1. Adrienne Linenberger
Online Activity 1
TCI 537: BridgingTechnology Gaps
November 20, 2010

2. Dr. Mizuko Ito
aka: Mimi Ito
Cultural Anthropologist
ofTechnology Use

3. Mimi Ito: Bio
 Cultural Anthropologist
 Focus onYouth’s changing
relationships to media and
communication
 International expert on Mobile
Technologies and new digital
media in everyday life
 Professor In Residence,
Department of Anthropology
and Department of
Informatics at the University
of California, Irvine

4. Mimi Ito: Author
 Collaborative Author:
Hanging out, Messing
Around, and Geeking Out:
Kids Living and Learning
with New Media
 Co-editor: Personal,
Portable, Pedestrian: Mobile
Phones in Japanese Life
 Author: Engineering Play: A
Cultural History of Children’s
Software

5. Mimi Ito: Project
 Co-led the DigitalYouth
Project, a study of ways youth
use new media
 How kids engage with and play
with new media in their
everyday lives
 How digital technologies are
changing the way young people
learn, play, socialize and
participate in civic life

6. DigitalYouth Project
 A 3-year ethnographic study of
what kids are doing with new
media
 Focus on: Gaming, Online
Communication, Digital Media
Production
 Goal: to understand the
online/digital world from a youth-
centered perspective
 Based on Social and recreational
life of kids, not at school

7. 3 Main Categories of Engagement:
(In terms of every day activity)
Hanging Out
Messing Around
Geeking Out

8. Hanging Out
Friendship-driven activity
A lot of learning going on
Social behavior, getting along w/ friends,
learning lessons about popularity,
romance
Examples: Myspace, Facebook,Texting,
IM

9. Generation Gap Issues
 Parents uncertain of value of it
 Adults frightened about potential
trouble online
 Peer group interaction is a major
motivator
 Parents need to become fluent in
online communication

10. Messing Around
 Peer-based, self-directed learning
online
 Trying out new forms of media online
 Developing technical and media
literacy through trial and error
 Examples: creating videos or games,
customizing personal pages, sharing
and receiving feedback online

11. Generation Gap
 Adults are uncertain of value
 Parents don’t recognize the
learning
 Concerns with legality of Copyright
issues: file sharing, remix, mash-
ups
 Adult lack of knowledge hinders
creative support of learning

12. Geeking Out
 Interest-driven activity
 Specialized interests to pursue self-
directed learning around things they are
passionate about
 Online resources offer communities of
interest and expertise
 Collaborative relationships: writing,
video editing, gaming

13. Generation Gap
 Adults have a more active role to play
 Adults need to learn how to value and support
this kind of learning
 There are little to no models for supporting
interests in such specialized programs like video
editing, music making, etc.
 Need a shift in collaborative activities as a family
(e.g. family web pages, gaming interests)

14. Conclusions
 Set social norms for kids to follow that are realistic with
technology
 Technology in education is not just about transforming
school practice but understanding the needs of youth
 Support productive learning through digital media by
understanding how kids are learning
 New parent challenge: How to monitor and mentor in ways
that aren’t oppressive to kids
 Kids need guidance in working through social development
in their world

15. References
 BigThinkers: Mimi Ito on learning with new media, George
Lucas Educational Foundation, 2009.
 Mizuko Ito and others, Hanging Out, Messing Around, and
Geeking Out: Living and Learning with New Media
(Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 2009.
 Living and Learning with New Media: Summary of
Findings from the DigitalYouth Project, Digital Media and
Learning, 2008

16. Technology InThe Classroom
Technology
in the
Classroom
Online
Textbooks
Netvibes
Wikis
Challenge
Based
Learning
Teacher
Blogs
Student
Blogs
Voice
Threads
Interactive
White
Boards
1:1
Personal
Devises