Assimilating and Accommodating

My article is entitled From assimilation to accommodation: a developmental framework for integrating digital technologies into literacy research and instruction by David Reinking and Linda Labbo. As we are all familiar with the two words, assimilation and accommodation, the Reinking and Labbo addresses that these two words play an important role in the processes of bringing in new forms of literacy, aside from print literacy. According to the two authors, assimilation is the process where we accept new information and try to combine the new information with our existing knowledge without any changes. On the other hand, accommodation is referred as the process of changing existing knowledge to fit new information. Reinking and Labbo emphasize these two words because there are many different ways that literacy could be taught and learned, especially using digitals and technologies in literacy. They address the difference and importance of assimilating technology and accommodating technology. Nowadays, technologies are used in the classrooms as important teaching and learning tools. But the article states that “literacy educators have, for the most part, tended to see new digital technologies first as a novelty (or nuisance) and gradually as a potentially useful tool for refining or extending what they have done all along (112).” Now, knowing that digital technologies are useful tools in teaching, many educators have been abusing it. They have focused too much on using digital technologies that they are not assimilated but actually accommodated into learning. An example that Reinking and Labbo mention is the computer, especially in literacy. The computer, like drill-and-practice computer games and word processing, should be assimilated into lessons, so that they become more like a “reward” after completing their assigned materials. But, students and teachers rely too much on it that learning literacy through books, prints, writing, and reading, has been changed to using computers as the main source.

The article pinpoints important issues that are occurring today on assimilating and accommodating technology into our teaching and learning. But most importantly, the focus should be on technology as a reference tool and an additional learning tool, rather than relying too much and changing the existing structures, thinking that it is attracting and helpful to students. On the other hand, I think it is also important to consider the various technologies and “assimilate” it into the classrooms rather than ignoring the changes going on. Teachers should be “up-to-date” but also need to be wise in deciphering what to assimilate and what to accommodate.