IV drips, possums in trees and googling ourselves: the second “Unlecture”

As I (unexpectedly) furiously jotted notes into a few pages of my notebook (no laptops allowed!), I thought to myself that this ‘unlecture’ was very engaging and successful because Adrian actually answered questions that we had, instead of a curriculum program outline assuming we have. The more direct answers you receive, the more clarity you get, thus engaging you more with the course.

My favourite quote of the non lecture was something along the lines of “you’re students, not sponges! I’m not going to hook you up to an IV of information and education!” I completely agree, most Uni and high school courses will do that, undermining your value as a human being and an active student. I feel that this unconventional no-sponge learning is kicking in and working for me, as I love being able to remain completely creative and individual while participating in the course.

The questions answered were all quite broad and conceptual which is good for a first week, as I felt myself really starting to understand the nature of the subject. However, my simple technical question of “how do you embed a Youtube video into a post?” wasn’t wacky funky cool enough to make it into the “yes” pile, so I’ll have to wait til tomorrow for that.

I loved what Adrian (who was wearing fantastic shoes) said about us being content producers now, and being the students who would thrive as the dynamic “media and communications” industry underwent a revolution, ultimately to be the most important sector of society in a few years time. This honestly made me feel valued and important (sorry for the cheese); something I haven’t felt in other courses which essentially tell you this industry is impossible to get into and we probably will end up running coffees til we’re 35.

This unlecture was thought provoking, engaging, interesting and helpful! I really enjoyed it, although my hand started donning the classic “stop handwriting and get back on the computer” cramp after 4 pages of old school pen to paper notes!

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