Read and Compare: Literacy Narratives

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Multimedia Literacy Autobiography

Feb 19

I am a firm believer that we come into contact with different books during specific parts of our lives for a reason, as cheesy as it sounds. Different stages of our lives require us to learn new lessons and grow as individuals, taking the experiences of the characters with us and escaping into their worlds as a release. Technology has a similar effect on our lives, helping us to communicate new ideas, stay in contact with loved ones, as well as take us out of our comfort zones to expose parts of ourselves we didn’t know were possible. The integration of multimedia through both literature and technology has influenced my behavior, choices and attitude toward almost every aspect of my life, improving my multimedia literacy to a level that has never been possible in past years.

The Early Years

As funny as it sounds, I cannot remember my first interaction with technology. As far back as I can remember I was surrounded by books, telephones, televisions, computers and other emerging technologies. My mother, being an elementary educator, always read to me; I loved hearing the adventures within the bright and colorful books and had trouble quieting my mind after hearing such riveting tales. Having two older sisters also lead to more reading time, and I have come across numerous pictures of my sisters dressing me up, doing my hair, and reading me their favorite books. My father was always the more technologically savvy person of our household; he always had access to a computer, and this exposure at such a young age helped to spark my interest in these emerging technologies and the integration of multimedia in today’s society.

As a child, I always busied myself with schoolwork and other educational activities. I loved the challenge of learning new things and being exposed to new technologies.

After my parents got divorced, I remember wanting to be the best I could be in everything I did. Whenever a new challenge presented itself, I wanted to be the first to be done, and be the best at it. In kindergarten and first grade, I was already ahead of my class, leaving the room to work with advanced reading specialists and getting the opportunity to read the books I wanted. Soon I was able to move on to chapter books, going through series such as A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket, the Harry Potter series by JK Rowling. Even though I loved reading, I enjoyed being read to even more; I would often read out loud to myself during SSR (Sustained Silent Reading), often being asked to lower my voice after becoming so engaged with the reading. As I progressed through elementary and intermediate school, Accelerated Reader and other reading activities became more prominent and important for student success. I quickly lost my love for reading since it was a necessity to complete, altering my interests and hobbies to technology and multimedia interaction.

After completing fourth grade, my mother and I took a chance at moving a whopping 30 miles away from our hometown to where she had been teaching for the past few years: Liberal, Kansas. I struggled to make friends in the new schools and quickly only focused on my schoolwork. I was quickly introduced to newer technology, such as CPS systems to complete quizzes, tests and even class polls with ease and convenience. I also remember teachers using the older overhead projectors to project notes to the class, using different colored markers and drawing examples for everyone to see.

The Harry Potter series helped to reawaken my love for literature, expanding my ideas of creativity, and enhancing my abilities to connect with characters such as the infamous Hermione Granger.

After years of hatred and annoyance with reading, the Harry Potter series reawakened my imagination and now love for literature, specifically “novel-esque” stories. I felt that I connected with the series, feeling that my bushy hair, big smile and smarts made me the perfect Hermione Granger, looking constantly for my Ron Weasley and Harry Potter to complete the trio. Throughout my middle school and high school years, I always went back to the series, rereading the books every summer and always being able to pick up where I left off. After finding this series, I expanded to the Twilight and Hunger Games series throughout high school and college, not being able to put the books down and constantly projecting myself into the heroines of the series.

The Middle and Ever-Popular Awkward Years

West Middle School was the first place I was introduced to my own personal technology. My first cell phone had almost no data for text messaging and was the oldest possible version of a Nokia phone that you can imagine. I can remember thinking my phone was the hottest commodity at school, eventually upgrading to a Krazr, Blackberry, Samsung, and eventually an iPhone. My mp3 player was also something I held in high regard, with my love for music and need for constant noise no matter what task or assignment I was completing. Since these first technologies, I have never gone without some form of phone, mp3 player, and pocket organizer, now all available on a single device.

As Co-Editor-in-Chief of my high school yearbook for two years, I was exposed to various elements of multimedia, leading to my love and passion for journalism and strategic communication.

Throughout middle and high school, I became interested in Yearbook classes and the idea of creating something that students will hold on to for the rest of their lives. In addition, I began coming out of my shell more than ever, and I was quickly introduced to different computer programs in order to create and edit content for my multimedia and other journalism classes. My interest in journalism and creative projects continued throughout my years in high school, becoming familiar with programs such as Adobe InDesign, Photoshop, and even specialized software from our publishers of Taylor and Jostens.

The Later, More Mature Years

The first work I remember reading that truly impacted me was Shakespeare’s Othello during my Senior year of high school. I have always thrived in English classes, hence my declared major in English literature in college. I felt like I was the only person in class that could dissect and understand Shakespeare’s infamous iambic pentameter and the loved the challenge presented in decoding his texts. I have returned again and again to this story throughout college, and even chose my Shakespeare memorization assignment from this particular work ( Othello’s Final Speech), as well as during a persuasive speech in my communications course. The story is one that truly hit me: the jealousy, betrayal, and overall dynamic between the characters is something that only Shakespeare can produce and it truly changed my mind on literature and its affect on audience, no matter the time it was written and the time it is being interpreted.

Fitzgerald’s Gatsby captivated my interest in modern American novels, leading to my passion for literature and admiration for writers of that time period.etween the characters is something only Shakespeare can produce and it truly changed my mind about literature and its affect on people.

In college, I was able to skip the beginning composition classes, and move right into an Introduction to Fiction class, which introduced me to my now favorite books and authors. I immediately fell in love with Hemingway and Fitzgerald’s works The Sun Also Rises and The Great Gatsby, not only because of the novels’ content, but also the period in which the books were written. After learning about the time when the books were written, I became instantly interested in the nostalgia of Paris in the 1920s and the life of glamor and art that surrounded the greats of that time.

In addition, my integration of multimedia hit new heights with the declaration of my Journalism major and the necessary tasks needed to complete projects such as recording and editing video and radio spots, creating print ads, and developing successful strategic messages. I thrive on communication and love the ideas and research behind advertising and public relations. I also currently monitor and add content to the Student Alumni Association’s Twitter and Facebook pages, having recently launched Pinterest and Instagram accounts, as well as being employed as a Senior Account Executive for The University Daily Kansan.

Literacy, in both text and multimedia has influenced my life in ways that I never thought possible. After embracing my love for reading and the necessity of technology in development and growth, I was able to explore new possibilities and eventually find my passion for both literature and journalism. Without these experiences, I would most likely still be a lost, undeclared major trying to find my place at The University of Kansas. Instead, I am more ready than ever to graduate and move out into the real world with experience and expertise in all aspects of multimedia literacy.

Read and Compare: Literacy Narratives

Multimedia Literacy Autobiography

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