What is a medium?

In our small group discussion we tried to answer this question. We started out with a pretty straightforward idea, that a medium is a means with which to deliver a message. From there we started discussing different mediums, and something that I thought was interesting, the different limitations with all mediums. It occurred to our group that every kind of medium has certain areas where it falls short, where there is a good chance that the message might be missed. As an example or a frame of reference, we thought about how certain disabilites such as vision or hearing impairment could interfere in receiving an intended message. But as we discussed this idea we noticed that there is almost always another medium that could be used to work around problems.

Another idea that we discussed was matching a message to the best possible medium. Are certain messages best suited for a specific medium, and should messages be altered to suit a desired medium? We talked about the current trend of portable devices like iphones and blackberrys and that artists are making content that is specifically designed to be viewed on a small screen.

Another important idea that we touched on was how mediums appeal to different senses, and the importance of images. While hearing a message can convey facts, our group agreed that often seeing an image can be more powerful. This was interesting to keep in mind while reading McLuhan. McLuhan's writing was coming with the rise of television, and he wrote about how television was powerful because it involved all senses. While our group discussed the power of images, McLuhan wrote about the power of sound, that you can shut out images, but we hear everything around us without even intending to. I think that the combination of sound and sight really does convey a message the strongest. As McLuhan says- it engages you and demands participation and involvement.

This is now also true of the internet. My group discussed whether we should just accept the internet as the most efficient medium, and what it's limitations are. We thought that while TV and the internet can both engage several senses and promote user participation, there is a difference in the element of control. TV is broadcast to you, and you are more or less limited to what is being shown when you turn on your TV, although this is changing with DVR. With the internet the user is given more control of what they view, and can choose to go into a subject to whatever degree they choose. However, some members in our group thought that there is still a comfort level of using the TV as a medium. With so much content available on the internet, it can be difficult to disseminate through everything and find content of real substance.

Critical Literacy

What is the practice of critical literacy?
From a general standpoint, I think that critical literacy involves possessing a fluency for thinking critically. That is, the ability to consistently approach information with the intent to see both sides of the issue, even evidence that disconfirms your existing ideas; the ability to reason based on claims supported by evidence, and make inferences and conclusions from that information.

But what does this mean in today's technological climate? The same literacy standards that have been used in the past, when books were often the primary research source, can not really be used today, without considering how much has changed regarding how we get our information. In my opinion, a key component of critical literacy is considering sources: who wrote something, for what audience, and for what purpose? And I think that today, when we are innundated with information everywhere we look-from tv in cabs to news updates on our cellphones, and anyone can write a blog or post a youtube video on any subject, this is more important to consider than ever.

And what does critical literacy mean within the library world- what is critical librarianship? It seems to me that critical librarianship, is directly related to the concept of critical pedagogy. In helping a patron find the answer to a question, a librarian is faced with the same ideas of banking education vs. problem-posing education. In the banking scenario, the librarian possesses the answer, either in her own knowledge or within the collection, and gives it to the patron. Whereas a critical librarian might explore the question more with the patron, and assist them in finding the answer, along with any other helpful information.

However, I don't think that you can say that problem-posing education is always the definitive right way to go. Is there ever a scenario where students need to be "given" information via a banking education? Friere writes that the more students are given critical thinking problems, the more they will be challenged, and see the problems as interrelated, increasing critical thinking and a commitment to problem solving. This seems like the ideal, but I wonder how often that ideal is achieved. I have read that critical thinking is an incredibly hard skill to teach, how should a critical librarian handle this challenge?

Just getting started...

Welcome to my blog for LIS 680... I am just figuring this out so I hope to be able to make some improvements as I get more comfortable. I have never had any real interest in blogging, although I do read some blogs. This is kind of indicative of the brief discussion we had in class about how we tend to like the technologies that we like and spurn the ones that we don't. I regularly use some social networking sites like Facebook and Myspace, to contact my existing friends, but the idea of interacting with strangers and writing blogs for the world to read is something I've always been a little wary of. However, I am interested in how these technologies are currently being used and can be used for educational and library purposes. The youtube video and the statistics that we discussed about how students are currently using and changing media and technology were not entirely surprising to me, but they do make the point that learning and education need to be adapted to fit changing needs. I look forward to learning more (and blogging about) this over the course of the semester...