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UK Student Protests: Democratic Participation, Digital Age
The stereotypical characterization of young people as politically apathetic, interested only in using digital media for socializing and gaming, has been punctured by recent events in the UK. University and high school students took to the streets to protest against the tripling of tuition fees for higher education, reductions to grants for 16-18 year olds, and cuts in government university funding. During November and December, students, staff, parents and the wider public marched in London and other UK cities and many universities had buildings occupied, with University of Kent staying in occupation over the Christmas and New Year break. Social media has been crucial in the organization of this protest movement, in reaching out to the wider public and in both engaging with and providing an alternative to mainstream media journalism. It also raises questions about the nature of democratic and civic participation in the digital age.… more
New Media Literacy: Critique vs Re-design
A central concern of media education has been to empower young people with the ability to question, analyze, critique and deconstruct messages they encounter in media. But in a global remix culture, the power and relevance of critique itself may be due for critique. Critique is retrospective: it turns its attention on artifacts and texts that have already been produced and exist in the world in a relatively stable form. It also assumes a separation between the producer of media, and its consumer – a separation that is called into question by the increasing ease with which amateurs can use digital media to create and share their own media artifacts.… more
Social Justice and Diverse Cultures of Participation
Many educators are excited by the new opportunities and challenges for learning that digital media brings us. Stories about 11-year-old Kai, a learner at Quest to Learn school in New York, paint a picture of a young person for whom digital media are an integral constituent of his learning at school and at home, his social life and his hobbies and interests. This picture of the digital native (pdf) – a young person who has grown up surrounded by digital media and is expert in its use – is a familiar concept in the field of digital media and learning. We are exhorted to update our teaching methods, tools and institutions to keep up with young people’s use of digital media outside school. But not all young people have the access to technology, the skills to use it, or the supportive network of peers and family enjoyed by Kai. Not all young people see digital media as offering them experiences that are personally meaningful and valuable. When we talk about digital media and learning, we need to always ask questions about who is taking up these opportunities and who is not. Questions of access, social justice and equality need to be placed at the heart of the debate.… more
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