A couple weeks ago I came across a video put together by three little girls--sisters who formed the group Watoto from the Nile. With the help of their father, they put together a response to Lil Wayne's music. For those of you who have not heard of Lil Wayne or who are not that familiar with the artist, here is some background information.
Lil Wayne is one of the most popular and prolific rappers right now. He is known for his exceptional freestyle/impromptu-style rapping and regularly admits to drug use, particularly while in the recording studio. In fact, in some of his songs you can actually hear him inhaling (I'll let you guess what) while rapping. Furthermore, his songs glorify drugs, sex, and the degradation of women. He has claimed in interviews that he does not pretend nor want to be a role model and that when he raps and performs he is putting on a separate persona--and that is not really him. Here is an interview with the artist illustrating this:
And here is one of his videos: the official music video for the song "Single." Warning: There is profanity and shocking lyrics/visuals.
Now that I've given some background information, it's time to move on to what is truly remarkable--that three sisters used music and video to speak out against this type of music and the way it portrays women. Here is that song, titled "Letter to Lil Wayne":
It is truly remarkable that these girls were able to do this--albeit with some help from their father--but nevertheless, their father helped them gain media literacy skills and helped the girls' voices to reach thousands if not millions of people. They were able to create and disseminate a powerful message through media--and that is no easy feat.
This example shows the importance of media literacy and teaching media literacy skills to young people, and this is just one powerful example of how adults can help children and adolescents be heard through the development of these skills.
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Understanding Media Literacy
After reading “A Review of School-based Initiatives in Media Literacy Education,” I took way the following point: “Educators have diverse and conflicting perspectives about mass media… Media literacy education has risen visibility in K-12 schools throughout the 1990s, and although still proportionately small, a growing number of school-based programs are in place at the elementary, middle, and high school levels” (43).
Defined generally as, “the ability to access, analyze, elevate and communicate messages in a wide variety of forms (Aufderheide & Firestone, 1993, p. 7) media literacy emphasizes both analyzing media and creating media. Furthermore, what was interesting to read was that many teachers discover media literacy as an instructional tool simply from trying to motivate student’s attention and interest in learning, without any awareness that a body of 25 years of scholarship and theory exists on that subject.
Applying Media literacy in the classroom, it was noted that teachers are motivated by the opportunity that media literacy offers them to help transform the culture of the classroom and the school onto a place where student’s voices are valued and respected, where classroom learning is linked to the student’s lived experience, where students can develop the confidence to express themselves in wide variety of forms using language, imagery, and multimedia technology.
Lastly, Media literacy education has entered the K-12 world through many portals, including English language arts, social studies, fine arts, library-skills and educational technology, vocational education, and health education.
Thus, Media literacy in the United States is emerging not only from statewide or school districts initiatives but also from the bottom-up energy of individual teachers who value the way that using media, technology, and popular culture improves the quality of student motivation, self-expression.
Overall, I was able to gain an appreciation for how Media literacy can be used by teachers and educational alike.
Defined generally as, “the ability to access, analyze, elevate and communicate messages in a wide variety of forms (Aufderheide & Firestone, 1993, p. 7) media literacy emphasizes both analyzing media and creating media. Furthermore, what was interesting to read was that many teachers discover media literacy as an instructional tool simply from trying to motivate student’s attention and interest in learning, without any awareness that a body of 25 years of scholarship and theory exists on that subject.
Applying Media literacy in the classroom, it was noted that teachers are motivated by the opportunity that media literacy offers them to help transform the culture of the classroom and the school onto a place where student’s voices are valued and respected, where classroom learning is linked to the student’s lived experience, where students can develop the confidence to express themselves in wide variety of forms using language, imagery, and multimedia technology.
Lastly, Media literacy education has entered the K-12 world through many portals, including English language arts, social studies, fine arts, library-skills and educational technology, vocational education, and health education.
Thus, Media literacy in the United States is emerging not only from statewide or school districts initiatives but also from the bottom-up energy of individual teachers who value the way that using media, technology, and popular culture improves the quality of student motivation, self-expression.
Overall, I was able to gain an appreciation for how Media literacy can be used by teachers and educational alike.
An Argument Against Lexile and AR
As a library assistant in the children’s department at a public library, I would like to share my repetitive and frustrating personal experience with the reading programs Lexile and Accelerated Reader.
Approximately once a week, a scenario such as this one occurs. (I’ll use AR in this example, but Lexile is often requested as well.) A mother and a boy between 3rd and 6th grade approach with a request for Accelerated Reader books at the appropriate grade level. I explain that I do not have a list of recommended books from the local schools, but I have a website I can access to look up the AR levels of books. I accompany the mother and child to the juvenile fiction section, and conduct a reference interview to determine the child’s interests. With my guidance, they pick out some books that appear to be grade level appropriate. Usually this is a combination of books the mother has chosen and some the child has chosen. The ones the child has chosen are the ones he is most interested in reading, and I get excited, seeing a clearly reluctant reader showing an interest in a book. I feel strongly, as do my colleagues, that this sort of interest is to be celebrated and nurtured, whether the child wants to read books by the popular Dav Pilkey, or books by the lauded Newbery Award- winning Gary Paulsen. The point is, the child WANTS TO READ!!!
The sad and frustrating part of the scenario comes when the parent comes back to the desk and asks me to look up the AR or Lexile levels of each book. Using Renaissance Learning’s website, www. arbookfind.com , I find that Captain Underpants by Dav Pilkey has an AR level of 4.3. The mother inevitably says, “No, no, he’s in fifth grade. Put this one back.”
I watch the child physically deflate when he is told that a book he wants to read is “not at his level”. I encourage the parent to take the book her child is interested in as well, explaining that often, the most essential key to encouraging reading is providing material that kids are interested in. However, more often than not, the child walks out looking glum, holding only a copy of a book his parent deems appropriate. I deflate as well.
AR and Lexile are systems designed by for-profit companies, Renaissance Learning and Lexile, respectively. While these may be just two of many tools to assess the level of books, it seems that some teachers and parents let these arbitrary measures created by corporate bodies obscure the true objectives of learning.
Graphic novels are given short shrift by this system, as their listed grade levels are lower than the level of most students who would be interested in the content. American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang, for example, is an award-winning graphic novel, considered appropriate for young adults. AR’s system assigns it a grade level of 3.3.
A true love of reading can’t be measured. As a librarian and teacher, I consider it my responsibility to stand up for books and graphic novels that can ignite that spark in reluctant readers.
Great Resource to Share!
While reading through the latest issue of School Library Journal, I came across an article highlighting a great resource out there for brining books and technology together. It is a blog created by Natalis Malesa, a school library assistant and MLIS student. Her blog is titled Stories from the Cloud (www.storiesfromthecloud.blogpost.com), and is meant to show educators how technology tools can be used to further connect kids with books and complement what they are reading. She states that she wanted to show how “visual storytelling can be used to complement books. They don’t have to be to be two separate things, the computers and the book. They can work together.”
The blog is setup so that it first showcases a book title, giving a summary or preview of the book, and will then show how it has integrated a specific technology tool with the book, providing a specific example of how the tool was used with the title. For instance, the lastest blog entry, from March 3rd, shows how Malesa used the tool Slide (www.slide.com) to retell the book Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi. In the blog post she gives basic instructions for using Slide, and then provides the example she created. Following this she provides a review of the book title, and allows readers to comment on the post.
Many of the tools she features in her blog posts are ones we have discussed previously in class, such as Timetoast, Wordle, Voice Thread, and Google Maps, and here we get to see examples of exactly how they can be used with books and incorporated into the classroom or library programs. Looking over this blog really helped to synthesis many of the themes and topics we have discussed is class for me, and provided concrete examples of how to bring media/technology and books/reading together. I will definitely be following this blog for ideas from now on!
Barack, Lauren. "Tech Knowledge: Stories from the Cloud." School Library Journal
(Mar. 2011): 14. Print.
The blog is setup so that it first showcases a book title, giving a summary or preview of the book, and will then show how it has integrated a specific technology tool with the book, providing a specific example of how the tool was used with the title. For instance, the lastest blog entry, from March 3rd, shows how Malesa used the tool Slide (www.slide.com) to retell the book Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi. In the blog post she gives basic instructions for using Slide, and then provides the example she created. Following this she provides a review of the book title, and allows readers to comment on the post.
Many of the tools she features in her blog posts are ones we have discussed previously in class, such as Timetoast, Wordle, Voice Thread, and Google Maps, and here we get to see examples of exactly how they can be used with books and incorporated into the classroom or library programs. Looking over this blog really helped to synthesis many of the themes and topics we have discussed is class for me, and provided concrete examples of how to bring media/technology and books/reading together. I will definitely be following this blog for ideas from now on!
Barack, Lauren. "Tech Knowledge: Stories from the Cloud." School Library Journal
(Mar. 2011): 14. Print.
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Cyberchondria: (n.) when Google is your MD
As you may already know, I had a baby six weeks ago. :)
This experience (and parenthood in general), has made me acutely aware of a dramatic change in the way I deal with health issues. Since bringing my daughter home, our family has visited the doctor’s office four times and my husband suggested that I make an appointment today - meaning that our family is edging dangerously close to averaging one doctor’s visit a week over the past six weeks. We would have easily made that average, too, if it weren’t for my obsession with trying to solve our family’s “medical mysteries” prior to making the decision to see a doctor. Tell me your symptoms and I’ll look them up with several combinations in either a Google search or a search on one of my favorite medical websites. My own recent healthcare management got me thinking - today’s youth will no doubt manage their own healthcare in ways that their parents and grandparents - people who turned to desk reference and handed down home remedies - would scarcely recognize.
In the world of Google, if you feel ill, you can enter your symptoms into a search box exactly as you would describe them to a doctor and get a list of possible illnesses. Going one step further, seeking out reputable medical websites like WebMD or MayoClinic.com will provide you with a symptom checker feature that will allow you to go through a list of possible symptoms. In my experience, it is not even necessary to use medical terms in your search - go ahead and type in “sore” or “aching”... the built-in controlled vocabulary knows you mean “enflamed”.
Now, if you skew toward the hypochondriac end of the spectrum, this might not be a good thing for you. But if you already suspect that the symptoms you entered are related to a specific illness - strep throat, for example - you can rule out the African Sleeping Sickness and Apricot Seed Poisoning that will show up as results in your “achy joints, fever, chills” symptom search and zero in on more reasonable causes of your symptoms.
If you already know what you’re dealing with - either because it is easily diagnosed (diaper rash) or you have already sought and received a diagnosis from a doctor, sites like WebMd and MayoClinic.com give a detailed breakdown of many conditions, including causes, symptoms, diagnosis, and treatment. Today’s patients (and those of the future) have the ability to arm themselves with information about their conditions that make it possible for them to be proactive in preventing recurrence of more common illnesses and partners in determining the type of treatment that they will pursue when they are ill.
During one of my recent illnesses, I discovered that the information that is available to us digitally goes beyond symptom checks and diagnosis information. I was totally unfamiliar with a medication I had been prescribed and was not clear on how it would alleviate my symptoms. When I searched the name of the medication, I was brought to Drugs.com (a legitimate site, thank goodness) where I was able to read about the medication in plain English AND read patient reviews of the medication (it received a 9.2/10 from users). Additionally, you can sign up to receive email alerts about specific medications - when it is in the news and if warnings are issued regarding its use.
So how do I see this fitting into media literacy? When we try to teach media literacy to our youth, we encourage them to engage with what they watch, hear, and read. We ask them to analyze and think critically about the information that is delivered to them. Though we don’t often think of it, when educating our youth about evaluating messages and information, we must not overlook health information. More than ever, information (both reliable and otherwise) about our health and how to protect it is being delivered to us in ways that were not possible a mere twenty years ago. TV ads for antidepressants, decongestants, birth control, and cholesterol medications bombard us as we watch our favorite shows as pharmaceutical companies vie for our healthcare dollars.
Though we should not attempt to offer medical advice to our young people, we should be willing to talk to them about where they can find reliable information about their health and encourage them to take an active role in educating themselves about where the messages about how to live a healthy life are coming from. As in any area of their lives, we should encourage young people to be aware of the issues that surround healthcare so that they can, when it is appropriate, make good decisions about how to care for themselves and their families.
learn and grow...
I didn't think I would get a whole lot out of our campus day, despite that it has been a few weeks ago, I've been pondering some of things I did learn. For one, I have always wanted to do a website to keep teachers and parents informed of what I am doing in the library. Newsletter were too time consuming and cost a lot of money considering the amount I had to send out and that they were double sided, so after speaking with Michelle, she showed me her site she did for her LOL class. It was simple. Wikispaces. I've heard of it, but never actually went there. The major perk was that it was free and very simple. It took me little awile to get use to the set up, but soon enough I had my own library website. Working for two schools I combined it into one. Now if I only could get my profile on the school website to work, I could put up a link. I did send a home flyer which eash student with the website. So I'm hoping, and praying that teachers and parents check it out. I update with what I'm teaching in the library as well as with new books in the libraries, and featured books for our monthly Peacebuilder theme. So I'm really excited about this. I loved many of the sites brought up during on campus, but unfortunately, I just do not have the time to use them in. Working with PreK-1st Grade I feel my primarily responsibility is to teach library organiztion and the basic fundamental skills of reading and parts of the book, but I did recommend some sites to a fellow librarian. With my new found love of technology and its uses in the library, despite the actuall lacking of time to use it, I was flipping throught an educator magazine and found a wonderful article, The Top 25 sites of 2010. I cruised through them and here were my favorites most were free, or for additional services one could pay to upgrade: Story Jumper: An excellent site for digital storytelling. Comic Master: A simple and easy comic strip creator Wordia: an online dictionary, put not a typical one, b/c words have a visual video of the definition of the word Sweet Search: a safe online search engine for students to use and all items have been checked by educators A few others that I didn't have a change to look at were: kidblog, cacoo, 21 classess, middlespot, education eye, kizoa, drag on tape, shwup, prezentit, quintura for kids, todaysmeet, memoov, encyclomedia, zooburst, jay cut, spalshup, knowcase, magic studio, googlios and we are teachers. I also never realized how gaming can be used in the classroom. I just always thought of chess and the boardgames that I grew up on, but that's not what students intrests really are anymore. They are more focused on the video games. I feel that it is important to teach the other games, but I guess a comprise has to be made of what the students are interested in and what the teacher grew up on. With the big talk of the violent games during on campus, the one that stood out was Call of Duty. Truthfully, I'm not a big video gamer. I grew up on atari and nintendo, so I'm not good at the 3-d games, but my husband went out and bought Call of Duty: Black Ops. And it peaked my interest when a friend of his 12 year old nephew was killer at it. So I created account and I'm on my way up, currently I'm an E-2, but that game takes some serious eye-hand coordination. I can see why kids like it, but there definetly needs to be parental involvement to limit use, because it can be additicting! I have learned a lot so far this semester, more about myself and my new found interest of integrating technology into the classroom.
Because our topic this week is "K-12 Libraries" I decided to create these Animotos. I use Animoto in our Love of Literature class. Students create Animotos as book trailers. I've also introduced Animoto to our staff and have now been sent Health class Animotos (Drug Awareness PSAs) and History Animotos (our National Parks). Anyway, my Animotos are "A Librarian's Day." These show how Monday and Tuesday, March 28 and 29 looked in my libraries. Enjoy.
Monday, March 28, 2011
PechaKucha
Kim’s HILARIOUS post on her email mishap on PowerPoint suckage made me giggle aloud. I watched the Scott McCloud presentation that got her all riled up and realized he was essentially doing a PechaKucha presentation, though certainly a much longer one that the standard six minute version.
From the website:
PechaKucha Night was devised by Astrid Klein and Mark Dytham of Klein Dytham architecture in Tokyo in February 2003 as an event for young designers to meet, network, and show their work in public. It has turned into a massive celebration, with events happening in hundreds of cities around the world (397 and counting), inspiring creatives worldwide. Drawing its name from the Japanese term for the sound of "chit chat" (pronounced peh-chak-cha), it rests on a presentation format that is based on a simple idea: 20 images x 20 seconds. It's a format that makes presentations concise, and keeps things moving at a rapid pace.
One of the classes I teach is an elective called The Contemporary World. It is open to 9-12 grade students and is usually about 50% 9th graders as it is the only Social Science elective open to them. As a class we spend the first half of the semester studying regions of the world (Middle East, South America, Western Europe, etc…) chosen by the class. The second half of the semester each student chooses a country around which to build their portfolio. No one else in the class has their country and they are essentially the ‘expert.’ The portfolio is comprised of a number of components: statistics, brief history, interview a national, etc… I believe strongly in students presenting their work to their peers and particularly since no one else in the class is studying their chosen country, I wanted students to present about their country. But what? The thought of 25 PowerPoint presentations on boring-a## stuff like GDP with pie charts was enough to make me want to stab myself in the eyeball with a pencil. What to do, what to do…
Never doubt the power of beer (and camaraderie). I have many friends who are artists of varying types. Many of them are involved in one way or another with our local Champaign-Urbana chapter of PechaKucha and through them, it is an organization with which I am familiar. Secret: I hope to one day present at one in C-U, possibly on the crazy awesomeness of my classroom or a history of birth control. Surprisingly, these two things are not mutually exclusive in my teaching. ANYWAY, one night while consuming a nightcap with my artsy neighbors, inspiration came to my door step. To prevent me from imminent blindness, my Contemporary World students would do a PechaKucha presentation on their country.
I would provide them a loose frame work but essentially the world (of creativity) was theirs. Standard PechaKucha presentations are 20 seconds per slide with 20 slides = 6 minute 40 second presentation. I decided to shorten the requirements to 15 slides and this resulted in 5 minute presentations in order fit more presentations into a class period. It was gonna be awesome.
I had handouts. Gorgeous handouts. I had examples of PechaKuchas. Lovely examples. I scheduled more time in the computer lab than Abraham himself could have wanted. I would have thought my students would bolt out of the starting gate on this project and just go-go-go. Some did. Some did not. I was surprised at how many of my students were not comfortable with the loose framework provided for them. They wanted direction. Specifics. Freedom was scary.
Daily computer lab scenario:
Student: Ms. Klebbe, what should I do for the ______________ slide (geography, politics, economics, you name it) of my country?
Me: What do you think your classmates should know about ______________?
Student (inner monologue): Why can’t she just tell me?!?
It came time for class presentations. I was nervous. They were nervous. Slides were timed to 20 seconds and rationales turned in. Student A presented. And it didn’t suck! In fact, it didn’t suck at all. Student B presented—and it was everything I had hoped for: witty, quick and interesting. Some of the presentations did suck but overall I was really pleased and proud of their presentations. I am confident they learned much and their peers got a fun cool glimpse of their country.
And I made it through three consecutive days of presentations with my sight intact.
Cool thing: a department colleague asked for my materials on the PechaKuchas and had their honors US History students do PechaKuchas in their class.
Check out two C-U rad PechaKuchas: Prairie Fruits Farm & Creamery and my dear friend Andy Warfel.
Want my materials? I will gladly email them to you—just want your version in return.
Power Points
We are fortunate to live in a time of great access to technology. One of the most popular presentation tools we have, thanks to technology, is the PowerPoint. As with many things this great access often comes with a price. In this case it means being subjected to people who are well...um...not so good at creating these presentations. I think as students we have all sat through the class where the instructor literally reads their presentation aloud slide by slide. I am slipping into foggy haze just at the thought. Unfortunately this is often the rule and not the exception. As a librarian I like to think I'm a bit ahead of the curve, but was I in for a reality check when I watched Scott McCloud's "On Comics" at TED Talk http://www.ted.com/talks/scott_mccloud_on_comics.html. I'll admit it. I was completely enthralled. I loved the pace of his slides. How some of the images within his slides shifted as he talked. I was left stunned and wide eyed at the end. I wanted to do that! I wanted everyone to do that! I had a mission. I would help motivate the people I work with and encourage them to reinvent their PowerPoint presentations. I found a very clever presentation while reading a blog titled "How Not to Suck at Powerpoint." http://www.slideshare.net/jessedee/you-suck-at-powerpoint The short and direct presentation was even a slide share so it was super easy to pass on to everyone in my building. Can you see where this is headed? So, motivated by the desire to no longer watch as students dozed off listening to their teachers drone on, I quickly typed in our school email list and hit send. Job done. Now all I had to do was wait for the appreciative emails in return. Fast forward a couple of hours. I'm no longer in the library, instead I'm collaborating with a 6th grade teacher. We are busy planning when she stops in mid sentence and said, "Hey. Why do you think my power points suck?" I blinked in silence and innocently asked, "What do you mean?" She showed me her screen and there in huge letters it says, "YOU SUCK AT POWER POINT!" Note to self: I know just enough about technology to get myself into trouble. When I forwarded this pithy little presentation I included a message about how useful the tips would be when crafting a new lesson. That message was, of course, buried deep inside the email in teeny tiny print. What stood out was YOU SUCK AT POWER POINT! that I had so anxiously sent to every person in my building...including my principal. I felt like the guy in the commercial who races around yanking everyone's computers off their desk trying to keep people from reading the last email he sent. I was so embarrassed. Needless to say I had to craft an apology and send it out quickly (this actually got far more responses than my original email). Here's my attempt at
Okay, I saw this very funny PowerPoint when I was reading my blogs and thought I would share it with everyone. It blog was titled, “How NOT to Suck at Powerpoints.” I had no idea--until I was standing next to _____ and she asked, “Why do you think I suck at powerpoints?”—that the email I sent you would say “You Suck at PowerPoints.” I am certainly sorry. I’m sure you all create wonderfully interesting presentations. I just thought the slides were informative, concise and funny.
In short, none of you suck. Have a good weekend.
If nothing else, at least I got their attention. Lesson? Always read carefully and think ahead before clicking send all.
Thursday, March 24, 2011
I Did It!
I did it! I submitted my proposal to ISLMA (Illinois School Library Media Association) to be a session presenter at the Fall 2011 Conference!Coming up with a session idea and submitting a proposal has been one of my recent goals. I talked to Anna Neilsen about using that goal as the basis for not only this blog post, but also my final project. She gave me some good feedback and now I am on my way. I tackled the first step which was to begin working on the final project so that I'd have a good sense of the structure of the session. My original description of the session for the proposal:
In today's info-rich society, school librarians need to be on the
cutting edge when it comes to teaching our students new skills for a new
age. Web 2.0 tools spark student interest and can be a dynamic means of
learning, creating, and collaborating. But does this brave new work seem a
little intimidating to you? Are you struggling to think of ways that these
kinds of tech tools can be integrated with the library lessons and books you
already use? Join me as I demonstrate how a wiki--combined with some cool
21st century tools--can be an easy way to bring your library instruction
into the 21st century for learners of all ages.
This session will focus on demonstrating the ease of using wikis,
presenting a variety of Web 2.0 tools that can be used in a library setting, and
providing plenty of examples to spark your own ideas for creating awesome
updates to lessons you already teach!
Imagine my dismay when I began to fill out the proposal and learned that I needed to describe my session "in an accurate and enticing way in 50 words or less" !!! Here is what I boiled it down to:
Web 2.0 sparks student interest and is a dynamic means of learning, creating, and collaborating. Intimidated? Struggling to integrate technology with the library lessons you already use? Learn how a wiki--combined with some cool 21st century tools--can be an easy way to energize your 21st century
library.
Meanwhile, I am pla
nning to create a wiki to be the basis for the presentation which is entitled "Wikis and More: Using Web 2.0 Tools in Library Instruction." My goal is two-fold: 1) that I am selected to present this session at the conference, and 2) that the wiki can be the basis for that presentation and then become a place where school librarians can share ideas. The wiki is located at http://wikis4library.wikispaces.com/ but please keep in mind that it is very much a work in progress at this point in time!I have presented once before at ISLMA, but I collaborated with a colleague that time. This is my first time submitting a proposal on my own. Wish me luck!
How the Media has Shaped my Mind
The recent atrocities in Japan have revealed to me just how influenced I am by Hollywood. My perception of the tsunami and the impending nuclear tragedy has been completely shaped by disaster movies. When I first heard that there were videos of the tsunami wave hitting Japan, I expected to see something like this:
Now that seems downright laughable, compared to the eerily quiet reality of the tsunami waves that just seeped into city streets and swept boats and cars and buildings away, like toys in an overflowing bathtub. The reality, though less dramatic than the special effects, is no less unnerving or destructive.
You can only imagine how my idea of a nuclear power plant explosion compared to the real thing. We didn't get a mushroom cloud or fire or anything. I am feeling 1) foolish and angry for my obvious gullibility when it comes to the exaggerations I watch on a glittering screen; 2) horrified and guilty that I expected more destruction for people who are suffering greatly; and 3) thankful for the ease with which I can find true visual accounts of life around the globe, courtesy of the internet. Thank you Internet. You have enlightened a naive simpleton on the ways of the world.
Now that seems downright laughable, compared to the eerily quiet reality of the tsunami waves that just seeped into city streets and swept boats and cars and buildings away, like toys in an overflowing bathtub. The reality, though less dramatic than the special effects, is no less unnerving or destructive.
You can only imagine how my idea of a nuclear power plant explosion compared to the real thing. We didn't get a mushroom cloud or fire or anything. I am feeling 1) foolish and angry for my obvious gullibility when it comes to the exaggerations I watch on a glittering screen; 2) horrified and guilty that I expected more destruction for people who are suffering greatly; and 3) thankful for the ease with which I can find true visual accounts of life around the globe, courtesy of the internet. Thank you Internet. You have enlightened a naive simpleton on the ways of the world.
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
It Gets Better
The other day a student asked me: “Are you for or against the gays?” Questions and comments like this come up a lot at the high school where I teach. It makes me very glad that I am not a gay teen at my school. It also makes me want to provide students struggling with gender and sexual identity a safe space at school.
Earlier this school year the national news was flooded with stories of gay teens in high schools and colleges who were bullied and taunted to the point where they killed themselves. People were shocked. Or were they? Kids will bully each other about anything. Any difference, anything that stands out about anyone suddenly becomes fodder for teasing.
The difference with the bullying of LGBT teens is that many of the adults in their lives are likely to not stand up for them. Teachers may feel uncomfortable standing up for a student. Many teachers who are members of the LGBT community don’t even feel comfortable being out at work. It’s just a fact, that unless you live in a city or a state that has anti-discrimination laws for sexual minorities, that you can be terminated from your job for being out. If adults, especially educators are living with this fear, how are teens handling it? Some adults may even agree with the bullies, thinking that students need to be called out for being gay, that it is something wrong with the student.
At my public charter school, so many are influenced by their conservative churches that teachers will tell their students being gay is a sin. Some will reinforce the negative messages students already have towards their gay classmates.
Living in the culture we do, it is reassuring that things like the It Gets Better project exist. Inspired by a national tragedy Dan Savage and his partner Terry Miller started a YouTube social movement. They asked for videos from members of the LGBT community and their supporters explaining to teens that there is hope. From politicians like Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, to Ellen DeGeneres, Al Franken and members of clergy from a variety of religions came videos reassuring teens. The message was overwhelmingly a positive one. LGBT youth should realize that what seem like insurmountable odds today will get better in the future. There is hope that teens will one day be able to create their own community of supportive friends and family. Even if at this moment things are not in their favor, eventually things in their lives will get better.
Savage and Miller started the Web site www.itgetsbetter.org with the goal of getting 100 videos to let LGBT teens that they were not alone. It lets them know that others had struggled like them and found normal lives with friends, family, and supportive communities.
The results were astounding. The site was created in September 2010. Two months later the site had more than 10,000 videos and more than 35 million site visits. The It Gets Better movement shows the power that social media has. Without knowing how to use the Internet to get their message out, there wouldn’t have been all those videos posted or visitors to the Web site. There would be no book, full of reassurance and support available to young people who need it the most.
As I prepare to catalog It Gets Better and add it to my school library’s collection, I’m glad Savage and Miller were tech-savvy enough to start this movement. It provides a valuable resource to teens who feel they don’t fit in and have nowhere to turn. This is a book that should be in every high school (and middle school) library in the U.S. The Web site is a resource anyone can access to feel included in a community of caring individuals.
Sunday, March 20, 2011
Favorite Teacher-Librarian Blogs
I was looking over the latest issue of ISLMAnews (newsletter of the Illinois School Library Media Association) and a list entitled "To Blog or Not to Blog?" caught my eye. The writer had recently posted a request to ISLMAnet asking for favorite library blogs. 59 different blogs were recommended in response to the query, and the top 5 were listed in the newsletter. I decided to take a quick tour and this is what I found:
#1: BlueSkunk Blog is written by Doug Johnson, Director of Media and Technology for the the Mankato, MN Public School. Johnson is a popular speaker and has also written 5 books. Johnson writes on a variety of school library, technology, and literacy issues. He injects a lot of humor into his musings and has a wide following. Some of his recent postings are "30 Things We Need More or Less Of" (scroll down to his library version), "Where to Start Improving Reseach Assignments" and "Become a Gmail Power User." I could get lost in this guy's blog...he has so many good posts and such a huge Archive!
#2: The Unquiet Librarian is written by Buffy Hamilton, media specialist/teacher-librarian at Creekview High School in Canto, GA. Hamilton was one of Library Journal's 2011 "Movers & Shakers" in the profession and both she and the blog have won awards. "Documenting and Sharing your eReader Program Practices" caught my eye as I am currently mulling a Kindle purchase for my library. Other recent posts include "Getting There Together: Assessing Student Learning" (excellent articles cited), and "Comparing Symbaloo and Netvibes as Information Dashboards and PLEs."
#3: NeverEndingSearch is written by Joyce Valenza, the library information specialist for Springfield township High School in Erdenheim, PA. This blog is part of School Library Journal. Valenza is a superstar in the teacher-librarian world and I have no idea how she does it all. I think she must never sleep, but spends all her time writing and updating all her social media, wikis, blogs, and websites. Joyce's blog is currently featuring the EXACT posters I was trying to describe to the class a few weeks ago...her post is called "Our New Posters" and she was also inspired by Gwyneth Jones' posters made using Comic Life. (I think this is defintely going to be a summer project for me!) "Pursuing the Perfect Pathfinder Platform" and "Book Trailers for All" both have my brain buzzing with ideas to pursue for my Love of Literature class students!
#4: Stephen's Lighthouse is written by Stephen Abram who is VP of Innovation for Sirsi Corporation. The tagline for the site proclaims that it is "illuminating library industry trends, innovation, and information." I must admit that I had never heard of this guy or his blog, so I was delighted to find an idea that I can use IMMEDIATELY in his most recent blog post entitled "Which Books Should Everyone Read" in which he described how Top 100 Book polls can be rendered visually by combining them and then creating a Word Cloud. So I immediately jumped from that to the idea that I'm going to poll my Love of Literature students and then we're going to create a Wordle of our own "Favorite Books of the Year." Awesome! Also, take a look at "Book Sculptures" which is a photo-essay showing how discarded books make wonderful art.
#5 (actually a tie with #4): Tame the Web, written by Michael Stephens who is a professor at GSLIS at Domican University in River Forest, IL (the only other library school in Illinois besides us). He was formerly a public librarian for 15 years. His interests are "Libraries, technology, and people" and how those three intersect. An interesting part of his blog are his "Guest Bloggers"--people like authors, professionals, and other librarians who are invited to share their thought, articles, or research via Tame the Web. This blog addresses a lot of Web 2.0 issues as well as established and emerging technologies.
Taking a look at these blogs made me want to sign up for RSS feeds to each of them! I tend to be so busy just keeping my head above water in my own job that I neglect the resources that are out there that could inspire and/or help me! But keeping in touch with other professionals and trends in the field is vital for my own professional development. Also, school librarians tend to be solitary in their schools (I'm the only one), so reaching out by connecting with bloggers, wikis, listservs, and other media is refreshing, if only to remind oneself "I am not alone!"
#1: BlueSkunk Blog is written by Doug Johnson, Director of Media and Technology for the the Mankato, MN Public School. Johnson is a popular speaker and has also written 5 books. Johnson writes on a variety of school library, technology, and literacy issues. He injects a lot of humor into his musings and has a wide following. Some of his recent postings are "30 Things We Need More or Less Of" (scroll down to his library version), "Where to Start Improving Reseach Assignments" and "Become a Gmail Power User." I could get lost in this guy's blog...he has so many good posts and such a huge Archive!
#2: The Unquiet Librarian is written by Buffy Hamilton, media specialist/teacher-librarian at Creekview High School in Canto, GA. Hamilton was one of Library Journal's 2011 "Movers & Shakers" in the profession and both she and the blog have won awards. "Documenting and Sharing your eReader Program Practices" caught my eye as I am currently mulling a Kindle purchase for my library. Other recent posts include "Getting There Together: Assessing Student Learning" (excellent articles cited), and "Comparing Symbaloo and Netvibes as Information Dashboards and PLEs."
#3: NeverEndingSearch is written by Joyce Valenza, the library information specialist for Springfield township High School in Erdenheim, PA. This blog is part of School Library Journal. Valenza is a superstar in the teacher-librarian world and I have no idea how she does it all. I think she must never sleep, but spends all her time writing and updating all her social media, wikis, blogs, and websites. Joyce's blog is currently featuring the EXACT posters I was trying to describe to the class a few weeks ago...her post is called "Our New Posters" and she was also inspired by Gwyneth Jones' posters made using Comic Life. (I think this is defintely going to be a summer project for me!) "Pursuing the Perfect Pathfinder Platform" and "Book Trailers for All" both have my brain buzzing with ideas to pursue for my Love of Literature class students!
#4: Stephen's Lighthouse is written by Stephen Abram who is VP of Innovation for Sirsi Corporation. The tagline for the site proclaims that it is "illuminating library industry trends, innovation, and information." I must admit that I had never heard of this guy or his blog, so I was delighted to find an idea that I can use IMMEDIATELY in his most recent blog post entitled "Which Books Should Everyone Read" in which he described how Top 100 Book polls can be rendered visually by combining them and then creating a Word Cloud. So I immediately jumped from that to the idea that I'm going to poll my Love of Literature students and then we're going to create a Wordle of our own "Favorite Books of the Year." Awesome! Also, take a look at "Book Sculptures" which is a photo-essay showing how discarded books make wonderful art.
#5 (actually a tie with #4): Tame the Web, written by Michael Stephens who is a professor at GSLIS at Domican University in River Forest, IL (the only other library school in Illinois besides us). He was formerly a public librarian for 15 years. His interests are "Libraries, technology, and people" and how those three intersect. An interesting part of his blog are his "Guest Bloggers"--people like authors, professionals, and other librarians who are invited to share their thought, articles, or research via Tame the Web. This blog addresses a lot of Web 2.0 issues as well as established and emerging technologies.
Taking a look at these blogs made me want to sign up for RSS feeds to each of them! I tend to be so busy just keeping my head above water in my own job that I neglect the resources that are out there that could inspire and/or help me! But keeping in touch with other professionals and trends in the field is vital for my own professional development. Also, school librarians tend to be solitary in their schools (I'm the only one), so reaching out by connecting with bloggers, wikis, listservs, and other media is refreshing, if only to remind oneself "I am not alone!"
The best tech resources you're not using
Looking for a way to integrate technology in your library? Looking for new tech tools to use in your classroom? Free Technology for Teachers has what you need, no matter your uses.
No matter the content area, no matter your level of tech literacy or the amount of computers you have available in your school or organization the blog has what you need to stay up to date on what is going on in the tech world, and ways to not get passed by.
The writer of this blog is a Google certified teacher who uses a wealth of difference technology in his classroom and is followed by more then 30,000 users a day. His suggestions offer ways to differentiate instruction, to improve students' media literacy and to keep up on the world around you.
His most recent post gives advice on how to stay up to date on the world of technology. His suggestions are simple and easy. Step one, sign up for Twitter and subscribe to tweets from experts on technology or whatever it is that interests you. Step two, check those tweets and see what links they have included.
Step three: put all the blogs and Web sites you love on your RSS feed (Google reader is a great one) Then all you have to do to keep up is log into your reader and it will automatically update for you. The mindset? It is much easier for the information you want to come to you, than for you to go to it. Once you know the good sites that you want to follow, you don't have to worry about bookmarking them or forgetting them, just put them in your feed and you're good to go.
Another great site for librarians and all sorts of book lovers is Good Reads. The site has a combination of social networking and book organizing features. You can follow your favorite authors and see what your friends are reading. You can rate books you have read and mark books you want to read as "to read." I have used this site to join a book club for 20 and 30 somethings.
In your library you could use this to help your biggest readers organize the books they read and want to read. It would be a great tool for a teen book club to use to share thoughts on what they are reading before the next meeting. It also would hook teen users with the social networking features. It's pretty much a Facebook for the reading set. You can take quizzes on books, find out what others rate as the best books they've read, see what other readers like and don't like. Have your students and users start networking with other readers to see the things they can learn through others.
Saturday, March 19, 2011
NIU Children's Literature Conference
On March 11th I attended the Children’s Literature Conference at Northern Illinois University, and the theme of this year’s conference fit in perfectly with this class. The conference was titled Literature 3.1: The Book and Beyond, and the focus was on integrating books and technology.
The first speaker of the day was Laurie Halse Anderson, who was absolutely captivating and did an amazing job of engaging with the audience. She discussed using technology to extend the story and build relationships among reading communities. She manages and updates her own website, www.madwomanintheforest.com, which she uses as a platform to engage with and further educate her readers. There is a tab on the website titled “Blog and Media” where readers can follow and comment on her blog, post on a discussion board, watch videos and interviews Anderson has posted herself, or access videos readers have made for her books. She gives readers the option to follow her on Facebook, Twitter, and You Tube, and also provides an RSS feed where they can get updates of any new posts. Anderson will also do Skype sessions with classrooms and libraries, allowing students to speak with her personally about her books.
Anderson seemed like she truly cared about utilizing technology to stay connected with her readers, and she expressed that while she doesn’t consider herself on top of technology, she does make an effort to stay current with new media trends. Because of this, she provides a way for teachers, librarians, and readers to extend the learning experience, and use media and technology to dive deeper into the books they are reading. If I were teaching or doing a book discussion on one of Anderson’s books, I would start at her website so that readers could learn more about the background of the author. Through her site you can see that she is very down to earth and open with her readers, as she talks about and shares pictures of her new cabin, her dogs, and her family. She provides a biography of her life, and even talks about her writing process and how she does research for her books. Looking at these resources would help readers to get to know the author better, and would give them a jumping off point for reading her books. Also, prior to reading the book, I might show some of the book trailers readers have created for the book we are reading. My next stop would be the individual page for the book we are reading on her website. Each page includes many resources that would be so helpful to teachers and librarians. For instance, the page for Forge (which is an awesome book!) includes a summary of the book, reviews and awards, a hypothetical music playlist she has created for the book, links to documents and articles that provide background and history on the topic of the book, a bibliography of her research in writing the book, and a teacher section, which includes a teaching guide, vocabulary, and activities to do with the book. After the book has been read, I might have students use digital publishing tools to create their own book trailers or booktalks for the book we are reading. (Or I can have them create a comic for it as we have been doing in class : ) ) I would definitely contact Anderson (she provides her contact information on the site), and try to set up a skype interview to follow up the reading of the book.
The last two speakers of the day were Mac Barnett and Jon Scieszka. They spoke together, as Barnett has joined Scieszka in his Guys Read venture, and they were hilarious presenting as a duo. Both authors were very fitting for the theme of the conference, with them both using media and technology to allow readers to further interact with what they are reading. Mac Barnett has done some really neat things with his books, creating challenges and tasks to push reader’s imaginations. In his book The Clock Without a Face the twelve numbered jewels of a clock tower have gone missing, and readers must use the clues in the book to find them. However, Barnett really buried these clock numbers around the country, and the clues in the book lead readers to real places where they can go to dig up the numbers. He said that readers really have gotten into it, and that all of the numbers have been found with the exception of number 12 : ). Another book of his, Billy Twitters and his Blue Whale Problem, has a secret hidden behind the dust jacket of the book. Beneath it, readers are given an address where they can write in for their very own blue whale. When readers write in, they are sent a letter from a mock lawyer saying that their whale was on the way, but is being held in a bay by a conservation group, and that lawyers are hard at work to clear up the matter. With the letter they are sent a photo of their whale, as well as its name and a phone number where the whale can be reached. When readers call their whale, they reach a voicemail with whale noises, and are then able to leave their whale a message. Barnett shared several letters readers sent in to request a whale, as well as the voicemails they left for them (they make your heart melt… ). I thought this was so awesome. It is allowing kids to become a part of what they are reading, and encourages them to use their creativity and imagination.
Together Scieszka and Barnett are starting their own kids series called Spaceheadz. In the series several aliens have taken the form of students, and need the help of a real kid to save the earth from destruction. Scieszka and Barnett have really taken advantage of media and technology with this series, with the Spaceheadz having their own website and the characters having their own facebook pages, twitter accounts kids can follow, and you tube videos. The authors use these media tools to make the book interactive, and get kids “doing and creating” as they are reading. Both authors are very big on integrating media and technology tools into reading, and feel like it is a way to really engage those resistant readers who might not otherwise pick up a book.
The first speaker of the day was Laurie Halse Anderson, who was absolutely captivating and did an amazing job of engaging with the audience. She discussed using technology to extend the story and build relationships among reading communities. She manages and updates her own website, www.madwomanintheforest.com, which she uses as a platform to engage with and further educate her readers. There is a tab on the website titled “Blog and Media” where readers can follow and comment on her blog, post on a discussion board, watch videos and interviews Anderson has posted herself, or access videos readers have made for her books. She gives readers the option to follow her on Facebook, Twitter, and You Tube, and also provides an RSS feed where they can get updates of any new posts. Anderson will also do Skype sessions with classrooms and libraries, allowing students to speak with her personally about her books.
Anderson seemed like she truly cared about utilizing technology to stay connected with her readers, and she expressed that while she doesn’t consider herself on top of technology, she does make an effort to stay current with new media trends. Because of this, she provides a way for teachers, librarians, and readers to extend the learning experience, and use media and technology to dive deeper into the books they are reading. If I were teaching or doing a book discussion on one of Anderson’s books, I would start at her website so that readers could learn more about the background of the author. Through her site you can see that she is very down to earth and open with her readers, as she talks about and shares pictures of her new cabin, her dogs, and her family. She provides a biography of her life, and even talks about her writing process and how she does research for her books. Looking at these resources would help readers to get to know the author better, and would give them a jumping off point for reading her books. Also, prior to reading the book, I might show some of the book trailers readers have created for the book we are reading. My next stop would be the individual page for the book we are reading on her website. Each page includes many resources that would be so helpful to teachers and librarians. For instance, the page for Forge (which is an awesome book!) includes a summary of the book, reviews and awards, a hypothetical music playlist she has created for the book, links to documents and articles that provide background and history on the topic of the book, a bibliography of her research in writing the book, and a teacher section, which includes a teaching guide, vocabulary, and activities to do with the book. After the book has been read, I might have students use digital publishing tools to create their own book trailers or booktalks for the book we are reading. (Or I can have them create a comic for it as we have been doing in class : ) ) I would definitely contact Anderson (she provides her contact information on the site), and try to set up a skype interview to follow up the reading of the book.
The last two speakers of the day were Mac Barnett and Jon Scieszka. They spoke together, as Barnett has joined Scieszka in his Guys Read venture, and they were hilarious presenting as a duo. Both authors were very fitting for the theme of the conference, with them both using media and technology to allow readers to further interact with what they are reading. Mac Barnett has done some really neat things with his books, creating challenges and tasks to push reader’s imaginations. In his book The Clock Without a Face the twelve numbered jewels of a clock tower have gone missing, and readers must use the clues in the book to find them. However, Barnett really buried these clock numbers around the country, and the clues in the book lead readers to real places where they can go to dig up the numbers. He said that readers really have gotten into it, and that all of the numbers have been found with the exception of number 12 : ). Another book of his, Billy Twitters and his Blue Whale Problem, has a secret hidden behind the dust jacket of the book. Beneath it, readers are given an address where they can write in for their very own blue whale. When readers write in, they are sent a letter from a mock lawyer saying that their whale was on the way, but is being held in a bay by a conservation group, and that lawyers are hard at work to clear up the matter. With the letter they are sent a photo of their whale, as well as its name and a phone number where the whale can be reached. When readers call their whale, they reach a voicemail with whale noises, and are then able to leave their whale a message. Barnett shared several letters readers sent in to request a whale, as well as the voicemails they left for them (they make your heart melt… ). I thought this was so awesome. It is allowing kids to become a part of what they are reading, and encourages them to use their creativity and imagination.
Together Scieszka and Barnett are starting their own kids series called Spaceheadz. In the series several aliens have taken the form of students, and need the help of a real kid to save the earth from destruction. Scieszka and Barnett have really taken advantage of media and technology with this series, with the Spaceheadz having their own website and the characters having their own facebook pages, twitter accounts kids can follow, and you tube videos. The authors use these media tools to make the book interactive, and get kids “doing and creating” as they are reading. Both authors are very big on integrating media and technology tools into reading, and feel like it is a way to really engage those resistant readers who might not otherwise pick up a book.
Thursday, March 17, 2011
a life in 140 characters?
I have to turn off my internet to get any good writing done. In fact, I often write by hand just so I don't even have the option of turning the internet back on. Because I am a part of the information-overloaded, obsessively multitasking generation. As the PBS documentary "Digital Media: New Learners of the 21st Century" pointed out - we're trying to do everything, all the time. We (my generation) proclaim - "We can text, reply to emails, gchat, and take notes on a lecture, all at once." But we can't, not really. The PBS documentary isn't the only one reminding us that we can't. We should be reminding ourselves -
There are a multitude of studies out there showing that when we multitask, we're not learning to the best of our abilities. Our knowledge becomes less flexible - I would imagine because we're simply storing information, rather than forming knowledge through internal connections between past experience and knowledge and the new information. Multitasking through various kinds of media give us feelings of control, efficiency, engagement, and assimilation, but can throw us into chaos, inefficiency, disengagement, enslavement. (Rohm, Sultan, and Bardhi, "Multitasking Youth", Marketing Management, November/December 2009)
So how is this changing how we learn and think? And how is it changing how young people interact with their educations and each other? One article I read included comments from a professor who noted that while students' mistakes haven't increased, but their interest in correcting the mistakes has decreased. (Ralston, "Facebook Affects Student Writing" The Battalion. March 23, 2010. Accessed March 14, 2011.
So as we rapidly shift from gchat to Facebook to friend-emails to professional-emails to essay writing, we're (hopefully) code switching. But the rapid movement from medium to medium may also be stunting our attention spans, keeping us from maintaining (or even developing) the ability to read complex, involved texts. Dialectical reading takes focus, time, and practice. When I'm reading something difficult, something dense, I turn off the music, turn off the internet and prop up my feet to really dig into the text. But I do worry that fitting our lives into Twitter and Facebook statuses, skimming twenty or thirty articles in the morning to get my news of the day, is stunting or warping our expression and experience of media. I have a hard time sitting still for two minutes - the need to be constantly engaged, constantly stimulated is a handicap that I think youth today are especially vulnerable to and must struggle against.
http://www.donothingfor2minutes.com/
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Allowing Students to Create Graphic Narratives - When & How?
Prior to this week, my only experience with storyboards was in watching the bonus sections of Pixar DVDs as animators pitched story ideas or explained deleted or rejected scenes. I was mesmerized by the way these still pictures were brought to life by the people who are telling story and how the full range of emotion can be conveyed through these images.
And in class today, we discussed how graphic novels and comics can be used in the classroom and I asked a question in the chat that I wanted to expand upon here: is it appropriate to ask/allow students to create their own graphic narratives in the classroom or should students be thoroughly versed in the more traditional written narrative before they are allowed to explore this form of expression in school?
While I absolutely believe that students should be exposed to graphic novels and comics in an academic setting, I am not convinced that it is always appropriate to ask students to produce their own graphic narratives. In my experience, many students still struggle with the basic format of the written narrative - just creating a flowing, sequential narrative is difficult for some students (many of whom are used to a more stream-of-consciousness storytelling that they might use in their day to day lives). As I thought about my limited experience in telling a story in graphic form, I recognized that some of my former students might have struggled with the demands of this somewhat limiting format. As Laura said in class, creating graphic narratives might be an "advanced" skill... for those who students do not recognize the unique challenges and demands of the format, it's possible that they may find themselves (as Portia experienced) spending more time and effort on the images themselves as opposed to the story they are meant to tell.
I believe that we have to expose our children to all the various ways that we communicate with one another in the 21st century. There is no doubt that they will be required to be able to decipher messages that are being communicated in all the various ways we have discussed in the class so far. However, I also believe that we must make them more than proficient in the basics of communication - in my estimation, writing and speaking - before we start to ask them to create in different formats, especially when we want to assign grades to their efforts.
Visual Genius!
I was motivated to have my students use the visual to represent their thoughts and analysis of the literature that we are reading in class. Yesterday, my students finished reading Othello, which for most of them, was their first experience reading Shakespeare. Throughout the reading of this, they learned visually (by reading the text) as well as in the auditory (by listening to it), but I wanted to take a "stab" (pun intended - lots of stabbings in Othello) at having them learn and teach each other visually. This was the task:
Focus on the characters of Desdemona, Othello, and Emilia. For each, you will tackle two tasks:
1. Find three quotes to define each character. One quote must be from the beginning, one from the middle, and one from the end of the play. Discuss what you notice about these characters throughout the course of the play with your partner.
2. Create a visual representation of your findings.
The students will find that the characters of Desdemona and Othello devolve into the stereotypical "other" of the time period (a woman and a Moor). They will also see that Emilia and Desdemona virtually switch roles.
The students will present their work tomorrow, and while a few groups chose to create skits, most created work on a page. Some created comics, some one slide pictures, and some decided to create a graph. The graph groups related their findings to their science class in which they often graph things that change over time. One group created a line graph and one a bar graph. I am looking forward to seeing the final products tomorrow and discussing their explanations. Hopefully I will have a few that I can add to the blog.
Focus on the characters of Desdemona, Othello, and Emilia. For each, you will tackle two tasks:
1. Find three quotes to define each character. One quote must be from the beginning, one from the middle, and one from the end of the play. Discuss what you notice about these characters throughout the course of the play with your partner.
2. Create a visual representation of your findings.
The students will find that the characters of Desdemona and Othello devolve into the stereotypical "other" of the time period (a woman and a Moor). They will also see that Emilia and Desdemona virtually switch roles.
The students will present their work tomorrow, and while a few groups chose to create skits, most created work on a page. Some created comics, some one slide pictures, and some decided to create a graph. The graph groups related their findings to their science class in which they often graph things that change over time. One group created a line graph and one a bar graph. I am looking forward to seeing the final products tomorrow and discussing their explanations. Hopefully I will have a few that I can add to the blog.
Gaming and Life
This may all read like heresy. Please don’t burn me at the stake.
Our on-campus class got me thinking a lot about how much I don’t like games. What I mean is that I don’t like traditional games. I don’t like sports games, I don’t like board games, I don’t like card games, and I don’t really like computer/video games. I don’t like competition, I don’t like keeping score, and I don’t like following arbitrary rules. None of these things are fun. I completely appreciate games and understand what they contribute to people’s social, strategic, analytical, and team-building skills. But there is this underlying assumption that because something is a game it must be fun.
With Dubin’s axes of complexity and thematic integration I found myself in complete awe. And not in a good way. The more complex or the more thematically integrated a game was, I realized, the less fun I found it to be. Perhaps because all the themes cause these pieces of plastic and paper to masquerade as something fun, when in reality they are simply set in place to achieve a unnecessary/imaginary goal. I tend to think of highly thematic games as trying too hard. Complex rules function in much the same way, simply distracting you from the ridiculousness of the task at hand. Why do I have to bounce the orange ball as I walk towards that hoop? Why put the orange ball through the hoop at all? Why do I move these little figures across a patchwork table? Why must I move the tall pointy figure diagonally? Why do they want to get to the other side of the table? Why should I “kill” the other “king”? I don’t want to kill anybody. And I don’t really want to move little pieces of wood around on a table either. Even if it does mean I’m exercising my brain. I’m sorry, but you can’t “trick” me into exercising my brain or having fun. I know a spade when I see one.
If I enjoy a game it is because of the social connections that it inspires. Games are simply a vehicle for other fun things. I like Cranium because you get to sing and act and draw and sculpt and spell things backwards. I like Apples to Apples because you get to know how your fellow players think about certain ideas, people, places, and things. I like Mastermind because you get to solve riddles. All of these fun things can be done without the “game” aspect of these games. And that is generally how my family played/plays them: sans board, dice, points, or winners. That’s real freedom to fail, experiment, fashion identities, freedom of effort and freedom of interpretation. It is truly “free play” as described by Eric Klopfer, Scot Osterweil, and Katie Salen (Moving Learning Games Forward, 2009). But it’s not a real game, at least not according to the way we defined game literacy in class. Our definition of game literacy involved the learning of and successful operation in a system of rules. Therefore a game requires a system of rules. So what do I and my family play, if they aren’t games? Is it just free play? A free-for-all of jesting and jocularity with some exhibit of our various skills thrown in for good measure? Or are there subtler rules governing this type of adult free play—allowing us to amicably share the spotlight, reveal our thoughts and talents, and get to know one another? We play within the larger framework of the rules of social organization, friendship, family, and the world at large, with an unspecified amount of give-and-take to which all conform. What do you think: does this count as a game?
At first, upon leaving class, I questioned whether or not I was game literate. But I realized I can successfully play, and even win, games with complex rules. It’s simply that I don’t like to do it. I can play Killer Bunnies (even though it kills me). I hated playing games at school as a kid. I knew what all that game business was about. It was review/drilling/exercising my brain and/or body disguised as fun. It wasn’t fun. It was boring. I dreaded those games. C’mon teacher, why can’t you just let me do a review worksheet or jumping jacks or something? It’s practically the same thing.
I sound like such a party-pooper, don’t I? I don’t really know what’s wrong with me. I love to read and watch films and can be really absorbed analyzing the many complex rules and themes of literature and cinema. I love contemporary art and can suspend all immediate reality examining its structure and content. But ask me to take an active role in a game, and I can ‘t help but see it within the greater context of life, culture, the world, everything, and it just seems so unnecessary.
Perhaps I am a perfect case of why games are important: I have yet to accept the importance of rules in games and have therefore not accepted the rules of life. Or is it the other way around?
Our on-campus class got me thinking a lot about how much I don’t like games. What I mean is that I don’t like traditional games. I don’t like sports games, I don’t like board games, I don’t like card games, and I don’t really like computer/video games. I don’t like competition, I don’t like keeping score, and I don’t like following arbitrary rules. None of these things are fun. I completely appreciate games and understand what they contribute to people’s social, strategic, analytical, and team-building skills. But there is this underlying assumption that because something is a game it must be fun.
With Dubin’s axes of complexity and thematic integration I found myself in complete awe. And not in a good way. The more complex or the more thematically integrated a game was, I realized, the less fun I found it to be. Perhaps because all the themes cause these pieces of plastic and paper to masquerade as something fun, when in reality they are simply set in place to achieve a unnecessary/imaginary goal. I tend to think of highly thematic games as trying too hard. Complex rules function in much the same way, simply distracting you from the ridiculousness of the task at hand. Why do I have to bounce the orange ball as I walk towards that hoop? Why put the orange ball through the hoop at all? Why do I move these little figures across a patchwork table? Why must I move the tall pointy figure diagonally? Why do they want to get to the other side of the table? Why should I “kill” the other “king”? I don’t want to kill anybody. And I don’t really want to move little pieces of wood around on a table either. Even if it does mean I’m exercising my brain. I’m sorry, but you can’t “trick” me into exercising my brain or having fun. I know a spade when I see one.
If I enjoy a game it is because of the social connections that it inspires. Games are simply a vehicle for other fun things. I like Cranium because you get to sing and act and draw and sculpt and spell things backwards. I like Apples to Apples because you get to know how your fellow players think about certain ideas, people, places, and things. I like Mastermind because you get to solve riddles. All of these fun things can be done without the “game” aspect of these games. And that is generally how my family played/plays them: sans board, dice, points, or winners. That’s real freedom to fail, experiment, fashion identities, freedom of effort and freedom of interpretation. It is truly “free play” as described by Eric Klopfer, Scot Osterweil, and Katie Salen (Moving Learning Games Forward, 2009). But it’s not a real game, at least not according to the way we defined game literacy in class. Our definition of game literacy involved the learning of and successful operation in a system of rules. Therefore a game requires a system of rules. So what do I and my family play, if they aren’t games? Is it just free play? A free-for-all of jesting and jocularity with some exhibit of our various skills thrown in for good measure? Or are there subtler rules governing this type of adult free play—allowing us to amicably share the spotlight, reveal our thoughts and talents, and get to know one another? We play within the larger framework of the rules of social organization, friendship, family, and the world at large, with an unspecified amount of give-and-take to which all conform. What do you think: does this count as a game?
At first, upon leaving class, I questioned whether or not I was game literate. But I realized I can successfully play, and even win, games with complex rules. It’s simply that I don’t like to do it. I can play Killer Bunnies (even though it kills me). I hated playing games at school as a kid. I knew what all that game business was about. It was review/drilling/exercising my brain and/or body disguised as fun. It wasn’t fun. It was boring. I dreaded those games. C’mon teacher, why can’t you just let me do a review worksheet or jumping jacks or something? It’s practically the same thing.
I sound like such a party-pooper, don’t I? I don’t really know what’s wrong with me. I love to read and watch films and can be really absorbed analyzing the many complex rules and themes of literature and cinema. I love contemporary art and can suspend all immediate reality examining its structure and content. But ask me to take an active role in a game, and I can ‘t help but see it within the greater context of life, culture, the world, everything, and it just seems so unnecessary.
Perhaps I am a perfect case of why games are important: I have yet to accept the importance of rules in games and have therefore not accepted the rules of life. Or is it the other way around?
Playful Learning at the Public Library? Of Course!
I'm enrolled in GSLIS because I want to be a public librarian. I am a public library junkie. I am a public library devotee. I can't get enough of public libraries, and the prospect of being employed in one is what gets me through graduate school - not just the motivation of having a reasonable income (and some time for myself) again, but the idea of being part of the everyday joy of the public library. There's something about them that makes people relax; that inspires us to be ourselves as we seek our own self-improvement and diversion from the Real World. Unlike work and school, the public library is a place for us to learn and be productive on our own terms, and this makes us happy. If I dare say it: it's a place for joyful learning.
As I read about play and games as educational tools last week, it seemed obvious to me that both fit very easily into this picture. It is at the public library, as the Third Place, that children and adults alike pursue continued learning and entertainment - and there's no need to keep the two separate. Learning done in the public library is Life Learning; it is self-education motivated by life events and the voluntary curiosity surrounding them. It is imperative, it is social, and it is inherently fun. And, perhaps most importantly of all, it happens outside the constraints of testing standards, due dates, and grades. Of course playful learning can happen in the public library. It already does!
If we start in the children's section, there's plenty to observe outside of story time. In my library, mothers and nannies bring in their young children during the day to play with the puzzles and toys along with the other children. Bartlett helps us see how this kind of unstructured play is already a form of early learning. Children will role-play with each other, and in this process of taking on new identities they experiment with new tasks and advanced vo
cabulary - all of which improve working memory and other "executive functions" (Bartlett 3). With his preoccupation with working memory, Jourdain would have high hopes for their ability to be "expert" listeners and learners as they grow up (Jourdain 265). And of course, they will.
cabulary - all of which improve working memory and other "executive functions" (Bartlett 3). With his preoccupation with working memory, Jourdain would have high hopes for their ability to be "expert" listeners and learners as they grow up (Jourdain 265). And of course, they will.But what makes this play in the public library different than the same play during school recess? In their white paper about "learning games," the Education Arcade makes their case for play by declaring the five freedoms it assures: the freedom to fail, to experiment, to fashion identities, to regulate effort, and to interpret (Klopfer 4-5). All five of these can be seen in the role-playing of young children, and the freedom to fail is of particular interest in public libraries. In short, there is no failing at the library. There's no grade, no teacher or parent to please, and no being late to return to class. It's all free in the truest sense, in a way that isn't even true on the school playground. There is no prescribed time or learning standard, just their own happy whims.
And once this kind of play turns into organized games, we really start to approach fertile learning territory. We can move now into the gaming section of many public libraries. Maybe there's even a Game Night at yours. As they attempt to define "game literacy," Buckingham and Burn emphasize the cultural, critical, and creative natures of playing and designing games, especially the ludic quality that is unique to them. The ludic dimension of games is what makes them imperative - it's what urges the player to take action in his world rather than just observe it (Buckingham 327). Even if a kid isn't designing her own game, she still has to make informed decisions to take action within it. She has to get enough points to proceed to the next level, or she has to make just the right move with her last rook piece. She has to understand that games involve rules (the bishops can only move diagonally) and economies (there are only 100 points in level 1). If this sounds a lot like life, it should. This can be some of the first Life Learning that young people take on, and where better than the public library?
But perhaps what I'm not emphasizing enough are the social and personal aspects of all of this playing. It is life needs - personal needs - that bring people to the public library, and some kind of socialization is almost an inevitable result. Games, especially, often require the presence of other players as well as an understanding of the broader social network behind them. Teamwork and collaboration are needed to complete some games. And all of this playful learning is motivated by very real-world relevant and personal events. The games that involve of an avatar or the drawing out of a long narrative - and the role-playing of younger children - all draw from life.
All of this comes together beautifully in a digital teen learning space at the Chicago Public Library called YouMedia. Described on their Web site as a space to "connect young adults, books, media, mentors, and institutions throughout the city of Chicago" in order to "inspire collaboration and creativity," this space draws kids from throughout the city who are curious about various digital media technologies. They experiment, they take on new identities (as graphic designers, music producers, authors, etc.), they learn independently and cooperatively, and they're always free to change their minds or fail. They're learning to become productive citizens of the 21st century, and they're learning about themselves. The program is so impressive that President Obama recently included it as a model program in his "Educate to Innovate" Campaign.
So there you have it. This is why I need to be at a public library. Life-relevant, social, and joyful learning all the way.
Bartlett, Tom. "The Case for Play: How a Handful of Researchers are Trying to Save Childhood." The Chronicle of Higher Education. February 20, 2011.
Buckingham, David and Andrew Burn. "Game Literacy in Theory and Practice." Journal of Educational Multimedia and Hypermedia (2007) 16(3), 323-349.
Jourdain, Robert. Music, the Brain, and Ecstasy: How Music Captures Our Imagination. NY: William Morrow and Co., Inc., 1997: 236-268.
Klopfer, Eric, Scot Osterweil, and Katie Salen. "Moving Learning Games Forward." The Education Arcade of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2009.
Monday, March 14, 2011
Storyboards, Comic books and Learning
This blog is an elaboration to my post on the class Moodle. The process of developing a storyboard was somewhat difficult than what I was use to in telling a story, but meaningful nonetheless, partly because I had to decide what was important to write, then providing an illustration to showcase the story being told.
As discussed from some of the readings, “a storyboard is an outline, generally illustrated, that is used in the planning of a television show, movie, commercial, or play.” In more recent years, the readings noted, “the word has also been applied to video games and webpages and a storyboard is an illustrated flow chart.” The illustration therein is somewhat similar to the art in comic books.
Furthermore, reading “Knight Digital Media Center Training on multimedia storytelling” helped me to understand and take note of the various dimensions to story creation, specifically how to decide on a story, the layers such as history, and people, the importance of “shell” (the background), how to read and look at images (defined as some combination of text, still photography, video clips, audio, graphics and interactivity presented on a web site in a nonlinear format). One of the most interesting aspects of “Knight Digital” was the example of Dancing Rocks Rough Storyboard that was broken down into the following parts (click here for full text):
• Nonlinear parts -- Home page with four inside pages. The four parts are the quest (research), a bio (of Messina), the rocks (how they move), and the site of the dancing rocks, Death Valley's Racetrack Playa (its colorful history).
• Video -- Anticipate video from the field trip: Messina mapping the rock trails, assembling her gear, the trip to and from the playa.
• Audio -- Anticipate audio from the field trip: Messina explaining how she works, what the gear does, and why she does what she does. Maybe what the Racetrack Playa sounds like.
• Still photos -- Available from Messina's Web site, and professional photographers, if necessary. Anticipate grabbing still photos from video of wide-angle shots of the playa, rocks and trails, maybe Death Valley National Park rangers.
• Graphics -- Existing aerial photo, maps and rock trails.
• Text -- History of research, history of the Racetrack Playa from interviews with Messina, other researchers, and the park rangers.
Transitioning to “Reading Comics,” Carol L. Tilley, a professor of library and information science at the University of Illinois writes, “comic books are just as sophisticated as other forms of literature, and children [and let me add adults] benefit from reading them at least as much as they do from reading other types of books.” Additionally, it was noted that many people, even librarians who willingly add comics to their collection, often dismiss its importance. However, compared to reading “real “ books, “comic appears to be a simple task compared to books, where reading comic might be preferable.” Tilley further writes, “After all, comics do have words/plentiful pictures that seem to carry meaning.” Lastly, comics have several common structural elements that are used to communicate effectively, and between the readers.
Despite the fact that librarians and teachers have long embraced picture books, and not comics, as suitable text for young readers, there is much that can be learned. Additionally, comics differ in some important ways from standard picture books; comics tend to have multiple panels per page instead of a single page. Similarly, comics integrate words and images indicating a greater extent than many traditional picture books. “Yet, teachers and library media specialist can employ the same instructional techniques with young people for both picture books and comics.”
Like some of my classmate who noted on the Moodle, from the readings, I too get the general impression that comics and digital stories are quite distinct forms of expressions, not just for youth, but all readers. And, to understand comic book’s importance as vital forms of learning, one needs to have a firm understanding of different ways all people learn. Having this information/ background knowledge helped me to construct my own storyboard (provided on the Moodle), albeit general, to share an aspect of my life related to applying to graduate schools.
The creation of a storyboard was a good follow up to the comic strip generator exercise our class looked at GSLIS two weeks ago while in class, including that illustration/ images are not only used to tell a story, but serve a unique purpose.
As discussed from some of the readings, “a storyboard is an outline, generally illustrated, that is used in the planning of a television show, movie, commercial, or play.” In more recent years, the readings noted, “the word has also been applied to video games and webpages and a storyboard is an illustrated flow chart.” The illustration therein is somewhat similar to the art in comic books.
Furthermore, reading “Knight Digital Media Center Training on multimedia storytelling” helped me to understand and take note of the various dimensions to story creation, specifically how to decide on a story, the layers such as history, and people, the importance of “shell” (the background), how to read and look at images (defined as some combination of text, still photography, video clips, audio, graphics and interactivity presented on a web site in a nonlinear format). One of the most interesting aspects of “Knight Digital” was the example of Dancing Rocks Rough Storyboard that was broken down into the following parts (click here for full text):
• Nonlinear parts -- Home page with four inside pages. The four parts are the quest (research), a bio (of Messina), the rocks (how they move), and the site of the dancing rocks, Death Valley's Racetrack Playa (its colorful history).
• Video -- Anticipate video from the field trip: Messina mapping the rock trails, assembling her gear, the trip to and from the playa.
• Audio -- Anticipate audio from the field trip: Messina explaining how she works, what the gear does, and why she does what she does. Maybe what the Racetrack Playa sounds like.
• Still photos -- Available from Messina's Web site, and professional photographers, if necessary. Anticipate grabbing still photos from video of wide-angle shots of the playa, rocks and trails, maybe Death Valley National Park rangers.
• Graphics -- Existing aerial photo, maps and rock trails.
• Text -- History of research, history of the Racetrack Playa from interviews with Messina, other researchers, and the park rangers.
Transitioning to “Reading Comics,” Carol L. Tilley, a professor of library and information science at the University of Illinois writes, “comic books are just as sophisticated as other forms of literature, and children [and let me add adults] benefit from reading them at least as much as they do from reading other types of books.” Additionally, it was noted that many people, even librarians who willingly add comics to their collection, often dismiss its importance. However, compared to reading “real “ books, “comic appears to be a simple task compared to books, where reading comic might be preferable.” Tilley further writes, “After all, comics do have words/plentiful pictures that seem to carry meaning.” Lastly, comics have several common structural elements that are used to communicate effectively, and between the readers.
Despite the fact that librarians and teachers have long embraced picture books, and not comics, as suitable text for young readers, there is much that can be learned. Additionally, comics differ in some important ways from standard picture books; comics tend to have multiple panels per page instead of a single page. Similarly, comics integrate words and images indicating a greater extent than many traditional picture books. “Yet, teachers and library media specialist can employ the same instructional techniques with young people for both picture books and comics.”
Like some of my classmate who noted on the Moodle, from the readings, I too get the general impression that comics and digital stories are quite distinct forms of expressions, not just for youth, but all readers. And, to understand comic book’s importance as vital forms of learning, one needs to have a firm understanding of different ways all people learn. Having this information/ background knowledge helped me to construct my own storyboard (provided on the Moodle), albeit general, to share an aspect of my life related to applying to graduate schools.
The creation of a storyboard was a good follow up to the comic strip generator exercise our class looked at GSLIS two weeks ago while in class, including that illustration/ images are not only used to tell a story, but serve a unique purpose.
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