11-29: Convergence Culture

In reading the last part of Convergence Culture for today's class, I became interested in Jenkins' discussion of democracy and its intersections with teaching composition in a New Media age. New Media and convergence culture effects education and what happens in the classroom as much as it effects us in our daily lives. Sometimes, it can seem as if we, as English instructors, are powerless in the face of this convergence. I first noticed this when I found myself interrogating my own cell phone and texting policies in my syllabus. They were there the first few years that I taught college English, but, rather recently, I decided to take them out entirely. Once I realized students were taking pictures of notes on the board with their iPhones and using the Internet to quickly search for information related to a topic we were discussing in class, I realized that it was a bit hypocritical for me to continue with these policies. Afterall, the incorporation of this type of New Media in my classroom was bringing a sense of democracy and community that did not previously exist.

Jenkins' states that "digital democracy"--the subject of his sixth chapter--will result in "a changed sense of participation, less dependence on official expertise, and a greater trust in collaborative problem solving" (220). As a composition instructor who values these shifts in the composition classroom, I sure hope so. Jenkins also issues a call to action: "We need to confront the social, cultural, and political protocols that surround the technology and define how it will get used." I believe this is the most important point of entry in his text for composition instructors: the option of changing the way we teach and the way students learn within a convergence culture by deciding--with students--how we can use it paves the way for democratizing the composition classroom in ways not previously discussed within composition theory.