Participatory Culture of Henry Jenkins - Essay Example

Critical Response – Participatory Culture of Henry Jenkins The ideas and concepts illustrated by Henry Jenkins begin with a of optimism that encourage the youth of today to engage in what he calls as ‘participatory culture’ and proceeds to expand on this by relating it to literacy. Jenkins does not vacillate or stumble with his approach or the concept that redefines literacy and takes it to new standards. The crux of his idea is that literacy in the 21st century should be measured as a social or group skill rather than subjective. In short, he has tried to unravel that, whether it is knowledge or education, it should be shared and spread in the present times with the help of different tools that he describes as aids; however, he has also reiterated that incorporating new ideas or methodologies in an effort to make literacy more viable and accessible does not mean that traditional ideas should be refuted in any manner or with a motive, which is virtually irrelevant. Thus, the idea of Jenkins, which says “the new media literacies should be seen as social skills, as ways of interacting within a larger community, and not simply an individualized skill to be used for personal expression” (Jenkins 98) opens new opportunities although it might hurt the sentiments of people belonging to the old school of thought. The point that is to be appreciated in the concept is that Jenkins has begun explaining his ideas in an extremely lucid manner that pervades the humdrum of all those concepts that are familiar in everyday life. Although, he has entered into a sensitive arena such as literacy and education, Jenkins has tried to maintain a strain of sanguinity throughout the paper. His primary intention is to convince his readers that education is a much broader term and its utilization should not be restrained or limited; rather, the new means of communication can be used for diminishing the cross-cultural barriers that often detains the true purpose of education, which is illustrated in the following lines: “We must integrate these new knowledge cultures into our schools, not only through group work but also through long-distance collaborations across different learning communities. Students should discover what it is like to contribute their own expertise to a process that involves many intelligences, a process they encounter readily in their participation in fan discussion lists or blogging” (Jenkins 98). Thus, the goodness of modern media and the advancements in the world of technology should bring such changes that are truly munificent. Jenkins then goes on to expand on “participatory culture” by talking about the significance of play and the ways in which it can mould the relationship of children with themselves and their surroundings. According to Jenkins, objects of play can be used for regulating the learning capacity of a child. For instance, a child’s capacity to grasp knowledge reflects during childhood or even during the later years. As Jenkins says: “Most of children’s earliest learning comes through playing with the materials at hand. Through play, children try on roles, experiment with culturally central processes, manipulate core resources and explore their immediate environments. As they grow older, play can motivate other forms of learning” (Jenkins 99). At the same time it cannot be said that this idea is a revelation as most play schools or the institutions for toddlers implement more practical tools for learning rather than the theoretical elements. The fact as stated by Jenkins that play is a precious aid and help children during different stages from childhood is innovative or contemporary, although it is not a completely new concept. As a matter of fact, it is another run-of-the-mill concept to be more precise. On the other hand, it is difficult to agree to the fact that “contemporary video games allow youth to play with sophisticated simulation and, in the process, to develop an intuitive understanding of how we might use simulations to test our assumptions about the way the world works” (Jenkins 101) Furthermore, the discussion that follows about the inclination of children towards role play that are essentially related to the characters of their play indicates the level of understanding as exhibited by them or how much can be grasped by each child. The concept of Appropriation as illustrated by Jenkins in which an individual has the independence to analyze various concepts or objects before offering an explanation for the same is undoubtedly intriguing; at the same time the sensibility and functional part of this concept leaves in with some doubts such as expressed in a few lines: “to focus more attention on description or exposition if they can build on existing characters and plots. They learn how to capture the voice of the character by trying to mix borrowed dialog with their own words”. Apparently, the ideas stated above seem to be out of place even if for a while and things become clear only after repeated readings or putting genuine efforts to understand the subject. However, in this process, Jenkins has not been able to explain the logic in order to make people aware about the collective intelligence. Throughout this paper about “participatory culture” the examples quoted by Jenkins could have been simpler irrespective of the convincing approach that is clearly revealed by him from the beginning. The changing tides of fortune affect each individual to a great extent has also been mentioned in this paper. Jenkins has tried to establish time and again that education and learning must never be meant for an individual; rather the effects should be far-reaching. Along with this, learning is identified by Jenkins as a comprehensive process in which people become familiar with each other and their cultures without any restriction. Therefore, the social networks that are prevalent in the society can also be utilized for better opportunities. In the current scenario, when trivial things seem complicated to many people, a discussion on different approaches and perspectives that aids in shaping the future of individuals across the globe is undoubtedly fascinating. The creation of a new form of literacy and education that Jenkins has tried to establish in this paper captivates the mind of the readers on the one hand although it is difficult to prove that his concept and understanding of education and literacy is unique. As a matter of fact, it is a good effort by the author and his ideas are noble without any scope of doubt and good for all those people who are extreme narcissists when it comes to literacy and education. References Jenkins Henry, Confronting the Challenges of Participatory Culture, 2009, USA. Read More