Cultural anthropologist Michael Wesch’s lecture An anthropological introduction to YouTube (2008), speaks to the internet’s potential as a participatory tool, “allowing us to connect in ways we’ve never connected before.” 
Not only to connect, but to be part of creating new networks that drive and fuel connection. 

How can we use the expansive community that the internet offers as an education opportunity for our learning environments? I think the answer is: as generative participants rather than passive consumers.

As a parent, I see my own children (grades 4 and 6) using the internet in the classroom as a source of research and knowledge gathering.

Photo by geralt on Pixabay

Photo by geralt on Pixabay

But what about the potential to be gathering knowledge through participatory models that allow students, globally, to be learning with and from each other? 

Instead of reading a wikipedia definition of the climate in Greece, why not interview another student who lives there? What happens when students are able to exchange personal experiences and knowledge, sharing real cultural and geopolitical perspectives.

Online global pen pal applications are an example of this. You can find a few examples in this article.

Better yet, media scholar Henry Jenkins’ identifies in this 2013  interview, how students can critically engage in the systems of knowledge that they are accessing on the internet. Jenkins’ talks about having students make changes to Wikipedia entries, engaging in the process of defending those entries, and the value of contributing to a permanent record in that way. 

Digital engagement in the classroom should not just be passive, consumptive learning.

Photo by geralt on Pixabay

It is through the process of generative participation, in creation of online content and community, that educational potential exists in the digital realm. 

For Wesch, the word Media refers to “mediating human relationships. And as media changes – human relationships change.” And it’s no coincidence that he regularly uses the word celebrate when talking about this form of mediated engagement with each other. He is drawing our attention to the joyous possibility within digital creative networks. And this is something that is important to hold onto as we think about media in learning environments.

TikTok has become the top social media platform among teenagers. So, what does the application offer young people, in terms of generative engagement and community, that we can apply to our models of learning and teaching? I don’t know the answer to this. I do know that rather than dismissing social platforms, we need to at least begin with this question. 

Photo by geralt on Pixabay

As an older adult and parent, my instincts continue to observe caution when it comes to social media, mindful of the impacts on young people’s  mental wellness. But I am becoming aware of the need to embrace the possibility and benefits of digital networking.

My major takeaway from this course, and Wesch’s lecture, is that as teachers, we need to be continuously building our own literacy and expertise in digital pedagogy.