We really went out with a bang, didn't we?! I thought the projects that were presented on our final day of class were all thoughtful and very well done. I really had a great time this semester, and I am sure you all did as well.
The use of the blog was a useful tool for this course, and I really encourage other instructors to follow suit. While I am not a scholar, I have to assume that creating a mini-blogisphere for a class is a pedagogically sound endeavour. On an individual level, the blog serves as a personal space for reflection and expression - but when that blog is linked to others who are writing on similar topics, but have very different opinions on them, we expand our educational horizons through collaborative learning. Immediately after posting my blog, I'd open Jen's and Loretta's to see what they thought. Oftentimes, I would find things that they didn't, and vice versa. You cannot get that by writing response papers that get turned in exclusively to the instructor. That person, who likely knows all there is to know about the topic, is the only beneficiary to the work of the student. Blogging opens up the professor's briefcase and allows all the students to see how others see, think, and react.
I realize that there are privacy issues that could be an issue to starting a RIC bloggisphere, but I do think the benefits far outweigh the possible negatives. Let's explore the possibilities together.
As for the future of this blog, I do not know what will become of it. Hopefully, through time, it will continue to be an extension of my thoughts that I want to share with my friends, professors, co-workers, and any one else with an open mind and a few minutes :)
Tuesday, May 6, 2008
Thursday, May 1, 2008
One Day More, Dr. Patterson! (24601)
In honor of our last class, I figure I'd post a snippet from our mutually beloved musical Les Miserables. This is the song "One Day More" as performed at the 10th anniversary celebration. I believe it's the original London cast.
If you haven't seen it... go! And bring tissues!
Colm Wilknson is the best Valjean, hands down...
If you haven't seen it... go! And bring tissues!
Colm Wilknson is the best Valjean, hands down...
Teen Ink: Identity, Expression, and the Written Word
There is no agony like bearing an untold story inside you.-Z.N. Hurston
For my final choice assignment, I chose to review a teen oriented website. The one I selected, Teen Ink, was something I never heard of before. It is a website and printed magazine, established in 1989 by a non-profit company, that collects and publishes teen writing and art. In doing this, Teen Ink provides a virtual niche which can be used by teens to express themselves artistically while contemporaneously forging a social identity through the written word.
Very much like the videos found on Listen Up, the authors found on Teen Ink deal with the complexities of life in a very adult way. While the dominant view of teenagers portray them in a selfish and irrational manner, a skeptic would be amazed to see that may of the articles on the site deal with very mature topics. Among these articles and stories, readers will find both fictional and non-fictional accounts of topics ranging from suicide to racism, book reviews to environmental issues, travel and culture, and yes, even politics!
Some of the writings were quite profound. One that I found particularly shocking was a poem called Cancer by a teen named Amelie from Massachusetts:
Father, was there any life before your death and resurrection,
before you were chosen an insect
cut curiously
open, leading way to
your smoke bleeding - pouring from
every orifice
Where does your half life begin to be?
Father, how does it feel to know you gave
your cancer to me?
Naturalism.
What happened to ideals of flawless
resurrection?
It seems there’s been a slow exhale of
everything you know.
Father, where did the rest of you go
After lung dissection by a surgeon line chef?
Are you in some sterile room,
On walls of blistered tar flesh?
Here, Amelie grapples with the death of her father from lung cancer and strongly resents him for causing her own physical ailments. As you can see, Cancer does not look like a "teen" created it - rather it looks like a professional, adult writer did it. Despite its melancholy message, it serves to shatter the stereotypes of the typical thoughtless teenager. Another great example of this is a nonfictional piece by Dalia from Texas who lamented her racially charged experiences at a Six Flags trip:
Since the 9/11 attacks, my life has completely changed. People at school started looking at me differently and spitting rude comments at me. Terrorism changed the lives of not only me but everyone in America. It made people sad, mad, and in my case, shocked. Most Muslims would never have even thought of doing something like the 9/11 attacks, but Osama bin Laden introduced it to the world. I am completely against terrorism and war, but many people don’t see that side of me and the Muslims around me.
Dalia, like many Muslims in the United States, struggles to shake the terrorist stigma attached to them in wake of Spetember 11th. Her plight is different from other teenagers. Unlike the typical teen, Dalia is experiencing a compounded version of stereotyping: the one that slanders Islam as an extremist religion, and the other is Hine's "teenage mystique" that we have discussed so thoroughly this semester. Dalia will not only have to continue to combat racism, but also the fact that she will not be taken seriously until she emerges into adulthood.
Structurally, the Teen Ink is plain and easy to use, but in the same token, I'm not sure if it's appealing to teenagers. Under normal circumstances I wouldn't bring this up in an analysis, but given our discussions on web architecture of Listen Up, I think it may be important to discuss briefly. While I think it is functional and simple, would a teen see it as bland and unappealing? I think by making a blanket statement such as that, saying all teens require flashy websites in order to use them, just means that we are giving into the social constructions that we have been working so hard to tear down. Let's not go there, OK?
Anyway, the site is divided into two sections: the media and the administrative. The media portion, seen as the yellow bar across the top of the home page, has various links to the writing/art submissions: Fiction, Nonfiction, Poetry, Reviews, Art/Photos, Opinions, and Sports respectively. The administrative portions, in purple, has links to colleges, magazine subscription information, and even links for educators.
I tried really hard to find evidence on Teen Ink that adults (or big companies) were trying to misrepresent teenagers like Hollywood does. Let's face it, teens gone wild sells! This faux teenage culture that movies and televisions perpetuate, only serves only the dominant discourse. Thomas Hine argues that this culture is "wholly impervious to adult influence, is one of the most contentious aspects of the teenage mystique." He argues that teenagers are wrongly lumped into some artificially constructed group that is incapable of making rational decisions on its own. Hine maintains that teens are actually able people, but because this label is placed on them it becomes "an impediment that has kept them from becoming the people they were ready to be."
The fact that adults call teenagers uncontrollable and inhuman, is not because they are, it's because we adults want them to be. As a result, adults construct this media albatross that keeps teenagers in a cultural rut. Luckily, sites like Teen Ink and Listen Up exist to smash that mystique, and create a virtual safety area to express themselves and their identity.
Very much like the videos found on Listen Up, the authors found on Teen Ink deal with the complexities of life in a very adult way. While the dominant view of teenagers portray them in a selfish and irrational manner, a skeptic would be amazed to see that may of the articles on the site deal with very mature topics. Among these articles and stories, readers will find both fictional and non-fictional accounts of topics ranging from suicide to racism, book reviews to environmental issues, travel and culture, and yes, even politics!
Some of the writings were quite profound. One that I found particularly shocking was a poem called Cancer by a teen named Amelie from Massachusetts:
Father, was there any life before your death and resurrection,
before you were chosen an insect
cut curiously
open, leading way to
your smoke bleeding - pouring from
every orifice
Where does your half life begin to be?
Father, how does it feel to know you gave
your cancer to me?
Naturalism.
What happened to ideals of flawless
resurrection?
It seems there’s been a slow exhale of
everything you know.
Father, where did the rest of you go
After lung dissection by a surgeon line chef?
Are you in some sterile room,
On walls of blistered tar flesh?
Here, Amelie grapples with the death of her father from lung cancer and strongly resents him for causing her own physical ailments. As you can see, Cancer does not look like a "teen" created it - rather it looks like a professional, adult writer did it. Despite its melancholy message, it serves to shatter the stereotypes of the typical thoughtless teenager. Another great example of this is a nonfictional piece by Dalia from Texas who lamented her racially charged experiences at a Six Flags trip:
Since the 9/11 attacks, my life has completely changed. People at school started looking at me differently and spitting rude comments at me. Terrorism changed the lives of not only me but everyone in America. It made people sad, mad, and in my case, shocked. Most Muslims would never have even thought of doing something like the 9/11 attacks, but Osama bin Laden introduced it to the world. I am completely against terrorism and war, but many people don’t see that side of me and the Muslims around me.
Dalia, like many Muslims in the United States, struggles to shake the terrorist stigma attached to them in wake of Spetember 11th. Her plight is different from other teenagers. Unlike the typical teen, Dalia is experiencing a compounded version of stereotyping: the one that slanders Islam as an extremist religion, and the other is Hine's "teenage mystique" that we have discussed so thoroughly this semester. Dalia will not only have to continue to combat racism, but also the fact that she will not be taken seriously until she emerges into adulthood.
Structurally, the Teen Ink is plain and easy to use, but in the same token, I'm not sure if it's appealing to teenagers. Under normal circumstances I wouldn't bring this up in an analysis, but given our discussions on web architecture of Listen Up, I think it may be important to discuss briefly. While I think it is functional and simple, would a teen see it as bland and unappealing? I think by making a blanket statement such as that, saying all teens require flashy websites in order to use them, just means that we are giving into the social constructions that we have been working so hard to tear down. Let's not go there, OK?
Anyway, the site is divided into two sections: the media and the administrative. The media portion, seen as the yellow bar across the top of the home page, has various links to the writing/art submissions: Fiction, Nonfiction, Poetry, Reviews, Art/Photos, Opinions, and Sports respectively. The administrative portions, in purple, has links to colleges, magazine subscription information, and even links for educators.
I tried really hard to find evidence on Teen Ink that adults (or big companies) were trying to misrepresent teenagers like Hollywood does. Let's face it, teens gone wild sells! This faux teenage culture that movies and televisions perpetuate, only serves only the dominant discourse. Thomas Hine argues that this culture is "wholly impervious to adult influence, is one of the most contentious aspects of the teenage mystique." He argues that teenagers are wrongly lumped into some artificially constructed group that is incapable of making rational decisions on its own. Hine maintains that teens are actually able people, but because this label is placed on them it becomes "an impediment that has kept them from becoming the people they were ready to be."
The fact that adults call teenagers uncontrollable and inhuman, is not because they are, it's because we adults want them to be. As a result, adults construct this media albatross that keeps teenagers in a cultural rut. Luckily, sites like Teen Ink and Listen Up exist to smash that mystique, and create a virtual safety area to express themselves and their identity.
Research on Social Networking Websites
The Pew Internet and American Life Project did some research on the social networking sites like MySpace and Facebook. It's a couple years old, but it's still useful and credible. Enjoy!
http://www.pewinternet.org/pdfs/PIP_SNS_Data_Memo_Jan_2007.pdf
http://www.pewinternet.org/pdfs/PIP_SNS_Data_Memo_Jan_2007.pdf
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