Every program in our school library should be centered on books. Yes, we need to incorporate technology, but with a purpose—and not at the cost of ­eliminating books.

Books are not outdated, reading is not outdated, and learning is not outdated. So when I decided to incorporate more technology in the library, it made sense to find ways to incorporate tech into my Read Woke initiative, too.

Tech Woke emerged.
 

Tech Woke is:

• Using technology to help solve social justice issues

• Literacy-based activities infused with technology

• Using technology tools to complete a literacy-based activity

• Digital citizenship

Using the Read Woke books, I have created lessons and activities to help make our teens more tech savvy.
 

Book-related apps

I once asked one of my Muslim students how she keeps up with what foods are halal to eat and not. She told me there’s an app for that. You can scan the barcode on your phone, and it will tell you if the food is halal. I thought that was amazing and wondered if we could solve some of our characters’ problems with an app. Students had to create Woke apps based on a character’s needs. This motivated them to read with a purpose.

In addition, the student must be aware of the social justice issues and find ways to address them. One of my students read Dear Martin by Nic Stone. He felt that if the schools received better funding, Justyce wouldn’t have to attend a private school and could attend a local school instead. The student created an app that allows taxpayers to decide where their dollars are spent.
 

Virtual protest signs

At a conference, Joyce Valenza introduced me to Walk Woke, an online tool that allows users to create an online protest sign. This is a great way to integrate technology with social justice issues, and students can share the signs on social media. It is the perfect activity to assess students’ knowledge of the main idea or the books and allows students to create.

Creating protest signs also offered me the opportunity to teach students about the history of protest signs and their importance in historical movements around the world. I have also used the drawing tool on Nearpod to help students share their signs.
 

Video book reviews

My students created Read Woke book reviews using Flipgrid. The online video sharing tool lets them record videos about their books and share them on a secure platform.
 

Digital citizenship

Through Tech Woke, I also teach students about digital citizenship. Our school district recently released videos and quizzes on the topic. I decided to incorporate this into Tech Woke and provide students with a digital citizenship badge upon completion.

I want to make sure my students are informed and aware. It is imperative that students learn how to use technology ethically. They also need to be able to identify inaccurate content. Using Tech Woke, I can teach my students to be more ­socially conscious online while sharing books that give voice to the voiceless and challenge the status quo.