Digital Literacies and Text Structure Instruction

In considering the intersection of digital texts and reading comprehension, teachers now need strategies and instructional tools that promote deep, critical thinking of multimedia text. One area of literacy instruction that can increase students' reading comprehension of multimedia texts comes with understanding, analyzing, and evaluating text structures. As a first step to understanding what research says about integrating text structures with digital literacies, the researchers conducted a systematic literature review of articles published between January 1, 2000 and December 31, 2017. While new literacies, visual literacies, and other digital media show increased prominence in education, the researchers identified only eight studies focusing on how text structures are unique to digital content. In the present chapter, the researchers analyze benefits and new language demands presented by these studies. Additionally, the researchers discuss implications for teacher practice and pedagogy when intersecting text structure instruction with digital literacies.