As we presented our fictional proposals regarding media education to the “administration,” it became evident that, even if unintentional, we all gave off an air or impression of using media as a means of getting into the “real/actual” curriculum of English/History. As I sat and listened to the discussion that followed, I began to wonder, “Is that such a bad thing? So what if Media is being used to purport an ascribed core curriculum? At least we, as teachers, are trying to integrate the technology into the classroom.”
As I continued to mull over this idea, I began the reading, and discovered that much of Buckingham’s text this week was directed at this very thing; making sure that we’re not confusing “media education” with “instructional technology.” (Maybe it wasn’t, but that’s what I found because that’s what has been on my mind—how’s that for a lens?)
So, as anyone could have probably guessed, the section on “Media education in language and literature teaching” was of particular interest to me due to its complete relevance with my life; however, it is not because I was able to read and say “Hey, I’m doing okay here.” In fact, I think I most identified with the statement on page 95 where Buckingham says, “At best, media education is often seen as a motivational tool—as a means to lead students to conventional print literacy or as a covert means of introducing them to the literary canon.” Could there be a more accurate description of how I currently approach media in my classroom? I think not. It’s sad, but true.
Now, I know I’m not as bad as many other, more “old-school” teachers. I, at the very least, do value media as text, and I have made the conversion to the idea that perhaps the term “literature” needs to be a bit broader. (Maybe we should change Literature classes to Textual Analysis classes or something?) But, I still cling to the literary canon like it’s a small child that will get crushed by all of the quickly passing new ideas that keep coming our way. I don’t think English teachers will be able to let it go completely; after all, it’s usually the literature that motivates people to teach English in the first place.
It is for this reason that I appreciated what Buckingham expressed on several occasions throughout the reading—that media education should be seen as an element of all curricular subjects. Using media production as a “method of learning which can be applied in many situations” is the key to converting students and especially teachers, I think. Because students are so completely consumed with what’s already required, forcing them to take a separate media education course seems impractical. And teachers, as over-worked and under-paid as they often are, need practical, applicable options for adaptation into their existing curriculum if this thing is ever going to get off the ground. Is it the best way? Probably not; it would probably be better to start from scratch, integrating media education into the very structure of the curriculum, connecting it all to the core and making sure that you’re actually teaching media literacy rather than just creating fun “activities” for kids. But the fact of the matter is that no (“good”) teacher I know has the time to do all that at once. (And honestly, the “bad” ones wouldn’t care enough to bother.)
I don’t know. Do I believe that media education is worthwhile? Of course I do, otherwise I wouldn’t be here. And something that I really appreciated about this week’s reading was all of the possible applications and means of teaching various concepts. It’s just that it seems SO big. It feels as though the entire American educational paradigm would have to shift in order to have any permanent, positive effect, which would involve eliminating a lot of old, entrenched thought processes (often found within the teachers themselves). But then I think about the fact that, even if no one else is bothering, I can affect my students, and if even one of them benefits from this embracing of their media-saturated culture, it’s been a successful endeavor.
3 comments:
First, sorry about not reading your response before I posted mine. I would have discussed something different. Your post is much more interesting and well written than mine.
I like your honesty about your feeling of this process being so large.
If you did start from scratch and implement the teaching plans suggested in this chapter: Would if it fulfill the curriculum requirements of your class in any way? Can the case studies provided be adapted to a requirement of your class?
I appreciate your comments about it being "SO big." I have actually been a little stressed about the subject, to be honest. I love our discussions. I love what we are learning in both classes. I'm excited about future classes - but the idea behind media education and what it really means and what it really requires overwhelms me a little - it feels enormous! For me, I want to get into university education. For you, it means trying to incorporate into your educational paradigm, one which becomes increasingly rigid and unforgiving. What is wonderful about our cohort, though, is what I believe is our willingness to help one another really get to our end goals. I hope that we can help you to get at least the shift you need/want in your own classroom.
This summer my principal had us read a book called "Disrupting Class" and while I disagreed with a lot of the author's arguments I was really interested in his ideas about how disruption and innovation could take place. He argued that innovation in business always starts in communities that are, for whatever reason, not buying into the system and that these are the markets to target to begin innovation and change in education as well. It bothers me when people compare education--particularly public education-- to business but I do think there's some value in the idea that right now public education is shifting and people are looking for ways to innovate and use new media I wonder if this will open up the door for exactly the kind of systemic change that would be necessary to really see media education take off? My school is a great example of a non-consumer population in which new media education techniques could really take off, if we could figure out the best way to use them.
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