Rachel Petrynko – Introduction

• 10 years ago
• Posted in:Introductions
• 3
• Author: Rachel Petrynko

Image: Neeta Lind

When reading the “Thinking About Text and Technology”, the section that asked us to consider oral societies really resonated with me. As I reflected on it, I began thinking of the many First Nations tribes here in Canada that had relied solely on oral traditions as a means to educate and pass down traditional knowledge to members of their communities.

With the recent closing of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, I decided to use this image as a means to represent the documentation of the truths of residential schools and how media and text is bringing forth attention to a part of our shared history that is not well understood by many Canadians and has often been omitted in the educational system. With the increased awareness, media and text publications, we are beginning to see changes taking place in how our history and the lasting legacy of the residential schools are taught in schools. I feel as though this picture represents the ability for text and technology to promote awareness to social injustices in the hopes to create positive changes.

My name is Rachel Petrynko and I am taking my 7th and 8th course in the MET program. I completed my undergraduate degree in Ecology, however I have been working at UBC as the Blackboard Connect support for the Biology department for almost 3 years now. My role involves training and assisting faculty and staff members in using the learning management system. I work alongside instructors to help them create course sites, upload content, create assessments and provide workarounds in response to issues. I am really looking forward to learning about the evolution of text and technology as well as working with all of you throughout the term.