is intrinsically a contextual matter and is not something that
can be easily traced in a linear or development fashion. The acquisition of social literacy is a complex
process that is historically and culturally conditioned and context-specific. Children learn through social
practices, both explicit and implicit, and become human through social interaction. Nevertheless, it is
also the case that children engage in social activity before they taught it; in other words, children are
disposed to be social before they learn what sociability is all about.

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,
David, & Stow, 2000). In this last view, social order is dependent on sanctions and formal agreements.
Rules are obeyed because they confer personal advantage on a child. In the normative view, children
are persuaded of the moral force of acting socially through their voluntary associations with others,
both in their immediate circle, such as the family, and in the wider community, for example, through
membership of a church or club. 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 school is not as 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 philosophies is that truth and morality are considered subjective
and open to individual interpretation. This can be seen in the current culture, 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. 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. Interestingly, 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 a 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 standard, 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

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we do wrong. We insist that others treat us equitably, but are reluctant when treating others with
equity costs more than we expected.

Today’s students have grown up with the internet that they have become inseparable from their
gadgets. Blake (2017) offered 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
interviews in casual clothing, texting, or using phones during job interviews or even bringing their
parents with them. Such behavior demonstrates 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

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 or professors (or future employers) to readily respond. In
addition, 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 in the future.

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Read the questions and instructions carefully. Write/print your answers in an A4 sized bond paper.

1. Are you more of a listener or a talker? Which social skills/s do you think you need to develop?
In what ways can you develop it/them?
2. If you were a parent as this time, what would you teach your children on social literacy? How
would you teach them?
3. If you were an employer, what would you look for in aspirations or applications to your
company?
4. How do teachers educate children of social literacy nowadays? What specific content and
learning experiences are there in the curriculum that develop social literacy?

Read the questions and instructions carefully. Write/print your answers in an A4 sized bond paper.

1. How do computer technology and social media affect your social skills and that of your peers?
Cite positive and negative impacts of digital technology communication.
2. Make a list of Dos and Don’ts in the school and the workplace in relation to social literacy.

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References

Andreotti, V. (2006). Soft versus critical global citizenship education. Policy and Practice: A
Development Education Review, 3(Autumn), 40-51. Accessed on May 30, 2016 at
http://www.developmenteducationreview.com/issue3-focus4?page=show

Arthur, J., Davison, J., & Stow, W. (2000). Social literacy, citizenship education, and the national
curriculum. London: Routledge Taylor & Francis Group.

Blake, C. (2017, March 7). In the age of the smartphone, students need help with social literacy.
Retrieved from https://eduction.cu-portiand.edu/blog/classroom-resources/social-
literacy/

Cohen, C. (2000). Raise your child’s social IQ: Stepping stones to people skills for kids. Silver
Springs, MD: Advantage Books.

Lawson, C. (2003, January 1). Social skills and school. Retrieved from
https://www.call.org/articles/social-skills-and-school

Oxfam. (2015). Global citizenship in the classroom – A guide for teachers. Oxford: Oxfam GB.
Retrieved from http://www/oxfam.org.uk/education/gloval-citizenship/global-
citizenship-guides

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