Changing Perspectives for the 21st Century

A changing perspective on education for deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) students in the 21st century must incorporate a focus on digital literacy and computational thinking. Digital literacy refers to the skills required to digitally work with information (i.e., communicate, disseminate, create, manage), to use Internet-based tools (i.e., web browsers, Internet search engines, email), and to present information clearly (e.g., using spreadsheets). Computational thinking refers to problem-solving using cognitive processes like representing and organizing data, working with algorithms, analyzing information, and generalizing solutions that can be applied to multiple areas of learning. In an era when many hearing digital natives use digital tools for complex activities at school and home, there is a noticeable void of similar behaviors by DHH students. This chapter explores issues surrounding the need for a changed perspective for the 21st century and a rationale for including digital literacy and computational thinking in deaf education classrooms.