As someone who doesn't have social media nor do I watch (or have watched Tik Tok videos), I thoroughly enjoyed this video and thought it was a very creative, modern way to revamp this task. Great job using a tool that would be appealing to our digital natives- if I were to make an instructional video in this format for my students, I can picture it being a hit and successfully getting (and maintaining) their attention.

Tik Tok videos are more challenging to make than they look, due to the time limits and countless options and filters. These videos force their creator to be efficient and to the point and I thought Erin did a wonderful job of creating a simple, effective, and catchy video. Her video inspired me to try this in my own practice; as a way to "get out of [my] comfort zone, try new things and be creative". Especially given that "it is such a popular platform, being used by millions of people around the world to create and view a multitude of content for educational and entertainment purposes". Honestly since watching this video, I am starting to feel left out; even my 9 year old daughter experimented making a Tik Tok video with my cousin last week- and it turned out pretty awesome! I am for sure going to set up an educator account and start using Tik Tok for educational purposes. I think a good place to start would be to use it as a resource, as a viewer, where I can watch the "many talented people doing amazing things with this type of content creation... [before I] try out some of the features the app offers" myself.

Both Erin and I attempted to make our mode bending tasks as multi-modal as possible and being that "of the modes of meaning, the Multimodal is the most significant" (NLG, 1996, p.80) and "afford[s] greater access to knowledge" (Dobson & Willinsky, 2009, p.1), I believe we made a great choice! Both our original task’s primary semiotic mode was linguistic, and the primary semiotic mode in our task 7 redesigns were visual and audio.

Her tool used (Tik Tok) versus mine (Flip) differed quite in bit in terms of the content authoring options and end-user interface. Tik Tok offers a wider variety of video options than Flip-and ones that are more relatable for students (for ex: filters and emoji's), and its interface is highly engaging and better able to hold students' attention- even just for the simple fact that is has the familiar social media screen allowing likes and shares.

I am so excited that this linking assignment gave me the opportunity to explore so many new tools and ideas for how I can revamp my technology integration next year. The creation of a Tik Tok video for instructional purposes is now added to my list, as well as thinking of how students can use a video format like Tik Tok to demonstrate their understanding of course content! Thank you Erin :)

Again, like in my fourth link, I love Genially, have used it before, but never before in this format, an interactive slideshow. Wow! I am so excited by all I'm learning simply by checking out my peers' web spaces, I will definitely be trying out the quiz format I saw modelled in Marie's speculative assignment and I will now also be adding this slideshow/ video format to my list.

Her speculative narrative connected a lot to mine, as we had a lot of similar predictions. For example in her dystopian speculative, Erin mentioned no more privacy or critical thinking- which I also touched on when I said we would be watched 24/7 and wisdom would no longer be taught in schools (the only thing that would be essential is knowing how to find the answer), which Erin echoed in her narrative text. Another similarity was her prediction of the "take over of machines (loss of consciousness)," as I also speculated that AI would end up taking solo flight (with humans no longer being in control), and pointed out to the lack of consciousness development in AI. The last similarity I noted with mine and Erin's speculative narratives was we both focused on the need for humans to change (their mentality, ethics, and how they view the world), in order for anything good to come out of AI and advanced technologies. Erin and I both feel that humans' future with technology looks grim unless our values, mental models, and ethics change, therefore changing the worldview that flows from it (Dunne & Raby, 2013, p.161).

I loved Erin's inclusion of the character narratives, especially her dystopian version! I laughed out loud as I was reading it. The choice to use humour to drive home her point in the stories was a great idea as it definitely drove home the point of Erin's dystopian narrative, and although at first glance, the story looked like the happenings of a typical school day, she then uses "satire [to] jolt the viewer out of a cozy complacency that all is well" (Dunne & Raby, 2013, p.43). Very unexpected and very useful at getting (and maintaining) the audience's attention, it's a great way to engage the audience and note for educators- humour makes it motivating for students when completing tasks or assignments. As Dunne & Raby (2013) state, "a skillful use of satire and irony can engage the audience in a more constructive way by appealing to the imagination as well as engaging the intellect" (Dunne & Raby, 2013, p.40).