Article Assessment No. 3

"Orchestrating the Media Collage"

by Jason Ohler

Overview

This article introduces reading and writing multiple forms of media and how integrating the two creates an entirely new meaning of the word “literacy.” By definition, literacy is a noun, meaning the ability to read and write. However, “Orchestrating the Media Collage” by Jason Ohler points out that the deeper meaning of literacy goes far beyond the walls of English classrooms. Ohler said that literacy can include reading and writing competencies in math, research and even citizenship. But the most important form of literacy, he said, is digital literacy. It’s no secret we live in a technologically driven world and those who fail to keep up with its ever-evolving jargon will be left in the dust of discarded textbooks.

In the “Writing What You Read” section, Ohler explains that having an ability to read and write today isn’t good enough. Digital expression can be narrowed into three categories: 1. New media demand new literacies, such as sound, graphics and images; 2. New media coalesce into a collage with Web pages, blogs and digital stories; 3. New media are largely participatory, social media by using collaborative publications such as Facebook, GoogleDocs and YouTube. These categories have changed the Internet from a read-only resource to a worldly community where the exchange of information is nearly limitless and forces the public to be more hands on and creative with their work.

Ohler lines out eight guidelines for teachers who want students to hone their digital literacy skills: 1. Shift from text centrism to media collage; 2. Value writing and reading now more than ever; 3. Adopt art as the next R; 4. Blend traditional and emerging literacies; 5. Harness report and story; 6. Practice private and participatory social literacy; 7. Develop literacy with digital tools and about digital tools; 8. Pursue fluency. Ohler ends the article urging teachers who feel overwhelmed with technology to step back and chill out – teachers don’t need to know everything; let the students discover technology for themselves because it’s more than likely they know more than you do.

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Energy Conservation Project

For my energy project, I compiled information on how many sandwich and freezer bags my wife and I used over the course of three weeks, how much it cost us, and how much it was saving on the environment.

After looking at my numbers, I realized plastic bags are really cheap. Throwing plastic bags away after just one use will not break your bank account. However, the plastic bags we use sure do add up. Click here to view my PowerPoint presentation.

Over the course of 50 years, my wife and I -- both teachers who pack our lunches every day to school -- are on track for reusing 48,000 plastic bags over the next 50 years. In our three weeks of washing sandwich and freezer bags, we have become permanent bag washers. Click here to view my Excel spreadsheet.

Of all the requirements for this project, the video was the most daunting. I'm not sure why, considering I was alone in my classroom. I guess I feel more comfortable talking in front of students. Click here to view my YouTube video.

Here's a list of things that could have been improved: The camera should have been moved back (sometimes my face was cut off); visuals would have helped, like an actual sandwich or freezer bag; and, finally, I said "umm" and "uhh" way too many times.

All in all, I enjoyed watching the same teaching style my students witness. It generated some great internal constructive criticism.

Article Assessment No. 2

"The Read/Write Web"

by Bill Richardson

Overview

This article introduces a concise timeline of the World Wide Web and how it has evolved from a "read only" resource to a read/write tool, where anyone can publish their ideas and products from anyplace in the world with an Internet connection. Early days of the Web only gave people the ability to consume information - a one-way street for users. But now, with the introduction of blogs, forums and file-sharing programs, the Web is a new way to create online communities - two-way streets with plenty of detours.

The new read/write Web has changed the way people do business, run political campaigns, educate children, receive/report news and spend leisurely time. Tim Berners-Lee, who helped develop the World Wide Web in 1989, had a vision to make it, “A place where we (could) all meet and read and write.” His vision has evolved into a tool in which our world’s economy could no longer function without.

According to Will Richardson’s article, a 2003 survey by the Pew Internet and American Life Project, more than 53 million American adults (or 44 percent) contributed to content that is found online. In 2006, Technorati.com, a blog tracking service, found more than 25 million blogs. The word blog is short for Weblog, a resource people use for creating personal journals, building sites for colleagues, or filtering news for large or small audiences. Today hundreds of thousands of blogs are created daily and even more blog postings are being added to the unlimited amount of space on the World Wide Web.

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