In conjunction with the appearance of Dr. Mimi Ito, the AASL will present two screenings of the documentary “Digital Media: New Learners of the 21st Century” as part of its national conference program. The documentary explores how mobile and digital tools are changing the ways young people learn and showcases ways digital media is being using in education. Both showings will take place Thursday, Oct. 27, as a complement to the Exploratorium.
As part of One Film, One Conference, conference attendees will have two opportunities to view “Digital Media” and examine the work done by the Digital Youth Project, a three-year MacArthur Foundation funded research study. Through interviews and online observations, the project team discovered that youth are not only using online media to expand friendships and interests, but to also engage in peer-based, self directed learning. Through digital media, youth are discovering a degree of freedom and self-paced learning that they may not be finding in a traditional classroom setting.
One of the co-leaders of the project team appearing in the documentary is national conference closing general session speaker Dr. Mimi Ito. Dr. Ito, an international expert on how people use mobile technologies and new digital media in their everyday lives, will close the conference with a presentation on how social network technologies are changing the way students learn, play, socialize and participate in the world.
By viewing the documentary in advance of the closing session, conference attendees will have a unique opportunity to enhance their understanding of Dr. Ito’s program. In addition, all conference attendees will receive a copy of the documentary that will enable them to replicate these important conversations when they return home. Both Dr. Ito’s appearance and the availability of the “Digital Youth” documentary are made possible by the generous support of the Pearson Foundation. “Digital Media: New Learners of the 21st Century” was produced with funding from the MacArthur Foundation and the Pearson Foundation.
Film viewings and Dr. Ito’s appearance are generously provided by the Pearson Foundation.
