Double Entry Journal #13

             “In spite of the facts that the dominant political culture of this county opposes youth rights to autonomy and self-determination, and that the consumer media culture co-opts them, civic engagement is a growing trend among after-school programs” (Goodman, 2003, p. 105). This statement summarizes my individual philosophy on the purpose of education. I think that a good education results in autonomy and self-determination and these skills should be taught throughout the school day, not just through after-school programs. We are preparing our students for their future and I think that we need to focus more on why we come to a certain answer instead of just the importance of getting the answer correct. Education needs to address not only cognitive development, but also social, emotional, moral, and creative development. By implementing critical literacy programs in our schools, we as educators, are able to better address these critical standards of development. In today’s age of standardized testing and focus on direct instruction, introducing critical literacy programs into our public schools has become a challenge.

                The role of the student in education is to be an engaged participant in their learning experience. Once again, this creates another challenge in today’s classroom, in which the emphasis on testing scores outweighs the importance of preparing our young students for the future. I feel that students are more engaged in the task at hand when they have a voice in their educational opportunities and are informed about why they come to a certain conclusion or answer. “One thing that has struck me in my work with urban kids is the odd congruence between two very different systems: the system of global media that wants young people to be spectators and consumers rather than social actors, and a factory system of schooling that wants young people to be passive and willing vessels for a prescribed set of knowledge and skills" (Goodman, 2003, p.2). I strongly agree with Goodman’s quote and I think that his feelings apply to students in rural and suburban areas as well. By creating critical literacy programs in our schools, we are able to provide our students with a voice and a sense of empowerment. I will incorporate critical literacy skills in my future classroom in order to engage my students in learner and to foster their development.

                I feel that as a teacher, I should be a facilitator of my students gaining the knowledge and skills that will help them become successful and productive adults. My graduate coursework has been in special education, and I think that facilitating these skills in this population, one that is the least likely to feel empowered and the most often to feel hindered.  I think that teaching critical literacy skills can help students develop critical thinking skills and creativity. "But there are other visions of media literacy, more narrow and more problematic. Unfortunately, some see media literacy as option for low-performing, underachieving students whose interest can be piqued by TV and nothing else" (Hobbs, 1996). There are so many skills that can be taught through media literacy (critical thinking, writing, reading, social, technology, emotional, etc.), and I think that those who see this subject as a singular vessel for students whose interest can only be piqued by television have not researched the topic. This narrow-minded view is a challenge for today’s educators. As a future teacher, I will use media literacy to facilitate the learning of my students, as a tool of empowerment and knowledge.

                Teachers need to be productive and visible members of their communities in order to gain the trust and respect from community members, students, parents, and fellow staff members. This assists in gaining rapport which is vital to the teacher-student relationship. By being cognizant of the communities in which their students live, teachers are able to better reach their students. They are more aware of their culture and lifestyle.  Teachers working in the community to promote media literacy are able to form bonds with community leaders that can spread to their students. This assists students in developing their own voice in addressing the strengths and weaknesses of their own communities. Goodman states, “Young people stand to benefit if reform efforts from the school, after-school, and community development fields can join together. Such a working collaboration can provide a continuity of practice and principals across the day” (Goodman, 2003, p. 108). By being actively involved in learning activities, I think that students will be more engaged, especially when these activities ensue throughout the students’ entire day.

Links that I would use to promote media literacy in my classroom:

This website provides some really good suggestions for integrating technology and media literacy in the classroom.
http://www.pbs.org/teachers/digital-media-literacy/integrating-digital-tools-and-content/

This link provides a lesson plan for deconstructing a poster. This specific plan is targeted toward fourth grade, but I think that it could be adapted to other grade levels.
http://eworkshop.on.ca/edu/pdf/Mod32_Less_Plan_Text.pdf

I'm not sure how I didn't stumble upon these awesome PBS links, but this is another website about media literacy that contains interactive activities that my students would enjoy.
http://pbskids.org/dontbuyit/

This is a video that I would show in my classroom when introducing media literacy to my students. It was retrieved from: http://youtu.be/IysHjKE2D-Y
 

This is graphic organizer that would be very useful for students learning about media literacy from
http://teachemgood.wordpress.com/2010/02/24/media-literacy-a-simple-lesson-on-a-complex-topic/:




References:
Goodman, S. 2003. Teaching youth media: A critical guide to lliteracy, video producation, and social change. New York, New York: Teachers College Press.


Hobbs, R. (2002). Center for media literacy. Retrieved from http://www.medialit.org/reading-room/teaching-media-literacy-yo-are-you-hip

Week 15: Final Edition of Digital Story

I have completed the final edition of my digital story. The link has been e-mailed to my instructor and classmates. Please let me know if you are having difficulty with accessing my video. Thanks.

Week 14 Activities #1 & 2

I completed a rough draft of my YouTube video. I was unable to include narration today because my microphone wasn't working, therefore, I replaced it with text. Narration will be included in my final video, hopefully my husband can figure out what I did to break the microphone! My video is private and I sent a link to my instructor and classmates via gmail. I think that I did it correctly, so if you are in my class and didn't receive the e-mail, please let me know.
UPDATE (12/3/12): Classmates: I made my video unlisted, so you should be able to see it through the link that I provded in your gmail.

Weeks 12 & 13 Activity #3

I enjoyed creating my story board. It was emotional, but a good experience.

Week 12: Activity #1 and #2

Element #1: Point of View

Salt
I think that the purpose of this story was to inform how salt is made. Perhaps these children created the video as part of a science or social studies project. This story is told by a child's point of view and through a child's voice. 

Fish Tank
I would have probably told the story from a student's point of view instead of an adult's.  I think that Val used the scrolling technique because it was more dramatic and allows the viewers to think more about the content.

Element #2: Dramatic Question

Are we making Guam ugly?
This was an interesting video. The dramatic question caught my attention along with the visual graphics and "pleasant" music. This question made me want to know more and kept my attention as I watched the video.

Seward Legend
This was a legend that was recreated by children. I'm not sure what the dramatic question was because I couldn't hear the children very well. To answer the question from the website, I recently watched Crazy, Stupid, Love and it had a surprise ending. I really enjoy getting a surprise ending, especially when so many movies that are made today have predictable endings.

Element #3: Emotional Content

Depression
The video begins with music that is emotionally "sad" and the images are of despair. Then the paradigm shifts, the music "brightens" and the images are more comforting. The text of the video helped convey this shift in emotions as well.

Elders
The first person point of view will hook viewers as well as discussion of a familiar subject to most, losing grandparents.

What is a stranger?
The message that makes this movie powerful is that it is something that we all fear. The dramatic question was: What is a stranger? I think that the video was predictable with images of adults who look like everyday people but could possibly be dangerous.

Element #4: The Gift of Your Voice

Salt and Poi
The impact of the narrator telling her story makes it more personal, which makes it more powerful and interesting for the viewer. It makes the audience feel that they are face to face with the storyteller.

Palauan Journeys
Having children narrate the story makes the images that are presented more powerful. It made me reminisce about my own childhood, even though the video was in a language that I do not know. Having the text presented makes it easier for the viewer to follow the story. I would encourage my students to include text in their videos. I think that the author included these images to magnify the message in the children's story.

Element #5: Soundtrack

Anuenue
When I think of a movie with a powerful soundtrack, I think of the original Halloween movie. The music helps to convey the plot in the movie and I get chills when I hear this music because it is just so eerie. It definitely makes your heart race!

Element #6: Economy

A Room for Maria
I think that the clips were timed appropriately for the most part, but there was a couple of incidents where the timing was off. The transitions seemed to be going backward (from right to left). I was able to think about what images would be included on the missing pieces.

Tara's Room
I could recognize the difference in sequence in this video. I like the transitions better, but the story doesn't seem to flow as well. I think that the clips were shown a little too long and maybe the narrator could have edited some parts of this story.

Dreams
I found this video hard to follow and it didn't flow well. The images were presented for two long and the story was jumbled.

Element #7: Pacing

Earthquake
The pacing of this story was quick which keeps the viewer from getting bored. I think that the narrator used breaks in speech adequately.

Small School
Humor is introduced through the images and music. The images at the end were shown too long and the break in the music just didn't seem right to me. These last images didn't really go with the rest of the video.

Activity #2

My dramatic question is going to be...Dear Grandma, your strength inspired me to get where I am today.
My opening line... Dear Grandma, I know you struggled throughout your life...

Double Entry Journal #12

Chapter 4: Dreams and Nightmares

1. How can documentary video production help prevent the underdevelopment of urban youth minds and spirits?

Many responses flood my mind when thinking of this question. Documentary video production can prevent urban youths from falling through the cracks and becoming a statistic by providing them with opportunities to stay out of trouble, learn the importance of teamwork, learn responsibility, and become empowered to do whatever they set their minds too. It allows them to take a closer look at their community and its problems. It gives them something productive to do with their time and allows them to make connections to the community. It gives them a sense of responsibilitiy and importance through organizing and creating their production. Their finished product and insight into their community can give them a sense of pride.

2. What school-based literacies does documentary video production help to develop?

I think that documentary video production helps to develop writing skills and organizational skills. It can help students hone their writing abilities and creativity. Documentary video producation provides technology that students can work with and helps them develop social skills. It can bolster research skills and critical thinking. Students could also incorporate other subjects such as science and social studies into their documentaries. For example, they could create a video about the pollution of a local stream and do research regarding the causes and detriments of the chemicals.

3. What 21st century skills does documentary video production help to develop? Provide concrete examples from the chapter. Use this Wikipedia article to help you answer this questions.

Critical thinking and problem-solving: Video production helps to develop critical thinking and problem-solving skills, as students are able to examine the issues that effect them and how to work on fixing these issues during the production process. Example from Chapter Four:(Page 105) Through the process of conducting in-depth documentation, research, and public discussion of a community problem, EVC students have become engaged and worked to change social issues in their lives.

Creativity and innovation: By writing the script, choosing audio and video, and editing interviews, students are definitely honing their creativity and innovation.  Example from Chapter Four: (Page 107) More than a commercial or promotional video for a local business, students' tapes serve as catalysts for informing and organizing a community. Their work responds to the needs and serves the interests of the larger community.

Communication: Students are honing oral, written, visual and auditory communication skills within themselves, their team, their audieance, and their community when producing a documentary video. Example from Chapter Four: (Page 106) First, the documentary inquiry process gives the students multiple opportunities to practice developing relationships with community leaders. As a necessary part of their work, they learn the often-intimidating skills of writing, faxing, e-mailing, and calling adults to set up meetings and interviews with them.

Collaboration: Students learn to work together, with educators or mentors, and with members of the community to complete their projects. Example: (Page 110) "It taught me the importance of working with a team. Trying to achieve one common goal....Also, working with a diverse group of people everyday from different backgrounds, genders, and races."

 

4. Would you support a documentary vide0 production in school or after-school program in your community? Why or Why not?

I would support a documentary video production in school or in an after-school program in my community. My community is an Appalachian small town that has really suffered the effects of drug abuse and poverty. There are very few activities for teenagers to engage in and I think that this program could help them find their own voice and engage them in positive activities.

 

Reference:Goodman, S. 2003. Teaching youth media: A critical guide to lliteracy, video producation, and social change. New York, New York: Teachers College Press.

 

 

 

Double Entry Journal #11

Watch Young Gunz the video being discussed in chapter 2

1. What are your concerns about teaching young people to make videos about social problems?
One concern that I have about teaching young people to make videos about social problems is that they may become more jaded about the social situation and feel more helpless that the problem can't be fixed. Also, as an educator it would be difficult to juggle all of the intricacies that are involved in making a video and especially time contstraints for individual classes.

Then read Chapter 2 in the course text and answer the following questions:

1. Name a social issue specific to the Appalachian region that you think young people in your community would or should address
I think that prescription drug abuse is one of the social issues that is prevalent in Appalachian communities and affects young people. It affects their families, well-being, education, and many other facets of their lives. It is a growing problem that results in violence, poverty, incarceration, and lives torn apart that our young people need to address.

2. Find an online resource you might use to scaffold community-based video production process.
The Making of Sharing Paradise is a resource that could be used to scaffold community-based video producation process. It shares the process that the filmmakers and community participated in to create their video and provides a lot of useful information about community-based filmmaking.

3. Choose on of the following perspectives; teacher, parent, or community member. From your chosen perspective, would you be supportive of a school program that engaged students in community-based video production? Why or Why not?
From the perspective of a teacher, I would be supportive of a school program that engaged students in community-based video producation. This type of curriculum provides multiple avenues for learning: cognitive, behavioral, technical, creative, social-emotional and increases their knowledge base. I think that students of all ages could benefit from this subject and would be more likely to participate because it is interesting and they get to have a voice in their learning and their final product.


" In contrast to their traditional teacher-centered classes, students consistently report that they feel more positive about themselves, their work, and their community. A powerful sense of engagement and excitement surrounds them when they are out on the streets talking with their peers, and talking about subjects of immediate importance to them." Goodman, 2003

I selected this quote because it encompasses media literacy and the benefits of community-based video making process on young people. It is important to remember that all of our students learn differently and sometimes their culture impedes their learning because it is not the social standard. This type of curriculum can help meet the cultural needs of our students while continuing to provide a productive learning environment. Today, students need to be literate about the production of media messages and also need to be familiar with the technology that is involved in creating these messages. I hope to see more opportunities for educators and students to engage in community-based video production.





This video provides an interesting look at community-based video production in the Appalachian region. I will definitely return to this website to view the progress of the documentary. I'm having a difficult time getting this video to show on my blog, so you can view it at this link: Hollow.

References:

Goodman, S. 2003. Teaching youth media: A critical guide to lliteracy, video producation, and social change. New York, New York: Teachers College Press.

Hapsari, A. (n.d.). The making of sharing paradise. Ohio University. Retrieved from
http://www.seas.ohio.edu/SharingParadise/making.html

Hollow: An Interactive Documentary. Retrieved from
http://www.hollowthefilm.com/