[nfb-talk] Youth Empowerment

[Hope Hein]

This is a good topic. Is there a way to include the blind adults who are in between say the generation of the 60's and the youth of today? For example: I just joined the local chapter of the NFB. I had been a member in the past about 25 years ago and was not very active. I now would like to be active. I like the idea of the Science camps and the youth slam. Could the NFB incorporate programs for adults as well? Just a thought.
Hope  

-----Original Message-----
.From: "Tina Hansen"<thansen at quik.com>
.Sent: 10/20/06 4:44:44 PM
.To: "NFB Talk Mailing List"<nfb-talk at nfbnet.org>
.Subject: Re: [nfb-talk] Youth Empowerment
.
.This is an excellent discussion, and it explains why I'm wanting to see more 
.of our stuff made available as mp3 downloads: young people are so dialed in 
.with their iPods, and if we can give them some meaningful content, they 
.might be able to gain a better understanding as to why we're here. The 
.Kernel Books are a perfect example of this, especially since they're 
.designed to be read as individual stories that state a common theme and are 
.packaged up in these books.
.
.All this has had me thinking about the impact of the media on our culture. 
.Our culture is so used to things coming in 30-second sound bites, thus 
.causing one to ask for immediate results. I must admit that I struggle with 
.this myself, since my digital conversion project is taking longer than I 
.want, partly because I don't have the funds to pay a studio. But I digress.
.
.I see two schools of thought on how to package our information and ideas: 
.one relying on what has worked for us in the past, including our literature 
.and speeches. These are valuable, and if some of these young people are able 
.to read or listen to and think about the ideas, they can understand our 
.message. These should not be discarded just because they're too long in the 
.eyes of young people used to sound bites. They need to have a chance to sit 
.and reflect.
.
.The other school of thought argues that the only way to attract attention to 
.your issues is through an event with a lot of flash, spectacle and fanfare. 
.Because young people are used to MTV, X-box, video games and the like, you 
.absolutely have to ppunctuate your remarks with loud music and flashy 
.visuals just to keep them interested. Without the extra spectacle, they 
.won't stay interested.
.
.They're used to being entertained, and if you present your message in a 
.Music Video format, this view argues, they'll listen. Otherwise, they'll get 
.bored. They won't sit and read a speech, but they will sit and watch a 
.5-minute video. Thus, anything belonging to the past should be thrown out 
.the window.
.
.The danger, though, is that you have to make certain you don't compromise 
.your message just to draw in numbers. Thus, I believe we need to work with 
.both schools of thought and try to find a way to meet them in the middle. I, 
.for one, can see both sides and want to draw both on the past and the 
.present. We need to use our literature, but we also need to find creative 
.ways to reach out to our young people in language they can understand.
.
.The science academies and the upcoming Youth Slam are steps in the right 
.direction, but I also believe we can find other creative ways to reach our 
.youth. It may involve a DVD where youth are the focal point, and we might 
.want to find ways to explain our philosophy in language youth can 
.understand. It may involve some of our members writing songs that can 
.communicate to youth, or it may involve ideas I just can't think of right 
.now.
.
.There are also those who argue that the only way to draw a crowd is if you 
.hire a big celebrity to be a part of your event, and I fear that our culture 
.is heading down that path. While I hope we haven't gone past the point of no 
.return, I sometimes fear for the worst.
.
.As I think about this, I'd encourage anyone interested to read an article by 
.Dr. Jernigan on The Future of Education Innovation: Panacea or Pandemonium. 
.I have this article as a Word Document, which I can send to anyone 
.interested. I also have it as an mp3 file, but if I sent it, it would take 
.forever. So, if anyone is interested, they can ask and I can send the Word 
.file to them. Otherwise, you can find it in our chronicle, Walking Alone and 
.Marching Together. That is not on our new web site as of yet, but I hope it 
.will be. Although this piece was written in 1969, I believe it's still 
.timely in the main, and I believe it should make anyone think. It certainly 
.has made me think, and if anyone wants to read it, I think you'd be stunned.
.
.Any thoughts? Thanks. 
.
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