Task 11: Algorithms & Microblogging

Algorithms of Predictive Text

Using the predictive text feature on my phone was frustrating and annoying.

This is what I came out with in the end:

"Education is not about the kids who have been doing the same thing for years but now they have a better way of writing about the way they are."

SAY WHAT? That doesn't even make sense. Perhaps I just don't fully understand how to use this feature on my phone, or perhaps the algorithm hasn't been established about this topic in my phone. I decided to test another sentence starter about something more generic and I ended up with this:

"So what time do you think you'll come over tomorrow morning? I don't have any idea what you want me to do or whatever, but whenever you want to leave, I will probably be around."

At least that one made semi-sense.

These statements did not have my "voice" or sound anything like me. The predictive text feature on our phones seems so basic in contrast to what it could be. I can't say that I've read anything like what was generated in articles or blogs. The sentences curated were certainly not interesting. I'm quite curious about the process of algorithms as a whole. "The target of this new generation of algorithms has been shifted from abstract markets to individuals." (O’Neil, 2017). How can my browser predict what I'm shopping for, looking for, or interested in... but my own phone, something I type on and text on daily, doesn't have a more reliable predictive text feature that sounds like me?

Microblogging

Reading about the concept of microblogging intrigued me for this task. So I've decided to explore this idea a little bit further. I've never thought about simpler streams of social media such as Twitter or Instagram as "blogging" platforms. I've often seen "blogger" on someone's profile as their job... but I assumed that these people had a legitimate blog that they published. It makes sense, much like YouTube, there are many "bloggers" who are paid for advertisements, etc. on Instagram.

I was actually kind of embarrassed about the sentence that I formed from the predictive text feature, and decided to take the same sentence stem: "Education is not..." and create a microblog post that I would be proud to post. I ensured to stay under the character limit for a microblog post, and added an image from my classroom which tied in beautifully. I posted it to my teacher instagram account, which I share with two colleagues. For the first time, I looked at my post as a "blog" as opposed to a "caption on a photo".

A Microblog that I'm not embarrassed to share:

"Education is not about forcing kids to do "work" on topics they didn't choose and find uninteresting. Learners learn best when they are free to navigate their own learning experience. Amplify student agency because you believe in it, not because it's the latest trend in edu."

The Combination of Predictive Algorithms and Microblogging

On top of bloggers advertising products, Instagram also targets you with advertisements of their own. I always find it a bit creepy when I shop for an item on the internet, for example, I was looking at strollers the other day, and then all of a sudden, my Instagram feed is full of advertisements from stroller companies. I connected this to a documentary that I recently watched on Netflix called "The Great Hack", where a data analysis company used social media (most specifically Facebook) to influence the 2016 Presidential Election. The documentary discusses how our personal data has become a commodity that is collected, analyzed and then spit back at us in the form of targeted messaging.

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