Rip Mix Feed
Throughout this course I have grappled with how to apply so many of the amazing theories I have learned within the context of which I teach daily. We talk about the digital divide, but I literally experience that divide daily as I walk in to class. The irony is not lost on me that in the evenings I fly away (metaphorically) to Canada and engage in intellectual theory and practice that should make me a better educator, but in the day, I live another life that despite wanting to make space for these ideas, has no way to integrate them yet.
When I was in Myanmar last year, I took this picture that inspired my Rip Mix Feed post. The disparity between those children and my own -who attend a prestigious International School – was tremendous. In my project, I am attempting to deal with this question that remains in my head. How do I as an educator re-think multiliteracies in a context that makes sense to my students here in Brunei?
I chose to go with new forms of production I had never worked with before. I have been meaning to explore Flickr so I thought this was a great opportunity.
In order to convey my idea, I had to first sign up for a yahoo account in order to create a Flickr account. I then went on to http://en.picjoke.net/ where I played around with various themes, I fell upon the mobile phone and WhattsApp image and knew immediately it was what I would use, as WhatsApp (in my experience) is one of the commonly used modes of communication in South East Asia.
I then uploaded the image of the children from my personal pictures on to the picjoke site and then re- saved the new image on my hard drive. Next, I went in to Microsoft Paint and annotated the picture in order to reflect the biggest impressions the MET program has left me with. I then uploaded it back to Flickr and hopefully you are seeing it now.
Some of the potential drawbacks with using to http://en.picjoke.net/ was the limited variety of photo effects. I had a clear idea of the image I wanted to remix but wasn’t having a lot of luck initially.
NB: As Rachel pointed out that she couldn’t access the Flickr image without a yahoo account (another drawback), I have embedded the image I worked with as my featured image. I am also including the original photo that inspired this post of the school kids in Myanmar below.
Sources
Dobson and Willinsky’s (2009) chapter “Digital Literacy” in the Cambridge Handbook of Literacy
The New London Group. (1996) “A Pedagogy of Multiliteracies:Designing Social Futures.” Harvard Educational Review 66(1), pp. 60-92.
Hi Rave,
I was hoping to view your rip.mix.feed project, however your link brings me to the yahoo login page. I don’t have a yahoo account, and so I’m wondering if one is needed in order to see your presentation?
Looking forward to seeing it.
Rachel
sorry Rachel, I will try and send it here as an attachment
Thanks for informing me.
Rave
Wow, Rave. This is so simple, yet so powerful. Thanks for sharing.
Keep up the good work where you are. Undoubtedly, some of the tenets behind technological practices can reach your students in an analog fashions where possible… at least for now. Here’s to hoping that gap closes sometime soon for them.. and you.
Great post! As someone just starting out this program and trying to grapple with all the technologies (I used little beyond PP in my instructional career), I found the simple yet powerful image very inspiring. Thank you!
Very powerful and insightful image Rave!
Your project really demonstrates how our perception of multiliteracies can vary depending on the cultural context in which it is found. While I agree that education should prepare students for their future and ensure their success, however, your post made me question the very nature of the NLG’s definition of success. Would a change in literacy pedagogy, as noted by the New London Group, truly benefit other cultures that may not have the same perspectives in regards to what constitute success in their communities? Have the goals been developed within a “Westernized” framework such that it cannot easily be transition in other social, political or cultural context?