I thought this was a very interesting clip on the effects of media in teaching. John Palfrey states that even though this generation of students are born digital, it's important to realize and understand that not all students have equal abilities in the use of social media. This is true in all areas, not just socioeconomic factors as he states. He also states the importance of knowing that there is a huge growth with kids and this type of media.
I was truly engaged in listening to Danah Boyd speak. I vaguely recall her name listed on some of my more recent research articles (although I'm not 100% positive as I read so many.) She had quite a bit of information that is so true and easy to understand. I felt more at ease when she came out and stated that just because something's posted, doesn't mean it's being read. She made me chuckle when she said that most content that is read is if it is embarassing, humiliating, sexual, or grotesque. How true! But my most favorite part of her speech was at the end when she states "the more we refuse to acknowledge the outside world, the more irrelevant we make ourselves in this [teaching] environment." I have seen so many instances in my own school district where teachers don't want to change or explore what's new and exciting. And it's effecting the students, no matter what age. As Danah states, we, as teachers, have to be more open to change and exploring the outside world, especially with the young coming to us to try to understand what is going on in society. We need to help students explore and understand the world as it changes. Yes, things are changing rapidly, but we already have a lead in the race with our prior knowledge. Unless we keep up ourselves with the everchanging world, we will quickly find ourselves being lost in the shuffle.
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