1. To prize freedom and freedom of choice.
2. They want to customize things and make them their own.
3. They are natural collaborators, who enjoy a conversation, not a lecture.
4. They’ll scrutinize you and your organization.
5. They insist on integrity.
6. They want to have fun, even at work and at school.
7. Speed is normal
8. Innovation is part of life.
- Select one of Tapscott’s 8 Cultural Attributes of a Net-Generation and drawing on your own personal experiences discuss how this attribute either extends or limits your ability to understand the ‘net-generation’.
Customization
Haven’t people always wanted to customize things so that it resembles what they know? One of the first missionaries to China adopted Chinese customs and dress to build relations with the locals so he could have the chance to share his beliefs with them. A lot of the traditions surrounding Christian holidays like Christmas originated from pagan traditions. Surely the Easter Bunny’s roots predate Christianity? As someone who grew up in a Protestant household, I find it interesting that at some point in history religion, or at least Christianity was open enough to accommodate local traditions. While there have been some changes in Christianity such as some denominations will recognize and officiate LGBTQ+ marriages, that same openness that was present at the beginning, doesn’t seem so strong today. I think if we’re not careful, the ability to customize will be dictated by a privileged set of people. Cancel culture is a threat to our ability to customize. If a person doesn’t want to be ostracized, they need to follow the trends and what is politically correct. At first I thought freedom and customization were bascially the same; however, being able to customize does not mean there is freedom. Afterall, who decides what options and features are available for customization?
- Using a personal example regarding the arts and humanities reflect on how language systems have been used to ascribe meanings and values to particular words within the contexts of signifying practices. (e.g., ballet – high art; break dance – low art).
I can remember when manga (Japanese graphic novels) were just beginning to be officially translated and sold in English-language markets. Before this, there were lots of illegal translations online. When translated manga became available in English, there was a divide between people who preferred the illegal translations over the official translations because they felt the illegal translations were closer to the original work’s intentions/meanings. I remember some people being a bit snobbish about it. I do think a lot of the illegal translations kept the parts of Japanese culture within their translations, explaining these points through lengthy sidenotes and/or hyperlinks, but the official English-language translations were more accessible to a wider group of people because the cultural parts were translated to the closest English equivalent.
- JR is an example of a visual artist working beyond an exhibition in a gallery, how is his art technologically relevant to a contemporary classroom? And how might Subhani, K. (2015) Photos as Witness: Teaching visual literacy for research and social action, help us in unpacking his work in the classroom?
JR’s art is relevant to the time and human emotions. Subhani (2015) notes the average person spends less than a second looking at an image. JR’s art can change, for example the moving train exhibition and the vinyl photos that were used as roofs. The impermanence of the art motivates the viewer to take a close look since they don’t know if the art will still be there in that place and form later on. Despite the shortness of a human lifespan and attention, Skloot in Subhani’s (2015) article draws his students to the common thread linking their chosen photos together: human emotions. The emotions conveyed in the photos are framed to either express the photographer’s feelings at that moment or to express the subject matter’s feelings. I thought this intention in storytelling was most evident in Jessica Hill’s response, she lets her photos do the talking. She doesn’t do interviews out of respect for the people in her photos. It is up to the viewer to bridge that gap in time and experience from the present to the past.
- How does Lloyd’s (2013) Trouble Comes to Me: The Mediated Place of the Urban Citizen, helps us understand & talk to this idea of a “meaningful knowledge of self identity and community.”
Perhaps this is an oversimplification, but I think Lloyd’s (2013) redistribution of marginalized stories is about exposure to other perspectives. I think this is one of the reasons why there are digital cameras made for young children or the little lightweight ones that can be attached to a collar. These spaces that children and pets inhabit are the same urban area, but seen from a different perspective.
References
JR. (2011). Use art to turn the world inside out. Retrieved fromhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0PAy1zBtTbw (Links to an external site.)
Lloyd, J. (2013). Trouble comes to me: The mediated place of the urban citizen. Space and Culture, 16(3), 306-322.
Subhani, K. (2015). Photos as Witness: Teaching visual literacy for research and social action. English Journal 105(2), 34-40.
Tapscott, D. (2008). Net Geners Relate to News in New Ways. Nieman Reports; Winter2008 62(4) 18-19.