Week 10 Activity 1

Element #1: Take a look at the two examples and see if you can identify the purpose behind each story. What is the point of view in each? Whose voice do you hear?

#1 The purpose is to show how to make salt. The viewpoint is from a worker.  Throughout the video, you hear the workers voice. 

#2 The voices you hear is singing and a narrator describing some scenes.  I see the viewpoint as being an audience watching a slideshow.

Element #2: See if you can find a dramatic question in the examples for this section. Is the question resolved in each movie or are you left without a resolution?

#1 “Are we making Guam ugly?”  I feel I am left without a resolution. 

#2 “What is the Seward Legend” I feel they resolve this by telling the legend.

Element #3: See if you can identify the emotional paradigms behind these stories.

#1 Depression leading to suicide attempts.

#2 Family history and not taking advantage of our loved ones who know the roots of your family.

#3 “Don’t talk to strangers!” Strangers just fit in and at any moment can so something negative like abduct someone. 

Element #4: What impact that the voice plays on the overall effect of the story.

#1 I think the voice adds validity to the story.

#2 The voices help connect the images and make the story flow together. 

Element #5: What impact does the music have on the emotional content or purpose of the story?

#1 The music helps engage the viewer.  It helps add the effect to the lifestyle of this group of people.

Element #6: Look at the examples in this section and consider the decisions the authors made about length of clips, types of transitions and sequence of events. Are you able (as a viewer) to fill in the missing pieces? Give an example?

#1 Seems to make flow quickly keeping pace.

#2 The narrator seemed to address the pictures well, especially when she said Tara was sitting in the basement. 

#3 Seemed choppy and not flowing.  I feel there were too many different images and did not create a single story.  I felt it was hard to follow a plot, other than “Dreams.”

Element #7: How does the narrator use their voice to pace the story? Give a specific example.

#1 The narrator uses the voice to explain the movie as it goes along.  I think a good point is when they give the example of an earthquake happening in 1995

#2 Honestly I thought of “Great things come in small packages.” The lack of voice is great because I was able to get the hints of subtle humor within the video. 

Activity 2 Week 10

• Point of View. What is the point of view in each? Whose voice do you hear?
• The point of view is the author.  She goes through describing how we are the ones who define what we are.  
• Dramatic Question. What is the dramatic question? 
• "If You Really Knew Me..." Even this is the title, it speaks the question "Do you really know someone?"  
• Emotional Content. What is the emotional content of the story? How or why do you relate to it?
• I can relate to being alone in your room.  It was when I reached this point that I needed to do something.  I had my moments when I was younger when I doubted myself and thought to myself "what am I doing here?"

Reading #10

1.    How has social media changed reading and writing processes in the digital age?

a.     Readers of social media can now have access to links and other resources at the click of a button.  Also social media allows for communication between different groups of people has increased.  The exchange of ideas about literacy is faster and at a more accessible area. 

2.    Explain "cosmopolitan practice" in relation to digital literacies and it means for learning in school.

a.     Cosmopolitan practice involves someone reaching beyond the ties and creating bridges throughout the world through digital literacies.  Schools engage in digital literacies all the time.  The idea for schools going beyond their traditional forms of learning is enhanced by the development of digital literacies. 

3.    How did the cosmopolitan conversation video challenge support critical media literacy?

a.     The cosmopolitan conversation video supported critical media literacy by having the children create digital stories.  The videos were to express the views of how the youth feel about the world issues.  Students were also encouraged to reflect on opinions of others and adjust their personal views if necessary. 

4.    How does this quote from the text, "In this digital age, traditional content creation such as book reports, unit projects and essays, cannot be merely digitized and regulated to the end of the unit as capstone demonstrations of content mastery," make you think about how digital technologies should be used to support learning in school?

a.     Digital technologies should be aids to help students complete the projects or essays.  Technology offers students many different ways to share an essay or create a book report.  Programs like Prezi or Slideshare can help students see ways and develop and share what they have learned or created. 

5.    How do the digital stories you watch this week support the concept of cosmopolitanism?

a.     The digital stories supported this concept because I was opened to the world around me.  I changed my viewpoints and applied some of the concepts to my life.  The video I liked dealt with me defining myself.  I make my own opinions and I define me by my actions and thoughts. 

6.      In a blog posting, copy and paste a quote from the text that have moved you in some way (i.e. surprised, confused, disagree, strongly agree) and in about 100-150 words state why you have selected the quote. Then find an article, video, podcast, blog posting, image related to what you have read and link to it or embed it in your Blog. Describe the resources and a brief explanation of how it is connected to the reading. 

a.     “The recently released “Common Core State Standards Initiative, which was designed for college and career readiness…”

This quote is not the whole thing, but this first part affects me a lot.  Math is changing drastically to help address the issue of getting kids ready for after high school.  As a first year math teacher in a high school, I am amazed at everything that is changing in the matter of 3 years.  I understand the goal behind it and I completely agree with the fact that kids who are not going to college should be ready for some type of career.  They should be aware of the math they need in order to succeed with the career they choose. 

This is just one way that the math is changing in order to help the students better understand the concepts and the relevance.  

Reading #9

In a blog posting, copy and paste a quote from the text that have moved you in some way (i.e. surprised, confused, disagree, strongly agree). Then in about 100-150 words state why you have selected the quote. Then find an article, video, podcast, blog posting, image related to what you have read and link to it or embed it in your Blog. Describe the resources and a brief explanation of how it is connected to the reading. 

"In the organization of learning in the digital-storytelling activity, the children were the central decision makers in choosing a story around their interests and ideas."
When I was first introduced to this activity, my initial response was how this could be related to math.  But after more reading and understanding, I began to realize this activity is to help me as the teacher get to know my students.  Each kid has a lifestyle that is different to that person.  Teachers have the privilege of coming in contact with many personalities.  We also can affect the students in a positive way. 
When this project would be assigned, the students get to choose what information they want to share in order for others to get to know them.   Giving students a sense of choice is one way to really relate to them.  I need to make the students feel important so that they want to learn and better their future.  The digital story activity is one tool that can help do that. 

Resource:

This quote I found when I Googled the phrase "giving students choices in the classroom."  This is related to my quote I chose from the text.  Good teachers will impact students.  Getting to know the students is a great practice that will show the students how much the teacher cares about them. 











Avila, J., & Pandya, J. (2013). Critical digital literacies as social praxis. (Vol. 54). New York: NY: Peter Lang Publishing Inc.

Digital Storytelling and Reel Works

 

God if a forest

 

1.What do you like about the digital story?

I liked hearing the different viewpoints of people on religion.  I have never taken the time to ask individuals what they believe and I feel after watching this video, I did jus that.  I was able to relate to some people about their beliefs and I was also able to get a feel for what other people think.

2.What did you learn from the digital story?

I learned that people are more diverse than what we think.  Each person has a good guess about his or her neighbor, but until that person asks, he or she doesn't really know.

3.What surprised you about the digital story?

The big thing that surprised me was when the girl did not know her boyfriend had different beliefs.  I feel that is something that should be talked about in a relationship.  Because if the relationship pursues and marriage takes place, then children may be affected by the different beliefs. 

4.How did the digital story provide an example of how digital storytelling can build self esteem, help young people voice an opposition to social problems,  or create an alternative to stereotypes of adolescents typically portrayed in mainstream media?

Religion is a big controversy.  This digital story addressed the opposition to different views on religion.  It also seemed to build the overall main characters self-esteem.  This story used the voices of young individuals to obtain the viewpoints necessary to make this digital story connect to the audience. 

PSA

Reading and Discussion 8

◾What do you think about the concept of relocalization?
I like the idea that relocalization helps build some communities. I agree with Katie's view on the topic. I feel everyone should put in effort and take a role in order to help maintain a better community. It truly takes a team, a group of people to build and grow. Also if more people do the job or take responsibility, the whole nitpicking and blaming others for something not done right might decrease. This would allow for more positive feelings and a sense of belonging to exist.
◾Where do you stand on neoliberal policies for education reform?
After reading the attached page, I do not agree with most of the neoliberal policies. I would be the first to admit that I do not know a lot about government issues. But it seems that neoliberalism has too many hidden agendas. According to the Global Exchange, a view of Neoliberalism is to cut public expenditure for education. This is just one of many negative views that Neoliberalism has.
◾How did using a public relations firm create tension between the goals of critical media literacy and having students create promotional videos?
The goal of the critical media literacy was to show the students the media and help them understand the messages they run into on a daily basis. The firm wanted the students to create powerful media using the techniques they were intentionally learning to breakdown.
◾Do you agree with the researcher that Ellen's PV should be consider an example of critical media literacy? Why? Why not?
I agree because Ellen seemed to grasp the concept of critical media literacy. She was able to use the tools to not only break down the media, but put together a PV that showed her interests while promoting the school. 


Avila, J., & Pandya, J. (2013). Critical digital literacies as social praxis. (Vol. 54). New York: NY: Peter Lang Publishing Inc.


http://www.globalexchange.org/resources/econ101/neoliberalismdefined

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Week 7 Reading

Identify three ideas you will use to inform your PSA of the need to teach critical media literacy in school.

1. "Long-range studies have shown increases in youths' digital literacy habits in a relatively short time period."
     It is obvious that students are growing in technology use.  I would like to help teachers see the fact that we need to incorporate technology in order to help better reach our kids.  If we are not willing to help teach digital literacy, then how can we expect the kids to perform great in the future.  We need to incorporate the tools that kids will be familiar with.  This can help connect the comprehension of the material to something relating to the students.

2. "So teachers have much leeway in their instructional approaches to teaching digital literacies, but obstacles still remain."
     This is a powerful message to teachers.  We have a lot of options available to teach the content we are told to teach.  We should remain strong and focused that way when we approach the obstacles mentioned in the article, we can think back and realize we have leeway and should not feel pressured to do things one way.  Teaching digital media literacies can be incorporated into our instruction and should not be an obstacle we have to overcome.  Even though technology is "new", we have many approaches available to introduce the information to the students.  

3. "Many teachers are still unclear about the import of integration and instruction."
    It is important to emphasize that in order to push the teaching of the digital literacies, instructors need to know how to incorporate the technologies in their instruction.  Teachers need to be trained on all the options they have to integrate the literacies in their content or field of study.  

Find an article that helps you understand how to implement critical pedagogy into your classroom setting. In a blog posting, summarize what you learned about enacting critical pedagogy in your own classroom and detail what like about critical pedagogy and what concerns you. 

"Critical Pedagogy and Teaching 
Mathematics for Social Justice"

    The biggest thing I learned from the article is that in order to implement critical pedagogy into my classroom, I need to be open to change and allowing myself to grow with each group of students I see.  One reason I see as a second year teacher is that students who are in my math classes want to know when they will use certain "skills" in their future.  If they feel it is irrelevant, then they do not want to put forth the effort to learn it.  In order to help teach them, I would like to try to pursue the idea of pushing my students to think logically.  
    I want to grow and make the "continuous journey", as mentioned in the article, in learning to teach Mathematics with critical pedagogy. I need to be open to changes and willing to learn different approaches to tie in the concepts to more meaningful relationships with the students.  
    My biggest concern with this is not reaching every student who struggles with making connections.  Even with all the practice and training I might, I must not lose sight of the fact that not everyone will learn to love Math like I do and I need to be patient with the students who truly want to understand but yet have difficulty.  

References:

Avila, J., & Pandya, J. (2013). Critical  digital literacies  as social praxis. (Vol. 54). New York: NY: Peter Lang Publishing Inc.

Stinson, D., Bidwell, C., & Powell, G. (2012). Critical pedagogy and teaching mathematics for social justice. International Journal of Critical Pedagogy, 4(1), 76-94. Retrieved from http://libjournal.uncg.edu/index.php/ijcp/article/viewFile/302/263