What are your thoughts?
I have listed countless benefits to how technology can be useful and enhance the education and learning for today's society, but is it too extreme at times? Life can pass you by if you indulge and surround yourself with too much of anything and technology is not an exception. Balancing the uses of technology is something that should not only be stressed within a classroom but it also relevant to the real world. What are your thoughts?
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By reviewing the class Important Book that was created in our fourth week of MDL4000, it is fun to look at our ideas and opinions at the beginning of the course and how they have expanded to today. We have learned so much information about the digital world that I can confidently say, I have MANY Web 2.0's that I cannot wait to share in my classroom. Sherry Turkle touched on how our little devices that are in our pockets are so physiologically powerful that they don't only change what we do, but they change who we are. Technology is overpowering regular day tasks and creating a new norm, where technology is the centre of attention in situations where we would have never considered it appropriate a few years ago. For example. at the dinner table. Check out the video below... What are your thoughts? I definitely agree that technology is over powering society and more often than not people are spending the majority of their time on social media..but does that call for a technology time out? Maybe a technology reroute. Showing children the any alternatives that technology can be used for to educate them on many topics and situations, alternatives that are often hidden in the technology world. Response 3 How might new media and participatory culture be applied to your teaching practice? Why will concepts relevant to social media and participatory classroom cultures enhance teaching and learning with/about media and digital literacies Media is constantly evolving within society and opening new doors for educators and students to access an abundance of information that will enhance their learning, however, cultural competencies and socials skills need to be fully involved in order for participation to be developed. It has become apparent that schools are struggling to evolve into the emergence of participatory culture and it is often after-school programs and informal learning communities that are creating the biggest change, devoting time to these new media literacies. (Jenkins et. al., 2009, pp. xiii). Nowadays “participatory culture shifts the focus of literacy from individual expression to community involvement…the new literacies almost always involve social skills developed through collaboration and networking” (Jenkins et. al., 2009, pp. xiii). It is very important to recognize this need for collaboration with new media and how it can be implemented within teaching practices and classrooms to create successful learners. MDL4000 has shown us future educators first hand how new media and participatory culture can be implemented within the classroom to enhance students’ learning. Students can use technology to support their thinking and express themselves in a creative, personal way. Not only are there thousands of apps and web 2.0’s that students can use to create projects, do research or simply engage with other students sharing ideas and work, these technologies can be used by the teacher to bring new experiences to the classroom. Technology can be used within any subject and can enrich the content of the curriculum in ways that have never been possible in the past. After hearing about all the technology opportunities I intend to bring many of them into my classroom. One of them being Twitter, and having an account where I can post all the cool things my students are working on, keeping parents and colleagues informed. After hearing how you can use Google Hangouts to bring an explorer or photographer into the classroom is absolutely inspiring, I cannot wait to bring these opportunities to my future students. Social media can be used to have two classes interact with one another, or to simply keep parents informed on the projects and activities the students are working on. Having virtual pen pals with another class and eventually meeting them on Google Hangouts. We as teachers need to jump out of our comfort zones and explore the different social media sites and learn to adapt to the quickly evolving digital world. This may be something as simple as a class blog or website that is both teacher and student led, teachers and students can work together to become digitally literate. With guidance, supervision and safety regulations/talks, students can explore social media to take their learning to the next level. These relevant concepts and “new literacies almost all involve social skills developed through collaboration and networking…these skills build on the foundation of traditional literacy and research, technical, and critical-analysis skills learned in the classroom” (Jenkins et. al., 2009, pp. xiii). New skills such as: play, performance, simulation, appropriation, multitasking, distributed cognition, collective intelligence, judgment, transmedia navigation, networking, and negotiation. (Jenkins et. al., 2009, pp. xiv). Educators should not fear away from these new literacies, we should jump into the participatory culture and be appreciative of its opportunities and resources it has to offer. Response 4
How might digital storytelling be applied to your teaching practice? Why will concepts relevant to digital storytelling enhance teaching and learning with/about media and digital literacies and digital citizenship? We as new teachers are able to walk into a classroom with the benefit of having an abundance of tools within our tool belts that will enhance the learning of our students. We were taught through paper and pencil when we were in elementary school and we are now being introduced to how technology can be used to not only enhance the students’ ability to learn, but allow them to activate their own knowledge and have the students teach themselves and grow. After taking MDL4000 and learning all the different technologies that can and should be incorporated into our classroom, I am aware of SO many web 2.0 softwares and tools that I will take with me into the many classrooms I visit and lead. Storytelling is an ancient form of teaching that has been used by many teachers over the course of history, “Nowadays, technology has given us a new twist to this ancient teaching method” (Tolisano, 2010, pp. 5). Not only can I use already created digital stories to show my students all the amazing things that can be shared within the classroom because of technology, but students can use web 2.0 tools to create their own digital stories. Having the ability to share other creations of stories to my students, will enhance their creative thinking and allow them to see the endless possibilities that can be created using media resources. Students can make a connection within media and use it as a tool to help them with other subjects and help them express themselves in ways they never thought possible. Using iMovie to share pictures of their favourite vacation, using Mindomo to organize their thoughts for a project, or using Google Hangouts or Google Docs to communicate with members of a group project, are simple ways that can enhance our old ways of creating projects, with ease and convenience. Allowing students to interact with technology in a hands on fashion will allow them to become digital literate in a society that is quickly evolving to digital dependence. Relevant concepts such as understanding and knowing that “technologies that await us in the future is that we will find ways to tell stories with them” (Ohler, 2013, pp. 3). We need to allow students to become a digital citizen and use technologies is ways that we cannot imagine. Student and teachers need learn from one another, when it comes to technology we as teachers need to recognize that we may not be the expert in the room at all times. Letting the students bring their ideas and helping them achieve what they ave envisioned will create digital competence within a classroom. Digital storytelling allows students to get creative in a personal way. Every student may be using the same program but every story and project will be unique in the end, thats the beauty of digital storytelling—uniqueness! Last semester, I was not as confident with learning the many media tools and techniques that can be implemented within classrooms and I did not take the risks I would have liked to take within my grade 6 placement class. I was in a classroom that did not use technology and media to their advantage and I wish I would have tried to introduce some myself. After experiencing, hands on, the many tools and websites that are out there, I feel confident that I will use technology within my next classroom. Introducing my students to the many tools I have had the incredible opportunity to be introduced to within MDL4000. Try these web 2.0's to help your students create digital stories: Storybird SlideShare VoiceThread Wordle Storyboard THAT Little Bird Tales References Jenkins, H., Purushotma, R., Weigel, M., Clinton, K., & Robison, A. J. (2009). Confronting the challenges of participatory culture: Media education for the 21st century. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press. Ohler, J. B. (2013). Digital storytelling in the classroom: New media pathways to literacy, learning, and creativity. Thousand Oaks,, California: A SAGE Company. Tolisano, S. R. (2010). How - To - Guide Digital storytelling tools for educators. S.l.: Creative Commons. Access:
SlideShare is a web 2.0 service where slides of multiple formats can be shared both publicly, as well as privately for many to see. It as created in 2006 with hopes for offices and employees to be able to share presentations with one another with ease and convenience, but having similar features as YouTube it quickly became a host site for many slides to be uploaded strictly entertainment. The entertainment component became popular when LinkedIn took over in 2012. The site itself does not require any downloading for a user to gain access. However, if one wishes to see all that the site has to offer it is essential that they create an account, but unlike most sites you are shown limited information before they register. SlideShare can also be viewed on mobile devices (which does require a download, but is in fact free). Just like any other website that requires an account and allows you to post, share and view other users information, there are privacy agreements that must be taken into consideration. An advantage to this site, is the privacy agreements are not hidden, yes, they aren't broadcasted but they were very easy to find. Located at the bottom where the many sites link their administrative equipment, the privacy policy is laid out and set up to be an easy read and includes useful information. Check it out.. SlideShare Privacy Policy . Analyze: SlideShare is a web tool that can be used for any and all ages, keeping in mind that some may need some supervision or guidance. It is a site that allows its users to access a magnitude of information, while having the benefit of searching through genres. As I searched through this site, it has quickly become apparent to me that it has a way to rope you in. Before going on the site, I must ask myself…what have I came here to find? Am I here for work or pleasure? This will allow me to ensure that I do not get sucked into the vortex of endlessly searching through countless slides. Which is not a bad thing, this site has an abundance of information that can have the users stumbling upon information they didn't even go looking for. This can be used to get ideas from other presentations that may have been done on a similar topic, it can be used in the classroom as an example of what a good/bad presentation looks like, or it can be used to share a presentation you have made and receive feedback and review from others. This site definitely adds value to my digital presence because I can link it to my blog and twitter for future colleagues and principals to view and gain an understanding of what my work looks like and the subjects/topics I have explored and created. Create: SlideShare is compatible with a variety of different forms to ensure that users can upload their presentations with ease, the moment a user experiences confusion they will often just give up and deem the site as useless. The fact that it is easy to use and can be navigated with ease, allows its users to leave the site feeling confident and accomplished. Allowing its users to gain an understanding of what the site is, and how it works through navigating around the site and fiddling with its many options. If that is not for you…don’t stress! There is a tips and tricks and getting started page that will walk you through the site and its many amazing features. It’s many functions includes; being able to follow users and genres that you find interesting as well as being able to save, like, download, and create a clipboard of all the interesting and important presentations you have encountered while browsing. Uploading is easy, SlideShare gives you the options to upload from a variety of different locations such as Dropbox, Google Drive, OneDrive, Box or a Link. When you upload a presentation, the presentation is shared and given access to 70 million people, where you have the ability to receive comments and feedback. Reflect: SlideShare can be used within the classroom not only for students to see other presentations but to also analyze and dissect those presentations to learn how to make a successful presentation. The students can then share their presentations (depending on subject/topic), for others to see and for their peers to have access to. It would be most successful in the junior and above grades, but can still be looked at an navigated through in the primary level. At the primary level the students can begin to explore some of the basic slides, or simply the teacher can implement it into their lectures, exploring some of the primary-friendly slides. This can be an asset to my professional, digital presence, giving me the opportunity to share the slideshows I create and the topics I am passionate about. I could also use SlideShare to share my students’ work (with their permission). Now that I have had the opportunity to explore this web 2.0 I will begin to use it to my advantage and utilize it. From now on, I intend to upload any project I complete, not only to keep a record of it and have access to it in later years but as well as being able to build that digital repertoire along the way. Take Action: SlideShare is a web 2.0 that I found on the Periodic Table of Elements specifically for a media assignment, creating an account to learn its entirety. Although I am a new user, this will become an asset and tool that I will continue to use to create a foundation within the digital world, branching out to the multiple tools it has to offer. I encourage you to check it out, explore and engage all it has to offer. Let this be the start to you getting out of your comfort zone and trying a social media site that is on the rise to becoming more popular. Begin your digital repertoire!
What? Together Sarah and I created an awesome infographic that is based the tuition fees of undergraduate studies across Canada, a subject that is interesting to use both. We were given the opportunity to explore many different sites that allowed us to fiddle around with many different forms of media to create a piece that was meaningful to us. It is an awesome tool that is very beneficial to be used within the classroom.
We played around with many different subjects. One being, why chocolate ice cream is better than vanilla.. Sarah obviously is lacking great taste because vanilla is 100% BETTER than chocolate—YUCK! Another option we debated on was why Game of Thrones is the best show ever…again, another downfall to Sarah, the BEST SHOW EVER is obviously Friends. Coffees we have had this week was annoootthhherrr option. But I’m sure you've guessed it. Sarah disagrees with tea being the best beverage to walk this earth! Believe it or not… we came to an agreement on tuition fees because I love geography and Sarah loves any opportunity to protest for social justice. So What? Having this opportunity to explore awesome sites such as BigHugeLabs and Fake-azine to make a magazine cover was a lot of fu because I was able to make a cover that is unique and creative. This is a useful tool that teachers can implement into their classrooms to encourage their students to think critically about what words they have chosen to include on their magazine cover. Within media, these covers communicate messages to the intended audience using symbols and informational texts. Students can gain an understanding as to the terms and techniques that are used to construct successful advertisements that are essential media skills for students to understand. Now What? Even though it took Sarah and I a few debates to agree on a topic, this one worked out to be the best because all of our Media Literacy peers can relate to the information presented. All of our peers pay these tuition fees. This infographic was easy to make, is appealing and it’s great because you can interact with it and compare the results. After taking The Digital Learning Horoscope my results were bang on as to how I feel with regards to the way I think that students should be taught. I want students to be pulled towards the media that fancies THEM, not the media that is the ‘coolest’ or on the ’10 Rising Social Networks You Should Explore’. They should be encouraged to find alternative ways to be creative and think about media, encouraged to stray away from the conventional media sources that are so prominent in society today. Motivating them to be independent and allow their creativity to take them in whatever direction that may be.During my experience at Lakehead University I am partaking in a Media Literacy course in which I have had the opportunity to learn and challenge myself with new technologies. Animoto is a website that allows students to create short videos about anything they want. It is an extremely user friendly website that allows a first time user to adapt easily and create a piece of work that they will be proud of. With endless creative abilities, each student is able to create a video that is unique to them.
Here is my Animoto introducing my family. The photos will give you an idea of the crazy family that I get to call MINE! Within media literacy there are a variety of concepts and components that allow for the term to have many different interpretations and scopes; which is a very similar trait to the media and technology as a whole. With technology advancing faster than anticipated there are new forms of communication being presented more often. Being able to be literate within the media community will allow for people to broaden their horizons and increase their knowledge. Media plays a role in everyones day to day life, its ubiquitous presence conveys many messages that are often crucial not only through a persons social life but also professional and leisure. This day and age, society is slowly straying away form old forms of communication such as print and moving towards a relatively new ideology in which information can be mass publicized. The dependance on television, radio, and the internet is increasing quickly and efficiently. This means if one is not literate within the media field they may have to take more exhausting measures to obtain the same amount of information. With technology advancing ever so quickly it makes the most sense to use it to your advantage, one can simply learn more efficiently with the access to so many tools and information very easily. According to the Oxford English Dictionary the term literacy can be defined as “the quality or state of being literate, especially the ability to read and write”, but also describing it to refer to a person’s knowledge within a particular subject. (Dictionary Online, 2010). This shows that literacy is far more broad than the ability to read and write; literacy can mean a multiple different things for any given field. Media literacy in particular has different meanings to different people, their perspectives can depend on many aspects including: experiences, accessibility to technology, age, and culture. Media literacy, to me, is the ability to not only understand the capabilities that technology and media has to offer, but rather understanding how to use them and using them to your advantage. I believe that with technology making a relatively new appearance within society and education, the younger generations will be brought up being media literate and doing great things with media and technology in the future. Media is constantly evolving and becoming a dominant resource within society and education; a dominance that will make media literacy more aware within society.
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