Transformations and Reflections

A self-reflection from Michelle:

Looking at concepts such as participatory culture, identification and individualisation, credibility, commercialisation, digital media literacies and social media, it is easy to say to myself “But I teach lower primary school, the students are just children – they can’t / don’t need to do any of that yet!” and indeed, that is a sentiment I have heard in many staffrooms along with “It’s too hard and I don’t understand it”.  These excuses however are the easy way out, leaving the issue for teachers of students in older grades to deal with.  Is this the best solution for my students though? I doubt it.  My students might be young, but they are already experimenting with digital media, and it is my responsibility to them to make sure that when the time comes, they are ready for all that the future has to offer them.

I think Jenkins et al. crystallised my thinking on the issue with the acknowledgement that before students can engage appropriately with the new participatory culture and digital media, they must be able to read and write; far from a situation of pushing aside old skills to make room for new ones, it is one of expanding the competencies which we require of our students (2006, p.19).  Here then was my answer and the bottom line when it came to integrating digital media into my teaching: the students had to have the necessary groundwork in order to participate in the new digital media culture.  My goals then are these:

·         To prepare my students to take part in the new digital media culture

·         To integrate digital media where appropriate to the learning needs of my students

·         To encourage my peers and colleagues to do the same

The age and abilities of my students make the issue of utilising digital media tools and technologies an interesting one; after all, many of my class of Grade Three students are still struggling to master traditional literacies and typing a password and username correctly can be quite a challenge for some.  This however, is no reason not to bring digital media culture into my classroom, and in many ways the age and inexperience of my students makes it all the more imperative that they are taught how to protect themselves online and navigate the internet safely. 

Despite their inexperience, and the challenges which the internet poses, many of the students in my class play Moshi Monsters, an online game where among other things they have the chance to “chat with new friends”.   The implications of this for students with no conception of the potential repercussions of chatting with strangers online are frightening.  Two students in my class have already received messages through the game from suspicious individuals, which prompted both a class discussion and discussions with parents.  My next step in digital media education will be to add lessons on cyber-safety into my citizenship and social skills lessons by integrating the stories and teaching activities from CyberSmart’s Hector’s World.

As important as basic literacy skills to students’ abilities to use digital media are skills in accessing that media.  Accordingly, just as I teach spelling, handwriting, reading and writing, I also teach my students typing and basic computer skills.  This is something I have begun this year, but the interest from my students and their parents, as well as the improvements I have seen in my students’ technological abilities, are enough to ensure that it is something I will be integrating into my teaching from now on.  It is my hope that by introducing and practicing these skills early in the year, I will be able to provide my students with the opportunity (and new skills required) to publish their work digitally, in multiple media forms, and share it with others not only within the school and at home and but perhaps even with other students around the world.

I must note also the recent success I have had with a young student with Asperger’s Syndrome who has missed a lot of school previously and is struggling to catch up and to stay on task but is highly interested in computer games and has a goal of becoming a game designer.  I have begun teaching him to create computer games of his own using the GameMaker 8 software and through this process he has developed a renewed interest in reading, writing and mathematics, seeing their relationship to success in his goals.  He has also developed a great deal of self-confidence through sharing his creations online with other students.  This situation has proved to me the importance of incorporating students’ interests in new digital media culture into the classroom.

Despite the age of my students and their sometimes limited levels of literacy, I can still make a difference in preparing them to participate in new digital media culture.  Every opportunity I provide for them to develop skills and knowledge in digital media is an opportunity to close the ‘Participation Gap’ (Jenkins et al., 2006, p.13) between the students who have access to a computer at home, and those who don’t.  Every time I teach my students to analyse and question media texts, is a step towards addressing Jenkins et al.’s ‘Transparency Problem’ and every opportunity I take to help my students consider privacy, safety and citizenship issues, I am helping them to deal with Jenkins et al.’s ‘Ethics Challenge’ (pp.14 – 17).

It is clear to me that each of us as educators, regardless of the age of our students, can take steps to encourage them to develop the skills, knowledge, ethics and confidence to be successful participants in a digital media culture.