Image Searches: Technology's impact on student thinking (unless we intervene)

Having students use images in their work is pretty standard now.  Adding an element of visual communication to even standard writing assignments can deepen exploration of a topic or idea and add an element of creativity.  When I first started encouraging or requiring students to include images in assignments, it was easy from a teacher's point of view - give some image guidelines, check for attribution, and have students find some good images.

It all started to fall apart several years ago when image search began to improve.  It hit rock bottom for me one normal day at the start of the school in 2011.  The indelible memory of a little warm-up activity for our unit on Adaptation still haunts me.  I asked students to find 2-4 images of things that represented innovation to them.  Then we were going to discuss in small groups why those images were connected to the concept of innovation.  A student raised her hand looking incredibly frustrated.  I went over to see what was wrong and she said, "There aren't any good images for adaptation."  

I asked what she was using as a search term, and she looked at me like I was somehow defective for about 5 seconds before replying, "Adaptation..." as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.  

Now a little note about my instructions and my goal...I had asked students to find images that REPRESENTED adaptation.  To me, this meant thinking about adaptation, figuring out something that had adapted or showed some element of adaptation, and then using that as a search query.  For example, I might think that a human hand represents a physical adaptation that allows humans to build things, so I might search for 'carpenter'.  To show how communication has changed, I might search for 'texting' and 'iPhone' to show how we have moved away from phone calls.  This kind of thinking is particularly important in middle school because it is a developmental step towards greater abstract thinking.  For some students it remains difficult for quite a while.

I had seen the trend towards literal search queries (and literal thinking) developing in my students as image search improved, but this was the most glaring example I had encountered.  I stopped the class and asked them to share their search queries; at least half of them were searching for 'adaptation'.  We ended up having a big class discussion about it in which I asked two questions:

• What do you think the goal of the assignment was?
• What's the problem with just using 'adaptation' for the search instead of choosing what to search for?

As the discussion went on, the answers became more detailed and coalesced into two main points.

• The goal was to abstractly represent a concept.  That is, students were supposed to try and represent an idea (adaptation) with an image of some thing.  [Abstract thinking was a something we had discussed and explored previously.]
• The problem with this kind of search is that there is no thinking.  The user ends up letting the search engine do all the thinking for him/her. 

I told the class that I would never intentionally insult them by giving them such a brainless assignment as this.  'Type in ____________, choose a picture, save' was not the way I would have them spend their time.  At the end of class, I was left to ponder how I was going to address the problem.  

After quite a bit of reflection, I settled on three strategies that I now make a regular part of my classroom practice.

The most important change I made was to have students regularly create their own images for almost all assignments.  This means going a lot more slowly in order to give time for photography or drawing, but it's also more creative.  Students have to plan for and then capture images to represent what they are thinking.  Thinking is the key element here as they have to take a photograph of a thing to represent an idea.

For some situations, I do occasionally still have students search for images.  Now, however, I always make them write down their search queries on a planner first.  Again, this means taking a bit more time, but I might ask students to find three images.  Before they start, however, I have them write down five things they want to find.  For the adaptation example, that might be a hand, a computer, a tadpole, a snow tire, and a feather.  I also make time at the end of any task like this to have students discuss with their peers why the images are representative of their thinking.  

Finally, we openly talk about the issue in class.  It makes for some interesting discussion about technology and its place in our lives.  

Below, a couple of examples of letting a search engine think for you. 

 

St. Mark's Peak

God, I love theBside and my country. 

U&I Thai - How a little som tam made us cry

It's been almost two months living on theBside here in Vancouver, and I can summarise it pretty easily by saying we love it.  There aren't many days that we don't stop to comment on how happy we are with the city, the opportunities it offers, and our life in it.

Thailand, though, is still in our hearts.  It's a corny way to say it, but it's true.  People and places, sounds and tastes, they are always with us.  I am on constant alert to the sound of Thai, listening to every non-English conversation in public places.  I once interrupted a pair of women talking at the driver licensing office to simply say hi and ask where they eat.  Thailand has that effect on a lot of people, I suppose.

A couple of weeks ago, we went to U&I Thai for some som tam (ส้มตำไทย).  Anyone who knew us in Thailand knows that this was our comfort food, something we had at least once a week.  It made us happy, made us feel settled and gave us the chance to reflect on all that was happening in our busy lives.  Much of our travels were spent looking for and comparing som tam, trying to find the very best one.  Not eating som tam regularly here has probably been the most difficult part of our move. Seriously.  Going for som tam was part of our routine, part of our relationship to the neighbourhood, and just plain old delicious.

We were hopeful but simultaneously skeptical when we went to U&I Thai.  When we ordered and the waitress left the table, I don't think either of us was expecting the surge of emotion that followed.  I don't know if it was the opportunity to speak Thai again, the smile of the woman who took our order (because there is nothing like the warmth of a smile you sometimes get from a stranger in Thailand), or the memory of all the times we went to the som tam stall in the หมู่บ้าน (muu baan), but as soon as she left the table, we both were overcome with a surge of emotion and couldn't talk. Tears welled up unbidden and a few trickled down our faces.

Later, after a really amazing meal (both for taste and nostalgia), we asked where they find papayas green enough to make som tam.  Khun Oi, the waitress returned a few minutes later with the name, address, and phone number of the market where they shop.  She even gave us the name of her boyfriend who works there.  It may seem like nothing, but it meant more than I could ever explain.  We both barely choked out a thank you.

So, yes, I love my new life here, but there is a place in my heart where Thailand lives.  เมืองไทยอยู่ในหัวใจผมเสมอ

Thank you, U&I Thai.  Your food and your welcome are very special.

Something for every Canadian to remember on 19 October

There is something here for each and every Canadian.  Vote.

Pecha Kucha Vancouver - I love my city

Last night I had the great pleasure of attending Pecha Kucha Vancouver's 37th edition on Our Green Future.  I know pecha kucha's from a classroom perspective; they are great ways to have students hone their thinking and develop their ability to powerfully present ideas.  I've never thought of them as an event before.  But last night was truly an event, an event that made proud to to live in Vancouver and excited to be part of this community.  The move to theBside looks better and better.

In the spirit of pecha kucha, here are twenty reasons I loved last night, love my new city, and am excited to contribute to its future.

1. 1300 people came out to to hear people talk about ideas.  The theatre sold out because there is an audience for thoughtful examination of substantive ideas.  People can be entertained by ideas.  
2. 1300 people came out to hear about ideas to make Vancouver a greener, more sustainable place to live and work.  They didn't just go out and buy a new jacket from Patagonia; they came out to participate and share in a forum for ideas to shape our collective future.
3. Judging by the full bike racks and the packed sidewalks, almost every one of those 1300 people walked or biked to the event.
4. The event opened with a recognition of the fact that the land we all live on is the unceded ancestral home of First Nations people.
5. Representatives of the City of Vancouver participated and were some of the best, most passionate presenters of the evening.
6. In 2009, the City of Vancouver made a commitment (not a faux-mmitment) to become the world's greenest city.
7. In 2015, the city is ahead of the targets it set to reach the goal of being a green city.
8. Waste to landfills is down.
9. Fossil fuel use is down.
10. Non-car transportation is up.
11. Use of renewable energy is up. 
12. Numbers 7-11 are the result of leadership and citizen participation.
13. My new city is leading when my provincial and federal governments are failing.
14. One of our presenters, Marc Jaccard reminded us that innovation is not the sole domain of progressives and environmentalists.  He, more than any other, reminded us that policy and innovation will shape our future.  With elections coming up, this is more important than ever.
15. The presenters and host managed to make last night about hope and change rather than fear and failure.  As an educator, I know that many people feel that the problems we face are so big that there is no point in doing anything to solve them.  Students want to give up.
16. Last night's presenters reminded us all that our 'greener future' is not just about solar panels and sustainable farming.  It's about neighbourhoods and scale, people and relationships.  That more than anything else gives me hope that we will not be a city of glass towers where developers raze neighbourhoods like Chinatown to build condos.
17. The presenters were representative of the diversity (ethnic and age) of this incredible, cosmopolitan place.
18. The audience was representative of the city's diversity as well.
19. The ideas ranged from bikes and fusion to food waste and urban design.  They were as diverse as the audience. 
20. Finally, the thing I think I love the most and am most proud of is that the people in the audience love this city.  Vancouver is something we all feel like fighting for.

Captain Marvel - Full of Surprises (12 of 12)

In the final issue of this volume of Captain Marvel, we get two characters on the verge of orgasm and then a complete shattering of the fourth wall.  As the last issue in this volume, the authors actually address issues of audience boredom.  Instead of a catastrophic finale, the stage is simply struck and the door closes.

This was some ground-breaking work in many ways.  I can't say I loved the story line or the characters, but I am impressed with the cultural changes the books included.

Captain Marvel - Full of Surprises (11)

sexual relationships that explore issues of dominance and submission

exploring gender fluidity and sexuality...this one is particularly interesting because a major character is interested in someone of ambiguous gender identity.

Operation Smile- Good times for a good cause

Fortune Sound/Chinatown Mall

Captain Marvel - Full of Surprises (10)

Captain Marvel continues to explore sexuality and references orgasm.  Whoa.

Captain Marvel - Full of Surprises (9)

A blossoming love affair between two characters of the same gender (again, 1999-2002)

A horny super-hero

Dinner at Tuc? Yes, please.

We had a reason to go out for a nice meal the other night, and we chose Tuc Craft Kitchen in Gastown.  There are a lot of good restaurants to choose from in Vancouver (and many of them just in Gastown), and we wanted to make sure our visitors got to experience some of the best that Vancouver had to offer.  Let's just say that we chose well.

Tuc was more than we expected.  The food was imaginative and beautifully prepared.  When I say beautiful, I mean both flavour and presentation.  The trout is a particularly good example of that. Somehow the kitchen took the trout and cooked it with beets so that the fish itself was a gorgeous ruby red colour.  The flavour was unlike any trout I have ever had, and I can't wait to try it again. Everyone in our group was impressed with the food.

Even the wine turned out to be great.  As much as I love my home and native land, Canadian wine is still hit or miss for me.  To be honest, it's more miss than hit actually, and I am always leery about ordering it.  The waiter recommended a bottle that was reasonably priced, and it turned out to be great.  Our guests, who had just arrived from Europe, couldn't believe it was Canadian.

Everything was complemented by the space.  It's not unique in its decor as it shares a lot in terms with style with other Gastown neighbours, but it shows the beautiful walls and wood of the old Gastown buildings and is filled with beautiful old things that accentuate the history of this incredible part of Vancouver.

The staff as well deserves a mention.  Nice restaurants, when they have good service, sometimes tend towards incredibly friendly but somewhat intrusive service.  Tuc seemed to get it just right.  Our waiter was really friendly and interested in both our food choices and us.  He managed to do this while never making us feel interrupted or that someone was hovering over us.  Like everything else, the service was a complement to the meal.

Tuc also participates in Mealshare, a social enterprise that provides meals to people in need in Canada or internationally.  The menu has several items with the Mealshare logo.  Each time one of those items is ordered, Tuc makes a contribution to Mealshare and someone gets a meal.  All fish is certified Ocean Wise as well to indicate that it is caught using sustainable fishing practices.

home at last

Captain Marvel - Full of Surprises (8)

This time gender roles and reference to penis size...

Captain Marvel - Full of Surprises (7)

Marlo and Moondragon discuss the objectification of women.
Though the title did plenty of objectifying, bringing it up was unusual to say the least.

Captain Marvel - Full of Surprises (6)

More sex, but this time it includes a reference to gay sex.  For the time, that was pretty risqué.

Prosthetics and Prostitutes: The A. Post

I have written before about the unit I taught on Governance and our final Constitutional Convention.  As a teacher, it's an exciting unit, and the Constitutional Convention, especially because it's the last big academic event of the year, is full of emotion.  I am invariably moved to tears at least once not only because I see in vivid, living colour just how much my students have changed but also because it's the last time I will see them as a group.  From that day forward, we're pretty much not a class anymore and I feel that looming over me as I call the Convention to order.  

This year was particularly poignant for me because I was leaving and because my class this past year was particularly close.  Several times, I had gotten choked up and felt lucky that I had my phone with me.  I could take pictures to simultaneously distract myself and not distract students who would otherwise have been wondering what was wrong with me.  I mean, after all, they weren't moved to tears by each other's speeches.  

One group of students from another class was making a speech about their ideal form of government.  To be honest, it was not the type of government I would choose.  The group was particularly concerned about security and the need for a very powerful military to defend against unnamed threats.  In their plan, mandatory military service would represent a commitment to the society and ensure the safety of citizens.

[Like I said before, students can and do choose wildly different government styles based on their personal beliefs and understanding of the structures and philosophies of government they study.  The key to the Convention is persuading other students that your way is the right way to govern and to live.]

Anyway, during a brief question and answer period that followed, a familiar hand shot up.  A. always had something to say that cut to the heart of the matter.  

"So you want everyone to be in the military?  That's more important than anything else?" 

"Yes, that's how we'll protect our society from outside threats," responded the presenter.  

"Okay," said A., "So let's say someone has an accident and loses his leg, and he gets a prostitute, will he have to be in the army too?" 

At this point, I have to step out of the story for just a moment.  This was a classic Grade 6 moment for so many reasons.  First, a sizeable percentage of students in the audience likely didn't know what a prostitute was.  You may find that hard to believe, but this is a special age during which kids (particularly in international schools) sometimes surprise you with both what they know and what they don't know.  

Second, for at least half the students in the room, A.'s question didn't register as anything out of the ordinary.  Sure they heard his words, but it doesn't mean they sunk in.  After all, would you expect someone to challenge a speaker on stage by bringing up getting a prostitute?  Not likely.  

Finally, for those students who did notice A.'s accidental word swap of prostitute for prosthetic, there were some nervous giggles and quick looks around the room.  If it had been Grade 8 or even Grade 7, students would have reacted immediately.  

Being the most mature person in the room, I was promptly consumed by convulsive bouts of laughter.  I tried to stifle them by covering my head in my hands.  As evidence for my claim that this moment embodied the awesomeness of Grade 6, there were immediately a few dozen students staring at me (not A.) asking, "What's wrong with him?  What happened?"  Hardly anyone had realised what had set me off.  

Someone, probably P. (also from the previous post), must have told Antonio what he actually said because when I managed to compose myself enough to look over at him, he was beet red and laughing.  

We finished the Constitutional Convention a bit later, but this was probably the most memorable moment of the day.  A. and his group had managed to capture for me what Grade 6 was all about - in fact, what teaching is all about.  Their ability to tie together their learning and their beliefs to describe what leadership should be was an intellectual high point.  'Getting a prostitute/prosthetic' captured all the other things I love about teaching - those ridiculous moments you share as a class that tie you together and the silly things we (teachers and students) do that make us laugh at ourselves.  

It was the perfect send-off.  Thanks, buddy.  

Captain Marvel - Full of Surprises (5)

Dumping my load...another sexual reference. 

Dear Mr. Mulcair and Mr. Trudeau, You may have to cooperate to save this country.

Dear Mr. Mulcair and Mr. Trudeau,

Over the weekend I read this Huffington Post article on the theoretical effects of different electoral systems on our upcoming elections.  On a theoretical level, this was interesting reading, but on a practical level, the article served as powerful reminder of my great fear regarding October's election. As leaders of two of our most important parties, you should (and probably already do) know that this fear is one likely shared by two-thirds of Canadians.

It is entirely possible that this election will not produce a clear winner.  You and your parties may defeat Stephen Harper's Tories in combined numbers and seats, but the Tories may end up with enough of both to form a minority government.  While this may highlight some problems with our electoral system, the most important thing to remember is that two-thirds of Canadians do not want, and in fact are terrified by, Harper's vision of Canada.  Your supporters have more in common with each other than they do with Stephen Harper's Conservatives.

We believe that the things we love about this country will not survive another Harper government.  We believe that our country needs to strengthen its institutions and adopt a new vision that will give Canadians a chance at a better future.  Some of us are orange through and through while others have deep red roots, but you must know that most of us would rather stand side-by-side than watch Stephen Harper squander our resources, pollute our environment, attack the poor, ignore First Nations, and undermine our civil liberties.

It may, after October 19th, be up to the two of you to set aside party differences to fight together for Canada.  This country matters far more than party platforms and policies.  I beg of you to consider cooperation if it becomes necessary.  In fact, if party differences result in a Harper victory, I don't think I will ever forgive you.

Captain Marvel - Full of Surprises (4)

Virginal comic book nerds...This Captain Marvel run included a fair number of self-referential nods to the world of comic fandom. 

Random Vancouver

Captain Marvel - Full of Surprises (3)

"This is the most incredible thing I've seen while I wasn't stoned."
This is the only reference to drug use I know of in mainstream comics.  There may be a female Thor, but this was more cutting edge than that. 

El Ardor - You Blew It With That Sex Scene

Last night I went to see El Ardor at the Vancouver Latin American Film Festival.  The festival has been great - good films that would otherwise be hard to see and really well organised.  El Ardor was the first film I have seen that I did not like.

Gael García Bernal, who I generally think is awesome, stars as a sort of shamanistic mystery man. Through most of the film, he happens to look like a Billabong model who just finished a sweaty hike. In the film he takes on a group of brutal men trying to evict poor farmers (through violence and intimidation) from their rainforest lands.  The movie is reminiscent in many ways of an early Clint Eastwood western - handsome stranger, villains, a woman in distress, and terse dialogue.  It just happens to have an element of mysticism and bit of a message about protecting the environment as well.

In general, the film was silly, but it truly fell apart for me about midway through.  The thugs evicting the farmers show up on the land of Gael García Bernal's friend.  They shoot (and seemingly kill) one man and then force the father/father-in-law to sign over his title to the land.  Meanwhile, García Bernal and Alice Braga (the female lead) are hiding in the house.  She emerges, gets captured, and has to watch while they murder her father (after he has signed the land over).

The three thugs then drag her off into the forest.  García Bernal uses his 'special skills' to save the husband/partner from the gunshot wound and then heads out into the forest to save the woman.  He rescues her (of course) just as she is about to be raped (of course).  They get away and spend the night in the forest, and in the morning Alice Braga's character wakes up feeling frisky (of course).

As is so common in situations like this (when you have just seen your partner seemingly murdered, watched your father hacked to death by machete, been kidnapped, and then almost raped), she just had to have sex with Gael García Bernal.  As I mentioned, he did look like a Billabong model, so that was probably what made him so irresistible.  I guess she felt like she was kind reclaiming her life by mounting García Bernal while he was still half asleep.  Sex is often the first thing people think about after surviving horrific violence and tragedy.

Right?

NOT!!!  What had been a slightly plodding Western had now lost me completely.  Pablo Fendrik (director), you blew it, buddy.  I sat through the rest, but let's just saw that el ardor no ardió.  Aguanté hasta el final.

Captain Marvel - Full of Surprises (2)

"She must be a basket case every month..."  The only time I have EVER seen menstruation referred to in comics. 

Captain Marvel - Full of Surprises

As mentioned before (probably quite a few times, actually), I read comics as a kid for a few years and then there was a long hiatus of about 20 years when I did not.  Thanks to the miracle of the internet, I have been able to read several long story arcs that were not only fun reading but important to the whole 'Marvel universe' thing.  The most recent one in this category was the Captain Marvel run from 1999-2002.

Reading this three year run was a fascinating glimpse into one of Marvel's early forays into a more mature and realistic look at the world.  Not only the storylines, but also the characters' actions and attitudes were much more reflective of the society inhabited by the book's readers.  Of course, they were still comics, where 99% of everything that happens defies logic, but characters were more human.  When my comic reading resumed around 2010, comics were not as 'innocent' as they had been in my childhood, but the patterns were still more or less the same.  When the openly gay character Northstar married in 2012, it was still a big deal.

Captain Marvel between 1999 and 2002, I realised, had broken a lot of ground.  Captain Marvel/Genis Vell goes crazy and slaughters millions of people (the first time to my knowledge that a hero character had committed heinous acts), there was an open lesbian relationship, there was heterosexual sex, and there was even a reference to a woman having her period (maybe the most shocking thing of all oddly enough).  I don't know what happened after 2002, but it seems like comics lost ground and are only now gaining it back.

In this and subsequent posts are some of the pages that stood out for the 'groundbreaking' bits of those years.  

Rick and Marlo not only have sex but also clearly enjoy it. 

Two other minor characters 'do it' too.

Art in the neighbourhood (5)

Art in the neighbourhood (4)

Art in the neighbourhood (3)

Art in the neighbourhood (2)

There is beautiful work everywhere.

Art in the neighbourhood (1)

Liquids and Solids

  

Aside from having one of the best signs and logos I have seen anywhere recently, liquids + solids is a great place for soup and sandwiches.  I got lucky finding the place - just wandering around Strathcona Village in East Vancouver when I smelled something delicious.  I followed my nose and ended up under this sign (which, other than the fact that it looks like a seagull was using it for target practice, is a pretty good indication of how I felt when I tried my soup.  I don't even know what I would recommend at this point because it all looked good.  Since I've only been once, one of my future projects will have to be deciding on my favourites.  Hard work.  

The staff is super friendly.  The day I went in, there was a very young member of the staff taking orders at the counter, and he was a consummate pro.  As cold, wet weather approaches, I have a feeling I'll be spending more time sitting down for soup here. 

It's All Part of the VAG

My new favourite art museum/gallery is the Vancouver Art Gallery.  Great exhibits of work by Geoffrey Farmer and Italian masters. 

I've never wanted to join a museum before, but it seems fitting since I am on theBside now. 

Reflections

Zombie Walk - Vancouver, 5/8/2015

Once a year, my new home is invaded by zombies. Wish someone had told me before.