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Multilingualism and Multimodality in Language Use and Literacies in Digital Environments

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Language, Education and Technology

Part of the book series: Encyclopedia of Language and Education ((ELE))

Abstract

This chapter focuses on language, discourse, and literacy practices in contemporary informal digital environments. We will discuss work in sociolinguistics, new literacies, and discourse studies that have investigated multilingual and multimodal aspects of digitally mediated practices. Moving from early key developments in the field via major contributions of the early 2000s to current work in progress, we review key studies that have explored the interconnections of multilingualism, multimodality, new literacies, and digital environments in different ways. Finally, we briefly discuss the implications of informal, interest-driven digital literacy practices to focal societal issues such as learning and challenges of compatibility and adaptability of informally acquired competences in formal education and everyday life – as well as issues of equality and digital divide(s).

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Note that Danet and Herring (2007) is an edited volume, an updated and upgraded version of a special issue in the Journal of Computer Mediated Communication published in 2003. Thus, it represents pioneering work done in the first years of the new millennium.

  2. 2.

    These themes have also been addressed in collaborative work by Carmen Lee and David Barton.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Jyväskylä, Jyväskylän yliopisto, Finland

    Sirpa Leppänen, Samu Kytölä & Elina Westinen

Authors
  1. Sirpa Leppänen
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  2. Samu Kytölä
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  3. Elina Westinen
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Correspondence to Sirpa Leppänen .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Portland, Oregon, USA

    Steven Thorne

  2. Faculty of Education, University of Auckland, School of Critic, Auckland, New Zealand

    Stephen May

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Leppänen, S., Kytölä, S., Westinen, E. (2017). Multilingualism and Multimodality in Language Use and Literacies in Digital Environments. In: Thorne, S., May, S. (eds) Language, Education and Technology. Encyclopedia of Language and Education. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-02328-1_9-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-02328-1_9-1

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