- Why do you think that women tend to post more photos (and in more settings) than men? How do you think that this statistic applies to/parallels with gender differences in education?
- Photos inside the classroom are rarely posted on networking sites such as Facebook. Why do you think this is? Do you think that frequency of photos appearing in classrooms varies between campuses? Why
- Does the way you define your identity on Facebook reflect the way you act in class? Why or why not? Is there a fear to be portrayed to others (who do not attend your university) to appear ‘smart’ and therefore ‘uncool’? How does this define our personal literacy?
-- Kathy Shen
Photos inside the classroom are rarely posted on Facebook, yes. But this is merely because no one takes photos inside a classroom. Class is for lectures and study, not for memorable Kodak moments. The prime reason people take photographs in the first place is to cherish memories of something beautiful or extraordinary, not to record the daily grind, which is absolutely boring to most people. The daily grind includes going to school, going to work, exercise, eating, sleeping, et al. Photos of people involved in those activities are only interesting and valuable if they are of people doing things that are not merely so commonplace. For instance, photos of a bunch of interns at Pricewaterhouse Coopers having fun making a human pyramid is photo-worthy. Photos of a bunch of physics students playing with pumpkin catapults deserves photos. People sitting in a classroom is not so appealing. Now some schools constantly take photos of their students in their classrooms partaking in all types of activities. This is good and the only reason why I think many schools do not do this often is because they just lack the resources and find the importance of taking photos at events or speaker panels or games much more worthy. One day I intend on taking photos of myself in all my classrooms so I can remember the moments and post these on Facebook.
ReplyDeleteThanks for posting these questions Kathy!
ReplyDeleteThe way we identify ourselves on Facebook is definitely different from the everyday version of ourselves. We want to put our best foot forward on the internet because you never know who you are going to meet on the web and what that one picture or comment can do for you. Often times, Facebook and other social media sites are a mode of communication for those who you may have recently just met, by befriending you on these types of sites, there is an 80% chance that they will scope you out on these sites, just to get a feel for the person you are. The saying, "a picture speaks a thousand words" holds true in the context of social media. Without even having to speak to you in person, the person on the other side of the computer can conjure up several different thoughts and opinions about your friends, your family, and especially you as an individual just by browsing through a few photos or tagged photos. I don't think people want to be perceived as a different person on sites such as Facebook, but I do believe that they want to be depicted in the best light possible and make sure that the best version of themselves are displayed. You never know who will be on your page, a future employer, or even a future significant other. Facebook gets a lot of people in trouble, but it can also help a lot with networking in terms of jobs and employment. Often times, it can be a deal breaker if there is anything incriminating, believe it or not, employers use Facebook to check you out.
Self-presentation and social network sites is the concern, not only of the new generation, but for our parents and even some of our grandparents as well. True, many of us only post pictures from special events where we are dressed up a little more than the everyday, but it doesn't mean that everything on Facebook or social media sites is a "performance" necessarily. It is just another version of us, the well put-together version that is more presentable to the outside world.
I agree with George above that photos of the classrooms do not appear on SNSs because the classroom is not considered a realm of Kodak culture. Where George claims that the class is considered an element of the 'daily grind' and is therefore disqualified from the photographic record as it exists outside of the extend of socially valuable, I posit that such photos are not recorded on SNSs because the classroom is regarded in the wrong light. I agree that the classroom is viewed as a 'boring' place and not socially valued, but this is only reinforced through the nonchalance of public opinion. I argue that if photos were taken in class, then it could be that school and education could change in reputation, and move from the daily grind to a socially valued event.
ReplyDeleteIn my own experience, I have posted photos from class on Facebook, but never have those photos been of classwork or instruction, but rather of my friends and I fooling around in lab in high school, ignoring lectures, or performing other defiant acts. In line with the arguments of Mendelson, we posted photos of pictures that tailored how we wanted to be seen. We wanted to be cool or funny, so we thought such photos would portray that during our time in high school.
It could be arranged that teachers or instructors make pages on SNSs for their classes and take photos of positive behavior to reinforce what that positive behavior is. Through presentation on line, the events become ceremonial, and this could be a useful tactic to benefit the classroom.
Addressing the 2nd question, I also agree that classroom photos are rarely posted on Social Networks because photos are not taken often inside of classrooms. If we really think about it, why would we take pictures inside of classrooms? Second, most teachers prefer to not have any electronic devices even present in their classroom. Another thing I think is worth mentioning is that classroom photos are more common in high school classes.
ReplyDeleteNow looking at each point more clearly. I do not believe that the frequency of photos varies from campus to campus. I personal believe that photos of just sitting in class is not worth posting in general. People like posting pictures of more social events. Like George mentioned above, things like experiments in class may be worth posting, but not just pictures of being in a lecture hall. Also, the reason photos are taken are to preserves memories. If a student is barely awake in lecture, why would they want to take pictures? Personally, I have never taken a picture in a classroom or work environment. I'd rather have pictures of my friends and I and not something that involves school.
[Response to Q3] The way I define my identity on Facebook does not reflect the way I act in class, mainly because my identity on Facebook is limited mostly to things I like and does not document my behavior, especially my behavior in class. It is hard for me to define how I could appear to be “smart” and therefore “uncool” in the eyes of others on Facebook or outside my classroom. Assuming that a person not making any grammatical errors in their writing on SNS defines him or her as “smart,” I think there is a fear from those whose friends use slang and think their slang is cool. This split identity between Facebook and in class and also the fear of not fitting in can significantly defines our personal literacy by showing us that our narrative is not just in just one style. Our diction and accent in terms of speech can change depending on who we’re addressing. I was reminded of the Richardson reading where students develop code-switching as a lifelong skill. The Mendelson and Papacharissi reading on personal photography particularly resonated with me, because there’s a countless number of personal photos out there, and each photo is a piece of a person’s autobiography. Also, tying into the fear of being portrayed as uncool and unattractive, I agree with Mendelson and Papcharissi’s observation that people consciously and unconsciously work “to define the way they are perceived, hoping to engender positive impressions of themselves,” or in some cases, negative impressions of themselves.
ReplyDeleteIn response to the second question and to previous posters' responses to it, I would agree that pictures from inside the classroom are simply not posted on Facebook because there generally is no cause for interesting or note-worthy photographs to be taken in classroom settings. Classrooms are associated with.. well, classes, and most classes are generally associated with people sitting in desks listening to the teacher talk, something for which there is of course hardly motivation for taking pictures. While I would also disagree that there would be any significant variances in the number of pictures from classrooms posted on facebook between campuses, I would agree with the claim made that there are more classroom pictures associated with high school. Personally I think that this is because in high school, the school campus and its classrooms play a much more significant role in students' lives, as most of their social lives tend to be concentrated within their schools, and school events and other special occasions do take place within classrooms throughout the year. In college, however, students' social lives are much more isolated from the classrooms, which are seen much more as places for academic learning than for socialization or hanging out with friends as they are in high school. There are also many more events/occasions/locations for photo-worthy moments on college campuses/in college towns that make pictures in the classroom seem a lot less interesting by comparison.
ReplyDeleteHonestly the reason I think women tend to post more photos is that women tend to take more photos then men do. I can think of several reasons for this, but I’ll just focus one.
ReplyDeleteThere is a certain stigma with taking pictures of yourself and posting it online that says it’s more of a female activity. While photography itself I would say is a fairly gender-neutral activity—both males and females feel free to practice photography without being judged by others—the sorts of pictures one sees on facebook are not reflective of photography as a whole. They tend to be more personal—pictures of friends, and often of yourself with friends. And for those kinds of pictures, it’s definitely considered a somewhat girly thing to do. It’s fairly rare to see one of those reverse-camera pictures with a guy holding the camera at arms length snapping of a picture of himself with his arm around some guy…but girls do that sort of thing all the time. It’s hard to say where this stigma comes from, but I would venture a guess that it’s traceable to the larger idea that females, much more than men, can show off their beauty or physical attractiveness without it being strange because women are often viewed very much in terms of appearance. I’m not saying that’s a good thing, but that’s how it is. Consequently, a girl taking a picture of herself and putting it online is not seen as particularly strange, because she’s following the socially accepted norm. A guy, on the other hand, finds it a little strange to do things like that. It’s also something of a social norm that guys don’t display as much physical affection with each other as girls do…so posing together in a close photo might be seen as un-masculine, whereas girls don’t have a problem with putting their arms around each other and snapping a photo to be posted on line.
I agree with the previous posts, that the way you define your identity on Facebook does not reflect the way you act in class. Comparing the way we act in class with how we act in other settings, there is a certain image, a certain role we assume. In class, you take on the role of a student. You listen to the teacher, write notes, and aim to fulfill you purpose, which is to learn and contribute to the class. On Facebook, it is up to you how you want to present yourself. On Facebook, you can choose to encompass all aspects of your life including your interests, hobbies, as well as school and professional settings. Or your identity on Facebook could represent a completely false image—presenting yourself in the manner that you would like to be perceived by the general public.
ReplyDeleteI don’t think that the discrepancy lies in a fear of being portrayed as ‘smart’ and ‘uncool;’ rather I think that people try to present a more holistic image of themselves on Facebook, not merely themselves in role of a student. In life, how you view yourself and thus how you portray yourself is a combination of multitude of roles, some of which include but are not limited to friend, daughter, older sister, mentor, teacher, parent. Because all of these things are not as prevalent in class, where we are a student first and foremost, our identity on Facebook is different from the way we act in class.
- Why do you think that women tend to post more photos (and in more settings) than men? How do you think that this statistic applies to/parallels with gender differences in education?
ReplyDeleteThere is a common perception that women tend to be more photogenic than their male counterparts. I am not sure how true this is, but based on personal experience, I agree. Perhaps it may be because of socially constructed ‘norms’ that produce gender-oriented standards, which parallels gender differences in the classroom.
Photos inside the classroom are rarely posted on networking sites such as Facebook. Why do you think this is? Do you think that frequency of photos appearing in classrooms varies between campuses? Why
I believe that photographs/art is a form of literacy and a way of conveying our identity; however, it is not an adequate measure of who we really are. And generally, this connects with why pictures in classrooms are not taken-because of privacy issues.
- Does the way you define your identity on Facebook reflect the way you act in class? Why or why not? Is there a fear to be portrayed to others (who do not attend your university) to appear ‘smart’ and therefore ‘uncool’? How does this define our personal literacy?
In some degree, I think we mold ourselves to meet the expectations of others. Don't we?
I think that there is a complicated relationship between your identity on a social networking site and the way that you deport yourself in the actual world. Facebook utilizes the literacy of social communication and norms to show its users good and bad things to post to your profile. There have been times when I significantly change my facebook profile to try and reflect different facets of my personality so as to impress or interest or intrigue people with you that might be looking at your profile. In terms of how this affects my behavior in the classroom, I think that I have played down my academic side on facebook, and maybe that is why I tend to be such a haphazard student now.
ReplyDeleteI've always been a bright child, and regularly take the hardest classes that I can get my hands on, but as a child I was regularly harassed and teased for my academic side. Now I don't share with my friends what classes I'm taking or books that I'm reading on my facebook page, and I also tend to be more reserved and quiet in my classes because of previous discouragement of taking out loud in class. However, I think that I should be more agressive in class regarding projecting my academic and theoretical interests, while simultaneously downplaying the matter on facebook. It's hard to keep the two different personas separate, but for the sake of my relationships on facebook, I don't think that I should take the super-studious persona into my digital identity.
It is strange having to live with two different personalities: one inside and one outside of the classroom, but I think that it might help me to be more humble in my outside interactions with other students. It's always been hard for me to separate my intelligence from my persona, so I have to find a way certainly to be true to myself without alienating my peergroup. I think that having a double persona can allow people to become fluent in the art of code-switching literacies, and inform many social tools and norms that the educational system tries so hard to impart on its students.