Media for expression

So, as I don't have a lesson plan topic in mind at the moment, I'll use this post to respond to the readings for this week. I thought that the Beilke and Stuve article brought up some really interesting points about different categories of uses of educational technology as media. And more specifically I was struck by how, although the idea of media literacy and what acutally constitutes literacy is expanding to include video, the internet, video games, etc., there are still those that see traditional forms of literacy as canon, and think of mediums such as digital video to be merely entertainment. This article discusses the values of using digital video in an educational setting, and how it has been used effectively with inner-city youth, to both encourage visual literacy and technology skills as well as relate literacy to culture in a way that urban youth does not often find in textbooks.
I do think, however, that while the merits of using video as an educational tool are valid, librarians and educators must consistently demonstrate that video can and is being used to promote literacy and encourage higher-order thinking, not just something to occupy the time of students who have not done well with more traditional educational tools. When I was in high school I took a video productions class my last semester, as an easy A and to get my last few elective credits. The instruction was purely how to use the equipment, which we covered in the first few classes, and then were pretty much allowed to just walk around the school and tape whatever we wanted. There was very little instruction or discussion regarding real literacy issues and school wide the class was seen as something of a joke.
In the past, as technology and video classes were introduced into urban schools, the focus was on what is categorized in the article as "media for construction," how to fix computers rather than use them to create new content. The educational process described in the article, where urban middle school students were given digital video as a outlet to express themselves, is known as "media for expression," and actually has been shown to promote critical literacy, visual literacy, and representational literacy. So, in my opinion, digital video and other form of technology absolutely have a place in educational settings, provided that they are used in a manner that promotes discussion, critical thinking, and original thought. And hopefully, as more schools utilize these technologies in this way, past stereotypes and practices of technology in education will begin to be fazed out.