Final Journal: Course Reflection

I mentioned at the beginning of this course that I had taken a class in my undergrad that used the textbook “Remediation” that studied text in all its forms and functions and analyzed how it changed across different platforms. For example, we write out correspondences very differently across emails, text messages, and even DMs on social media. We have an entertainment industry that leans heavily on adapting books and plays into feature-length films and TV shows for streaming services, prompting discussions about how different they are from their originals, which can often be due to their format. And we have an educational landscape that is changing rapidly, one that has to readjust itself to fit the learning capacities of digital natives who are taught to navigate multiple digital spaces at once from very young ages.

Today’s digital spaces look quite different than they did a decade ago, even five years ago. Traditional media such as print resources or TV are being replaced or combined with new media such as social media apps like Tik Tok and Instagram. Major print publications now have entire digital teams who can post a quick video on Tik Tok, and reporters are even taking to posting live updates in regard to their beats. The way we are consuming news and entertainment and how we are learning about things is starting to evolve. According to Islas and Bernal (2016), “The figure of the technology and the impact that it has depends on the ground or environment in which it is operating.” So if we look at these new forms of media, how are they changing the educational landscape? As educators, it is easy for us to see the potential negative consequences and not as easy to always see the positive outcomes that can come from changing up how we format our lessons. In her journal for this class, Asha mentioned “My biggest concern is that students have been given too much access too quickly.” Even with their positive potential, teachers still generally lack training and resources needed to implement these new programs. But if we can address that issue of training and uniformity in its implementation, we can go back to Isla and Bernal’s (2016) ideas of the importance of environment. In a school setting, there would be a process for students to refer to, a rubric to guide them in their assignment, and a discussion in some format with the instructor that allows them to understand their processing and thinking. The ethos of the school setting would provide a uniform basis where students who are preparing for college and career readiness would have the soft skills of being able to use these technologies in a way that still requires them to draw conclusions and explain reasoning.

With these evolving technologies and resources, there is also the potential threat of a lack of ethos when it comes to sources of information. As media ecologies change, there must be some form of accountability when it comes to checking sources. One would agree that an emphasis on digital literacy needs to also be a key component of implementing new technologies in the classroom. One way this has changed in the educational landscape has been through Open Educational Resources (OERs). Dr. Jane Hylén (2006) offers a definition of OER as: “digitised materials offered freely and openly for educators, students and self-learners to use and re-use for teaching, learning and research.” Allowing the free sharing and use of educational materials not only opens access to content, but it also allows for, in my opinion, a general assumption that following review, the materials within an OER are suitable for use when it comes to teaching and learning. Dr. Hylén (2006) concedes that the term “educational” is ambiguous, because it could mean that only materials used in formal education settings such as universities would be considered a suitable piece of content within an OER. However, upon review of OER resources for this course, I didn’t come across any results from OERs that didn’t appear educational in nature. I knew that with my professional experience and education as a teacher, I could make a sound judgement call on OER content I pulled for class and be able to adapt it to fit the needs of my students. In this way, OERs can be one way we combat the potential growing spread of disinformation or non-verified resources, at least within the classroom.

As I reflect on my own learning in this course, the big question that stays with me is: What direction will these evolved digital landscapes and technologies like AI take us in the classroom? I teach in a state that is known throughout the country for banning books within school libraries and curricula. I have also worked in counties where teachers work under the threat of losing their licensing if they violate a rule like calling a kid by a name other than what’s on their birth certificate. It is also a state that sees huge discrepancies between school districts and their students’ performances on state tests that all test the same standards, so there is a clear lack of uniformity going on within curriculum departments. With all of these issues, would AI or private social media groups for novel discussion for instruction be accepted by the powers that be?

I acknowledge that this question is more political in nature, but I feel as though I’ve seen several educational and instructional advancements spread across the country for years; meanwhile, I’ve had to work in counties where teachers are brought in for school board review for showing a PG movie that a parent did not consent to. While I agree that parents have the right to know what their kids are doing in class, I worry that even with full transparency, they will not be able to grasp the same vision for the benefits these elements can have within an effective instructional design.

To keep this on a positive note, I think if there was an opportunity for teachers to use data from testing to show that the implementation of these digital spaces would be effective at increasing engagement and learning, there would be more widespread acceptance instead of apprehension. My hope for the future (and even for just next school year) is to be able to take what I have learned, factor it into my lessons and classroom strategies, and show administration and parents that these things can and should be staples in instruction.

References

Hylén, J. (2006). Open educational resources: Opportunities and challenges. OECD Center for Research and Innnovation. https://library.oum.edu.my/oumlib/sites/default/files/file_attachments/odl-resources/386010/oer-opportunities.pdf

Islas, O., & Bernal, J. (2016). Media ecology: A complex and systemic metadiscipline. Philosophies, 1(3), 190–198. https://doi.org/10.3390/philosophies1030190

Journal Week #4. (2025, June 9). Asha’s Archive. https://ashasarchive.wordpress.com/2025/06/08/journal-week-3/