Out with the old and In with the new

I had no idea of what of to expect. The concept of media literacy simple sounded like a class that of be interesting. Through the activities and reading for this class have new tools to use with my students. This class has given me the opportunity to explore and try new formats or should I say modes of communication. It forced me to reexamine how I communicate with my students. Most importantly I forced me to look at how my students are most comfortable communicating their idea with me. I have used a blog before but had never considered the possibly of using it for a group project or class discussion. My students love the websites that can be used to generate comic strips. This is an invaluable tool for teaching children to summarize and sequential order. These and the many other websites and formats serve to keep the students engaged and give them means to create new meaning while learning traditional concepts.

This class has challenged my beliefs and forced me not unwillingly of course to update my thinking. I have taken what I have learned back to many of my fellow educators. We must allow the children to think and express themselves in the ways that suit them not us. The days of pencil, paper and poster board have been replaced by power point, audio and video presentations. These new ways of learning and teaching have been a pleasurable and a unique learning experience. I will treasure and use all that learned to forge new and meaningful projects for the students of Mount Vernon.