Sunday 15 September 2013

Week 8 - Scholarly Article

For the first assessment in this course we were required to formulate a thesis around a learning pack we had studied for an essay. I chose Learning Pack A – Youth and Popular Culture because it was the most interesting to me. I wanted to know why a large number of young people liked to spend time online and whether or not that time spent online was productive educationally. In my research for the essay I came across a number of articles, however, it was one by Angela Thomas of the University of Sydney that caught my attention.

The article Fan fiction online: Engagement, critical response and affective play through writing, discusses fan fiction specifically in relation to teenage girls and how they interact with each other online. For those unfamiliar with the concept of fan-fiction, Thomas describes it as:

“Borrowing settings, plots, characters and ideas from all forms of media and popular culture, fans weave together new tales, sometimes within the accepted canon, sometimes blending several ideas from different sources together in a type of fiction called 'Crossovers', and sometimes imagining new possibilities for additional characters, different histories or different settings to build on existing stories, called 'Alternative Universe' fiction.” (Thomas, 2006, p.226).

For more information and to see examples of fan-fiction, please click HERE
Fan-fiction provides writers (of any age) the ability to engage with their popular interests and develop their writing skills. If a person is a fan of Harry Potter they are able to write a specific fan-fiction. They can do this by creating their own character and inserting it into the world of Harry Potter or they can use an existing character from the Harry Potter universe. When I was younger I was heavily involved in the online world of fan-fiction. This article somewhat validated the feelings I had in regards to just how much engaging in writing and critiquing the work of others improved my literacy skills.


Image Credit: www.publicdomainpictures.net

The article is separated into five main parts: the social practices of fan-fiction, fictional role-playing and collaborative writing, transforming texts, fan-fiction as a means for critical response to texts, and fan-fiction as identity play. I don't want to go into detail describing the article, what I do want to do however is to draw attention to the fact that much of the skills I developed as a writer and critical thinker were developed organically. I was so engrossed in the world of Harry Potter I wanted to become part of it and that is how I found fan-fiction.

As teachers and librarians I think we need to be aware of the way young people are engaging not only with pop-culture but with the online world. I believe fan-fiction and other collaborative writing activities like text-based role-playing are beneficial to teenagers because they learn through play. The article by Angela Thomas provides a great introduction to the world of fan-fiction, I'm excited to see what other research is forthcoming.

Reference List
 
Thomas, Angela. Fan Fiction Online: Engagement, Critical Response and Affective Play through Writing [online]. The Australian Journal of Language and Literacy, 29(3), 226-239. Retrieved from: http://search.informit.com.au.ezp01.library.qut.edu.au/documentSummary;dn=250482439837148;res=IELHSS
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3 comments:

  1. Unknown17 September 2013 at 16:26

    Hi Annette,

    This article sounds really interesting! I have to agree with you when you mention that your writing and critical thinking skills were developed organically. I think I read so much as a kid that grammar and spelling never seemed like a huge issue as it was already so familiar to me.
    Encouraging young people to write, especially about things they like or are emotionally involved in is a great way of engaging them. Who can remember writing a fun English essay on those horrible school texts that they gave us?!
    Can't wait to read more of your thoughts.
    Susan :)

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    1. Caitlin18 September 2013 at 00:08

      Hi Annette and Susan
      I know what you mean about writing and grammar developing organically - I feel the same way too. I've never actually written any fan fiction, but I read so much (and love some books so much) that I often feel like I want to absorb into the book and be in that world. Mmmm escapism :) There are some books that I feel like I could just crawl inside, curl up and go to sleep. That sounds stupid when I write it down, but I think you'll know what I mean haha.
      I'm not a teacher, but I think you could get some great writing out of kids by embracing the idea of fan fiction.
      Cheers
      Caitlin

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  2. Unknown20 October 2013 at 22:53

    Fanfic could indeed be a really great teaching tool for young people. It allows a lot more freedom to explore different texts than a more formal investigation would, and it provides an information pull to the students because they will want to explore those worlds themselves, as it sounds like you've experienced youself!

    But, at the same time, there are a few things you've have to be careful of if you were going to use fan fic as an educational tool. Given the richness of the subject matter, it'd be all too easy to get caught up on content and miss the point of the exercise, whatever that might be. I think a large part of the riskiness with bringing stuff like this into the classroom is that it's an inherently informal medium, and it would resist control in a formal environment like a classroom. I haven't even mentioned slashfic or all of that crazy weird stuff that fandoms produce here, but it's a pretty great example of how fickle the medium can be with those who want to take it on board.

    I absolutely think that fanfic has its' place in the classroom, but if it was me, I'd be pretty wary of using it more than very sparingly. Perhaps I've just been hanging out in the deep web for too long.

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