Our Gear No Longer Makes Us Special--So What Does?

Remember when…

The A/V Club was the domain of techy nerds in the 1950s and 60s.  They got to set up the projectors and thread actual spools of film through them so classes could watch educational movies. Some of those flicks were just awful—let’s not even talk about health class—but it was a little bit of magic in the classroom thanks to audio and video.

Present Day…

Fast forward (see what I did there) to present day, when most schools have actual broadcast or video production classes, complete with studios, cameras, laptops, software, and the ability put their work online for all to see.  Techy nerds are no longer special.  They are all around us.  Heck, they are us.

The Cool Factor has disappeared…

And that’s my point.  A/V is nothing special anymore.  The gear is everywhere.  We have HD devices with us 24/7, cell phones that get great video and decent audio.  I can shoot and even edit on my iPhone.  I don’t want to—I prefer using my phone as a phone—but you get my point.  Just being the class with all the shiny video equipment, cool as it is, may not impress teens as much as we think.  

Why your teaching really matters…

So if having all these digital devices does not make me, the high and mighty Keeper of the Cool Toys, anything special, what does?  Simple:  Story.

It makes you so valuable…

You teach story, and that is key to your students’ success as they utilize all that technology and software wizardry.  Concentrate on those storytelling skills you can infuse in your kids.  Insist on beginning-middle-end.  Make them write conversationally.  Discuss “focus” and how to narrow it.  Be the story resource, not just the Keeper of the Cool Toys.  

Those A/V clubs are a thing of the past.  But story telling will never die.