Throughout
seven weeks of the winter semester, my online Composition II students completed
online activist activities that corresponded with the problem/solution essay
they were researching and writing. At the end, I asked that they write a
reflection on what they discovered and how successful they felt they were.
The writing prompt:
Throughout almost half the semester, we engaged in online
activities designed to promote a cause and bring about awareness and change.
Now we are going to reflect on our experience, discussing what we learned about
online activism.
Introduction:
In your introduction you want to describe your cause
and what you wanted to achieve through your online activist activities. End
with a thesis statement that discusses what you learned, what opinions you
formed, and how successful your endeavors were.
Body paragraphs:
Make at least three claims that support your thesis
statement. Back up those claims with specific examples and analysis of those
examples.
Conclusion:
In your conclusion, look to the
future. Do you think you’ll use these skills again? Do you feel that these
skills empower you to create change in the world?
I tried not to be too leading in my writing prompt. If I
were to change anything about the prompt, it would be to emphasize that both
positive and negative opinions regarding online activism were acceptable if they
were able to support those opinions with their own observations and
experiences. However, based on the mix of feedback I received and the discussion
of the assignment in my student feedback forms for the class, I don't think
most of the students were simply feeding me the answers they thought I wanted
to hear. It is always a worry when a reflection like this is tied to a grade.
For the most part, students seemed empowered by the process and were
surprised by how social media could be used for more than sharing personal
feelings and celebrity gossip. One student, who was advocating for animal
writes, wrote, "I used Twitter for my awareness and was blown away by how
many other people were behind the same cause. Seeing new posts everyday about a
dog or cat needing a new home made me determined to spread the word... Communicating
with others over the internet allowed me to learn about all the cruelty that
happens with animals. For instance, I read posts and saw photos about grizzly
bears being strapped in jets and ejected to see if the systems worked. Using
Twitter in this way opened my eyes to things that were going on that I’d never
heard of. I began to read articles from
other countries and became acquainted with organizations from around the world.
My passion for fighting for animals grew even stronger." Many students had
similar reactions of surprise and noted how much Twitter actually helped them
with researching their topic.
Most students defended
their feelings of empowerment by making statements about "making one
person aware." Some, though, felt discouraged by the difficulty of
gathering a large audience or getting people to comment on their work. It's not
enough to simply Tweet facts or begin a blog. The most successful online
activist in the class utilized his Facebook network to create an activist group
of 400 members, which led to a successful online petition that garnered support
from all over the world. It's not enough to have a voice, you need to have a
network. As one student wrote, "In doing
this project, I found out that getting your name out there, and networking with
other bloggers or tweeters like you is very important. With tweeting it can be
as simple as mentioning someone in a tweet, and they will most likely respond
to you. On Twitter, I learned how easy it is to connect with someone, even if
they live across the world or are famous. And that is why I think it is
important we did this project, because it taught us that we can connect with
people all around the world, and have our voice heard."
Overall,
I feel that I seen enough benefits this semester to continue this assignment.
However, I have realized based on the feedback of my students that I need to
have this be a full-semester project with more training on building a network.
The only hesitation, and why I began this project with caution, is that some
students have a very set negative opinions on sites like Twitter and Facebook. Those
opinions roadblock the effort they put into the project and become a
self-fulfilling prophecy. Online activism only works with time and effort. This was something a number of students noted
in their reflections.
