“Describe or narrate a scenario about a box found a century into a future in which order is deliberately coordinated or imposed.  Your description should address issues related to education and elicit feelings of calm.”

In the year 2124, a group of students from the Global Education Institute stumbled upon a peculiar metal box during their annual archaeological expedition. The box, weathered but intact, a time capsule from exactly a century ago.

As the students carefully opened the box under the watchful eyes of their instructors, a sense of calm anticipation filled the air. Inside, they found a collection of items that offered a window into the chaotic world of 2024:

• Outdated electronic devices
• Printed newspapers with alarming headlines
• A student’s backpack filled with physical textbooks and handwritten notes
• Protest signs advocating for various causes

The students, accustomed to their meticulously organized society, marveled at the apparent disorder of the past. Their world in 2124 was one where:

• Global education standards ensured equal access to knowledge
• AI-assisted learning personalized curriculum for each student
• Virtual reality field trips replaced physical travel, reducing environmental impact
• Mindfulness and emotional intelligence were core subjects from early childhood
• Immersive 3D Visualizations were brought to life through interactive holographic displays, allowing students to manipulate and explore intricate models
• Global Collaboration where holographic projections enabled students from different parts of the world to come together in virtual classrooms, fostering cultural exchange and global understanding

As they examined each item, their instructor initiated a calm, reflective discussion: “Consider how our ancestors navigated such turbulent times,” she said softly. “Our current system of coordinated order didn’t emerge overnight. It was born from the challenges they faced. “The students nodded, feeling a deep appreciation for the journey humanity had undertaken. They understood that their peaceful, organized world was the result of deliberate choices made by generations past.

One student held up an old smartphone, comparing it to their neural-linked learning devices. “It’s amazing how far we’ve come in sharing knowledge,” she remarked. “Indeed,” the instructor replied. “The global commitment to education was a turning point. When societies prioritized learning and critical thinking, it paved the way for the harmonious world we inhabit today.”

As they carefully cataloged each item from the box, the students felt a serene connection to history. They appreciated the foresight of those who had prepared this time capsule, allowing them to experience this moment of discovery and reflection. The lesson concluded with a mindfulness exercise, as was customary in their education system. The students closed their eyes, breathed deeply, and contemplated the progress of a century – feeling grateful for the ordered, educated world they inherited and committed to preserving it for future generations.

Reflection

The process of creating this scenario was challenging for me, yet I appreciated its context due to my awareness and experience with Social Emotional Learning (SEL), which our school district has prioritized for several years. This background provided a solid foundation, allowing me to engage more deeply with the scenario despite the initial difficulties.

Dunne and Raby (2013) emphasize using design to explore possible futures, spark discussions about desirable and undesirable outcomes, and encourage imaginative thinking about alternatives to our current reality. Their insights resonated with me, highlighting that scenario creation goes beyond addressing immediate issues; it involves envisioning and shaping future possibilities.

This experience reinforced the importance of imaginative thinking in educational design. By considering various futures, I was able to explore different outcomes and their implications, enriching the scenario and fostering meaningful discussions about our educational goals.

User Inyerface

The entire game is ladened with frustrating design elements, such as misleading buttons, unclear instructions, and non-standard form fields, which made it difficult for me to complete the simplest of tasks.

Starting the game: Distractions and misleading information

The first message of filling out information as accurately and quickly as possible puts a level of stress on the user.  The big green NO button doesn’t help, as you feel the need to click a green button to move forward – some could misinterpret it as GO.  Below the green button the “please click HERE to GO to the next page” message adds to confusion, where am I actually supposed to click to move forward; no hover feature that I am accustomed to.

Page 1: The Race Against Time

Cookie Confusion: Who could miss the big red cookies display that pops up “This site uses cookies, is that a problem for you?”  With the response options being Not really, no in small fine print vs. a big button with Yes on it.  This is a different messaging than what we are used to.

Password Perils and Email Entry: Entering a password is a hassle. I have to delete the prompt message in each space to ensure the correct information goes in the right place. Reading through the password requirements adds another layer of stress, making me worry about falling into a password hack trap. The constant pressure from the timer and the “hurry up, time is ticking” message only amplifies my anxiety.

Email entry is equally frustrating. Instead of writing my email in one go, it’s broken into segments, forcing me to repeatedly delete prompt messages. This design makes the whole process feel disjointed and unnecessarily complicated.

To top it all off, there’s a pre-selected box indicating that I do not accept the Terms and Conditions. This adds another unnecessary step and further contributes to my overall frustration with the user design.

The Locked-Out Loop: About one minute into the game, I get locked out. Lovely. Panic sets in, and I think I restarted the game six or seven times, trying to go faster and faster each time. Instead of searching for a way to unlock the game, I resorted to using a Word document to copy and paste my password and email address. Brilliant, right? I thought maybe, just maybe, I’d get more time once I reached the next page. Spoiler alert: I didn’t.

Page 2: Victory at Last… Or Not

I did it! I finally got to page 2 in under one minute. I triumphantly clicked the blue download button, thinking I was making progress. But nope, I needed to upload a picture. Before I could react, I was locked out again. Fantastic.

The Marathon of Attempt: By attempt 25, I was desperately searching for ways to speed up the process. I realized that no extra time was granted once I got to the next page. So, armed with the copy-and-paste feature, I really homed in on streamlining my response on page 1. Page 2, I finally found the ‘deselect all’ button and for the ‘3 interests’ I had to choose I abandoned all accurate information, and selected the first three in the first column. Sure, the information wasn’t as accurate as they wanted, but the stress of the timer was getting to me. The green cancel button almost tricked me, but I’m onto their game now.

A Brief Triumph: Welcome to Page 3

Finally, I made it to page 3 in under one minute. Copy and paste became my best friend, as did incorrect information and answers. But page three? Completely overwhelming. No amount of copying and pasting could save me—I was totally hooped.

Placeholder Pandemonium:  Page 3 continued to frustrate me with its random placeholders for required information. Depending on your screen size, the collected personal details appear in no particular order: first name, ZIP, title, city, then surname. Makes perfect sense, right? (see image)

Flag Frenzy and Birthdate Bother: Choosing a country was another delight, with a drop-down menu featuring black-and-white flags. Because identifying flags in grayscale is everyone’s favorite game. The birthday month selection is in alphabetical order, and the scrolling birth year selector is a moving target, changing constantly and making it nearly impossible to pick the right year.

Age Agony and Gender Guesswork: The timeline scroll for selecting age is equally maddening—you can’t see the number as you scroll. The male/female button is another gem, unclear about which option is selected, causing a slowdown as the title didn’t match the gender (forcing participants to choose a gender). And, of course, there’s that green cancel button, just begging me to press it. But now that I’m onto their tricks, it didn’t fool me this time.

Heart-Pounding Desperation: My heart was racing at 135 bpm, and I still had two more pages to go. I had to shift my focus from copying and pasting (beating the lockout system) to outright cheating. There had to be a cheat out there somewhere on the web, something I was missing. The page locking in under one minute couldn’t be anyone’s friend. What was I overlooking?  Finally, with the help of Andy and David, the Unusable podcast: Playing a painful game of bad UX design,  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oXz6mPlMNC8 , I was to proceed to complete the task.

Page 4: A Masterclass in Confusion

So, it only took me five tries to figure out what went wrong—because obviously, I’m a genius. The page was a dazzling display of “check” in every conceivable form (checkmark, checkboxes, checkmate, check patterns, cheques for money). As if that wasn’t enough, I had to prove I was human by checking all the boxes with ‘checks’—because clearly, I could not be trusted without this monumental task. How could I have missed that the checkboxes were actually at the top of each picture? It’s not like they could have been placed more inconspicuously if they tried. And don’t even get me started on the three pages of verification. Because who doesn’t love a good, tedious exercise in futility?

Mission Accomplished

Against all odds and after much trial and error, copy nd pasting, and the odd cheat, I finally completed the task.  Don’t let the time fool you, what really should have been tracked was the number of attempts.

Reflection

I believe the User Inyerface process aligns closely with the key themes presented by both Tristan Harris (2017) and Zeynep Tufekci (2017) TED talks. I see how their discussions of manipulative design strategies employed by tech companies to control user behaviour are reflected in the User Inyerface experience.

I think the deliberately confusing and tedious design of User Inyerface exemplifies the manipulation both speakers describe. I notice how every step, from misleading checkbox placements to excessive verification pages, seems crafted to prolong user interaction. This reminds me of Harris’s (2017) assertion that tech companies design experiences not for user benefit, but to maximize engagement time.

I feel that Tufekci’s (2017) warning about building “an artificial intelligence-powered dystopia, one click at a time” resonates strongly with the User Inyerface process. I see parallels between her concerns about how algorithms organize our access to information and the way User Inyerface manipulates user behaviour through its design.

I wonder if the User Inyerface experience might be seen as an exaggerated version of what Harris (2017)describes as the “race to the bottom of the brain stem” and what Tufekci (2017) calls “building a dystopia just to make people click on ads”. I think it demonstrates how design can be used to capture attention and data, even if it means creating a frustrating user experience.

I observe how User Inyerface illustrates the exploitation of design to manipulate user behaviour, prioritizing engagement over genuine user needs. I’m struck by how the seemingly minor yet profoundly frustrating tasks users must endure highlight ethical concerns surrounding engineered digital interactions, echoing both Harris and Tufekci’s (2017) warnings about the power of tech companies.

Reflecting on this, I believe the User Inyerface process encapsulates the central messages of both Harris and Tufekci. I feel it underscores the need for critical examination of how tech companies design user experiences. I think it highlights the importance of advocating for more ethical, user-centered design practices that prioritize user well-being over profit or engagement metrics, echoing Tufekci’s call for us to consider “what we can do in response” to these manipulative practices.

References

Harris, T. (2017). How a handful of tech companies control billions of minds every dayLinks to an external site. [Video]. TED.

Tufekci, Z. (2017). We’re building a dystopia just to make people click on adsLinks to an external site. [Video]. TED.

Waite, A., & Ball, D. (Hosts). (2019, August 26). Playing a painful game of bad UX design. [Video Podcast]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oXz6mPlMNC8

Analysis / Observations

Reflection and further analysis – not included in video)

The visualizations show not only connections between the participants’ music choices but also group participants based on the strength of these choices, creating communities of individuals with similar responses. However, a closer examination reveals important considerations regarding the completeness and interpretation of the data. In terms of the numbers, all 23 class members submitted their 10 curated song lists, which are included in the data. For all intents and purposes, all data appears to be present. However, what we cannot tell from the data is the criteria each of the curators used to make their selections.

Groupings might be based on predefined categories that do not necessarily align with participants’ experiences or identities. The data might reflect cultural biases, assuming certain genres or artists are universally understood or valued. Moreover, the data might be misinterpreted without considering the context in which it was collected. For example, two curators may be in the same community; however, their reasoning or criteria for choosing a song could be completely different. This may put two curators in the same community or cluster but not necessarily capture the nuances behind their choices.

Reasons for not choosing certain options can be diverse and significant. Participants might avoid certain music genres due to negative associations, cultural stigma, or lack of exposure. These reasons are crucial but are often not reflected in the data. Furthermore, Track 4: Pygmy Girls Initiation Song and Track 27: Beethoven, String Quartet No. 13 in B flat were both tracks on the Voyager Golden Record. However, the compilation of the songs provided to us on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL4D51474AB7BE5595) for us to listen to did not include these two tracks. I am curious if this impacted the results. I noticed in the data that Track 4 was chosen by five curators, while Track 27 was only chosen by two. I know that I did not even consider either of those songs. Furthermore, on the YouTube link above, the songs are in a different order than on the original record. Would this have impacted choices?

The representation or lack thereof of certain groups or preferences can reflect existing power dynamics and cultural hegemonies. Analyzing which groups or preferences are missing can highlight issues of inclusivity and representation. Understanding the political implications can inform policies and advocacy efforts aimed at promoting diversity and inclusion. For example: Analysts might draw incorrect conclusions about the reasons behind the curators’ choices. Additionally, the data may inaccurately represent the diversity of thought and experience within a community. This can lead to an oversimplified view of the community, ignoring the varied perspectives that exist. Also, if policymakers or decision-makers rely on such data, they may implement policies or make decisions that do not address the actual needs or preferences of the individuals within the community.

While visualizations show connections between participants’ music choices and create communities of similar responses, they may not fully capture the reasons behind these choices. Reflecting on what data is missing, assumed, or misinterpreted, and considering the reasons for “null” choices, reveals important insights into the political implications of such groupings.

For those like myself, that did not look into Track 4 or Track 27, and just went off the songs available on the aforementioned YouTube link, I have since listened to the missing two tracks and feel that my list may have changed.  Here are the two missing tracks.

Throughout this week’s assigned readings, viewings, and listenings, Dr. Abby Smith Rumsey emphasizes the critical task of deciding which digital content to preserve amidst the vast amounts of data generated in the digital age. She discusses the criteria for determining which memories and cultural artifacts should be prioritized for digital preservation, likening this challenge to the curation of the Voyager Golden Record. This iconic project required curators to select a limited amount of information to represent humanity and Earth to potential extraterrestrial civilizations, encapsulating human culture, knowledge, and diversity within the constraints of space and technology.

Smith underscores the importance of representing a broad and inclusive range of cultural expressions in digital archives when discussing cultural heritage preservation. The Golden Record’s curators aimed to provide a comprehensive snapshot of Earth’s cultures, including music, images, and sounds from diverse human societies, to convey the richness of human civilization.

Smith also raises ethical questions about who decides what to preserve digitally, how privacy is managed, and the potential biases in the selection process. The creation of the Golden Record involved similar ethical considerations, requiring curators to make subjective decisions about what aspects of humanity to include and exclude, balancing scientific, cultural, and philosophical elements.

In light of these considerations, I used the following criteria for my curation:

1. Global Cultural Representation: I included music from diverse geographical regions and cultures, such as Africa (Senegal), Europe (Bulgaria, Germany, England), North America (Mexico, Navajo, USA), South America (Peru), Asia (India), and Oceania (New Guinea).
2. Diversity of Musical Traditions: My selection encompasses a wide range of musical styles and traditions, from indigenous and folk music to classical and blues.
3. Variety of Vocal and Instrumental Styles: Both vocal performances (e.g., Bulgarian folk song, Indian raga) and instrumental pieces (e.g., Senegalese percussion, Beethoven’s symphony) are included.
4. Cultural Significance: I chose selections that represent important cultural practices or rituals, such as the Navajo Night Chant and the Peruvian wedding song.
5. Uniqueness of Sound: I offered a diverse range of sonic experiences, from complex orchestral works to simple, raw recordings of indigenous music.

These criteria were designed to provide a comprehensive snapshot of Earth’s musical diversity, balancing cultural representation with musical variety and historical significance. Through my selection, I aimed to showcase the breadth of human musical expression across different cultures, time periods, and styles.

My curated list:

1. Senegal, percussion, recorded by Charles Duvelle. 2:08
2. Mexico, “El Cascabel,” performed by Lorenzo Barcelata and the Mariachi México.
3. New Guinea, men’s house song, recorded by Robert MacLennan.
4. Bulgaria, “Izlel je Delyo Hagdutin,” sung by Valya Balkanska.
5. Navajo Indians, Night Chant, recorded by Willard Rhodes.
6. Peru, wedding song, recorded by John Cohen.
7. India, raga, “Jaat Kahan Ho,” sung by Surshri Kesar Bai Kerkar. 3:30
8. “Dark Was the Night,” written and performed by Blind Willie Johnson.
9. Beethoven, Fifth Symphony, First Movement, the Philharmonia Orchestra, Otto Klemperer, conductor.
10. Holborne, Paueans, Galliards, Almains and Other Short Aeirs, “The Fairie Round,” performed by David Munrow and the Early Music Consort of London.

Reference:

Brown University. (2017, July 11). Abby Smith Rumsey: “Digital memory: What can we afford to lose?” YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FBrahqg9ZMc

Smith Rumsey, A. (1999, February). Why digitize? Council on Library and Information Resources. Retrieved August 12, 2022.

What’s in your bag? If only they could talk…wait. What?

The Process of Redesigning “What’s in Your Bag”

Redesigning the “What’s in Your Bag” task provided an opportunity to integrate multiliteracies as discussed by Dobson and Willinsky (2009) and the New London Group (1996). This task was more about perspective-taking and giving my items a ‘voice,’ which added a dynamic and engaging element to the exercise.

I began by rethinking the original task and envisioning how the items in my bag could be given a voice. This wasn’t just about what the items say about themselves but also what they might indirectly reveal about me. This small yet significant detail had been overlooked in the original assignment.

A colleague of mine had used ChatterPix for a nutrition assignment for her Grade 4/5 class, where the food (now characters) were given a voice to talk about their nutritional value and benefits. Inspired by her innovative approach, I decided to apply a similar technique to the “What’s in Your Bag” task. This was an interesting challenge since ChatterPix videos are limited to 30 seconds and can only be used on my iPhone.

As I worked through the process, I realized it was going to take longer than I thought. After creating 27 clips, I had to airdrop all of them to my Mac and then put them together using the QuickTime Player app. Additionally, I used PicCollage to have both my personal and professional phones on one screen to help create a discussion.

Creating a clever script for each of the items was probably the most challenging part for me. I wrote the script out to ensure a more fluid result, focusing on the elements of linguistic design, considering delivery, tone, vocabulary choice, and voice to ensure the items’ voices were engaging and appropriate. Incorporating sound effects further enhanced the storytelling aspect and made the content more immersive.

Dobson and Willinsky (2009) highlight the importance of digital literacy in navigating the complexities of contemporary information society. This task required me to utilize various digital tools, such as ChatterPix and QuickTime, to create and share my audio recordings. By incorporating an audio component, I moved beyond mere textual and visual representation, enhancing the storytelling aspect and making the content more engaging.

Mode-changing proved beneficial for this altered perspective. Taking the same image and objects and adding to the overall story by examining them in a different light with a different intention enriched the exercise. This practice is advantageous in many situations.

Incorporating an audio component aligned with the New London Group’s emphasis on multimodal literacy, which includes linguistic, visual, audio, spatial, and gestural modes of meaning. This holistic approach helped create a richer, more engaging learning experience. According to the New London Group (1996), redesigning isn’t about replicating existing designs or merely being creative; it’s about transforming the original design. Transforming Task 1 involved reimagining how the items in my bag could tell a story and provide insight into my personality and daily life.

Redesigning the “What’s in Your Bag” task allowed me to integrate multiliteracies and digital literacy, making the task more engaging and reflective. By giving my items a voice and utilizing various digital tools, I was able to enhance the storytelling aspect and align with contemporary educational practices. This process not only made the task more enjoyable but also demonstrated the importance of perspective-taking and multimodal literacy in modern education.

References

Apple Inc. (2022), Quick Time Player (Version 10.5). [Mobile App] App Store. https://support.apple.com/en-ca/106375

Cardinal Blur Software, Inc. (2020). PicCollage: Photo Video Editor (Version 8.38.1). [Mobile App]. App Store. https://apps.apple.com/us/app/piccollage-photo-video-editor/id448639966

Dobson, T. M., & Willinsky, J. (2009). Digital Literacy. In D. R. Olson & N. Torrance (Eds.), The Cambridge Handbook of Literacy (pp. 286–312). chapter, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Duck Duck Moose, Inc. (2021). ChatterPix (Version 1.4.1). [Mobile App] App Store. https://apps.apple.com/us/app/chatterpix-duck-duck-moose/id734038526?ign-mpt=uo%3D4

New London Group. (1996). A pedagogy of multiliteracies: Designing social futures. Harvard Educational Review, 66(1), 60-92.

Reflection

In my emoji story I started with the title, only because I thought it was a good place to start.  For this I used a word and then the rest I had to rely on the idea behind the movie.  This was because there weren’t any emoji’s that represented the words in the title.

In my depiction of the movie, I was relying on a concept that Kress (2005) doscusses, particularly his idea that the author assumes characteristics of the life-world of their audience. This means that the depiction was crafted with the audience’s experiences and context in mind. According to Kress, the reader interprets the material based on their life-world, effectively designing a coherent and complex sign that meets their needs from the information presented by the author or designer. In other words, I am hoping that you have seen the movie already.

When describing / depicting the plot, again I relied on a combination of the words and ideas. I worked in a traditional ‘writing’ format that was sequenced (left to right & top to bottom), “Sequence has effects for authorship and for reading. Hearers (and readers to a somewhat lesser extent) depend on the “unfolding”, the revealing of elements one after the other to be able to make sense of the whole” (Kress, 2005, p.13).

Next, I attempted to depict the plot using a non-linear approach (see below), which proved to be much more challenging. Kress (2005) explains that in spatially organized representation, the chosen elements are simultaneously present, and their spatial arrangement creates meaning (p. 13). Bolter (2000) emphasizes that digital media empower readers to actively participate in meaning-making by interpreting and interacting with visual and textual elements. While my emoji story lacks traditional text or hypertext, it still requires the reader/viewer to navigate and use cues within the depiction. Emoji stories embody these ideas by using visual symbols to tell narratives, enabling readers to actively interpret and engage with the content, reflecting the evolving landscape of digital communication. Some issue that came up: I couldn’t flip the emoji (mirror image) to depict direction and I couldn’t place the emoji anywhere, it still had to be on a line of text.

Other Thoughts

The readings made me reflect on a 10-year-old student I recently observed. He was looking up the character names of a movie he wanted to watch over the weekend. Instead of using Google, he went straight to YouTube to search. When I asked him why, he said it was easier for him to watch and listen for information rather than read it.

This aligns with Kress’s (2005) idea of spatially organized representation, where meaning is constructed through the arrangement of visual and auditory elements. The student’s preference for video content underscores the importance of incorporating multimedia and non-linear resources in education, as it reflects the ways in which young learners naturally seek and process information.

In terms of pedagogy and the BC curriculum, this observation suggests a need to integrate more diverse media formats into teaching practices. The BC curriculum emphasizes personalized learning and developing digital literacy skills. By acknowledging and incorporating students’ tendencies to engage with information through multimedia platforms like YouTube, educators can create more effective and engaging learning experiences that align with students’ preferences and the evolving digital landscape.

Have we come full circle?

From week 3, reflecting on Ong’s (1982 /2002) exploration of orality and literacy, I find it fascinating how human communication has come full circle, from oral traditions to the development of visual representations and then to alphabetized languages structured by rules. Ong (1982/2002) highlights the profound shift from primary oral cultures, where knowledge was transmitted through spoken words alone, to cultures influenced by writing, which introduced new forms of organization and abstraction.

Personally, I see this journey mirrored in our contemporary shift towards multimedia and visual representation in communication. We’ve moved beyond the constraints of purely verbal or written forms to embrace a multimodal approach where images, sounds, and text intertwine seamlessly. This evolution, as discussed by Kress (2005) and Bolter (2000), acknowledges both gains and losses in how we construct and interpret meaning in a digital age.

In my experience, this return to visual representation feels like a natural progression, integrating the expressive power of images with the structured clarity of text. It bridges the gap between the immediacy of oral communication and the analytical depth of written language, creating a richer tapestry of communication than either could achieve alone. Thus, we are not merely reverting but evolving, leveraging the strengths of multiple modes to enhance how we understand and convey ideas in a technologically advanced society.

Do you agree, have we come full circle? Are we reverting?  What oral skills may have been lost? Can they be regained or retaught? What do we stand to lose of our written work?

References

Bolter, J. D. (2000). The breakout of the visual. In Writing space: Computers, hypertext, and the remediation of print (2^nd ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781410600110

Kress, G. (2005). Gains and losses: New forms of texts, knowledge, and learning. Computers and Composition, 22(1), 5–22. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compcom.2004.12.004

Ong, W.J. (2002). Orality and literacy: The technologizing of the word. Routledge. (Original work published 1982).

The Sharks

. .

Do you normally write by hand or type? Did you find this task difficult or easy? Explain.

By the nature of my job, I typically spend a lot of time typing, whether it’s for reports or emails. However, I notice that when I’m in a meeting and jotting down notes, I’m more inclined to do that by hand instead of using an app. Oddly enough, I am responding to this question using voice-to-text and then I’ll go in and fix it up just for fun.

I found the task at hand—pardon the pun—and writing manually quite easy. I probably take a lot of pride in my handwriting, a habit I developed as far back as grade four when cursive writing was part of the curriculum.  I remember having to rewrite two full pages of ‘W’s’, until Mr. Towers deemed it was satisfactory (see image below).  During the past eight courses in the MET program, I mostly took notes by hand in my Hilroy notebooks. It’s been only in the last two courses that I’ve switched to taking notes on my computer.

Week 3 Module: Language as Technology: Written Language, introduced us to Gnanadesikan (2011), Haas (2013), and Ong (2002). In their respective books, they mention the impact that written word has on memory over oral words.  I too, feel that writing by hand helps with my memory, recall, and ability to find information later.  Although the distinction between handwriting and mechanized writing is not addressed by these authors.

What did you do when you made a mistake or wanted to change your writing? How did you edit your work? Did your choice of media play a part in how you edited your work?

In this case, I thought out what I wanted to write about instead of it just being a total free write. When it came to spelling mistakes, I typically crossed out the incorrect word and continued writing. However, if I was unsure of the correct spelling, I would stop and look it up. I could have used simpler words, but I felt they wouldn’t do the piece justice. For instance, I chose the word “camaraderie” instead of “friendship.”

In some instances, I simply wrote the correct spelling over the incorrect one. For example, I changed “lose” to “lost” to “loss.”

I don’t think the choice of media played a significant role in how I edited my work. Instead, the formality of the work influenced my editing approach. Since I considered this a less formal piece of writing, crossing out words or writing over them was acceptable to me.

Other factors that might influence my editing include the audience, type of writing, quality of paper, and purpose of the writing.

What do you feel is the most significant difference between writing by hand and using mechanized forms of writing? Which do you prefer and why?

The most significant difference between writing by hand and using mechanized forms of writing is the personalized aspect of writing by hand.  Handwriting carries the unique characteristics of an individual’s style, including the pressure of the pen, the angle of the strokes, and the idiosyncratic flourishes that make each person’s handwriting distinct. This personal touch can convey emotions and personality traits that are often lost in mechanized writing. This individuality in handwriting makes personal notes, letters, and journals particularly cherished, as they provide a tangible connection to the writer.

My sister had an uncanny ability to write.  When I first moved to BC she would write me 17 pages letters.  Alone in my apartment, I would read – laugh, cry and laugh again as would read the pages.  It was just like she was there talking to me.

References:

Gnanadesikan, A.E. (2011). The first IT revolution. In The writing revolution: Cuneiform to the Internet (pp. 1-12). John Wiley & Sons.

Haas, C. (2013). The technology question. In Writing technology: Studies on the materiality of literacy (pp. 3-23). Routledge.

Ong, W.J. (2002). Chapter 1: The orality of language.Links to an external site. In Orality and literacy: The technologizing of the word (pp. 5-16). Routledge. (Original work published 1982).