A New Culture of Learning

A New Culture of Learning is a book written by Douglas Thomas and John Seely Brown that explores the new and forever-evolving world that we live in today. The book's main goal was to challenge our typical concept of what a culture really is, and, from my perspective, it succeeded. Rather than regarding culture as an entity that changes over a long period of time, this book suggests that today's "culture" is constantly adapting to it's surroundings. This new concept of culture is supported by various personal stories throughout the chapters. The book also takes a closer look at how this new culture affects our education system and our ability to learn by establishing play, innovation, and the cultivation of the imagination as the "cornerstones of learning."


Overall, I would say that I do agree with Thomas & Brown's theory of a constantly evolving culture. And I definitely agree with the idea that learning is no longer just taking place in classrooms, but that it is taking place everywhere, (often times through digital networking). I also really liked the fact that the evolution of our learning style was stressed continuously throughout the book. I think that one of the largest problems in our education system today is that some teachers still refuse to acknowledge that today's generation really does learn things differently than previous generations. The majority of us require a more integrated approach between technology and the basics than many teachers are willing to give. I love that people are starting to realize that and that some of them are doing something about it. 


For the most part, I genuinely liked the content of this book. However, I think that it could have been organized into a less repetitive prose and could've possibly been shortened a bit. Overall, the book went along very well with everything we've been learning about in class. Content-wise, it was a very good choice for Media Literacy. 

Photo Story: What Happens When College Residents Get Bored...

Once upon a time there were three girls who lived in a college dorm together that wanted to play a prank on one of their suite mates. They decided to sneak in her room while she was sleeping, (since she had conveniently left her door open), to see if she would wake up. (She was well-known for being a heavy sleeper.) They thought it would be funny to "creep" on her...

As soon as they made sure she was really asleep...

they quietly proceeded to sneak into the room.

They even crawled so that, if she did wake up, she wouldn't see them. 

Once inside, they saw that the girl was sleeping like a rock, as usual. They all gathered closely around her to see if she could feel their presence; one of them even got on the bed with her. But she still didn't wake up. 

One girl even poked her.

This time she did wake up. 

She was not a happy camper. 

So the angry suite mate became violent. 

But she eventually got over it and laughed the whole incident off with her friends. Gordy Hall became a happy place again. 

The End. 

What's "Real"?

We are all probably guilty of watching television, listening to music, and reading to some extent. We take part in these activities for different reasons such as entertainment, consolation, and sometimes just to learn or gain information about certain things. While we might like to watch, read, and listen to a wide variety of shows, books, and artists, we typically pick favorites that we stick with throughout the years. Why is this?


Well, as far as I'm concerned, my favorite movies, TV programs, artists, and pieces of literature all depict a story that I can somehow relate to. I like stories that are real to me and can evoke some kind of emotional response from me. An example of a media form that I consider to be real is Rent, (the movie).

This movie, (originally based on the broadway musical), follows the lives of eight friends living in Alphabet City, New York in 1989. The movie deals with numerous world-wide issues including poverty, disease, and sexuality. However, it's central focus is on the idea of living the bohemian lifestyle. I suppose it's the idea of bohemia that draws me so close to this story. Personally, I think it would be amazing to care so much about creativity and artistry that you would have the will power to give up all your money to support the cause of helping others and being happy in everything you do. I also love that the characters never conform to what society wants them to be. I can only hope that I will learn to be that brave someday. The characters are not without problems, though. They're so poor that they can't even afford rent and are being evicted from their apartments. A number of the main characters are also effected by the rampant spread of HIV/AIDS of the 80s. The conflicts of poverty and disease are the aspects of the movie that make it really appear real to me. I'm a poor college kid. I understand being broke. And, as far as the whole disease thing goes, I've been there, too. Not personally, but one of my friends was diagnosed with HIV a few years ago. It's a terrible disease to watch someone battle and I hope that there will be a cure for it someday. Rent is such an inspiring story to me because, despite all of their hardships, the characters make the best of everything that they can and never complain. They all learn to "measure their life love", as the song goes, rather than measuring their worth in money or material possessions.

CBS

CBS Corporation is among the largest media companies in the world and is considered to be one of the most elite media conglomerates there are,(see Concentration of Media Ownership). The company’s focus lies mostly in broadcasting, publishing, and television production. However, it’s also involved in internet and gaming industries, too.  CBS Corp. has grown to be one of the leading media companies in the world, succeeding its former corporation Viacom. While CBS has recently become very successful, though, the company has still undergone both good and bad experiences. Despite some issues, CBS has been subjected to mostly positive feedback from other media, indicating that the company contains more good aspects than it does bad. That being said, I'll be discussing the major successes and problems the company has gone through, and will then discuss the positive and negative feedback it has received through other media sources.

CBS Corporation has an almost never-ending amount of subsidiary companies that have contributed significantly to the corporation’s successes, (see List of Assets Owned By CBS). CBS Radio and Infinity Radio have done wonders for their broadcasting focus, while The Free Press, Simon & Schuster, and Pocket Books have done a great job boosting their publishing reputation. Perhaps their most powerful and well-known assets, however, are their several television networks. Among the most successful of these networks are CBS, CBS Sports Network, Showtime, and The CW Television Network, (which they own fifty percent of, along with Time Warner). It’s because of these successful subsidiary companies that CBS is ranked in the top five media conglomerates in the world, in terms of revenue. 

 

The company wasn’t always where it is now, though. In March of 2005, Viacom, the previous syndication of CBS, announced its plan to split the company into two other publicly traded companies. This plan to split the company formed as the result of problems related to the stock price beginning to stagnate. While CBS lost a number of networks previously owned by Viacom, they did manage to retain assets such as CBS, UPN, Infinity Broadcasting, Viacom Outdoor, and Showtime Networks.

The corporation has been subjected to a large amount of consumer feedback in the last few years. While the feedback has been mostly positive, negative remarks have been made, too. The majority of the good feedback has come from viewers of the various television networks CBS owns, as well as those who use the different websites belonging to CBS. CBS Sports’ website, CBSSports.com, even has a form users can fill out to give direct feedback to the site managers. The bad feedback regarding the company has been mostly about consumer criticism on both their political influences and business ethics, (CBS Corp. Criticism).

CBS Corporation is still a very successful company, despite the industrial hardships it has been forced to endure. While the company has received some negative feedback, it has received an even larger amount of positive feedback. Based on the company’s perseverance and reputation with the consumer media, I think we can say that the good aspects of CBS Corp. outweigh the bad. I believe that CBS Corporation will continue to stay in the ranking of the top five media conglomerates in the world. 

Parent Interview

Media is all around us everywhere we go. Most adults would agree that this is a wonderful thing...for us. Media informs us of the things we need to know; it assists us in our daily lives in numerous ways. We use it at work, in school, and for entertainment purposes at home. But while media might be a handy tool for us, it can have an overwhelming effect on easily-impressionable children. This fact is something that many parents have become quite concerned about. In order to provide some parental insight on this issue, I decided to interview my older sister, Michelle Bare.

Michelle has four children, (Angel, Danny, Tristan, and Will), who range in age from seven to fourteen. Naturally, they are all exposed to media everyday. Whether it's the internet, television, or video games, my neice and nephews are always engaging in media activity. Since they're constantly taking part in these activities, I asked my sister how she regulates this media use. She told me that she regulates their use of media differently based on each activity. For example, when it comes to movies and television she checks the parental ratings, (the kids can only watch G, PG, and PG-13 rated shows), and often watches tv with them. She follows the same type of procedure in context to video games. When it comes to internet, though, she feels that she has less control over what the kids do. Because internet is required for so many of their school assignments, the kids are constantly on the computer. To regulate how often they get online and which websites they use, Michelle sets parental controls for the internet. She also likes to check up on the kids from time to time while they're online. Michelle also only allows them to watch tv and play video games at nighttime once their homework has been completed and while she's home. Because of homework purposes, she doesn't limit their internet use. She does, however, make them wait until she's home before signing on.

I then asked her if she prefers certain types of media for the kids. Michelle told me that she thinks the internet and certain books/magazines are the most beneficial types of media for children because of the educational knowledge they can gain from it.

To wrap up the interview, I asked Michelle if she had any additional comments/concerns about the use of media in her children's lives. She said, "I think that media can truly be a great thing. It's useful and efficient and the kids love using it. But I'm a parent - so of course I worry about the impression that it's going to leave on my kids. I'd have to say though that, if closely monitored, I really think media can have an overall good effect on children."

Documentary Reflection

Yesterday, while in class, we watched a documentary film called Digital Nation. The documentary discussed research done on various groups of digital natives and the concerns that family members, teachers, and doctors have about these individuals. However, many people still don't believe that there is anything to be concerned about. Because of the academic and medical advances technology/media has helped society achieve, a large number of people think that the "pros" definitely outweigh the "cons", when it comes to technology. Those who made this documentary, though, were quite unsure of how true that really is. 


Researchers have concluded that a common issue among digital natives is multi-tasking. As college students, most of us probably don't view multi-tasking as a bad thing. We, in fact, multi-task pretty much all the time because we're always so busy. However, researchers are now determining that multi-tasking is actually hurting us, rather than helping. They say that, when we multi-task, we cannot focus well on the things we are supposed to be doing because we are so distracted. For example, students who bring their laptops to class often tend to drift away from taking notes and, instead, do different things like checking their emails or signing on to Facebook. Because of these distractions, student's grades often suffer. Family members are becoming concerned with the amount of time their kids are spending online, as well. Kids who multi-task between family time and playing online games aren't getting the quality time that they need with their parents and siblings because they're too distracted. Doctors are concerned because of the amount of brain activity it takes to multi-task, compared to just doing one thing at a time. For instance, it takes much more brain activity to Google something rather than simply looking it up in a book. Most of us would think that more brain activity is a good thing, but apparently we're wrong. 


I think that it's interesting to learn how media can affect us in bad ways because, too often, we only look at the good side of it. While technology and media has affected our lives positively in numerous ways, there are still several down-sides to being constantly "wired". I think that it's important that we acknowledge that there are, indeed, draw-backs to this seemingly perfect lifestyle. 

Stereotypes

Stereotyping is an "oversimplified" belief about a particular type of person, often based upon shallow assumptions. It's a nasty habit that we're all guilty of participating in at some point or another, whether we want to admit it or not. It's also something that I'm sure we've all been subjected to, as well. Stereotyping takes place in all types of settings and situations. However, I think most of us would agree that high school is usually the place where these stereotypes are most prevalent. While these stereotypes that we are subjected to are often inaccurate and hurtful, they do have tendencies to follow us for a long period of time, sometimes defining which social groups we are cast into. That being said, I decided that using the five main characters of the popular 80's movie The Breakfast Club would be perfect for our lesson on stereotypes. 

"You see us as you want to see us - in the simplest terms, in 
the most convenient definitions." -The Breakfast Club

The Brain 

We've all known that one person, guy or girl, who has impeccable attendance, a perfect 4.0 GPA, and, for some unknown reason, can never seem to find any fashionable clothes to wear. They're usually well known, but highly unpopular. In this case, most of us would stereotype Brian as "the brain" or "geeky" due to his lack of stylish apparel, his awkward smile, his old-fashioned hair style, and his innocent facial expression. Because of the way all these different traits compile together, most of us would think that he "looks" smart. Thus, stereotyping him as "the brain". 

The Athlete

The "athlete" or "jock" is usually at the top of the food chain when it comes to high school politics. He/she is usually the most popular person in school, the best looking, and more times than not, is considered to be wealthy. Jocks are also often thought of as arrogant, asinine, and are stereotypically known for being unintelligent. (I'm not saying this is what I personally think, but rather what athletes are often depicted as.) Just from looking at this picture, most people would conclude Andy to be "the athlete" based on his attire, (his Nike shirt and sneakers), his unusually toned arms, and the confidence/arrogance in his facial expression. 

The Basket Case

The "basket case" or the "outcast" is also a familiar stereotype. One that, at times, most everyone can relate to. Outcasts are typically loners that often seem emotionally unstable or unsound. And, for whatever reason, they seem to always wear black. Outcasts are usually considered to be the unpopular "nobodies" in high school and, consequently, are thought of as social pariahs. Allison would be stereotyped as a "basket case" in this picture due to her slightly crazy facial expression and body language, and her all-black clothing. 

The Princess

The "princess" is your typical popular, prom queen- socialite type. She's the kind of girl that rules the school, so to speak. The princess type usually wears expensive jewelry and designer clothes to go with her shiny BMW, all of which are symbols of family wealth. The "princess" is known for always getting everything she wants, exactly when she wants it. She always seems to be having a good time, (or at least making herself look like she is.) We can tell that Claire is a "princess" based off her expensive jewelry, nice clothing, and high maintenance hair and make up. Her facial expression also adds to this stereotype. 

The Criminal

The "criminal" is your average bad boy. The one who dresses like a thug and is always getting in to some type of trouble, whether it's over fighting, smoking, or disrespecting authority. His pranks are often legendary, earning himself quite a reputation throughout his social community. The "criminal" usually comes from some sort of dysfunctional background and is often subject to financial problems. While the "criminal" is usually well-known, he's not typically popular. In fact, he is looked down upon by most of his peers and authority figures. From this picture, we can stereotype John as a "criminal" based on his raggedy-looking clothes, his shaggy hair, his troubled facial expression and lazy body posture, and the fact that he's smoking. 

Stereotyping is an easy fault to commit. I think that it's often very off-base with people's true identities. However, that doesn't stop us from doing it. I would say that, in reality, there really is a little bit of each stereotype in all of us. In the words of The Breakfast Club, "...each one of us is a brain, and an athlete, and a basket case, a princess, and a criminal."