So the road to my Masters includes a short layover in "Digital Storytelling". To be honest, I've been looking forward to this class. I love all things "techie" and am frequently called upon to assist others in my building. I started our school's technology club where students have the opportunity to learn the ins and outs of broadcasting, green screen and stop motion technology, and our own version of digital storytelling. But I'm getting ahead of myself. Let me pause briefly to introduce myself.
My name is Pamela Thomas and I am an elementary school teacher. I have been teaching for 24 years and began my career as an early childhood teacher primarily teaching students in Kindergarten and first grade. Recently, however, I decided to make the move to teaching elementary Music to our entire student population (approximately 300 students). As mentioned earlier, I started our school's technology club and provide opportunities for our students to work with technology in a variety of ways not always available to them in the regular classroom setting. Members of the "club" learn how to use stop-motion animation, green screen applications, recording and editing software and other tech resources to create and broadcast news casts and commercials all while telling their own stories they share with our school audience.
The experience I've gained at work while sponsoring our "Technology Club" and helping students discover an interest in technology helped me discover a hidden passion I didn't even realize I had. I absolutely LOVE the creative outlet I'm afforded while telling stories through digital platforms. I have taken over the role of web-master for our school as well as "social media coordinator" (fancy, self-appointed title for Facebook page administrator). These additional roles, while rewarding, are also time- consuming and stressful. Thinking about all the additional duties and responsibilities teachers have thrust upon them has led me to consider a story about teacher burnout and the teacher exodus we're currently seeing. This isn't a new topic but it is certainly a timely one, in my opinion. We've heard experiences from around the United States, but I would like to bring the issue down to a more personal, district-level issue. My approach would be to include "shadow" interviews with new teachers as well as veteran teachers to hear their experiences and perspectives and see where these interviews take us. It's still a really rough idea but I think it's one worth following. According to Ohler (2013), "...the heartbeat of most good stories is conflict resolution" (p. 9). Teachers are in conflict and need to be heard. Telling their stories and bringing to light the real issues facing our educators may just help them, their students, and education as a whole survive this most difficult time.
As far as which platform I might choose to use, I haven't given it much thought. Presenting the story as a podcast is a possibility, as is a traditional video presentation. Middleton (2013) offers some very compelling thoughts (for the time) on using the podcast/videocast as an option for delivery of the digital content. He describes the process by which the media is recorded and shared via an RSS feed for distribution. Further, he points out that students need choice in how they access the media and may be more willing to subscribe to an automated feed (iTunes, etc.) due to ease of use. When considering distribution of my digital story, I must think about the audience I intend to reach. At this point in the planning process, I expect my story to be for a very small, specific audience. I am not planning to reach the masses with my story, just those individuals within my immediate school community who can help affect change and, as Ohler (2013) suggests, "...help us make sense out of the chaos of life" (p. 9). Either way, I am looking forward to the engagement and education this story will bring.
Middleton, A. (2013). Digital voices: A collaborative exploration of the recorded voice in post compulsory education. MELSIG & Sheffield Hallam University. CC BY NC-ND 4.0
Ohler, J. (2013). Digital Storytelling in the Classroom: New Media Pathways to Literacy, Learning, and Creativity. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications
Pamela,
ReplyDeleteI love the way you write your blogs. You make me want to keep reading, it's as if we're having a conversation in the hall after school. I don't think you will have a problem creating your digital story at all.
I think your topic is necessary and well thought out. When I was in college, I read somewhere that teacher burn out occurs within the first 5 years. I am unsure if it is true or not but honestly I am on year 4 and feeling the burn. I feel like if I had a story and could hear other teachers "behind the scene truths" about their feelings it would help me a lot. My only recommendation would be to try to keep it positive. Too much negativity can sometimes make things worse. I really look forward to seeing your final project.
Sincerely,
Chaeli Pettitt
Great suggestion, Chaeli! This topic is a difficult one for sure so my intent is to present the facts as honestly as possible without any undo negativity. I don't want to alienate any of the stakeholders, rather inform and hopefully start a conversation that will make a positive out of this negative situation. Thanks again for the suggestion.
DeletePamela
Hi Pamela,
ReplyDeleteYour blog entry was a pleasure to read. I work in technology as a profession (implementing software), and it was so exciting for me to learn about the tech club you're running to expose your students to different types of technology so early! The companies I've worked for usually have community outreach efforts for us to get the next generation of technologists excited about tech as well.
Your digital story idea sounds like a timely and significant narrative with the potential to help many different people involved in the education system. While I'm not a teacher, burnout and employee exodus is something that has impacted my industry as well. Ohler states that "a story resonates when others can relate to it" (p. 25). I think the personal approach you intend to take by including interviews from teachers with a range of experience will make your story relatable and resonate with a wide range of people. Since you referenced students needing choice in how they access the media if you decide your digital story's audience will include students, it might be impactful to include a student perspective on how they've been impacted by teacher exodus as well.
Thanks for sharing,
Ashlee
Thank you for your kind words as well as the suggestion, Ashlee. I agree; adding a student perspective might add another dimension to the story. I teach elementary aged students so I'm not sure if they really "get" how it's impacting their learning but it will definitely be worth looking into. Thanks again!
DeleteHi Pamela,
ReplyDeleteIt is nice to meet you! I love how you started a technology club in your own school. I think that working with technology is so important since more and more things and jobs now require knowledge of technology. Also, a lot of kids do not have access to technology at home, so your club definitely helps to bridge that gap!
I also talked about many of the points you made in this blog. Ohler (2013) suggests, "...help us make sense out of the chaos of life" (p. 9). I think that this statement is so important because digital storytelling can help students and adults make sense of everything going on in life and help students relate.
Paulina Koloda
It's nice to meet you, too, Paulina! Thank you for your kind words. Starting the Technology Club and watching the students develop their own passion for all things "techie" has been such a pleasure for me. It's exciting to think about how this little spark we've started in elementary school might eventually grow into a career for some of these kiddos in the future. :-)
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