Invisible Children Questions

Some questions relating to my research on Invisible Children include:

Are there any well academically documented examples of similar projects that might go into greater detail about the process?

Do these groups work with institutions or on a more grassroots basis? Do a projects affiliations effect its impact and what they can do?

What does this project tell us about us? What is it doing?

How does activist media successfully engage young people?

this is a work in progress, i will be updating it as more questions arise…\

find reviews from a site

research

media; engage; youth

Doing It for Themselves: Young People and E-Participation From the Ground Up.

MySpace, MyPublic, MyVoice: Political Engagement in Social Network Sites.

The Challenge of Engaging Youth Online.

youth media positive change case study

Learning from feedback.

One of the privileges of being an “average writer” is that feedback is always a plenty. I am glad to take it too, although it is a little frustrating to know what to do with it (in the bruised ego and growing pains sort of frustration).  A recent assignment in my “Writing as Communication” course found me writing a civic letter trying to inspire some action in someone who has some influence over such things. I like to choose easy assignments, so I chose to write to college students about why going to war with Iran is a bad idea and what students can do to stop a war with Iran from happening.

So like I said, one of the privileges of being an average writer is the abundance of feedback. I got a lot of feedback. Most of the feedback I got concerns a lack of clarity identifying the audience that I am addressing. The rest of the feedback involves my deepness in organization and the suggestion that I rewrite.

If you weren’t sure, this writing (the one you’re reading now) is part of the current assignment: to make something useful of this feedback by applying it to our next big assignment. The next big assignment is to do research and write on the topic of our choice. I already know that a lot of people are thinking about my topic, participatory media, particularly on the web, within academia and the media industry to some extent. I also know that I don’t know much of what they’re saying. Personally, I do have some experience working with participatory media, but in an action packed, fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants sort of way, not a solid step-by-step intentional kind of way.

Applying the feedback from my last writing assignment to the next writing assignment is a little tricky, mostly because I don’t have a specific area of participatory media chosen. If the feedback does give me one definite red flag sort of change in the course of action it will be to do research before beginning to write the piece. Last time I knew what I wanted to write and found info to back that up. It wasn’t until I had a lot of info in front of me and sorted it out that a solid cohesive thesis and course of action became clear. I spent most of my time researching (I put in a bunch of hours) and less of time actually writing. This has happened to me before. I hope that I can hone in my research skills so it takes less time and leaves me more time to write.

Ritual Ritual Transmission

In our “Writing as Communication” course we do just that, write to communicate. We use both the ritual and transmission models in our class. When Steph gives us an assignment, it is a ritual for us to complete. That is, we are expected to interpret the assignment and participate in using the semiotic method to create something new (a piece of writing) to add to a cultural conversation.  Traditionally the classroom has been seen as a place where transmission communication occurs. I think Steph works to create a ritual communication in our class by having group work and peer-review of assignments.

The idea of communication as culture is largely seen as a ritual communication, for good reason. Culture is created through communication and we all know communication varies by culture. I will argue here that communication as culture can be ritual or transmission depending on the nature of the culture. For example, I would say some culture in the USA could be seen as transmission communication. Much popular media might be looked at as “…communication as the transmission of signals or messages over distance for the purpose of control; characterized by the desire to increase the speed and effect of messages as they travel in space.” The nightly news and much other television is one-way communication. On the other hand, within that traditional “one way” transmission communication there also exists ritual communication, the creation of identity and community. The internet and other communication media allow for greater participation and a co-creation of meaning.

Let’s hear that feedback!

Positioning Students for Written Interaction does just that, describes the Steph’s overall goal, process and motivation for much of the online writing our classes have done to date. Steph’s English 112 class seems receptive to the idea of feedback as a way to build skills, practice writing, and learn from one another.

The students consider Steph’s suggestions for giving better feedback. Redsoxfan218 notes that good feedback should summarize the perceived main “narrative thread.” In doing so the reader lets the writer know if what they intended to say was communicated. Feedback may also help the writer to identify and clarify the thesis. Tres choutte notes that feedback may help the writer by pointing out the strengths and weaknesses of the writing. Feedback should offer suggestions to help the writer improv, not just positive remarks.

One recurring theme in the blog-posts and throughout our Com 375 class is that this class is unlike any other we’re had. The English 112 students seem to be excited about this somewhat novel way of teaching. I would argue that the main reason they’re excited is that they’re sharing ideas and becoming better, more intentional, writers as a result. I think this could be achieved with or without the internet wiki aspect of class. The publicity of the wiki does give our writing another layer of consequence. We’re not just sharing with the professor and one or two students, but opening it up for feedback from whoever. Literally. Let’s see if we can get “whoever” to take the time to read and add their two cents.

Comparing Flogging argument with my civic letter.

One important question I asked myself when writing the persuasive civic letter is: what is left out of this argument? It was also important for me to add an element of myself and draw the audience in with pathos. I tried to use many references to political leaders and those closely involved (ie-military officials, policymakers) to give my argument credibility.

The broad meanings of learning.

Steph asked us to take many definitions of learning and analyse them in the context of our class. She briefly recapped a conversation that took place in our last class about the non-linearity of our class wiki and the overall non-linearity of learning. We wrote up a few questions to ask the text and then used those to write our analysis. Our analyses are posted as a comment here on Steph’s blog.

Here are some of the questions we asked the text:

In what context were the definitions written?

 

How are the definitions different depending on the different sources?

 

What function do the definitions play?

 

Are there similarities between the definitions?

 

The interactions we’ve had as a class are the context f

Exchange Exchange

Context is an important part of both Babel and the subject matter of this course. Cultural and historical perspectives give us a point of reference in what someone is talking about. Context provides a link between the issues, topics, and subject matter. The film and our course illustrate the vital need for communication, to accomplish goals. Miscommunication can sometimes happen as a result of a lack of that vital communication, for a variety of reasons. There are a variety of ways to communicate, as is shown through Babel and our class. Although there are many language barriers in Babel, body language and other physical features convey emotion. Writing must adapt to the limitations of the written word by manipulating the story and words to convey certain ideas and a broad range of actions and emotions. A communicator must adapt to be understood. The film and our course also define cultures or styles by comparing and contrasting similar and different cultures or styles.

Babel revisited

 

Has your sense of the film changed or remained the same?

My sense of the film has changed little. I have to admit to reading the plot summary on Wikipedia after we watched the film the first time. Can you blame me for wanting to know how it ends? So, there was not much surprise in finding out that the kids were the children of the couple in the Middle East. Although, knowing that plot line before seeing that part of the film, I do sort of want to watch the film again and see if there are pieces I missed that might have told the viewer that earlier in the story. The main change I can see is after this class, and one other analyzing film structure, I am watching the film differently. I am looking for a deeper meaning and paying close attention to the point of view and other film elements I’m not sure I noticed before.

Cultural Text – Steph’s haircut

1. Why does this cultural text look the ways it does?

Time difference

Style Difference/ Choice

Perhaps it’s a statement of rebellion from social norms

 

2. Who is talking about it?

Everybody

Especially young people

3. Why are they?

It’s different from the norm

Unusual style for a professor

Mullets were a fad a few years ago

 

4. Who isn’t talking about it?

Older People

 

5. Why not?

Less a pop culture thing for older people

That style used to be more popular

Maturity factor of older people may make them less likely to talk about someone’s hair style

 

6. What are they saying about it?

It’s an older style

It’s unusual

7. Why are you thinking and talking about it the way that you are?

Prof asked us to use it as a cultural text, so we’re analying it semiotically- using cultural references we have

The teacher was present and talking about her hairstyle in front of her made for a somewhat awkward conversation. We’re not sure how open to be or what language to use.

When Steph left the room we felt more open to talk about what was ok and not ok and discuss more openly.

 

8. What is it like?

Mullet

Older style from the 80s

A style of hair that is easy to maintain

 

9. What is it similar to/ different from?

Similar to pop culture icon of mullet

Different from traditional women’s hairstyles

Different from the norm for a professor, usually professors have more of a business dress/hair style.

Babel: Storytelling as cultural understanding

Babel’s approach to culture and human interconnectivity reflects a social and political evolution of sorts, and assumes of its audience a certain amount of multi-cultural sophistication and interest. The film shows events and individual character’s reactions to those events, but does not necessarily pick sides, conveying to the audience a complexity of global social and political issues not often reflected in media. The disjointed storytelling compares cultures and the way they interact. The storytelling suggests human commonalities and ultimately the inevitability of human tragedy.

One can draw many conclusions about the characters’ choices. Perhaps the film’s creators intended for this to happen. There are few conclusions drawn explicitly for the audience. Each viewer must draw meaning from her personal experiences or cultural understanding. Often artists mean to communicate something, and the audience gets from the art something very different. Other times artists intentionally leave the art open for interpretation, knowing that she cannot predict for each person’s reaction.

Babel also draws on culture, how it is communicated, and how media influences one’s impressions of another culture. This movie shows an evolution of cultural interconnectedness not present in the John Wayne movies of yore. It suggests a closing of gaps between peoples and distances and is special in its representation of culture. The old John Wayne movies were often xenophobic and anglocentric. While Babel does have touches of xenophobia, the Japanese characters speak Japanese (or, one can assume, Japanese Sign Language), not an American interpretation of what Japanese culture should be like, or Japanese characters speaking English with a Japanese accent as if it were normal for them. Babel widely addresses several global cultures and emotionally driven issues without speaking in absolutes.

In using children as main characters, cultural differences are illuminated within the common bonds of humanity. The American children’s reaction to the Mexican treatment of the chicken reveals, first the excitement of being a child, interacting with and pleasing adults, and then the strangeness of the unfamiliar beheading. Also the Moroccan children gathering around the wounded American magnifies the lack of adequate medical care and differences in culture.

This film pulls together many cultural backgrounds to visually and structurally create a bridge for a conversation about cultural differences and humanity to occur. If not a conversation, at least a humanizing of the “other” occurs, which seems to be lacking in most mainstream media.