How to use Remediation in a first year composition course

Based on Bolter and Grusin's argument in Remediation, the implications for a first year composition course resides in making students aware of remediation. Since technology has become an inherent part of today's youth, their culture is embedded with remediation. Many of these students might think that some of the technology is new but in fact is a remediation of the past technology. An interesting assignment for the students would be for them to first, make them aware of remediation. Secondly, have the students choose some form of technology that has a critical, functional, and rhetorical function. And Lastly, have students trace back the particular form of technology to other forms of technology. This type of exercise can allow students to understand that knowledge has always been the same and always will be. However, the medium of how we communicate has changed and learning and understanding these media and their histories will help students understand culture.

Thoughts on xtranormal

The xtranormal project was particularly interesting. I was intrigued on how a user can create different scenarios using different characters and different voices. I could spend all day making movies and pushing the envelope. Although I probably wouldn't spend my free time using this program, I would imagine that a lot of high schoolers would love it. It could potentially be a great tool in the classroom as it could teach students textual analysis and turn-taking sequences ( as Tom demonstrated). The program doesn't work exactly the way I would want it to, as some features took too much time to load and the voices didn't always have the proper intonation but, in the future, I think it'll be better.

Remediation about Remediation

Remediation is the notion that news medias stem from past medias. Remediation about remediation is a more developed process whereby the new medias don't necessarily reflect the original media which it originally came from however, the method of presenting content is still the same. Bolter and Grusin do a good job connecting the genealogy of media and how they have affected one another.

Hypermedia is a term the authors use to talk about media that contains multiplicity. This idea reminds of the MTV genre of music and how a myriad of messages are sent out to reinforce a particular ideology. Bolter an Grusin state that “stage representations of rock bands like U2 are celebrations of media and the act of remediation”. In the recent performance at the super bowl half-time show The Who, performed with an array of choreographed grandiose lighting and sound and when it's put together, it embodies an entirely new way of presenting a concert.

First 50 pages of Remidiation

The first fifty pages of Remediation are interesting. Not only are there visuals in the reading, there are also a lot of references to pop culture which makes the reading easy to contextualize. Bolter and Grusin discuss how film, photography and other media have stemmed from other forms of media. Websites emulate graphics and digitized photographs from the 1960's and the1910's. CNN uses a hypermediated form of presentation where text, graphics, and videos in multiple panes and windows. The authors also discuss the notion that remediation does not stem from digital media but it has previously been done by artwork. Medieval illuminated manuscripts and seventeenth century paintings have elements of hypermediacy. Looking at the media in the past, I find it interesting in terms of how they “play as signs”. There are so many signs being sent thought media, it sometimes becomes overwhelming.

I'm Hungry!

Rhetorical Literacy

In the section of Rhetotical Literacy, Selber urges readers to just recognize what is going on in technology but to go beyond the basic understanding. In terms of interface design, I don't know how skilled I can be at reversing the current state of affairs however, some readers might be more keen on this aspect. I have delved into music software and I have found ways to manipuate the programs but I don't know how affective this is in changing social status. I am glad that Selber is urging readers to fight fire with fire but I am not sure if this is my calling.

Critical Literacy

According to Selber, Critical Literacy questions the politics of computers and finding out what kind of motivation is behind such technology. Selber asks question like, Who profits? What is left behind for what reasons? How is software politicized? Therefore, critical literacy aims at bringing awareness. Perhaps for students like myself, this is self evident since my critical liteacy stems from everything I've learned in English class. However, I don't think many highschool kids are aware of the powers behind these tools. I like how Selber quotes Paulo Freire and Donaldo Macedo saying, “a person is literate to the extent that he or she is able to use language for social and political reconstruction”. We must change what is already constructed.

Selber's view of functional literacy

Selber explains that functional literacy is when students are users of technology and they use computers as tools. The purpose of becoming literate is for a student to be skilled enough to acquire employment. However, he criticizes the vast approaches because they are overly simplistic an harmful. The main purpose of these approaches is to help people economically and that ignore power, and culture. Even though functional literacy allows access to a culture it can be brought forth in a better way so that its not made exclusively for one goal.

There seems to be a misconception of the word “functional” as being remedial. However, functional doesn't just refer to basic skills on a rudimentary forum of knowledge, it refers to approach of well rounded knowledge in various areas. Its difficult to change the semantic meaning of a word so perhaps changing the terminology will help. Furthermore, making a basic computer class a lower level requirement will just bring forth complaints so I suggest making a basic computer class part of a capstone. Although there might certainly be backlash at this type of initiative, it would still be a valuable class that would insure that many students will not fall back in the perpetual technological revolution. Students should leave college with basic computer skills that will allow them to function in various potential employment arenas.