Midterm Project Summary

I will be working alone for this project. I am going to illustrate the three major course themes listed in the syllabus using glogster. I’m going to make a poster glog with all three assumptions and explanations on the one poster. I am going to try to talk about and use some quotes from every author so far. I have never used glogster before, but I’m going to play around with it and see what works best to make it look nice and organized. I will probably use some text bubbles and pictures, but I don’t know what else yet.  I don’t think I will need to hand in anything written because I will have text on the poster. If my explanations get too long for the poster though, I will probably write it up better and hand it in separately and just have notes on the poster.

Post 5, Teenagers: Producers and Consumers

1)      Wesch, From Knowledgable to Knowledge-able”

2)      Argument

Wesch’s argument is that the role of a student should progress from simply memorizing and reiterating material, to being proactive and engaging in material. Wesch also wants students to learn more about and engage more in real world issues that have greater implications than trivial information on tests that won’t be remembered once the class is done and over with anyway. Wesch uses this video below that he made to show what students really think about their classes.

The students admit to not paying attention in class and buying books that they never read. I don’t think Wesch is saying that this is students’ faults though. Rather, I think the teaching style has a lot to do with a student’s attitude. At the school he taped this video at there were a large number of students sitting in big lecture halls. One of the students even said something about her teachers not knowing her name. Not only would a class size influence the format of the class, but the assignments do as well. Wesch gives the example of the bubble sheet tests no longer being appropriate. 

 

When Wesch was talking about this, I was reminded of the idea of progressive education. Progessive Education includes:  emphasis on learning by doing, understanding and action as the goals of learning as opposed to rote knowledge, collaborative and cooperative learning project, education for social responsibility and democracy, personalized education, integration of community service and service learning projects into the daily curriculum, selection of subject content by looking forward to ask what skills will be needed in future society, de-emphasis on textbooks in favor of varied learning resources, and an Emphasis on lifelong learning and social skills. (Taken from the wiki website) I think this kind of education would better please Wesch. Not only that, but students may be pleased more as well. One of the comments on Wesch’s article was that the way students take classes now is like getting vaccinations. Once the class is over with, they’re done with it and the material that goes along with it. The students have already “had” the class just like they have “had” a shot. Maybe a better teaching style would allow students to carry on more information past the final exam and use it in the real world.

3)      For Class:

I agree with Wesch’s argument and think that education should be different. Students should be “knowledge-able. My question to the class would be: do you think Wesch makes a good argument or are you more in favor of the traditional teaching style?

Post 4, Teenagers: History and the Challenge of Intersectionality

1.)      Hine,  The Rise and Fall of the American Teenager 

     2.)      Argument

Thomas Hine argues that the definition and experience of a teenager has changed over time and is a socially constructed idea.  Hines draws examples from different fields, such as history, psychology, marketing, etc, to show how teenagers have been represented. Hine explains how teenagers are grouped together simply by their age, and are expected to act in immature ways and are not given enough credit to fulfill their potential. Instead of considering each teenager as an individual, people (adults, in particular) see teenagers as an irresponsible group whom are not ready to understand the world as somebody older would.

Hine talks about the teenage period nowadays being longer than previously before. Before, teenagers were working and had more independent lives, whereas now, schooling has become longer and teenagers and young adults are more dependent.  Just by the way we live our lives, our place in society is viewed differently.  Hine also talks about how our maturity level and place in the world is judged by our size. Young people who are physically bigger or look older can be thought of as acting older and more mature. These two examples show how being a teenager is socially constructed and varies based on how one acts or looks.

Hine also gives examples of how teenagers are viewed negatively by different people. Hine tells the story of a girl who gave birth at her high school prom and whose baby was found dead. Some people weren’t shaken by this story because they expected a teenager to not be emotionally mature for a baby. Hine also talks about how teenagers are expected to be doing things like shoplifting, smoking, drugs, or other behaviors that need to be watched carefully.

Toward the end of the chapter, Hine gives examples of how teenagers now are actually more motivated to go to school and optimistic about their future.  This shows how teenage stereotypes can be incorrect and how judging teenagers is not a smart move.

3.) For Class

This chapter had a lot of information and was a little tough to read, for me. I summed up Hine’s argument as I understood it.  I am interested in seeing how other people interpreted Hine’s argument and what their reaction to the text was.