Year 13 - Introduction to NDM: reading and blog task

• Page 10: Living and learning in a digital age.
• Page 46: Periscope and the implications of live streaming.
• Page 53: A2 A* exam essay on Spotify.

1) Read the first two articles. Write one paragraph on each summing up the key aspects.

The first article discusses how institutions are using the internet to better student's knowledge. Specifically, it addresses how there is a rise in use of social media platforms in institutions, apparent even in my own school (@blogmacguffin). Research was conducted on year 9 students in a high school to look at how learning was framed in the home, and by the young people themselves. Secondly, they were interested in the ways that current anxieties about social media  are portrayed as interfering, usually negatively, in every aspect of young people’s lives; they wanted to see whether this was true or not. The research suggested that schools are less interested in cultural and social uses of the media than in the ways that they can management and control more effective. 

The second article talks about the app 'Periscope', owned by twitter. It is a live streaming video app. Each live or replayed stream is referred to as a "broadcast." It is used for broadcasting a riveting conference discussion for a global audience to impromptu blended learning for students in schools. Blumengarten in an article said “I think it’s great to be able to do something like that, because many people can’t get to these locations,” he said. “Especially for kids—you’re opening new doors and taking them out of the classroom and into the world to explore. It’s extremely valuable.”  But while opportunities abound, so do privacy and other concerns. Firstly,  Periscope has some privacy concerns. The video can be used by Twitter and shared with third parties for marketing purposes and if it is used in schools, educators need to consider the student's safety. Another issue to consider is the 'disposable' nature of the video. If a video on Periscope is sent to students, it’s only there for 24 hours and then it is no longer accessible. This makes it hard to use for later revision.

2) Now read the A2 A* essay. Why do you think it was so successful? 

The essay was successful because it was objective, it looked at both sides of the argument. 

This two sided approach was heightened by the extensive research conducted in order to support both arguments. Moreover, this research was paired with the appropriately applied use of media theorists to help boulder the points. What made the essay the strongest, arguably, is their knowledge on 'Spotify', acting as their case study throughout the essay. In addition, the student appears to have made note of the key words in the question's title and frequently made use of them throughout the essay, making the essay more focused and answering the question more clearly. Similarly, they make reference to political and economic theories such as marxism. All of this creates a successful and interesing article about the benefits of new and digital media.

3) Finally, answer this question in a well developed paragraph on your blog: How has digital media changed your life in the last 5 years (for positive or negative)?

The media has had both a positive and negative affect on my life. To begin, it has been useful in that huge amounts of information is easy and convenient to access. This has helped me in my education. Also, it has given me a vast amount of opportunities because it allows me to find out about events near me. However, I can also argue that it has made me vulnerable because a lot of my personal information is available to the public. Also, my search history is available to several sites who use this data to target certain advertisements at me in order to take advantage of my interests.