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Objectives
On completion of this activity, you will be able to:
- define key concepts pertaining to remix literacy
- discuss the importance of remix literacy nowadays
- understand the challenges of remix culture
Introduction
Perhaps the most well-known definition of a remix is what the Collins Dictionary defines as “a new version of a piece of music which has been created by putting together the individual instrumental and vocal parts in a different way”.
In a broader sense (Wikipedia definition), a remix is an “alternative version of a recorded work”: it is “a piece of media which has been altered from its original state by adding, removing, and/or changing pieces of the item. A song, piece of artwork, book, video, or photograph can all be remixes. The only characteristic of a remix is that it appropriates and changes other materials to create something new“. Related terms are Bricolage, Hybrid, Mash-up.
“Nothing is original”, says Kirby Ferguson, creator of Everything is a Remix. From Bob Dylan to Steve Jobs, he says “our most celebrated creators borrow, steal and transform.” (See below, Embrace the remix, Kirby Ferguson).
Remix culture vs. Read-only culture
Remix culture has different definitions. Lawrence Lessig defines it as a read/write culture, as opposed to a read-only culture: “Read/Write (RW) culture is a culture where people participate in the creation and the re-creation of their culture. Read-only (RO) culture is a culture where creativity is consumed but not created by the consumer”. (See below, Laws that choke creativity, Lawrence Lessig).
This video from Audiopedia (a free service targeted to blind and visually-impaired internet users that helps them learn from Wikipedia) offers a visual definition of remix culture and explains the challenges it faces:
What is Remix culture?
For Dudeney, Hockly and Pegrum (2014: 36), “Nowadays we’re called on to do much more than simply copy or critique past models: rather, we can contribute our own meanings to an increasingly fluid knowledge environment, often by building on other’s texts and building in our own critique as we do so”.
Remix in the digital era
It is accepted that remix has not simply emerged with digitization, far from it (Lankshear and Knobel, 2008). If anything, remix was the norm before the advent of print (see Pettitt’s theory of the Gutenberg Parenthesis, 2007).
In that context, “the Internet is the opportunity to revive the RW culture” (Lessig), with “people taking and recreating, using other people’s content, using different technologies to say things differently”. He argues that that technique has been democratised, and that anybody with a computer “can take sounds and images from the culture around us and use it to say things differently. These tools of creativity have become tools of speech. It is a literacy for this [new] generation”.
Dudeney, Hockly and Pegrum (2014: 36) define this macroliteracy (drawing on all other literacies) as
“the ability to create new meaning by sampling, modifying and/or combining pre-existing texts and artefacts, as well as circulating, interpreting, responding to and building on others’ remixes within digital networks”.
Remix literacy for language learning
How does remix literacy impact your language learning? In a big way! Because “every time you are given a new tool, it gives you a different way of impacting around the world”; “we are immersing ourselves in a slightly different culture”. (See below, Doug Belshaw, The essential elements of digital literacies).
Indeed, “remix education empowers learners and students to express themselves thoughts through “recycled” culture and media, using preexisting objects—including music and video—as the building blocks for their own unique point of view” (
However, it doesn’t come without its challenges, such as in particular:
- “negative propaganda” (The Net delusion, The Dark Side of Internet Freedom, Mozorov, 2011 – see below).
- copyright or plagiarism.
In typical educational contexts, students’ powers of critique and creativity are hemmed in by institutional fears over copyright and plagiarism (Dudeney, Hockly and Pegrum (2014: 39)). It is thus essential for educators, as well as students, to refine their understanding of fair use.
Copyright and fair use animation (Common Sense Education)
Test your knowledge!
Related activities
| Context of use | ID | Title | Related themes | Languages |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DL-D-R-001-C | Remix literacy, what is it? | EN, FR | ||
| Independent learning | ||||
| DL-D-R-002-S | Remix literacy, what is it? | EN, FR | ||
| Activities for the classroom | ||||
| DL-D-R-003-A | Generating memes | EN, FR | ||
| DL-D-R-004-A | Remixing a silent movie with Peanut Gallery | EN, FR | ||
Source/attribution: Digilanguages. Author: Johanna Keogh
<br />
ObjectivesOn completion of this activity, you will be able to:<li style=”text-align: left;” data-mce-style=”text-align: left;”>define key concepts pertaining to remix literacy</li><br /><li style=”text-align: left;” data-mce-style=”text-align: left;”>discuss the importance of remix literacy nowadays</li><br /><li style=”text-align: left;” data-mce-style=”text-align: left;”>understand the challenges of remix culture</li>
<br />IntroductionPerhaps the most well-known definition of a <strong>remix</strong> is what the <a href=”https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/remix” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener noreferrer” data-mce-href=”https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/remix”>Collins Dictionary</a> defines as “a new version of a piece of music which has been created by putting together the individual instrumental and vocal parts in a different way”.In a broader sense (<a href=”https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Remix” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener noreferrer” data-mce-href=”https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Remix”>Wikipedia definition</a>), a <strong>remix</strong> is an “alternative version of a recorded work”: it is “a piece of media which has been altered from its original state by adding, removing, and/or changing pieces of the item. A <strong>song</strong>, <strong>piece of artwork</strong>, <strong>book</strong>, <strong>video</strong>, or <strong>photograph</strong> can all be remixes. The only characteristic of a remix is that it <strong>appropriates</strong> and <strong>changes</strong> other materials <strong>to create something new</strong>”. Related terms are Bricolage, Hybrid, Mash-up.”Nothing is original”, says Kirby Ferguson, creator of Everything is a Remix. From Bob Dylan to Steve Jobs, he says “our most celebrated creators borrow, steal and transform.” (See below, <a href=”https://www.ted.com/talks/kirby_ferguson_embrace_the_remix” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener noreferrer” data-mce-href=”https://www.ted.com/talks/kirby_ferguson_embrace_the_remix”>Embrace the remix, Kirby Ferguson</a>).<br />Remix culture vs. Read-only cultureRemix culture has different definitions. <a href=”https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lawrence_Lessig” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener noreferrer” data-mce-href=”https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lawrence_Lessig”>Lawrence Lessig</a> defines it as a read/write culture, as opposed to a read-only culture: “Read/Write (RW) culture is a culture where people <strong>participate</strong> in the creation and the re-creation of their culture. Read-only (RO) culture is a culture where creativity is <strong>consumed</strong> but not created by the consumer”. (See below, <a href=”https://www.ted.com/talks/larry_lessig_says_the_law_is_strangling_creativity/transcript” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener noreferrer” data-mce-href=”https://www.ted.com/talks/larry_lessig_says_the_law_is_strangling_creativity/transcript”>Laws that choke creativity, Lawrence Lessig</a>).This video from <a href=”https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6ZQ-SuhvQAeQIR5tHJGGmQ” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener noreferrer” data-mce-href=”https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6ZQ-SuhvQAeQIR5tHJGGmQ”>Audiopedia</a> (a free service targeted to blind and visually-impaired internet users that helps them learn from Wikipedia) offers a visual definition of remix culture and explains the challenges it faces:.<a href=”https://youtu.be/V5z7Aemx9SI” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener noreferrer” data-mce-href=”https://youtu.be/V5z7Aemx9SI”>What is Remix culture?</a>For <a href=”/bibliography/” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener noreferrer” data-mce-href=”/bibliography/”>Dudeney, Hockly and Pegrum (2014: 36)</a>, “Nowadays we’re called on to do much more than simply copy or critique past models: rather, we can contribute our own meanings to an increasingly fluid knowledge environment, often by building on other’s texts and building in our own critique as we do so”.<br />Remix in the digital eraIt is accepted that remix has not simply emerged with digitization, far from it (Lankshear and Knobel, 2008). If anything, remix was the norm before the advent of print (see <a href=”http://www.niemanlab.org/2010/04/the-gutenberg-parenthesis-thomas-pettitt-on-parallels-between-the-pre-print-era-and-our-own-internet-age/” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener noreferrer” data-mce-href=”http://www.niemanlab.org/2010/04/the-gutenberg-parenthesis-thomas-pettitt-on-parallels-between-the-pre-print-era-and-our-own-internet-age/”>Pettitt’s theory of the Gutenberg Parenthesis</a>, 2007).In that context, “the Internet is the opportunity to <strong>revive</strong> the RW culture” (Lessig), <strong>with “people taking and recreating, using other people’s content, using different technologies to say things differently”</strong>. He argues that that technique has been democratised, and that anybody with a computer “can take sounds and images from the culture around us and use it to say things differently. These tools of creativity have become tools of speech. It is a literacy for this [new] generation”.<a href=”/bibliography/” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener noreferrer” data-mce-href=”/bibliography/”>Dudeney, Hockly and Pegrum (2014: 36)</a> define this <strong>macroliteracy</strong> (drawing on all other literacies) as<h5>”the ability to create new meaning by sampling, modifying and/or combining pre-existing texts and artefacts, as well as circulating, interpreting, responding to and building on others’ remixes within digital networks”.</h5>
<br />Remix literacy for language learningHow does remix literacy impact your language learning? In a big way! Because “every time you are given a new tool, it gives you a different way of impacting around the world”; “we are immersing ourselves in a slightly different culture”. (See below, <a href=”http://www.tedxwarwick.com/talks/talk.php?year=2012&id=1″ target=”_blank” rel=”noopener noreferrer” data-mce-href=”http://www.tedxwarwick.com/talks/talk.php?year=2012&id=1″>Doug Belshaw, The essential elements of digital literacies</a>).Indeed, “<strong>remix education</strong> empowers learners and students to express themselves thoughts through “recycled” culture and media, using preexisting objects—including music and video—as the building blocks for their own unique point of view” (<span id=”hs_cos_wrapper_name” class=”hs_cos_wrapper hs_cos_wrapper_meta_field hs_cos_wrapper_type_text”><a href=”http://blog.education.videoblocks.com/remix-education-for-improved-digital-literacy” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener noreferrer” data-mce-href=”http://blog.education.videoblocks.com/remix-education-for-improved-digital-literacy”>Remix Education for Improved Digital Literacy</a>).</span>However, it doesn’t come without its <strong>challenges</strong>, such as in particular:<li>”negative propaganda” (The Net delusion, The Dark Side of Internet Freedom, Mozorov, 2011 – see below).</li><li><strong>copyright or plagiarism</strong>.</li>
In typical educational contexts, students’ powers of critique and creativity are hemmed in by institutional fears over copyright and plagiarism (<a href=”/bibliography/” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener noreferrer” data-mce-href=”/bibliography/”>Dudeney, Hockly and Pegrum (2014: 39)</a>). It is thus essential for educators, as well as students, to refine their understanding of <strong>fair use</strong>..<a href=”https://youtu.be/suMza6Q8J08″ target=”_blank” rel=”noopener noreferrer” data-mce-href=”https://youtu.be/suMza6Q8J08″>Copyright and fair use animation (Common Sense Education)</a><br />Test your knowledge!<a href=”https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdGnpTBq9Lsj_QvBIez7z01MsXpqebT7EgpIjV6X9qVFffoaQ/viewform” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener noreferrer” data-mce-href=”https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdGnpTBq9Lsj_QvBIez7z01MsXpqebT7EgpIjV6X9qVFffoaQ/viewform”>Remix literacy Quiz</a><br /><br />Related activities
| Context of use | ID | Title | Related themes | Languages |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DL-D-R-001-C | Remix literacy, what is it? | EN, FR | ||
| Independent learning | ||||
| DL-D-R-002-S | Remix literacy, what is it? | EN, FR | ||
| Activities for the classroom | ||||
| DL-D-R-003-A | Generating memes | EN, FR | ||
| DL-D-R-004-A | Remixing a silent movie with Peanut Gallery | EN, FR | ||
