Welcome to the Digital World

If I did not have 2 kids who use internet on a daily basis, I would probably be totally intimidated by the digital world. It is amazing to me that even Kindergarteners can navigate around a computer, while I myself struggle to relearn even the basic skills.  But today it is sooooo essential to understand and embrace digital media to be current. When I went middle school and high school in the 70s, typewriters, pagers, CB radios, landline telephones, television with 13 channels and the radio were as high tech as it came. You had to wait for someone to get off the phone to use it, you had to watch a TV show when it aired because you couldn't tape it, and you had to retype your entire 15 page essay over if you made a mistake, like a spelling error. Just by these examples you can see how the world can pass you by today if you do not stay current. So what does the older generation need to do to keep up? Admit we don't know, and ask. It may sound easy, but not so for those with an ego, those who resist change, or those who are easily confused. This is why I am grateful to be in college now as an older student. Learning at an older age requires you to let go of old learning styles and embrace the new. I now understand that how we communicate affects my generation even more than the content we pursue, because if we don't reach out to learn the universal mode of connecting, we run th risk of isolating ourselves from the younger generation. Therefore, I will continue to be on the look out and open to learning the latest apps, software and digital devices, because I know that by the time I finish writing this passage, there will be yet another form of communication created that I will need to be ready to use!

The Magic of Cinema in the Classroom

One of the best things about the digital age is that films may be accessed easily by a classroom. Our last two classes required us to present group projects using film as not only in analysis, and work cited, but also as presentational material to promote class discussion. After years of sharing ideas with other students in the form of verbal book reports, I can tell you that nothing brings a deeper, all inclusive conversation in a class like film. The doors open; visual, auditory, psychological, political, aesthetic, religious and mythological analysis all were revealed instantly, and I believe create a classroom environment rich in connections between all these subjects. When I grew up in the 80s, education like this was not as fluid. Ideas were categorized, separated and more black and white. Today, with technology and film analysis brought into the classroom, we are not only exposed to the content and form, but may also explore how the film became available to us in the first place, and how this affects the world around us. Using films in the classroom gives information, stimulation and teaches us practical presentation skills we can build when we tackle the real world.

Film and Engaging Cinema

Why are so many people fascinated with film? This is what the book Engaging Cinema by Bill Nichols tries to answer. In the chapter "Storytelling and Narrative Fiction Film" we can see how telling a story not just is about beginning, middle and end. Perspective, subliminal messages, manipulating emotions and creating open ending questions for the audience to answer are just some areas this book tackles. In the film Forrest Gump,  the protagonist represents the archetype of the innocent. This is unusual in storytelling because the main character is usually the everyman, but in this film, Forret is an outcast, due to his lower than average I.Q. This film however, does take advantage of the narration aspect, keeping him as a bystander, with life events, history and time passing him. The analysis done on this film during class covered key narrative elements, plot, style and interpretation. But there is so much more to this film on a deeper level. I plan to explore the topics of history, mythology and political influence on this film in our next class. Note: Group work by those presenting this film was enlightening!

POETRY SLAM

Poetry is meant to be read out-loud. At least this is what I discovered during our class last week. As each student read their poem, ideas, opinions and emotions lifted off the page and transcended written word. I never realized how powerful free form poetry can be. Students actually got teary-eyed, angry and heartfelt in their recitations. It was also wonderful to hear so many different style of poetry. Some used elevated vocabulary, some vulgar, some verbose and others trite. Yet, none of it came out of ego. It came out of each writers' soul. It was if we could listen to their heart talking. I believe such openness and vulnerability brought us together as a class. We bonded because all of the experiences that were written about , no matter how personal or unique, were universal to us in emotion. We are all connected as humans. Reading poetry aloud, likes us to our common core: humanity.