Week 6 - Wrapping Up and Old Monster Movies
Fun week this week, started really applying the concepts of personal learning networks, online identities, and social media to the world in which I live. It's almost like a fish realizing it's in a whole bunch of water – it never realized the water was there to begin with but there sure is a lot of it. The same goes for me realizing the system of learning and sharing, in which I actively participate in some corners and lurk in others, exists around me and has existed for a long time. Educational networks are one thing, obviously geared toward the process of acquiring and demonstrating knowledge in the antiquated sense of "education." The trajectory of those networks will have a significant impact on my and our careers.
Other types of learning networks have emerged around me as well, and those are the networks I see as truly interesting. For example, there's a weekly Saturday night monster movie program on a broadcast network that I've grown to enjoy watch every week. At first I thought the whole "horror host" thing was a relic of the past, and the host himself is especially cheesy (family-friendly show, after all). But as I've developed some of my tastes a bit more, explored some unfamiliar things, and revisited what I once thought of as tacky, I've found that there's a strange comfort in watching old horror flicks with a knowledgeable host detailing the cast and production tidbits. As I've become a fan of the show, I started wondering, well are there others? I was sure there were, because the show is broadcast nationally. I found a subreddit for the show, /r/svengoolie, that is small but growing! They just recently celebrated surpassing 1,000 subscribers, which is a great accomplishment. The show, which one would expect to have fans in their older years, surprisingly garners views from all ages. Those are probably grandkids with their grandparents who grow to like the show, but also people like me who at first think the show is corny, then like it 'ironically', then actually become fans of the show.
Watching the subreddit grow is amazing to me. It's a small-growing community, but each new subscriber is like a new seedling sprouting and represents continuing life. It may not be the biggest horror-host subreddit (Elvira's probably is, justifiably so), but seeing people make connections, share knowledge about horror movies, act as brokers pointing others to subreddits focused on similar topics, makes me swell up a bit with pride. It's fun to be on the forefront of a small online community like this, and to see it grow organically. There is a lot of knowledge-sharing, even though it's not an education-centered group. It's a window into how these types of groups emerge and thrive.
Until next week, stay spooky! 😎
Hello Alex! I enjoyed reading about your post in regards to your exploration of online communities. Isn't it interesting having this new perspective in regards to viewing social media tools and the way they interact with each other? It is also interesting to see how these tools are approached not only in the classroom but outside in the "real" world. There has become a blurring line between technology in the classroom and outside in the world. I feel that schools must adapt in order to keep up. What do you think?
ReplyDeleteHey there TeachMusicTravel, I absolutely agree that schools need to adapt to the increasingly blended world of technology. There's no chance of going back at this point – technology is too well embedded into our social fabric and the ubiquitous nature of social media makes it challenging to avoid completely in the classroom. It would be more helpful for young people to identify social media as something they use to learn as well as to socialize online. Continuing to blur the line between tech in and out of the classroom will hopefully help kids use tools to their advantage. The other challenge is for teachers to learn these tools the best they can to be role models for their students. Thanks for your thoughts!
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