Blog Journal #2:

Blog Journal #2: What's the Word?

   

      Throughout my academic career, I have frequently had the luxury of using Microsoft Word (MS) for my education. As a person who adores literature and writing stories, I have used the program to explore multiple different tales full of complex characters, passionate poetry, along with other detailed expressions. In my four years of television production in high school I used MS Word to form scripts and story boards for my video projects. A handful of the scripts evolved into videos that have gone on to win regional awards in the state of Florida. Unfortunately, my teachers have not used Word the same way as I have. Commonly, Word is pulled up in class to illustrate our various assignments or guidelines for the curriculum. The syllabus, classroom rules, and short excerpts from readings were often displayed on a projector for the class to stare blankly at. The creative and exploratory use of MS Word was extremely limited with the educators I had.

      

      My experience with copyright and fair use guidelines was also introduced to me during my years in television production. The first year I was in the program, we had to learn the history of copyright laws and what intellectual property was in film and media. Since I had to create videos for class using popular songs and images, I was taught how to obtain permission from the creators of the media. My teacher, Mr. Carmody, instructed me on how to write an email to a company, music label, and/or an agent in order to use a song for educational purposes only under fair use. As a teacher, I would follow the same pathway by first educating the class on what copyright/fair use is, along with the history of the rules, and how to clearly implement the fair use strategies. My Power Points and curriculum would give credit to the author for every instance where an idea was not originally my own. I would include watermarks, quotations that included the author-year-page details, and a works cited page at the end. When students create their own works I would have them use some sort of plagiarism checker such as Turnitin.com, or other sources to verify that they are creating original content while citing outside information.

      As technology becomes more implemented in classrooms, issues such as copyright, privacy, and cyber-bullying arise. Copyright is problematic when a teacher posts entire chapters of textbooks or other forms of media online, without being licensed or authorized to do so. To combat this, educators can refrain from posting large quantities of copyrighted information (if without authorization), and only share a miniature amount that gives credit to the source (posting 1-2 pages from the textbook instead of the whole Unit). Privacy becomes an issue when students and teachers have concerns on their information and intellectual properties being distributed online without limits. An effective solution would be to make sure you and your students are aware of where/what is being posted. Teachers must present the options for personal privacy, as private/hidden accounts and information options exist, such as how I was allowed to use a pseudonym for this blog to protect my own privacy. Lastly, cyber-bullying is immensely harmful to classroom settings as students and teachers can be harassed repeatedly anywhere and anytime. Educators must teach their class on the consequences of these actions and provide resources or guidance for students who may experience these issues. An anonymous tip-line to the teacher can be created online for students to express concerns or incidents without feeling embarrassed or alone.