Ripe for Change: Digital Media as a Tool for Innovation in Disciplinary Literacy
I was winding down at the end of a school day when I saw my son at the table in my office.
He found my iPad, opened up Minecraft, and started working on his world. To aid in his creations, he would reference a Minecraft guide book from time to time. I didn’t have to offer any help in setting up his world or in guiding his reading. He was motivated to understand the text because it meant he could be more successful in creating new things in Minecraft.
Seeing these examples of learning in the absence of a teacher, it is both humbling and promising. Educators have responsibilities to ensure students meet expected levels of achievement. Report cards and test scores made public can determine the level of support we receive from our communities. Unfortunately, these assessments do not communicate how well students can teach themselves or how motivated they are to learn. The mindset that we should always be teaching may undermine students’ opportunities for self-directed learning.
Where do we find opportunities for kids to explore their passions and interests? I believe the content areas, especially in science and social studies, offer the best possibilities for rethinking how schools might improve the educational experience for students and teachers. Next are a couple of ideas for how a teacher might explore what’s possible.
Digital media literacy and civic engagement
In the current political races, more and more campaign dollars are being spent toward online advertising and constituent engagement. Right now in the fall of 2016, it is hard to avoid a political message when logged in on Facebook or Twitter. These communications are not limited to the candidates. Political commentators, journalists, and bloggers all weigh in on the current races for political positions.
Teachers can tap into the power of social media and design a series of lessons that help students develop a deeper understanding of the democratic process, recognize bias, and evaluate the validity of online content. For example, students could explore how the use of hashtags can have different levels of meaning depending on who is using them and why. The concept of hashtags for understanding social media moves beyond advertising and into the realms of networking and community-building.
This is important. Engaging students in developing a better understanding of digital media literacy has shown to increase students’ participation in civic activities, including creating original content online, and in developing more diverse perspectives of politics and important societal issues (Kahne, Feezell & Lee, 2010).
Gaming and scientific inquiry
Games such as Minecraft encourage both participation and collaboration. Students such as my son can build worlds virtually from scratch and invite others to join them via an Internet-enabled device. They construct these worlds through collectively agreed upon norms and goals. Chat rooms and in-person dialogue accompany their work.
As students become more fluent in these participatory technologies, teachers can leverage these tools to support content areas such as science. As an example, circuit building is an option for Minecraft participants. They have to mine the proper elements (i.e. Redstone) and place them in strategic locations to create a line (i.e. Redstone Dust) that can transmit energy. Now that students have their Minecraft creations powered up, then can operate doors and turn on lights.
These discoveries can serve as entry points for future explorations into scientific concepts such as electricity and renewable vs. nonrenewable resources. Games such as Mincraft can make abstract concepts more concrete. Just as important, students become active learners instead of passive recipients in school. “We know that people learn best, and enjoy most, when they are working on personally meaningful projects” (Resnick, 2012).
Teaching students through leveraging digital media tools to support their important projects will introduce them to information and concepts in more relevant and usable ways.
References
Kane, J., Feezell, J. T., Lee, N. (2010). Digital Media Literacy Education and Online Civic and Political Participation. Working paper: Youth & Participatory Politics. Available: http://dmlcentral.net/wp-content/uploads/files/LiteracyEducationandOnlineParticipation.WORKINGPAPER.pdf
Resnick, M. (2012). Reviving Papert’s Dream. Educational Technology. 52(5), pgs. 41-46.
This is a sponsored post. Rocket Island is a Kickstarter project. The creator, Timothy Young, is focused on creating an immersive and enjoyable 3D game with an educational purpose.
Players explore a digital world to collect resources and information in order to launch a rocket into space. Young wants this game available to students from all around the world to learn about environmental science. If you can, please support this project.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r_F1dqYiLdk]