What determines whether attempts at online youth civic engagement succeed or fail? Eszter Hargittai tackles a question very similar to this one in her recent contribution to a discussion of Clay Shirky’s latest book, Here Comes Everybody. But you don’t need to have read the book to apply Hargittai’s core insight to the the issues we’ve been discussing on this blog:... (more...)
Entry Filed under: adviser conversations, digital learning skills, participatory media
June 25th, 2008 at 03:39pm
Deen Freelon
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Here at CLO, it perhaps goes without saying that we spend the majority of our time thinking about how digital media can facilitate civic engagement among young people. But focusing on digital media in isolation may ignore some of the ways in which youth view their online and offline worlds as fundamentally continuous. Scholars are increasingly finding that many people (particularly youth) tend not to differentiate sharply between what they do online and in real life (Miller & Slater, 2001; Livingstone, 2003; Freelon, 2008). This perspective raises the possibility that young people may not see the value of online civic engagement efforts if they do not include substantial links to unmediated life.... (more...)
Entry Filed under: adviser conversations, conceptions of citizenship
June 25th, 2008 at 11:08am
Deen Freelon
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We are currently developing PSO media skills curricula at both our partnering organizations, such as the YMCA, and through the CCCE’s Becoming Citizens program (http://depts.washington.edu/ccce/civiceducation/citizens.html). However, we would love to hear our project advisor’s ideas on the following:... (more...)
Entry Filed under: adviser conversations, digital learning skills
June 10th, 2008 at 12:19pm
Toby Campbell
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In my last post, I discussed key YouTube videos about Barack Obama. In this post, I will be discussing some of Hillary Clinton’s videos.... (more...)
Entry Filed under: participatory media, videos
May 28th, 2008 at 09:23am
jonhickey
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Lance Bennett (Civic Learning Online project director) discusses the citizen identity shift and implications for civic learning in on and offline environments. If social identities and learning preferences are changing among digital natives, shouldn’t we rethink how young people are introduced to civic life? (more…)
Entry Filed under: civic learning goals, digital learning skills
May 18th, 2008 at 11:30am
Lance Bennett
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YouTube has rapidly become one of the most popular sites on the internet. The ease in which individuals can upload and share video has allowed citizens to share views and ideas with unprecedented ease. Additionally, individuals have greater access to information being spread by sources they may not have seen before. Both individuals and candidates have been using YouTube extensively for the 2008 presidential election. This medium is particularly effective in getting information out to younger citizens, who may not pay attention to traditional news sources, but spend a good amount of time on YouTube. In a series of blog posts, I will be exploring some of the more popular videos being uploaded and discuss the impact they might have on young Americans.... (more...)
Entry Filed under: participatory media, videos
May 2nd, 2008 at 12:22am
jonhickey
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This year is different.
The media are calling 2008 “The Year of the Young Voter.” Whatever you want to call it, something is definitely happening. There’s a level of excitement this country hasn’t seen in a long time. We have an opportunity to show the world that students can self-organize, and actually start working toward a common goal. We don’t claim to have the answer, but if you’re interested in giving it a shot, read on.
Your Revolution is here. Imagine the power of a social utility like Facebook, combined with the ability to register to vote instantly online, and a set of dynamic tools designed for activists and organizers. Your Revolution has created a Facebook application which takes advantage of Washington and Arizona’s new online voter registration legislation. The Facebook application allows the user to register to vote in a matter of minutes directly from their profile. (more…)
Entry Filed under: participatory media, social networking, youth recruitment
April 25th, 2008 at 09:12pm
Dylan
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When discussing how digital media can best support civic engagement among youth, it is important to distinguish between the technical capacities necessary to navigate and manipulate various forms of digital media and the civic skills that allow young people to connect with shared issues. Howard Rheingold offers a helpful starting point with his digital skills curriculum, which attempts to demonstrate how technology can serve as an attractive vehicle for what he calls “public voice.” Public voice, as distinct from private voice, comprises all communicative acts that seek to “inform publics, advocate positions, contest claims, and organize action around issues that [young people] truly care about” (Rheingold, 2008). Positioning public voice within the context of digital media harnesses the latter as a tool to teach young people about the former. Because this specific form of communication does not come naturally to most youth, learning it is presumed to require some direct instruction.
We on the CLO team believe that Howard’s approach shows much promise, but wonder if many of its recommendations are more suited for college students than for teens in high school. (more…)
Entry Filed under: adviser conversations, civic learning goals, digital learning skills
April 24th, 2008 at 05:13pm
Deen Freelon
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Considerable research suggests that while schools are still a major predictor of civic engagement, youth do not gain nearly the civic skills we might hope from their experiences at school. Scholars point to a number of reasons for this:... (more...)
Entry Filed under: adviser conversations, civic learning goals, digital learning skills
April 24th, 2008 at 04:11pm
Chris Wells
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In developing our digital youth commons, Puget Sound Off, we have striven to make it attractive both to already-engaged youth as well as to those who are not yet quite as involved in civic affairs. It is certainly much easier to facilitate the goals and preferred methods of those who come to civic sites knowing what issues they care about and how to address them than it is to convince relatively disengaged teens that civics is worth their time. Nevertheless, we feel that it is essential to probe the limits of what digital media can do not only to encourage preexisting civic instincts, but also to inspire new commitments to community involvement.
To that end, I would like to raise two issues that might bear on a youth civic site’s ability to attract more than just the usual suspects. (more…)
Entry Filed under: adviser conversations, digital learning skills
April 24th, 2008 at 03:50pm
Deen Freelon
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