My class is currently working on an informational writing unit.  Each group is learning about a different animal (lions, dolphins and eagles) and together, we are learning about penguins.  I wrote this guide with my students in mind.  I teach third and fourth grade special education.  The students in my class require step-by-step directions with picture clues and modeling.  Too many steps, however, prove to be confusing and too difficult.  This information literacy guide is specific to the student’s current writing unit, but also serves as a guide to informational research for New Media.  

Using the Internet to Research 

Step 1: Think About Your Topic- and be specific!

For our informational books, each group will be researching a different animal.  Together, we have been learning about penguins.  What are some of the specific things that we want to know about penguins?

Step 2: Make a list of specific information that you want to know. Use key words and bullet points.  We can look back at our KWL chart to help us.  For example, our class chart says we want to know about:

ü  Penguins prey

ü  Penguins predators

ü  Penguins adaptations

ü  Penguins habitat

Knowing the specific information that you are looking for makes research easier!

Step 3: Using either Google or Bing type the specific key words into the search box and see what the results are.  

 

You can also search websites that we use often such as kids.nationalgeographic.com or timeforkids.com.  Searching for images is another great way to help bring your research to life. 

Step 4: Check more that one website to make sure that you are getting the same information.  Always think to yourself, “Is this logical? Does it make sense?”  If the answer is no, keep searching.  If your still not sure, ask an adult. 

Adolescent Interview- Week 10

Adolescent Interview

For this assignment, I interviewed my son’s friend of eleven years, JJ.  JJ is a sixteen year old is his junior year in high school.  He attends a New York City public school.  I knew that JJ would be open and candid with me, not merely telling me what he thought I wanted to hear.  I began by asking him about what electronic devices he has. He currently owns a computer, an I-pod, a cell phone, a Play Station three and an Xbox. JJ stated that he uses all of the devices on a daily basis with the exception of the gaming systems.  He uses them a few days a week and usually plays on line with other kids through Xbox Live. I asked JJ which websites he visits most frequently, he replied “Usually YouTube or I just Google stuff.  Mostly music and videos.”  Reflecting upon the subjects touched upon in class, I asked him if he had ever ben a victim of or partook in any cyber bullying.  He answered that if people read his comments on social media sights, they would say yes to both to but asserted that all of the comments that could be considered bullying were between friends and never to hurt anyone.  The social media sight used most frequently by JJ is Instagram and that not many teenagers are using Facebook anymore.  He didn’t spare me the reminder of my age by saying that older people like me and his parents are usually the ones using Facebook.  Regarding monitoring, he stated that his parents don’t monitor his internet use or his social media saying “Nah, I don’t have a hover mom”, a term used for parents who hover over their children watching their every move.   I happen to know otherwise.  His mother does monitor his activity, and has seen things that she didn’t approve of, choosing to stay quiet as a means of being able to continue to monitor him. I guess that makes her a closet hover mom.  That part of the conversation lead to me asking the difference between generational use of technology.  JJ stated that the younger someone is, the better chance they have in using technology.  The example he gave was his grandmother who wanted an I-phone.  Once she got it, she couldn’t figure out how to answer it and returned to her flip phone within two days.  He also stated that she is always calling him or his brothers to the house to help with her computer, printer or other devices.  When I asked if he knew what she used the computer for, he said that she has a Facebook page, but doesn’t know how to navigate it and that she plays Bejewled all day and still has trouble figuring out which remote woks what device.  (I admit, I have a hard time figuring that one out myself). 

Interviewing JJ reminded me of a time when my husband and I took him and son to an antique shop.  We purchased an “antique” French Princess style rotary phone.  When we plugged it in, it was hysterical to see the kids trying to figure out how make a call using the dial!  Technology has changed tremendously in a relatively short period of time, and it was never as evident than at that moment.  It seems that as a society, we just seem to accept technology as it comes.  We are eager to have the latest, the biggest and the best.  Instant gratification has become a way of life.  Everything is available literally at our fingertips and at the push of a button. I was a bit taken aback to hear that Facebook is for “people my age”. (And that the term hover mom is really a term.  It even cemented its place in the Urban Dictionary, another website used by people my age to keep up with the lingo that the kids are using.)  Overall, I have come to grips with the fact that technology is ever evolving and one day in the VERY distant future, I will be the grandmother who clings to my trusty old I-phone because the latest technology is beyond my realm of comprehension while toddlers will probably be flying hover crafts and

old-lady-sitting the people in our generation. 

Week 8 Journal Post

Like Jenkins, Marshall McLuhan, one of the first media critics discusses “media as one of the most powerful social, economic, political, and cultural institutions” (31).  McLuhan asserts “mass media[s] grip on contemporary life altered human nature” (You Tube).  In the interview, McLuhan addressed the future (now present) advancement of media technology as well as the need for it to be used responsibly warning the alteration of human nature.

McLuhan made accurate predictions.  Throughout this course, we have read about and discussed accessibility and location.  In his interview, McLuhan makes reference to a global village.  This has come to fruition as pointed out by Varnelis (2008) when discussing technological advancements stated, “the public sphere was being evacuated and along with it place…was quickly disappearing” (p. 274).  McLuhan called for an increase if human autonomy indicating to me that as a society, we are all responsible to teach critical media.

We each play a role both individually and collectively in critical media awareness.  The bottom line is that media has changed and continues to change life in so many ways.  Foe the most part, we have all become too reliant on technology.  Awareness on responsible use of media in all aspects (research, social media, communication etc.) is paramount for humans to stay connected at the human level. 

 

 References

Jenkins, H.J. (2006)., Confronting the Challenges of Participatory Culture: Media Education for the 21st Century.

McLuhan, M.  (1965) Marshall McLuhan speaks vision of the future.  [video file] Retrieved from http://marshallmcluhanspeaks.com/prophecies/

Varnelis, K. (2008). Networked publics. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press.

Week Six Journal Post: Changing Citizenship in the Digital Age

A particular topic that I found to be interesting was the political aspect as it relates to technology and today’s youth.  I don’t see that the youth are particularly interested in or informed about politics.  As an adult, I myself do not have a great deal of interest in politics.  To be honest, politics is rarely discussed in my house unless it is related to education or it is during an election.  In reading Changing Citizenship in the Digital Age, I thought of the import role that politics plays in our lives every day.  I realized that my lack of interest in politics probably stems from the fact that politics was not really discussed in my house growing up.  Most of my knowledge of politics as a child was developed from what I learned in school.  My son is sixteen and I’m sure that the same is true for him; his knowledge of politics is limited to political conversations based on what we hear on the news and what he learn in school. 

            One key issue reiterated throughout this text is that today’s youth aren’t as involved as they could be on the political scene, yet there is a great deal of untapped potential that could spark interest in numerous members of the younger generation, the Internet.  Social media plays a tremendous role in the lives of most members of society.  What better way to reach the youth than by reaching out to them on their turf, the Internet.  Bennett asserts, “A challenging question is how to better integrate the social and public worlds of young people online. Unlike classic accounts of civil society in which social bonds strengthened political participation in the golden age of dutiful citizens, the separation of the social and the civic in the youth online world often seems stark” (11).  For the youth, political participation seems to be fueled by social media.  Two of the most recent examples include the Eric Garner case in Staten Island, New York where the medical examiner declared that Mr. Garner died as a direct result of being placed in a choke hold by a New York City police officer and the shooting of unarmed teenager, Michel Brown in Ferguson, Missouri in August.  These tragic incidences, fueled by social media caused many teenagers to take a stand and to have their voices heard.  Many people exercised their right to demonstrate for an issue that they felt strongly about.  This is an example of the ways that Digital Media can engage today’s youth to become involved in politics.  The teenagers were involved in something that they felt passionate about, but do they understand that they were taking a political stand and they their voices could really be heard on a large scale if they continue to become involved in politics? 

Reading “Changing Citizenship in the Digital Age." Civic Life Online: Learning How Digital Media Can Engage Youth helped me to realize the importance of getting the youth involved in the politics.  Most people, young and old alike, have a desire to become involved when our civil liberties or the civil liberties of others are effected, however the youth may not be aware of the power that their voice has and the impact that they can have in the political arena.  We already know that “in this digital society, the axiom that information is power is more appropriate than ever” (19) is true.  If society used new media, including social media to reach out to the youth, I feel that there would be more involvement.  Bennett’s research indicates that, “most young people simply do not believe that following and learning about various issues will translate into the power to help decide them. Strong (daily) levels of interest in politics are expressed by barely 13 percent of eighteen- to twenty-four-year-olds, compared to more than twice that level among those over fifty-five. Interest levels in the news reflect interest levels in politics” (19).  Perhaps targeting the youth through new media and new technologies is the key to changing these statistics.   

References:

Bennett, W. (2008). Changing Citizenship in the Digital Age. Retrieved from http://static.squarespace.com/static/51ede959e4b0de4b8d24e8a9/t/525485cde4b0843ea38965df/1381270989265/Ciberciudadanía y opinión pública.pdf