A nine year old boys dream comes true......endless amounts of cardboard boxes and a bit of creativity. This short film is sure to make you feel good about humanity, and as Michael Wesch says: new media changes a society, there is no opting out, these possibilities can be viewed as opportunities for mass participation or as possibilities for mass distraction. In this case I think it is safe to say that mass participation has been, and is still continuing to be achieved. Caine is a nine year old boy who lives in east LA. He is obsessed with arcades and arcade games. During the summer he spends a lot of time at his father's auto parts shop where he has an endless supply of cardboard boxes. Caine initially hand crafts a small basket ball arcade game out of the boxes, some packing tape, and a small basket ball hoop that he won. Over time he establishes an entire arcade where he charges individuals one dollar for a few tries, or they can purchase a fun pass for two dollars and have up to 500 tries over a month. What is so amazing about his arcade is that he is willing to take feedback from friends and family that have played the games, he also has an entire token, ticket and prize system worked out. The games are set up to be so uniquely genuine that when a player wins tickets, Caine actually crawls into the back of the box and feeds the tickets out of a slot, similar to an actual arcade game. Caine was struggling for any real customers until a local LA filmmaker,Nirvan Mullick stopped by the shop to buy a door handle for his car. Nirvan was intrigued by Caine's creativity, and decided to compose a short film about his arcade. Nirvan used social media to promote a flash-mob at the arcade, in what he explains as an attempt to make a little boys dream come true. The flash-mob was a great success, and within days of the short film being released it had gone global. The short film, and Caine's Arcade prompted a global campaign for cardboard creativity world wide, and eventually lead to the development of the imagination foundation. The goal of the imagination foundation is to find, foster and fund creativity. While I understand the power of media and social media, I continue to be amazed at how powerful of a tool it can really become. Lastly, here is a follow up film. Here is another TEDx by Michael Wesch. Much of the information he is presenting is similar to the last presentation, however there are some key points that are not covered in the last TEDx that I reviewed.
He talks about culture and even culture shock, and relates his experience to his time spent in a village in New Guinea. He describes culture shock as loosing your identity, and nobody knowing who you are. He even goes on to explain that media allows many of us to claim an external identity, one we often feel obligated to live up to. While in New Guinea Wesch observed that individuals were not so concerned about who they were or their identity, but more so on the relationships they built and established. This was demonstrated when an individual committed a crime or did something wrong. In these situations the individual was not put on trial and potentially punished, instead the relationship harmed was put on trial and the individuals try to heal the relationship. In listening to Wesch I could not help but be reminded of my own "village" at HSHMC. This is one of the most unique schools and work environments that I have ever had the opportunity to work in, and embraces the philosophy of restorative practices. Restorative practices is derived from restorative justice, and focuses on individuals learning and growing from a bad choice, a mistake or even a crime committed against a community. The most important aspect of implementing restorative practices is first developing a community that an individual feels a part of, accountable to, and often respects. Okay, sorry about my plug on restorative practice. I am just so enthusiastic about it creating and fostering a positive learning environment that I couldn't resist ;) The final statement that jumped out at me during Wesch's presentation was that, "new media changes society, there is no opting out." I would agree that an individual can choose not to use a specific type of media, however that does not slow it from consuming or even becoming a part of everyday life for the majority. Wesch continues to explain that new media can be either seen and utilized as a possibility for mass participation, but also encourage possibilities for mass distraction. This is where I struggle. I can easily see the importance and value of media for mass participation. In the past, lets just narrow it down to 10 years; I have been able to communicate via phone and computer from a literal combat zone (2004 Iraq), I have connected with amazing individuals within the cycling world and established friendship that would have otherwise gone unnoticed, I have learned to play and make the didgeridoo, I have become a self proclaimed spearfishing expert (amateur), and made amazing spearfishing friends, as well as been part of the local oceans alliance for waterman rights, and I have made beautiful home projects such as a rustic dining room table. I would consider the use of my media for participation, however we have the ability to participate and master so many groups, hobbies, projects, and activities, when does all of this participation become a distraction??? I am not disagreeing with the use of media and technology to connect, and collaborate. I am just concerned as to how we demonstrate to our students responsible use. As well as how we emphasize the importance of getting outside and YES unplugging at times. I am currently reading a short book /essay by Will Richardson, titled Why School. This book has got me thinking in so many different ways, I again am not sure where to begin. I will start by saying that the entire knowledge of mankind is a tap away. Accessibility to knowledge is very different form 150 years ago, and we need to change the way we use and interact with it, as well as the way we interact with our fellow learners. As you might be able to tell from the title, the book is questioning the value of school. Please do not confuse this with the value of learning. His challenge of school and the school system that has remained virtually unchanged for 150 years, is that learning opportunities are constantly within arms reach. Will is very direct and states, "we have to stop thinking of an education as something that is delivered to us and instead see it as something we create for ourselves." Will also discussed that we as teachers need to allow students to create their own education, however most of us are limited by a system that continues to try and make the old way better, instead of creating an entirely different learning model. Will's introduction is a great example of this. He shares a bit about his family life and that many of his son's friends are playing video games such as Call of Duty and Mindcraft. Reluctantly Will and his wife decide to allow Tucker to join and play Mindcraft. Shortly after leaving him to play they check on him to find out that he has accessed Youtube, as a resource to gain information that will allow him to improve and be successful at the game. Later in the day during another checkin they observe tucker on a video chat with friends discussing specific strategies. Finally Will and his wife are becoming a bit apprehensive about all of this gaming and go in to pull the plug. As they approach Tucker he very eagerly takes them on a tour of his furnished virtual home that is located on a mountain, as he points across a peaceful valley to one of his friends house and another's castle. Will proposes that we need to find a way to embrace the fact that learning can happen anytime anywhere, with anyone. School is changingSchool is changing like it or not, and Will goes on to explain two very different visions and how they will influence the education system and ultimately influence learning. The first is about continuing to do what we currently do but only better. The driving force behind this vision are mostly businessmen and policy makers. The second vision looks different. This vision is being co-created by thousands of connected educators. It is inquiry based learning that can promote discovery. Its about asking questions, working with others to find answers, doing real work for real audiences, and most importantly adding to the Web, not just taking away. My ThoughtsAbove is a brief summary of some of the key points within Will's book. I was asked to take a side after reading the book, and as an educator I think it is very obvious which side I would choose to be on. The whole reason I choose to go into education was to help students to make the best decisions possible in life, to become intrigued in whatever they are passionate about, and share their experience so that others might learn from it.
While I can not change the education system overnight, I can create a school community and culture that connects students and prepares them as best as possible for the real world. Much of this does include inquiry based learning, with peers, with choice, utilizing some form of networking tool. I am not sure how we change and revitalize our educational system, but I sure believe it is worth trying..... |
AuthorAcademic, Athlete, Father, Husband, kid at heart Archives
November 2014
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