Video Reflection 2

I watched the video Media Smarts:  Kids Learn How to Navigate the Multimedia World on Eudutopia. This video dealt with introducing students to more than the typical English language via books and grammar.  The idea was brought to teachers attention by George Lucas during a conference where he said he felt that film and video are types of languages too and they should be taught in classrooms.  This led states to create programs for children in schools of all ages that teach those languages.  The younger students were introduced to animation where they got to create their own little cartoons, while the middle schoolers looked at social media (which was not too much back when this was created) and advertisements to discuss the differences for genders in those two medias.  The students in high school were being taught to speak through their new language and create films that showed something they wanted to portray creatively.  The high schoolers also were able to take what they learned in class and be able to understand why things were chosen for the news.  It allowed them to dissect it for each component 

Despite this video being almost 8 years old, it is still very relevant today.  Today more than ever, especially in this area, media literacy and video programs are being created and funded very well.  It allows the students to engage in this other language and Lucas said, and they are able to creatively tell their stories.  Like I said in the previous video reflection, I used to partake in these types of classes (my last one was when this video came out, my senior year), and they really do feed into the creative side of language and allow us to use a different type of English.  I took several English classes that were aimed at journalism during my undergrad career and it made me like the subject more.  Teaching these types of lessons and using these types of technology to aid in it, makes students see a different side to something they've been learning their whole lives and maybe even renew their love in it.

Overall, I think looking at English differently and incorporating the new language that Lucas was speaking about will further enhance students experiences with those two things in school.  It allows them to creatively express themselves using old subjects to create new subjects!