#UWinDig

For my second multimedia reflection I choose the article “Digital Redlining, Access and Privacy” by Chris Gilliard and Hugh Culik. This article was very interesting to me because I did not know how far IT policies went to hide information from us. In high school I was aware that they blocked websites like Facebook, Snapchat, Instagram and You tube; but was completely unaware that resourceful information was also being blocked. Digital redlining is essentially policies that are put in place by colleges and universities to regulate what information students can have access to. This can be positive because it can stop things like viruses and malware, but the problem arises when resourceful information is being blocked because of the socioeconomic status of the institution. Smaller community colleges that are considered to be mostly a working class demographic are being penalized from the consequences of differential access. These situations need to be further evaluated and changes need to be implemented so that access to knowledge is equal for everyone looking to explore open-ended inquiry.

I have a strong belief in equality for all individuals no matter your ethnicity or what school you decide to go to. This is why I feel so strongly that redlining needs to be reevaluated by software developers in order to eliminate these bias. Before I read this article I have never heard of redlining before, it was a completely different concept to me. The history of redlining completely shocked me, I know that people of colour have had to deal with a lot of adversity, but I did not know it went as far as federal government regulations. The fact that a developer had a wall built in order to separate what they believed to be valuable and non-valuable land is appalling to me. I also thought it was very interesting to know that certain institutions have more resources then others depending on how much they want to spend to give access to their students.

To reflect on this article, I choose to do a twitter essay. This was a very new experience for me because I do not use twitter very often and am fairly new to it. Twitter is a very good way to get your message across, even over a series of tweets. I really enjoyed using memes as a way to bring in more interest to your tweet, it also brings in humour which makes any serious conversation better. As a future teacher I would love to implement twitter essays in the classroom. Not only does it bring in a platform that most high school students will understand, but it has them connecting to other students in their classes and hearing opinions they would not get to see if they were simply just writing an essay and handing it in to the teacher. During my first practicum my associate teacher was not very tech-savy, which I believe is an issue a lot of teachers have with the increasing popularity of electronics in the classroom. They did not have the opportunity to have classes like this one to prepare them for all the possibilities that it can create. This class has already taught me so much about different technologies that I have never heard of before, and also has brought to light different opportunities for evaluation and connectedness that I can use as a future teacher. I am very happy I stepped out of my comfort zone this reflection by completing this twitter essay because I truly enjoyed the process and cannot wait to try it out in my own classroom one day!

The article 'Digital Redlining, Access and Privacy', has recently brought to my attention some issues I had never thought much about before…https://t.co/ukQ5Tiqv8z #UWinDig pic.twitter.com/KYabX2VsQv

— Karlee Parent (@KarleeParent) October 30, 2018

***** Click the link or the tweet above to see the rest of my thread 🙂 *****

Chris Gilliard and Hugh Culik’s article Digital Redlining, Access, and Privacy draws attention to a very important, but—until now—unsaid issue. While most of us think of access to information as a right, this article reminds us that it is, in fact, a privilege.

Personally, I have never had to worry about being restricted in my research or access to information. I have been fortunate enough to attend post-secondary institutions that offer many databases and resources of information. I also always had access to the internet at home and even on the go, I have a fair amount of data for my research needs. Because of this privilege, I have spent most of my life being fairly ignorant to the struggles of others with restricted access to the internet and information. I have never known the frustration of being alerted that I am unable to access a certain webpage due to restrictions. That is what made this article all the more relevant to me because it really opened my eyes.

I would have never thought to make the connection between redlining maps in the United-States and the restriction of information at community colleges versus wealthy post-secondary institutions. Initially, I found the analogy shocking because I was not sure if it was appropriate to compare such a racially charged historical practice to this modern dilemma. However, as I continued to read the article it became clear that this was, in fact, the perfect comparison. As Professor Gilliard alluded to, many students attending community colleges face financial restrictions. In his lecture, Gilliard explained that unlike most students at wealthier institutions, many community college students do not have access to internet packages for their home or phone, meaning they only have the means to do research at school. This is problematic when their only online access is restricted. Community college should not be thought of as a lesser education and its students should not be limited due to stereotypes or the precedent that they simply need job training and therefore are not in need of research tools. All learning, at any level, should involve inquiry, which in turn requires research and research tools. Withholding these tools and deeming what limited access they have “good enough” based on an institution’s financial status is discrimination of its students.

Found below is a link to the Twitter Essay I created, summarizing the key points and my opinions on “Digital Redlining, Access and Privacy” written by Chris Gilliard and Hugh Culik, published on May 24^th, 2016. Here is a link to the article itself.  https://www.commonsense.org/education/privacy/blog/digital-redlining-access-privacy.

Gilliard and Culik discuss digital redlining in range of post secondary institutions, including community colleges as well as higher level institutions. The main purpose of the article is to make note of the filters in place between a student and the internet that block access to information within and throughout the different levels of educational institutions . If the school restricts information access, knowledge doesn’t simply become invisible, it does not even exist. This is the first time that I have ever been introduced to this idea in post secondary education. I knew of it in the grade school and high school levels to keep students off social media and inappropriate sites during school hours, which as someone who is studying to be a teacher I agree with, but I did not realize it existed at a higher level. I was under the impression that colleges and universities are supposed to be places with vast amount of knowledge and safe spaces for inquiry into any topic you want to gain knowledge on. I did not realize sources through the university are filtered, and this makes me question much of the past research I have done. What was I missing out on? Gilliard and Culik discuss that digital redlining is not a acknowledged problem in higher level institutions because many of the students come from a higher socioeconomic background and can access the internet at home rather than at school. I believe this is the category where I fall, I never thought much of digital redlining at school because a large chunk of my research has been done at home. Even when I did notice a difference in things such as the search results at home compared to school, I did not think anything of it until now. It is important that I know what digital redlining is and I can be aware of it while attending post secondary education. As well as, from the perspective of a future teacher, I am especially thankful for the information I have gained from this article, more specifically the possibility that knowledge may be blocked from my future students. I think more people need to be made aware, and it needs to be something we acknowledge and discuss as a society so we can work on changing the limits on information that students can access at all levels.

Here is the link to my Twitter Essay! By clicking on the tweet below, the first tweet in my series, you should be brought to the whole essay! Feel free to reply to my tweets and start a conversation!

1. Who out there has read "Digital Redlining, Access, and Privacy" by Chris Gilliard and Hugh Culik?

— DimuD (@dimu_d) October 24, 2018

Imbedded below is a video explaining my process using twitter and creating my twitter essay. I discuss the pros and cons to using twitter, some of cool things I could do with twitter as well as the difficulties that arose while I was working on my essay. I apologize for the quality, but I had to compress the video for it to upload to youtube. Enjoy!

For my digital media reflection I chose to read and reflect upon Dr. Jacobsen’s ‘Teaching in a Participatory Digital World’ I also chose to present my summary/reflection in the form of a twitter essay (to view my essay click HERE). Enjoy!

Article link: https://www.edcan.ca/articles/teaching-in-a-participatory-digital-world/

Reading Jacobsen’s article really opened my eyes to the true power that digital networks/platforms can really bring to the classroom. At the same time, it also shed light on the fact that school are not using digital networks to the fullest of their potential, and further transformation can be made to take full advantage and enhance the learning experience for students. Before reading this article, and even after my first practicum, I found myself feeling very ignorant in terms how new technology is used in the school systems. I think one of the most powerful aspects that digital networks provide is the ability to collaborate for both students and teachers. Collaboration allows for critical reflection and development, and provides a sense of community for students to share and critique each others ideas. Thinking back to my undergrad, I would meet up with friends to throw ideas around and to tackle problems I had with the material before almost every midterm, and this was always hugely beneficial. Looking back at my experiences in secondary education, most of these networks were not available and learning was dominated by overheads and templates/handouts. I feel my learning could have definitely been enhanced by the available technology today. This is a big reason I plan to integrate these tech options into my teaching pedagogy, doing everything I can to maximize my student’s learning experience. I think the importance of continuing education was also stressed in this article. Technology will never stop advancing. When I think back to my experience with tech in the class room, it went as far as the SMARTboard. This was a big deal, and today, seems almost obsolete. As professionals, we have been learning for the past 20+ years of our lives, and we will/need to keep expanding our knowledge for the next 30.

One prominent issue is the use of filters and restrictions in schools today. While these methods are place for students safety, they may also be limiting the power social media and tech networks offer for students and teachers. Jenkins explained that it would make more sense to allow students full access in a school setting where they are surrounded by professionals who can help them understand and unlock the full potential of such platforms. I think this is a very valid point, while most of what students use social media for is personal, allowing teachers and students full access could aid in the transformation to more effective participatory environments. This is a concept I never really thought about before, and I think it’s mostly because when people hear ‘unrestricted’ they automatically associate the negative that free access to the internet could bring into schools. In my experience, students will always find a way around these restrictions, so why not embrace them and do the best we can to educate them on the positive effects technology can have on their education. We need to bridge the gap between educational systems based on standardized testing and the educational system we hope to enforce with the help of the brilliant networks and collaborative opportunities digital technology can bring.

I chose to complete my reflection in the form of a twitter essay. This was very new to me, as I have not been active on Twitter for a few years. I felt this method was very effective in forcing me to summarize my points effectively into the allotted character count. I also enjoyed using GIFS to enhance the points I was trying to make. I found it actually made the article a bit easier to read as well. Each time I read what I thought to be a major point, I began formulating a tweet from the info. and this gave me the next portion of my twitter essay. One thing I struggled with was making sure that there was decent flow from one tweet to the next. I found myself starting new threads may have been unrelated to the previous one, and this could cause some confusion when reading through. Overall I feel like it was a positive experience and I would definitely use this method again. Moving forward I’m excited to try some of the other reflection methods and continue to expand my horizons in the world of digital technology.

For my multimedia reflection, I chose to read and respond to the article Digital Redlining, Access, and Privacy by Chris Gilliard and Hugh Culik. I found the article very interesting as it brought an entirely new issue to my attention, I really had no idea(s) on this issue before I read the text. The authors explain the history of digital redlining and how it is implemented at the community college level. Redlining began back in the U.S.A in The Great Depression era as neighbourhoods were segregated by race. Essentially, digital redlining is reducing access to information on the internet via Accessible use Policies, which are implemented to block certain cites. For example, if a student wishes to research anatomy, the website may be blocked, leading the student to believe little access on the subject is available. This then affects the student for life as they are pushed away from their natural curiosity to explore inquiry-based learning. I found this to question my own beliefs about college students; just because they chose a different route does not necessarily mean they are not as “smart” and deserve to have less access to information. I found it extremely eye-opening to consider that these students have no idea this is happening to them, that some IT developer is deciding which students are  “good enough” to access information. Furthermore, the article made me question my education, while there are great resources available through the Leddy Library website, I am sure there is plenty of information out there that I cannot gain access to. My beliefs that made me react in such a shocked way include my belief that everyone should have an equal opportunity to learn and explore their own interests.

To reflect on the article, I chose to do a Twitter essay; it was a very new experience for me to use Twitter as an academic tool rather than a entertainment platform. While doing this essay I learned new skills such as how to link an article or GIF to a tweet. I also learned more about how hashtags worked, that people around the world link themselves to common interests with them. All of these factors made it a very good experience for me, while the learning curve was a little sharp at the beginning, I eventually became more adept at fitting what I wanted to say in the 280-character count per tweet. I also couldn’t help but think how difficult it would be with the previous 140-character count limit, so I was thankful I had more room to work. Lastly, on a more personal note my mom is a college teacher/prof and I brought the issue to her attention and she couldn’t believe the info in the article. She too had never realized this happened but after reflecting on the reading was shocked by its relevance. We talked specifically about how community colleges see their education more as formal “job training” (this is also mentioned by the authors) while universities practice more theory-based learning; this is the great divide of post-secondary education. I questioned; why can’t community college students practice inquiry-based learning, why should they have their innate curiosity shutdown? And that is the question I leave you all with.

Lastly, in my own future teaching and learning I plan to make my students aware of this issue. Making students aware of this will help them realize that if they search something and it is blocked, that does not mean the information does not exist. Furthermore I believe if my students know about this they will not be able to affect their futures after school; the authors stress how community college students may not have great internet access away from campus. If I teach my students about redlining I will give them strategies on trying to search on a different server such as a library or friends home.

Article link: https://www.commonsense.org/education/privacy/blog/digital-redlining-access-privacy

Additional information video: https://ca-lti.bbcollab.com/collab/ui/session/playback/load/a79de2788c22445da32aa5e6e69577a1

Twitter Essay: https://twitter.com/jaredhansen321/status/1055871887904071680