My Top Ten Media Education Revelations

1. BABIES ARE NOW BORN DIGITAL



A whole generation of children has grown up connected to the Internet. Berkman Center for Internet & Society director John Palfry calls these kids “digital natives.” Palfrey argues in his book Born Digital that they see the world in a profoundly different way from the rest of us. This is more apparent to me than ever now as I see my two-year-old nephew and the way he interacts with technology. My generation may be the last one to remember a non-digital world. The following is an interview with the author.






2. Television has the power to change culture.

We have read and discussed the changes that came about because of a cultural shift from a typographical culture to an image-based culture. Only attractive people can deliver the news. Somehow the beautiful people entered our living rooms and gave us unrealistic ideas about what we should look like. There was no history of eating disorders in Fiji until cable television showed up in 1995. As soon as teens saw 90210, people of Fiji began to see Anorexia and Bulimia in teens.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/347637.stm



3. The Older Generation Thrives Online

This is my grandfather. He and I are Facebook friends. He recently saw all 500 photos I took this spring in Europe. My grandmother passed away last year, and I do think that the internet has kept Grandpa Jack connected to the rest of the family. Older people who do not utilize the internet are missing out due to fear. I love that my 89 year old Gramps is all over it. Just yesterday his second great grandchild was born, and he will see pictures of her immediately.


This is Quinn -- a photo sent from a cell phone, which I texted to my online phone account and then uploaded to my blog - WHAT? Quinn on the internet for the first time ever!


http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/10/16/does-the-internet-boost-your-brainpower/

My grandpa is not a "digital retard"! Hooray for that!

4. SNL is entertaining and twisted (and we love it!)

Saturday Night Live has really had a running commentary on American Presidents since the mid-1970s. Their view, skewed as it may be, has entered our social conscience for decades. As a teenager, and then through college, I wouldn't always watch the news, but I wouldn't miss SNL. Yes, it is funny, and maybe that's why it sticks with us. Some of us will remember Tina Fey's Sarah Palin more easily than we will remember Palin herself. The infamous Palin interview was cut and manipulated BEFORE SNL went after it. I am no Plain fan, but that seems a bit rough.

http://www.floppingaces.net/2008/09/14/saturday-night-live-believes-abcs-manipulated-interview-w-palin/





Jen hearts Will Farrell.

5. Appearances vs. Reality

We live in a world of distorted reality. For some people, getting to the point where we accept ourselves as we are is hindered by the media. 99% of women do not look like super models and never will. It is true that young girls today are bombarded by more media images and pressure to be perfect than ever before. I wish all girls could see this video, and I applaud DOVE for their Campaign for Beauty workshops for girls. Their ad campaigns are some of the only ones out there that use real women, of all ages, shapes and sizes on the screen.



See how this already attractive woman is changed into a supermodel in fast forward.



The website below explains the campaign and has some great interviews with young girls.
http://www.dove.us/#/cfrb/


6. Little kids live in a completely digital world - one in which keeping up with the technology will prove essential for their future success.



Babies are handling iphones, video games, DVRs, computers, etc. Their world is saturated with technology, and they need the latest and greatest. I worry about the kids at our school who only interact with meaningful technology (vs. watching lame TV at home) at school. Will kids' media literacy be driven by how much technology their parents can afford? I like the guideline to keep kids away from screens until age three. But, do people do this. If I have a kid will I be able to stick to it? It seems screens are everywhere. Don't go to that new wings restaurant on Shelburne Road where TGIFridays used to be. It's terrifying. I think there are 50 screens, no exaggeration.





7. I am not alone in my thinking about digital books.


J.D. Salinger would agree?

There is something about a paper book in my hands that is comforting, nostalgic. I like the smell of a new book, just bought one today. I like the look of books on the book shelf. Ten years ago I thought I'd never get a cell phone, and now I can't live without it. I realize that some day I will use a Kindle or the like. And I also see the benefit this could be to our students. To have all the books they will ever need in one slim piece of technology. It reminds me of the old ipod commercial when the skinny nerdy kid said his ipod made him feel powerful. Same thing here.



http://www.newsweek.com/2010/07/29/salinger-like-you-ve-never-seen-him.html

There is a biography of J.D. Salinger in the works. The author, Shane Salerno, "has rules. 'Do not read J. D. Salinger on a Kindle,' he says, with a snort of disgust. 'Grab that broken paperback.'"

I found the old (2003) ipod commercial. It makes me think of the Kindle today.



8. It is scary to think how all of this affects teachers and librarians.

Gone are the days of the card catalog and the straight up lecture based classroom. As educators we need to step up and meet our students where they live, in a digital world. The world gets smaller and smaller with faster, farther reaching technology. Kids want to share information all over the world. I haven't hooked my kids up to other schools or anything like that, but I do think about it. Apparently a US school did an online learning cooperative with some kids in Australia as the two classes read The Color Purple. This was helpful to the Aussie kids because they didn't understand the southern black vernacular.





9. Being a teacher of a digital learner is a tall order task....how do we engage our learners?

I am a relatively young teacher at my school, and even I feel like I need to get it together. I want my kids to have authentic learning experiences in the classroom, and through assessments they do for me. If that means they need to create a different way of showing me what they've learned, I am okay with that. I am interested in digital story-telling, and plan to look into it this year.




10. Plus... everything will go digital (if it hasn't already)




11. Let's Talk about Sexting, baby.



Teens use their cell phones as a life line, and some flirty messages can be misconstrued as sexting. To say that 1 in 5 teens have been sexually solicited online or through texting is misleading. Most of that is from people they know. These things, this talk, has always happened, only the forum has changed.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/01/15/national/main4723161.shtml