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RESEARCH AND RESPONSE
It has been a whirl-wind of a semester! I have created this blog and completed several big assignments all displayed on this site. As the semester has come to an end, I have used Storify to write a reflection on all the fun had this semester! Please read and ENJOY!
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Red= deleted Blue= added PART 1:
For my niche blog, my topic will be focused focus on my adventures as I try new things. It will be an experience blog that will also force me to get out of my comfort zone and really start trying things I would not usually try, (Even Further, I will be doing these things) on a college budget. As I experience things for the first time, I will also be doing a little bit of research about these different things that I try and giving helpful hints or advice to anyone who might what to try it. I want my blog to be more than just a journal about my experiences, I want it to be inspiration for others to live a little. do these things. I have gotten to the point in my life where I feel like I want to start getting more freedom and experience. experiencing different things. Not only to possibly find something new that I like, but to broaden my mind to the possibilities that life has to offer. In my adventures, I hope to conquer living fuller, being open minded, being mediocre and being proud of the adventures that I have taken. Personally, there are a lot of things in my life that I have wanted to do, but have never actually done out of fear fright or the fact that it would make me anxious. I want my blog to be a testament to those who feel similarly. My blog will be different, in this aspect, from the ones I have researched because it will also be a forum for readers to feel comfortable asking me to do something that they want to see done. I am really aiming for a blog that is witty and informative, but also gets others interested in the adventures that I am taking. At the end of the day, if I can make my audience laugh and want to keep reading I will have accomplished something. In terms of audience, I am hoping to appeal to both males and females, which is easier said than done. I think keeping it relate-able to everyone either through activity or writing tone, will be my best bet in attracting males. Despite this, I do feel my audience may be females because, as a female, it is easier to connect with other females. Being a female, often times it is easier to connect with other females rather than males, but I do not want my blog to exclude males. I think anyone between 19 and 30 would be my target audience because this is the age where most people really start to feel freedom and are changing and learning about themselves. It is when they are essentially between being teenagers and full time adults, and are really starting to live as individuals. It is the age where many people are also unfortunately lacking in funds. I am also hoping to reach an audience that is get those interested in trying new things, and those who like to read a good story about how something went either alright great or completely wrong. Overall, I am hoping that my blog will stand out from other blogs that cover this content by providing funny stories, how-tos, advices (if I can provide it) and silly pictures of attempted new things. and Basically, involving my readers in the process of trying new things on a tiny budget. PART 2: In deciding what my blog will look like, feel like, and how I will cover the content and in which way, I did some research on how my topic has been approached in the past. I did like the setup of a blog called A Beautiful Mess however this blog was a commercial blog that focused more on how tos new things the reader should try or could do at home. My blog would differ in that aspect, as I would actually be doing these activities and be reporting on them. I did like this idea however, and am considering giving how-tos in the mix of my posts that will help other replicate the experiences. I also really like the layout of this page because it was colorful and well organized for the amount of content on the page. It pulled the viewer in without overwhelming them with the huge amount of content that exists on the page. It also had a good combination of pictures and text which I really liked, as opposed to the site Today’s the Day I, which relied heavily on pictures on its first page. They The pictures are linked to the content of varying blogposts, which I liked, but it is a lot to take in on the front page. Similar to that, on my home page incorporate this aspect by having pictures link to the various pages I have. One thing in particular I noticed was that a lot of the blogs I looked at are a few years old and do not have recent posts. and Most have a designated number of new things they want to do. My blog will most likely not be like this in the sense that I do not want to aim to do a certain number of things. I want it to feel a bit more spontaneous than planned. For example, the blog 52 New though the things done were a mix of big and small, which I did like, I did not want it to felt so planned and bucket list like. To me, this feels like it puts restraints on things and honestly makes trying new experiences feel stressful because you have to do a certain number or in a certain area like Today’s the Day I and Smile Kiddo. Another blog that I found during my research was Well I Never. This blog in particular also helped me shaped the way I was thinking about how I wanted my blog and content to look and sound like. I really like that way she spoke about her new experiences or the things she tried. She focused on the activity and her experience with it and made it feel personal which I enjoyed, but I don’t think the setup of her blog posts were as catchy as they could have been. The pictures felt like they were in a weird place and the background and header did not appeal to me, either as the bright yellow made it hard to stare at the screen and read what she had wrote. I did feel that the short paragraphs were a nice look and made reading her posts quicker and easier. The blog My Life Blogs played a role in refining what I wanted my blog to be like. First of all, navigating this blog was really hard, especially if this was the first time you were on this blog. I really liked how the posts were collapsed and you could click to read more if you wanted to. It made scrolling through the post easier and had a small glimpse of the content to read. If you did not want to read it you did not have to scroll through the entire post. Reading the content, it is more about past experience or life experience and what he learned. I want my posts to be personal but not to be solely about what has happened in my life. I do think it could be interesting to include what the new experience has taught me. This could be a way to bring humor into my posts such as “this experience taught me I am not a painter.” Something that Alex Tries It Out had was a page that lists the things that were done and contain a link to the post in which the writer talks about it. I liked this idea as well but think that instead of making it a whole page I will place it in a column and list it like an archived section so that you can navigate to different adventures. All and all, this research has benefited and aided in the decision making process, in regards to how I will format my blog and how my content will differ from what has been done before. There is a lot I can say about the digital doodads and thingy-ma-jings that have had a role in my life thus far. I believe to understand how my use of digital literacy has expanded, there are various moments in my life that I can reflect on. Three specifically, would be how I learned to type, the hobbies I maintain in the digital world and how I use digital literacy to enhance my understanding of the world.
1. In middle school I was forced to take class called computers. As my experience in elementary school was basically playing on an art game called Kidpix, I was assuming that middle school would not be any different. Upon entering the class, I found a hostile environment, in which you either type a whole paragraph correctly without being able to see the keys or you fail. It was extremely stressful but was one way to teach a bunch of adolescents how to type. I was constantly yelled at for crossing my legs under the desk and not typing my paragraph quick enough. It was something originally turned me off to typing but now I suppose in a way i am grateful. Today I feel I quicker on the keys and am more familiar with them due to the early stress I had involving learning how to type. 2. As I grew, my relationship and hobbies in the digital sphere changed. Instead of using the computer for Sims and Paint, I was using the computer for watching the latest Youtube videos, from funny sketches to music videos. To this day, my go to distraction from homework will be watching video after video on Youtube. My use of youtube is almost a compulsion to this day. I can spend hours on end watching videos. It is almost like I use this website to regulate my emotions at times. If i am feeling sad then I will watch funny videos. If I am mad I will watch cute puppy videos and if I feel like I could use a good cry than I am prone to watching military personal coming home to their families. One negative about this hobby would be my exposure to negative videos that exist as well as to many advertisements for items I do not need. It is also a website that makes my procrastination ten times worse. Youtube, however is a fun use of the internet. 3. On a more serious use of the internet, I like to keep current on the news. I attempt to use digital newspapers and magazines to catch up on current events in everything from entertainment to politics. This requires very careful consideration of the information that I am encountering. It takes a caution eye to weed out the misinformation with the real stuff. Despite the negative and false information that can be found now a days on the internet, I think it is important to stay inform about what is going not only in our state and country but in the world as well. It is part of jobs as citizen to stay informed on politics and world news, especially now. It is also good to read stories that show us there is still good in the world as well as find inspiration to fight for a cause or rights, “The value of using literacy narratives as a method of inquiry has been well documented by scholars from cognitive theory, social theory, narrative theory, and our own field of rhetoric and composition, particularly in terms of understanding identity formation.” I am a female, I have brown hair, I am medium height and have tiny hands and feet. These are all ways in which I can be identified but are not my identity. My identity, both the forming and shaping of, is revealed through delving into my past, examining my present and considering my future. One of the easiest ways to uncover all of this information is through narrative, or storytelling. By hearing one simple story, you can learn more about a person, and even come to respect them a little more. Personally, one story in particular highlights, what I feel, is a strong part of my identity. I put together the video below last semester as project, however I feel that it really illustrates who I am. This video is about my family and how important they are to me. It was created when I was asked to pick something important in my life and tell the story behind it. My family plays a huge role in my life and is one of the most, if not the most, valuable thing in my life. Not only did these people shape me into the person I am today and what is important to me, but they continue to support me in any and every way that they can. This digital literacy is important to me because it represents such a huge part of me. It makes me feel connected to my past and my amazing family. Everyone has at least one person in their live that is extremely important to them and not only links them to their past but is a piece of their present and future, which allows for a link to form between the viewer and I. This artifact being digital allows it to take on a life of its own. Similar to the work being done by Berry, Hawisher, and Selfe, having a digital platform opens a whole line of communication that was impossible before the invention of computers. As technology spread throughout the world, more and more people are able to gain access to stories like mine. In correlation to what Berry, Hawisher, and Selfe are studying, my use of technology in creating this video and telling this narrative can provide insight into how culture influence the way we use technology or how we use technology to further build an identity of ourselves. ![]() We are certainly living in the age of technology. An age of virtual reality where the web and media have a huge influence on the everyday occurrences and thoughts of the majority of the public, people are constantly connected, and privacy is not what it used to be. However, as Uncle Ben tells his nephew, "with great power, comes great responsibility." Responsibility that lies in the hands of those interacting with the the powerful technology. This is a concept that is quite similar to that of Howard Rheingold. Rheingold sees the role that technology and digital media has taken in the lives of those living in the 21st century and stresses the importance of understanding what it means for us to be interpreters of that media. In his book, "Why You Need Digital Know-How- Why We All Need It", Rheingold speaks of five digital literacies, attention, participation, collaboration, the critical consumption of information and network smarts that all people should be aware of in dealing with digital media. In understanding these literacies, his belief is that people use of media and technology can become more mindful and possibly even be beneficial to society as a whole. An important aspect of his writing, Rheingold talks about the importance of being able to sort through the tons of information that the digital media open up and effectively understand how the decisions we make on these medias affect us and those around us. The points put forth in Reingold's writing really resonated with me, especially as a participator of digital media. I spend my fair share of time on social media as well as scroll through the internet to catch up on the latest news. I never put much thought into the decision making that goes into these actions. Specifically I connected to the following excerpt; "Critical thinking, information filtering, and Ernest Hemingway's fundamental "internal crap detector" as all about how to use your attention to begin managing the inflow of media." (p.9) This statement was one that got my attention because of the recent election. There was constant media coverage of the candidates and happenings that surrounded the election. There were so many stories, facts, videos, polls, and articles put out and spread through digital media. Whether they were for a specific agenda or not, a lot of what was read required ones full attention and ability to really manage the overwhelming amount of information that was spread about both candidates. In order to make an informed decision in voting for the next president of the United States, one must really be mindful in what they read, watch, and think they understand. This election was clear example of how this digital media could influence public opinion and how lack of attention could lead to misinformation. Overall, digital media can be a blessing or a curse. It all depends on how you use it. Life is not life without literacy. It plays a part in various way and under many different context. It is in understanding how people use this literacy in various contexts that Barton and Hamilton studied and put forth their social theory of literacy practices. It is the connection between individual means and social communication. In my understanding of their work, they define the characteristics or common nature of literacy into six different principles that help demonstrate literacy is a social practice. These six principles explain that literacy is used socially, can take various forms based on where in life it is being used, is usually patterned through what is important to the individual or social relationship, is purposeful in its use, is historically situated, and changes as the user does. They claim that literacy can be found at the heart of social interaction in "discourse communities", which are basically a group of people who are brought together by commonalities in varying aspects of their lives, beliefs, personalities, like or dislikes, similar to a religion or social club. Thus, the discourse community would shape the literacy practice. A religious gathering would not be using written language in the same way as social club would be using the written language. As shown in the comparison below a mass would be a literacy event anchored in the bible, or written language where as this club I am a part of would have a meeting anchored in the written language that is the meeting agenda below. The mass may also use the written language for their hymns and this club may use various forms of technology and social media for communication.
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May 2017
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