Suchergebnisse

This paper intends to present and reflect upon some of the findings emerging from a research project entitled "Navigating with 'Magalhães': Study on the Impact of Digital Media on Schoolchildren" that was conducted at the Communication and Society Research Centre at the University of Minho, Braga, Portugal. The project focused on the politics of the governmental programme "One Laptop per Child" part of the Portuguese Technological Plan for Education, and the uses of the "Magalhães" computer, and other media, by children aged 8-10 years. This paper analyses the impact of this particular public policy on digital literacy of young children based mostly on the perspectives of parents and their modes of mediation. It also debates parents' and children's perspectives on parental rules on computer and Internet usage. It ends by concluding that the impact of this programme occurred mainly at the level of access rather than the social and educational uses and practices. It also highlights the importance of family in the way children access and use ICT. ; The project, conducted at the Communication and Society Research Centre at the University of Minho, Portugal, was supported by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology under Grant number PTDC/CCI-COM/101381/2008 and co-funded by the European Regional Development Fund [COMPETE: ...

This thesis describes a study that examined the creation of a theatrical commons that aimed to broaden and deepen democratic engagement among diverse citizens in one public school community. The researcher considered how Forum and Image Theatre (Boal,1979, 1995, 1998, 2002; Diamond,2007) help people to name and invent different possibilities to address complex school community challenges at an individual and community level. It involved former refugee youth, guardians, parents and the general public as they critiqued the potential of a theatrical commons to represent their voices which are at times, marginalized from decisions made in the community and at a policy level. This participatory action research project drew heavily on the theatrical imaginations of Augusto Boal and David Diamond. The aims of this work were grounded in critical theory (Apple, 2008 & 2009; Chomsky, 2000; Freire, 2008; Furman & Gruenwald, 2004; Giroux, 2008; Kincheloe & McLaren, 2005). The study itself was divided into three phases: the participants' identification of a community problem that was of great importance to them (phase 1), a workshop series that sought to explore the tensions and complexities embedded in the community dilemma, (phase 2), and a performance by the participants in a Forum Theatre event (phase 3) that invited members of a school community to imagine new possibilities for addressing a community problem. Participants were invited to reflect critically on the ability of Image and Forum Theatre to ignite critical dialogue in a diverse school community. The study's findings indicate that space was created for participants to raise their voices in the following ways: (1) The participants defined the social justice issue that informed the workshops and the play; (2) Image theatre troubled the hegemony of the English language; (3) The participants defined, scripted and shared their struggles in the wider community; (4) Numerous opportunities occurred in the study that provoked multiple interpretations of ...