Whilst YouTube as an online resource may not specifically fall into the category of gaming the use of this tool in certain classroom contexts can share much in common with the process of gaming.
Royle (2009) suggests that gamers develop skills that go beyond the commonly stated attributes to include development of qualities such as spatial navigation; resource management; teamwork and communication; literacy development and a range of problem solving skills and metacognition through reflective practice.
I believe that utilising this resource in classroom contexts can have powerful outcomes for students as they not only develop skills that are required for participation in the 21st Century but begin to see themselves not just as consumers of media but creators and distributors of their own work. However, the question remains are our institutions ready or even willing to support creative practice.
The purpose of this post is to highlight an instance where on one hand an institution wants their teachers to be innovators yet on the other hand sets barriers in place that fly in the face of innovation. This is a situation applies to a broad range of online resources including games, within the context of my organisation.
As is often the case with working within organisations the policies which control access and usage do not keep pace with the development and affordances offered by technologies. Therefore as educators and innovators we experience constant tension between the drive for creativity and the organisations need for control.
Recently my class of 20 students aged between 17 and 55 years of age were inspired to enter the TAFE video competition. The unit they were completing was Communication Visually Using Emerging Technologies and at the suggestion of the students the process of development and submission of a video was negotiated as a major assessment item.
The competition theme was “Imagine”. Students were required to create a 40 to 80 second video using original resources. The students derived enormous learning throughout this process developing expertise in a broad range of areas including sound mixing, audio recording, digital photography, manipulation of images, storyboard development, file conversion, collaboration and working with abstract concepts.
As outlined by Mizuko, (2010)
Worthy of note was the observation that even the in class interactions had an online quality about them. Participants worked collaboratively sharing expertise within the group to develop the skills and knowledge required to complete their product. Experimentation, exploration, investigation, peer assessment and research served to develop a higher level of digital skills. Primarily this process was student driven and not a teacher centred activity with the broad age difference between students seen as an advantage rather than a barrier. This type of engagement is supported by Mizuko, (2010) who suggests that one of the important outcomes of youth participation in online practices is that they have the chance to interact with adults who are outside their usual circle of contact.
Students were highly motivated, extremely excited and engaged with both the process and the product. They were looking forward to the culmination of activity which would see their work published on YouTube and would enable peer and supporters to view and vote for their entries.
Submission of the project was via TAFE’s YouTube channel. Students were required to open an account and upload their file to the competition section. It quickly became evident that this was not possible and both students and teacher tried in vain to upload files through various methods. This led to increasing frustration and disappointment among all class members.
After extensive investigation including emails to the Institute Director, Technology Learning Unit, and State competition organisers it was discovered that firewalls in some TAFE institutes would not allow uploading of files to YouTube. Further investigation found this was a critical issue not identified by the competition organisers.
This type of situation highlights the direct tension between the organisations desire for their teachers to be innovative and the
policies, systems and procedures of the same body that do not support the educational opportunities afforded by technologies.
Gregor MacKenzie
Gregor MacKenzie
References
Mizuko, I (2010) Hang Out, Messing Around, and Geeking Out: Kids Living and Learning with New Media. MIT Press, Cambridge, Massachusetts
Royle, K. (2009) Crossing Borders, Blurring Boundaries and Taking Action
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