As a high school social studies, and language arts teacher, I deal a fair bit with the study of humanity. How did we get here? Where are we going? And, why are we in this hand-basket? A point that I stress to my students in various different contexts is that we are living through a very significant moment in human history. I tell them that just as we currently study the Industrial Revolution, the students of the future will study this period in history, commonly referred to as The Digital Revolution, in much the same way. Where we currently look at the importance of the spinning jenny to the textile industry, they will look at the advent of the personal computer and its effect on communication, learning, and society in general. This will lead to a discussion of related technologies and the dawn of the age of connectivity.
We are now firmly entrenched in this period of history, and as each passing year rattles past I cannot begin to imagine how much more things will change, and how much more I will have to adapt in order to meet the challenge, and as a teacher, prepare students for this rapidly changing reality. Identity seems central to many of the subjects I teach, whether it is Hamlet unable to identify who he is, or how globalisation, through media convergence, cultural homogenisation and various other factors, is inadvertently altering our individual and collective identities. Through these observations, it is clear that identity matters. But, how can we possibly be expected to control our digital identity if we don’t fully understand the increasing array of factors that affect it? And finally, how many different people am I to be? I already have multiple professional email accounts. Who do I allow on my Twitter feed? Who do I follow? What should I allow the world to see of Marshall Hartlen – father and husband, Marshall Hartlen – Professional Educator, and more ominously: Marshall Hartlen – self-righteous social/political commentator?
It was these musings that lead me to my central guiding goal for a digital presence and identity:
Be in control and aware of as much of the “digital me” as possible while seeking to grow and learn as a professional.
I am not clear entirely on how I will get there. As I move forward as a student for the first time in nearly ten years I will have to juggle family career and study in a way that I cannot forsee. This is the first challenge. I expect I will deal with this challenge in the same way as I have anything in life to date: I will throw myself into work and personal growth, and hopefully my family will love and understand me and my manic ways.
In reading articles this week other deficiencies also became apparent. I had not given much thought to the new literacies that are demanded by the digital age and my quest to cultivate my digital identity in the variety of ways that I desire. In his article “Attention, and Other other Social Media Literacies”, Howard Rheingold (2010) identifies five literacies that should be harnessed for effective participation in the 21st century: attention, participation, collaboration, network awareness, and critical consumption. All five are co-dependent, and in order to purposefully develop digital me, I need to be able to understand how these literacies will impact both what I create (what I project, how it is projected, and who it is projected to), and how I engage with and receive the world around me (how I participate and how I filter what is projected at me). Kelly Schryver highlights the importance of being aware of your online identity in her New York Times article “Who Are You Online” (2013). Here the issue that resonates most with me at present is how visible am I online? How many likes does my most recent blog post/status update/tweet have? In this way, I want to be effectively attention getting as advocated by Rheingold. Marshall Hartlen – Father and Husband knows that the surefire way to garner online attention in a positive manner is to post an adorable photo of one of my children.
Marshall Hartlen – Professional Educator needs to learn how to achieve the same result.
I am technologically literate, as far as the function of the various media I have at my disposal. I can make a Facebook post, compose a tweet, write a blog, even make a video. What I need to learn is how to effectively network, and garner the attention of others in my profession. To do this I will commit myself to engaging more. Reciprocity is the key to every relationship, and I see this as no different in the virtual relationships I will create with people I may never meet. Certain channels of communication I find overwhelming, but want to embrace – Twitter, for example. Here I will have to find a way to cut through the noise, and tailor my feed in a more professional manner: more musings of academics and less rantings of teen angst and obscure song lyrics from former students. I need also to keep my projections more succinct (thanks if you have gotten this far. As promised, I will reciprocate).
Success will be measured in this endeavour by what my virtual networks look like, and how much they become a port of call as I seek to engage with the professional world in a digital fashion.
References
Rheingold, H. (2010). Attention, and Other 21st-Century Social Media literacies. Educause Review, 45(5), 14.G.
Schryver, K. (2013, February 5). Who are you online? Considering Issues of Web Identity. The New York Times. Retrieved from: https://learning.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/02/05/guest-post-who-are-you-online-considering-issues-of-web-identity/?_r=0
Hi Marshall –
Very thoughtful post. It IS all about identity, and the need to cultivate and focus your identity.
I’m in total agreement with your statement, “Certain channels of communication I find overwhelming, but want to embrace – Twitter, for example. Here I will have to find a way to cut through the noise, and tailor my feed in a more professional manner.”
Handling Twitter properly is one of my goals, as well. You cited Rheingold’s article in your post, and so did I. I found his statement “social media is not a queue; it’s a flow” an aha moment. You dip your cup of intellectual curiosity into the stream and pick out what’s meaningful to you.
And yes, a cute kid pic is always a good thing!
The social media being a flow comment really was a eureka moment for me as well. I think subconsciously, with Twitter at least, I had been avoiding it because there was so much to go through. Funnily enough I used article as a bit of inspiration in a way so thanks! I couldn’t find a way to comment on yours; however, otherwise I would have. looking forward to working with you on the debates!
Hi Marshall,
Thanks so much for sharing your thoughts. It’s interesting how many of us seem cautious in stepping out into the unknown online with regards to ‘community making’. The sheer number of social networking options, and the never ending feed of commentary in feeds has prevented me too from really diving in. Reciprocity and the contribution aspect is really important, as you mentioned. I really liked your comment as well about organizing the feed — if you find a good way to do it, let me know! Facebook is funny that way – we don’t really get varied viewpoints as we only ‘see’ the contributions of friends (who usually have similar political views etc.).
Hi Marshall,
I think the majority of the group are probably in the same boat as you, as you had mentioned: “will have to juggle family, career, and study in a way that I cannot forsee.”
When is the right time to pursue a Master’s degree? I was thinking maybe when I retired, but by then my brain cells would be too old to learn anything!
I also believe in what you had mentioned with reciprocity is the key. We all need to stand and help each other so that we can all be successful at the end goal.
I look forward to reading more of your intellectual posts!