Introduction to NDM

1) Read the first two articles. Write one paragraph on each summing up the key aspects.
The first article was written by a researcher who visited a British school for a year, intent on finding out more about the online habits of teenagers and how this affects their home lives and their education. During his research, he discovered that the concerns that teachers generally seem to have about their students' online activity are usually unnecessary as he found nothing that was evident of activity deemed dangerous to the students or other people. He also observed teachers attempting to further engage their pupils by incorporating elements of popular culture in their teaching e.g. "role models from the media dotted the classroom walls." Having said that, he also noted that a lot of the methods in trying to get the pupils to involve themselves with the media in school appeared to be the complete opposite of what their engagement with the media would be at home.

The second article revolved around 'Periscope', a new app from 2016 that enabled anyone to broadcast a live-stream of what they were doing for anyone to watch.

The article argues that although it allows people to connect with and share experiences with others from around the world in a matter of seconds, it also risks the infringement of people's privacy, leaving them vulnerable and susceptible to potential stalkers and people with intentions other than simply wanting to share a live virtual experience.

2) Now read the A2 A* essay. Why do you think it was so successful? 

One of the ways this essay is successful is its frequent use of arguing both the positives and negatives of Spotify and explaining each argument in detail. It does this by stating the benefits of having a platform from which anyone can access free music, including a quote from Spotify itself saying you can access music 'whenever you want it' but it then goes on to say that without WiFi, unless you have downloaded the music, (which you can only do once you've paid for a premium account) that quote is essentially a lie to Spotify's customers. By arguing both sides of Spotify's policies, this essay is very successful because as well as being informative, it also allows readers to form their own opinion of the issue. The writer also uses various quotes and makes reference to several media theories including the 'Hypodermic Needle'.

3) Finally, answer this question in a well developed paragraph on your blog: How has digital media changed your life in the last 5 years (for positive or negative)?

I think for the most part, it has affected my life in a very positive way as I've been able to re-connect with people from my childhood who, without digital media, I hadn't spoken to in years and probably would have never spoken to again. Similarly it allows me to stay in regular contact with family/friends that live too far away for me to see in person much more than once every two years. However, I have unfortunately also been on the receiving end of people taking advantage of the safety behind a screen multiple times so that was definitely a reason for me avoiding getting Facebook, which I didn't get until I was 15, a lot later than most of my peers who I knew had had it from the age of around 10.