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/