‘Social-networking’ is the practice of interconnecting several individuals
from all over the world that share one or more similar interests. When the space of interaction is not physical
but virtual then the process could be described as ‘online-social-networking’. In the online version, a website is
always needed, in order to offer several sophisticated services, like real-time
chat, photo tagging, image sharing, space for the creation of a personal
profile, etc (Gunawardena et al, 2009).
In
relation to my setting, I’ve distinguished the website www.deviantart.com that could fit into
my practice and according to the owners is the largest online community of
artists and art enthusiasts in the world.
How it could
fit into my practice:
Social-networking media could enrich and modernize the
course of architectural drawing with new tools and practices, promote net-based
dialogue and allow multiple voices and conflicting perspectives to be heard.
More specifically, students could co-create a ‘virtual’ community, upload their
selected artwork, create collective galleries, exhibit and talk about their
work, discuss an issue of interest, ask and give help, participate in thematic
groups, comment on other’s artworks, etc.
What I expect
from this action
01. To extend
student’s learning outside school boundaries:
A learning place can be hybrid, ‘in-between’, physical or not physical,
formal or informal, with blurred boundaries that extend beyond the formal
school. The online-social-networks allow participation in intersecting
communities, encouraging students to break the boundaries of the particular
institution and start connecting with peers from other institutions and/or with
other professional artists.
02. To develop student’s
metacognitive and self-assessment abilities
The process of selecting artwork for public
exhibition requires a reflection on personal criteria, on what to include in
the gallery and consequently develops students’ self-assessment abilities. Usually,
students supplement their work with public statements of with reflective texts,
projecting and reifying by this their meaning to the world and to themselves. Under each artwork, a net-dialogue is frequently established with
explanatory, favorable or disapproving comments, while this reciprocal process
of exploring each other’s reasoning and viewpoints is essential in the
construction of a shared meaning.
03. To extend students’
learning experiences by enriching practice with new tools:
Due to the development of the web, the paradigms for
learning have already evolved beyond traditional classroom models towards new
models of learning (synchronous/asynchronous, virtual, interactive, etc). Accordingly, the access to all these new tools has the
potential to enrich students’ learning experiences. Yet, the change and the benefits from the use of new
tools, such as the social-networking media and the digital portfolio, is not
expected to be sudden but rather gradual, and from the simple and ‘hesitant’
use towards the deeper exploration of the new learning potentials.
Ethical
consideration
Since
students will be asked to publish their work in public, then the following ethical
issues should be considered and discussed with them:
-
Whether the content will be visible to anyone or to a limited audience
- Whether
discouraging criticism would be accepted
-Whether the instructor will participate in the community and under what
authority (supporter, observer, assessor, etc).
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| Snapshot from deviantart |
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