Smart Bear, Language Dolls, and Kids Analyzer – these tools and toys were developed and explored by participants in a maker workshop as they grappled with the future of education in a smart society. The influence of visual language in the constant flood of images surrounding us and the confrontation with hate speech in daily media communication were topics of further workshops in the seminar "Trial & Error – Living, Learning, and Working in Networked Worlds," held from December 10th to 14th, 2018, with prospective educators.
Digital connectivity is increasingly permeating all areas of life. As early as kindergarten, children begin to playfully explore technology and its possibilities. At the same time, the learning environment itself becomes the subject of… Digitization. What work simplifications and new learning opportunities could digital networking bring, and what ethical principles and rules should underlie it in a democratic society? Maker workshop Against the backdrop of this question, the participants tried programming Calliope and Makey Makey boards themselves and used them to build prototypes for very practical digital tools and equipment for the smart daycare center or youth club of tomorrow.
Fake or fact? Our understanding of the world and the formation of opinions are strongly influenced by the perception of images. However, manipulating images has become incredibly easy. Even on one's own smartphone, for example, it's very quick to install FaceApps and manipulate any portrait at will. Therefore, participants in the study investigated the effects of image manipulation on the development of personal values and attitudes. Black and white photography workshop. They explored the background and mechanisms of action in order to handle images and their informational content more confidently and to be able to use them in their educational work.
From their research and discussions, they developed their own concepts, creating films and photographs in the lab, which they presented in an exhibition at the end of the seminar. These works explore the shift in perspective between truth and perception, product image and reality, and the beauty ideals and supposed norms that arise from media images.
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Link to photographic work on Flickr
The ability to convey content through images, transcending language barriers, presents a great opportunity., Inclusion on the internet to bring them to life. Often, however, images exclude rather than include – through a visual language that reinforces prejudices, reflects and solidifies stereotypes. The participants of the [program/workshop] explored the production of their own multimedia content. Multimedia workshop They explored this question of exclusion and inclusion in the digital world and created their own videos, from storyboarding and filming to post-production. Two of these videos can be viewed on Vimeo:
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“Gender – typical male and female“
„Stereotypes“
No hate speech! Social networks are part of our everyday lives. Unfortunately, hate speech is also part of this, where comments and posts denigrate, attack, or incite hatred or violence against people. Who are the people and algorithms/bots behind this? What interests and goals are being pursued? And what strategies can we develop to counteract group-based hostility?.
The participants of the Workshop: Staged Reading with Sina Laubenstein, journalist and social media expert, who is responsible for the New German media makers the campaign „No Hate Speech Movement leads. (The wannseeFORUM Foundation, as a provider of cultural and political education, has also been an official supporter of the Council of Europe's No Hate Speech campaign since 2018.)
From this conversation, as well as from further research into the background of hate speech and discussions on mediation and action strategies to counter it for democratic action in a networked world, the participants developed their own texts and staged them in a final presentation.
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Impressions from the "Trial & Error" seminar on Flickr
All seminar results presented in the final presentation offer insight into the nuanced discussions in all workshop groups, where participants explored areas of tension and conflict in value discourses, such as those concerning facts and fakes, information and manipulation, public and private spheres, and thus digital self-determination and external control. In their role as future educators, grappling with children's and young people's appropriation of the world, identity formation, and opinion development in networked worlds, as well as developing their own positions, strategies for action, and, in particular, communication strategies for conscious engagement in a society increasingly shaped by digitalization, will continue to be a central element of their private and professional lives. And for the wannseeFORUM, the exploration of different approaches to the topic of digitalization and democracy continues with seminars such as "Trial & Error – Living, Learning, and Working in Networked Worlds.".
The seminar took place as part of the collaboration in the program „Civic youth education in the AdB“ in the project group „Digital Media and Democracy“ instead of
The wannseeFORUM Foundation is a recognized sponsor of the Federal Agency for Civic Education.
