The rise of social media has allowed scholars and students to connect and discuss texts, events, and issues in ways that were previously unimaginable. Synchronous and asynchronous discussions can spark at any moment and connect learners across time zones and disciplines. But each new tool comes with its own set of challenges.

Rates of popular participation in discussions of society, culture, media, and social justice online are astounding, but many of the tools used to foster those discussions seem to encourage sound bite replication instead of dialogue. Those with unpopular views are sometimes silenced through network attacks or even violent threats, and users are likely to only follow and participate in groups of those with whom they already agree. How do we foster meaningful dialogues and promote critical thinking skills for students in the middle of a tl;dr culture?

I am not a musician, but I, like others, love the sound of music, or just hearing sound period when learning (and teaching). I especially love avoiding copyright infringement hassles if I am creating a video bearing information  I want students to remember.

I have discovered  that it is easy to make my own  music even though I cannot read music. Using a kalimba, an African instrument, and some bongos, both purchased at thrift stores, I’d welcome showing others how they can also make fun sounds and moreover, record them as a music file on  their iphone for later use on many fronts including teaching videos.

The end product can be a sort of “flip” approach to classroom instruction (i.e. the student can get basic information in the video, which is posted on a blog or via Blackboard, before entering the classroom. This allows more in-class time for other things including reviewing already shared information). The sound underneath the video, hopefully, makes the learning process more interesting. Sometimes the quirkier, the better.

I have two short videos demonstrating how this could work. One  I actually used with a class;  the other I shared outside of class with people who seemed to mostly dig it. I am still learning how to do this, but will share what I have done so far.