Sunday, August 31, 2014
Reading & Discussion #2
Youth filmmaking is a marvelous idea! I wish it had been a common practice when i was a youth. Although I am an older and nontraditional student, i usually prefer the traditional paper and pencil way of storytelling, but not now. Now I think it is a much better way to preserve the (escpecially oral) storytelling tradition through these amazing short films. I think this medium does help to bridge a gap between those of us who have been stuck in tradition with the new tech-savvy youth we interact with daily. Once I begin my teaching career, I hope to use new types of storytelling assignments like this. Granted, I know that a lot of students do not have access to all of the latest technology, but possibly assigning group work and having each group use video equipment would be less difficult. There is so much value to allowing your students their own creative voice. This way, students could show teachers what their world looks like through audio, video, images, and their own beautifully unique talents. I think that if even an old fogy like myself can be turned on to this new way of storytelling, even the "fogiest" has a chance.
The REEL Works video I watched, by Mercedes Ortiz, showed exactly how the adolescent struggle into adulthood is shaping up these days. She gave an honest depiction of how difficult it is for students to finish high school in the 21st century. Even though it was obviously hard for her to share (as she is seen shedding tears at one point), she even gives her mother's view of her struggle to keep up with high school on high school's terms. Although she has obviously high intelligence, which she shows through her video collaboration, her words, and her images, she still has that angsty teenage rebellious side to her. I believe some of the words she chooses about high school being a waste of time are truly her way of building a wall and deflecting the true issue. One of the issues she faces is a lack of positivity at home. It is difficult to try to build yourself up when someone is consistently tearing you down. I believe another of her issues is a lack of interest in the high school curriculum. I choose to believe that Mercedes is of above-average intelligence and that the regular curriculum is failing to keep her interest. Maybe Mercedes needed an alternative curriculum in order to graduate on time.
What children learn in school and out of school are equally important. For example, if education is not valued in your home, you may not value education as a student either. I know that when I decided to go to college I was met with a lot of naysaying. My paternal grandmother did not understand why I would choose to go to more school and "put off" getting a "real job" . . . in her eyes, i was being lazy and ignorant. I was the first person (besides a great aunt, who is my educational idol) to attend college. There were not a lot of "way to go Shannon"s in my path (until i graduated, of course, then everyone was behind my decision). I wonder what a video depicting my little story might look like? I think that it would look much different today than it would have years ago when I was in the thick of it.
The REEL Works video I watched, by Mercedes Ortiz, showed exactly how the adolescent struggle into adulthood is shaping up these days. She gave an honest depiction of how difficult it is for students to finish high school in the 21st century. Even though it was obviously hard for her to share (as she is seen shedding tears at one point), she even gives her mother's view of her struggle to keep up with high school on high school's terms. Although she has obviously high intelligence, which she shows through her video collaboration, her words, and her images, she still has that angsty teenage rebellious side to her. I believe some of the words she chooses about high school being a waste of time are truly her way of building a wall and deflecting the true issue. One of the issues she faces is a lack of positivity at home. It is difficult to try to build yourself up when someone is consistently tearing you down. I believe another of her issues is a lack of interest in the high school curriculum. I choose to believe that Mercedes is of above-average intelligence and that the regular curriculum is failing to keep her interest. Maybe Mercedes needed an alternative curriculum in order to graduate on time.
What children learn in school and out of school are equally important. For example, if education is not valued in your home, you may not value education as a student either. I know that when I decided to go to college I was met with a lot of naysaying. My paternal grandmother did not understand why I would choose to go to more school and "put off" getting a "real job" . . . in her eyes, i was being lazy and ignorant. I was the first person (besides a great aunt, who is my educational idol) to attend college. There were not a lot of "way to go Shannon"s in my path (until i graduated, of course, then everyone was behind my decision). I wonder what a video depicting my little story might look like? I think that it would look much different today than it would have years ago when I was in the thick of it.
Activity 3 "Reel Works"
http://reelworks.org/videos/work-in-progress/
I really enjoyed this digital story the most of the ones I've watched. Mercedes Ortiz gives her thoughts on dropping out of high school, as well as her mother's comments, images, and poetry to explain her story. I learned through Mercedes that high school is even more difficult to contend with than it was when I was young. I also found that it is true that the more people put you down, the easier it is to believe it. i was surprised at ho derogatory and condescending her mother/caretaker is being toward her. Maybe if Mercedes had positive reinforcement she wouldn't view high school as such a waste of time; although I was happy to hear her say that she may not graduate on time, but she will graduate. Mercedes has a very strong voice in this video. She does not hold back on telling exactly what she thinks about the education system. She is a very intelligent young lady & gives hope to other youth that even if you can't finish high school on it's terms, you can still finish high school. I do believe that Mercedes has a good grasp on her culture; she shows exactly what it feels like to struggle with parental angst, the social acceptance struggle through her deconstruction of her appearance, and her own struggle with an education system that does not seem to meet her needs. These stories are a fabulous idea to give our youth a chance they may not otherwise have to share their unique voices and opinions. Although Mercedes is a latina, inner city youth, I doubt that her story differs much from even the most rural of white kids'. I think these stories a re a healthy way of depicting what struggles face all cultures. Some tend to think that certain struggles are only faced by certain ethnicities, but I chose this story because I think it tells a universal story: adolescence is a struggle.
I really enjoyed this digital story the most of the ones I've watched. Mercedes Ortiz gives her thoughts on dropping out of high school, as well as her mother's comments, images, and poetry to explain her story. I learned through Mercedes that high school is even more difficult to contend with than it was when I was young. I also found that it is true that the more people put you down, the easier it is to believe it. i was surprised at ho derogatory and condescending her mother/caretaker is being toward her. Maybe if Mercedes had positive reinforcement she wouldn't view high school as such a waste of time; although I was happy to hear her say that she may not graduate on time, but she will graduate. Mercedes has a very strong voice in this video. She does not hold back on telling exactly what she thinks about the education system. She is a very intelligent young lady & gives hope to other youth that even if you can't finish high school on it's terms, you can still finish high school. I do believe that Mercedes has a good grasp on her culture; she shows exactly what it feels like to struggle with parental angst, the social acceptance struggle through her deconstruction of her appearance, and her own struggle with an education system that does not seem to meet her needs. These stories are a fabulous idea to give our youth a chance they may not otherwise have to share their unique voices and opinions. Although Mercedes is a latina, inner city youth, I doubt that her story differs much from even the most rural of white kids'. I think these stories a re a healthy way of depicting what struggles face all cultures. Some tend to think that certain struggles are only faced by certain ethnicities, but I chose this story because I think it tells a universal story: adolescence is a struggle.
Sunday, August 24, 2014
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1TU2Sr2dMgdFck3jLCuXhqWkA1-vcMbu7ITD3_2ucnPM/edit?usp=sharing
1. I absolutely agree with Postman; without "crap-detection" and being able to see through the everyday propaganda that is our world, we are truly doing ourselves and our youth a disservice. We need to be able to understand who and what are behind our media.
2. Postman was referring to exactly this state of the world. We text more than we speak, we watch more than we act, and I believe this is exactly what he was trying to prevent-- a world that hears, but does not truly listen to what is being said. We are an overly-stimulated population.
3. Video reaction:
The first time I watched the video, I cried. So, I watched it a second time. The first time, I cried because, not only am I woman whop grew up as a little girl in that 53% who hated her appearance, but now i am going to raise a little girl who I hope falls in the other 47%. I cried because the speaker, Cameron (whose name I could not, at first, remember), was right, although I fall in the 53%, I still wear the hat of the opressor: I am white, i am blonde, i may not have thin thighs or the shiniest hair, but i am mostly what she talks about. i will never truly know what it is like to be of another race or gender, no matter how much empathy i have for others. Critical literacy is so important, so that we may understand not only who we are, but who we are sharing our world with and how that impacts all of us.
Postman, I believe, would have been the first audience member to give Cameron a stranding-ovation. She is seeking to strike down all of the opacity that is the modeling industry. She is educating us on exactly what it is like to judge by appearance alone. Although she refers to herself as being the lucky lottery-winner of a legacy, she does not necessarily mean it is a valiant one. Postman may even have gone on the stage to hug her, maybe because she is a beautiful white woman, but also because she defines what his bullshit-detector was meant to embody. She deconstructs herself in front of a live audience and what is now a multinational audience. Could you imagine the courage it took to do this?
Teaching critical literacy, not just literacy, may be the most important legacy we can bestow on our youth. In their article, "Toward Critical Media Literacy: Core concepts, debates, organizations, and policy", Douglas Kellner and Jeff Share state that, "literacies evolve and shift in response to social and cultural change and the interests of elites who control hegemonic institutions" (1). It is not only imperative to be aware of these changes, but also to be aware of who is behind those changes. We must teach our youth to be critical of all the media that is coming so rapidly toward them every second. What do the people behind these changes stand to gain . . . or lose? The authors not only focus on who is being taught, but also who is teaching. Are we, as educators, carrying in our own bias . . . sure. Everyone, no matter their age is always bringing theirown perceptions ion the door with them. that is no, however, always a bad thing. As Kellner and Share point out, "one can teach how media culture provides significant statements or insights about the social world, empowering visions of gender, race, and class or complex aesthetic structures and practices, thereby putting a positive spin on how it can provide significant contributions to education" (5). If we can use critical literacy to be constructive and not destructive, we are doing a great service to our youth. In order to deconstruct something, we do not necessarily have to be destructive about it. By that, I mean that we can unpack the meaning within a topic without having to make it mean-spirited; it is usually easier to understand a large topic when you can separate it into smaller chunks.
1. I absolutely agree with Postman; without "crap-detection" and being able to see through the everyday propaganda that is our world, we are truly doing ourselves and our youth a disservice. We need to be able to understand who and what are behind our media.
2. Postman was referring to exactly this state of the world. We text more than we speak, we watch more than we act, and I believe this is exactly what he was trying to prevent-- a world that hears, but does not truly listen to what is being said. We are an overly-stimulated population.
3. Video reaction:
The first time I watched the video, I cried. So, I watched it a second time. The first time, I cried because, not only am I woman whop grew up as a little girl in that 53% who hated her appearance, but now i am going to raise a little girl who I hope falls in the other 47%. I cried because the speaker, Cameron (whose name I could not, at first, remember), was right, although I fall in the 53%, I still wear the hat of the opressor: I am white, i am blonde, i may not have thin thighs or the shiniest hair, but i am mostly what she talks about. i will never truly know what it is like to be of another race or gender, no matter how much empathy i have for others. Critical literacy is so important, so that we may understand not only who we are, but who we are sharing our world with and how that impacts all of us.
Postman, I believe, would have been the first audience member to give Cameron a stranding-ovation. She is seeking to strike down all of the opacity that is the modeling industry. She is educating us on exactly what it is like to judge by appearance alone. Although she refers to herself as being the lucky lottery-winner of a legacy, she does not necessarily mean it is a valiant one. Postman may even have gone on the stage to hug her, maybe because she is a beautiful white woman, but also because she defines what his bullshit-detector was meant to embody. She deconstructs herself in front of a live audience and what is now a multinational audience. Could you imagine the courage it took to do this?
Teaching critical literacy, not just literacy, may be the most important legacy we can bestow on our youth. In their article, "Toward Critical Media Literacy: Core concepts, debates, organizations, and policy", Douglas Kellner and Jeff Share state that, "literacies evolve and shift in response to social and cultural change and the interests of elites who control hegemonic institutions" (1). It is not only imperative to be aware of these changes, but also to be aware of who is behind those changes. We must teach our youth to be critical of all the media that is coming so rapidly toward them every second. What do the people behind these changes stand to gain . . . or lose? The authors not only focus on who is being taught, but also who is teaching. Are we, as educators, carrying in our own bias . . . sure. Everyone, no matter their age is always bringing theirown perceptions ion the door with them. that is no, however, always a bad thing. As Kellner and Share point out, "one can teach how media culture provides significant statements or insights about the social world, empowering visions of gender, race, and class or complex aesthetic structures and practices, thereby putting a positive spin on how it can provide significant contributions to education" (5). If we can use critical literacy to be constructive and not destructive, we are doing a great service to our youth. In order to deconstruct something, we do not necessarily have to be destructive about it. By that, I mean that we can unpack the meaning within a topic without having to make it mean-spirited; it is usually easier to understand a large topic when you can separate it into smaller chunks.
Kellner, D., & Share, J. (2005). Toward critical media literacy: Core concepts, debates, organizations, and policy. Discourse: studies in the cultural politics of education, 26(3), 369-386.
My World
1. Teaching media literacy is so important because everyone interacts with media on a daily basis. That media may come in the form of print, video, audio and a myriad of other venues. Teaching to decode that media is what is the most important, so that we are and raise a culture that can intelligently interpret what is going on in our environment. 2. I want to learn different different ways to deconstruct media and as many different perceptions and interpretations of that media as possible. 3. I am concerned that I do not know enough about the CREATION of digital media to compete on a professional, educational, or knowledgeable level. I hope to gain much-needed valuable insight from this course, not only from the professor, but also from my classmates. 4. Assignments are usually due in this course by Sundays at 11:59 p.m. 5. If an assignment is going to be late, you must contact the professor within 24 hours of missing the deadline. partial credit can be given, but not if you do not contact the professor within that 24 hour mark. 6. The best way to contact the professor is via her gmail account. 7. You should not work ahead in this course, as assignment details may change.
Hello! I am Shannon DeWitt. I am a single mother & full-time graduate student. I live in Clarksburg & was raised in this area. I have lived in several WV cities and in South Carolina for a number of years. This class seems very interesting & challenging & I hope to gain knowledge in digital literacy ( as an older/non-traditional student, there are times that I feel very technologically illiterate lol). I hope this class will be as interesting & fun as this first assignment has been! Cheers, all!
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)