Looking Back to Help Us Look Forward

The Unique Contribution and Project Discovery were enjoyable and interesting films to watch.  They reinforced that there is value in educational films and that when properly made and prepared the use of films can be of great value to learning.  I have felt at times that many people view films as a way to take up time and to give the teacher a break.  The most authentic learning happens through direct experiences, but at times with the limitation of the classroom, geography and group size make providing these experiences impossible.  What a teacher must be careful of is to find and use films or movies that are appropriate for the students and the learning objectives.  Another important component in using films is to teach students how to get the most out of films and to teach them that it is not a break and a time to turn off.  It is very easy in the present times to search and find material that is relevant but of low quality.  The story of the the student who fainted during the anti-bullying video is a perfect example of how the quick access to material can cause misunderstanding and potential problems.  This also relates to the fact that if a teacher does not take the time to preview and introduce material no matter how high quality the film is the message will be lost for many.  Film Tactics has reinforced that lesson.  

What also struck me about The Unique Contribution and Project Discovery was that if you replaced the word film with iPad and some of the other technical term such as photomicography with app, animation with virtual reality these films could have been used by the St. James School Division to promote their new iPad program that was in the news.  I hope that St. James has thought as thoroughly about the iPad program as it appear Encyclopedia Britanica had thought about the positive ways for film to impact student learning.  

Looking back at old films and the introduction to media archeology has shown that looking back at where we have come from in relation to technology is a valuable practice.  For some reason studying the history of technology seems counterintuitive to some, but looking back at the history of communities and cultures is a very normal and accepted practice.  Maybe if we were taught to look back more at technology and see that there have been many great ideas over the years and that many of the ideas and next greatest things are just new versions of the something from the past, some of the novelty and hype that often surrounds the next new technology could be dispelled and people could be more critical consumers of technology.