Final Vision Project Scope: I want to be like Kevin Bacon

Now before you go judging my blog by its title, I want to explain myself. I have made no secret about the fact that I know a mere drop in the proverbial bucket when it comes to technology, but I am trying to learn more and be more open to incorporating it into my life and future teaching pedagogy.

As I am not in a classroom at this time, and unable to practice what I have been discovering, it is difficult to imagine what a 21st Century Classroom would look like, and the reality of creating a project that I could then put into action is slightly unrealistic. So I was left to ponder the ways in which I might be able to share my Vision of the Future for Teacher-Librarianship.

Part of my pondering involves brainstorming, which then leads me to search out visuals that might help with my brainstorming, which leads to YouTube...and to make a long story short, I found an exceptional TedxMidwest video of Kevin Bacon talking about the process that he went through when he developed a charitable foundation through the use of the internet and utilizing the infamy of the game named after him: Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon. He is candid, humorous, and honest in discussing how he had a vision for this project, but he knew next to nothing about philanthropy.  Kevin shares how he wanted to do something that was meaningful, the collaborative process he experienced with people of a like mind who had more knowledge on the subject, not wanting to be considered a joke amongst his peers, his failures that led to his triumphs, and how he wanted a feeling of connectivity to be maintained as a result of his foundation/project. 

This is almost a carbon copy of how I’m feeling, except substitute charitable foundation for technology/Web 2.0 tools, and becoming an expert in using them; trying to think of something that I could see myself becoming an expert on leads me back to visuals. I understand them, I utilize them in many different areas of my life, and I feel excited when I find one that is informative, connected, and invaluable.  There are so many possibilities for creating an impactful visual, but I can’t even pretend to consider any of them when I am so fixated on infographics right now.  I can’t even describe how thrilled I am at finding infographics that relate to topics I have to blog about, and even when I find some that have nothing to do with any particular subject matter I am looking for, but capture my interest anyway.  I have even started a board on my Pinterest account dedicated to infographics!! Don’t get me started on how excited I was to find that Pinterest even had them!

Needless to say, creating an infographic will be an exciting adventure, one that will mirror a bit of what Kevin Bacon went through, and I’m hoping that I can be just like him, in that I am able to successfully take my vision from a concept to a reality, and one that will resonate with some, make others think, and hopefully become a useful tool for many.  I’m not too sure who my audience will be right now, if I want this for fellow TLs, teachers, students, parents, administrators, or the whole school community, but as I have decided to focus on Digital Literacy, I will narrow my scope through my research, and decide who the target audience will be based on that.

Please watch the Kevin Bacon video below, I promise that you will find it interesting and informative J

References:

YouTube. "Kevin Bacon at TEDxMidwest". Retrieved from YouTube March 26, 2014 from:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n9u-TITxwoM .