My Digital Visitor-Resident Mapping for MALAT LRNT521 – Digital Learning Environments, Networks and Communities course – Photo by author

As an assignment for the MALAT course Digital Learning Environments, Networks and Communities, our cohort was tasked with examining White and LaCornu’s concept of digital visitor vs. digital resident typology (2011). The concept proposes that digital visitors use platforms and applications as tools, choosing “…an appropriate tool which they use to attain their goal” (White and LaCornu, 2011 n.p.)  then disengaging with it one the task is complete. In comparison,  a resident would view the Web as more of a community place where they live out a part of their lives and seek support. (White and LaCornu, 2011) We were asked to reflect on our engagement with technology looks like and then map it out accordingly using a tension pairing of personal use vs. institutional. My map is presented in the image above. There is a wonderful explanation of how to do your own map in David White’s video: Just the Mapping.

It was a revealing experience that felt like holding a mirror up and judging myself on my digital engagement.  I chose to use paint, as I am most comfortable using traditional instead of online artistic tools to create. Warschauer (2007) may say this is reflective of my multimedia literacy. In his work on paradoxical futures of digital learning, he posed the idea that:

In the 21st century, multimedia literacy is viewed as important for occupational purposes (with an increasing amount of jobs requiring production of multimodal content), civic purposes (with full participation in society enhanced by the ability to interpret and produce multimedia through blogging, podcasting, Website creation, etc.), and artistic purposes (with digital photography, digital video, and other forms of new media emerging as important forms of art and self-expression). (Warschauer, 2007. p. 43)

His concept supports the widespread acceptance and dissemination of online engagement throughout our cultures.

What I also was not expecting was a feeling of guilt or shock in the realization of how heavy my use of my time sits in one space of the map. The heft of my use of Linkedin is represented by a ball and chain keeping me tied to the presentation of professional self. I was shocked to have the evolution of using work email feel like crawling into a dark cave with no engaging objects inside it. My use of some of these applications and platforms is shifting and so I felt compelled to use paint as a medium in order to achieve movement in the map.

This was a revealing exercise and I encourage others to try their own version of a map to explore their digital use and involvement in various online communities.

References:

Warschauer, M. (2007). The paradoxical future of digital learning. Learning            Inquiry, 1, 41–49. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11519-007-0001-5

White, D. S., & LeCornu, A. (2011). Visitors and residents: A new typology for online engagement. First Monday, 16(9).