For some time I have had a TikTok account. As an educator, I have noticed students very involved with it and discussing it with their peers. I became curious about the functionality and what the hype was all about.
It is always important as a classroom teacher to tailor our instruction to the needs, abilities and passions of students. So, I have been experimenting new ways of how to make appropriate videos using videos that allow you to:
Lip-sync,
Re-enact a scene
Create your own.
It is very addicting app so use it with moderation.
Three posts embedded below and two created with my partner in crime Andrés Hernández.
During quarantine life we have been following the safety instructions of doing social distancing and only going out to the grocery store to stock up on food.
Below you will find three embedded posts with a screenshot of the total number of views.
The latest single by the American band, OneRepublic, is part of their upcoming fifth studio album. The single “Better Days” is an upbeat song with an optimistic message that dropped on March 25 while the band members are self-quarantining.
The track is part of the band’s fifth studio installment, Human, which will be out on May 9th.
According to Rolling Stone, the song was written and recorded by the band over the past week. The track is meant to serve some optimism during dark times like the COVID-19 pandemic.
Anthony Carranza recently had an opportunity to interview Nobel prize nominee, Nestor Amarilla.
The following is a little bio that I found on createspace.com.
About the author:
Nestor Amarilla was born on the 24th of July 1980 to a farming family in the country town of Coronel Oviedo, Paraguay. Since he was a little boy he has been very interested in the arts.
Nestor was exchanging languages with a Peace Corps volunteer at 13, when he began to write a newsletter, Kokue Poty (The Farm’s Flower), directed at the farmers of the area. At 17 he won the AFS exchange program full scholarship, to attend Fridley High School in Minnesota. At 20 he received the Wallin Foundation grant to attend Metropolitan State University. Five years later he graduated from the same institution as Outstanding Student of the College of Arts and Sciences with degrees in Dramatic Arts and Communications.
Nestor writes in English, Spanish and Guarani. Some of his plays are: Americana Rose, Ripped Dress, La Pruebera Makes a Good Day, (Produced in 2004 and 2005 by Metropolitan State University, Minneapolis, MN), Vestido Roto (Produced in 2005 at Teatro de las Americas in Asuncion), Born in Iraq, (Produced in 2006 at Mixed Blood Theater, Minneapolis, MN), Saved by a Poem (First produced in 2006 at Minneapolis Intermedia Art by Teatro del Pueblo, and its Spanish version Fecha Feliz produced in 2009 at Teatro Latino in Asuncion.)
The Interview:
1. When the story of your nomination was published in February 19th, 2010 what was your immediate reaction? Can you narrate what was happening at the time the story was leaked?
I was in shock; I don’t know what I felt. My mind drew a blank for a while. It is hard to grasp the idea for such a nomination. It was happiness mixed with surprise and I suppose wrapped also in fear. I thought it was such a heavy burden to carry, and I am too young for it. But today I feel differently.
2. It was said by the paper “El Mirador Paraguayo” that Fulvia Sánchez de Coronel and Joel Filártiga catapulted your nomination. How do you know both individuals? Where did you meet? What connects the book “Fecha Feliz” to Joel? Any specific examples?
Mrs. Sanchez was my literature professor in High School, in my sophomore year. She knows me from my beginnings, as a person and as a writer. In Paraguay, she is probably the person the most familiar with my works. I am such of an admirer of Dr Filartiga. He is a very well known activist here in Asuncion. He was one of the thousands victim of the Stroessner regime, and his only son was brutally murdered by the government police. He is a real fighter, with his daughter Dolly, they have changed the Human Rights law even in America. I met him at the opening of Fecha Feliz in Asuncion. Instantly we became friends.
3. Did you ever anticipate that your literature work would be ever be nominated for such an important award?
Not at all… I don’t think that one writes thinking of a nomination. I was too busy concentrated in the story that there were no rooms for such a thought.
4. What are some of the authors that have inspired you in your lifetime? Any specific books or modern novelist?
August Wilson’s works have always inspired me. I love most of his plays and how cleverly he documented the African American experience in the US. I also admire a lot the Paraguayan writer Mario Halley Mora. He was such a talented playwright whose works are so true to our people.
5. Were there any obstacles, hurdles or challenges when you were drafting the novel? Any turn of events?
It was pretty simple, I suppose because I was writing about a story I knew so well. And also because I already had the entire plot figured it out in my head, so putting on papers was not too difficult anymore.
6. What have been some transformational experiences since the announcement, and have you changed in light of this once in a lifetime event?
More people are interested in my work now. I have offers to publish or to produce my plays in different places. And definitely it has encouraged me a lot to keep writing. I am more than ever committed and compromised to give a voice to my people.
7. What are some influential figures if any inspired you to write and direct plays? Can you mention any specific plays, novels that ignited this passion?
The need of telling amazing untold stories of so many people makes me want to write with so much passion. I feel like there are so many wonderful stories on this side of the globe that the rest of the world needs to hear about it.
8. Why was the play written first in English and not Spanish?
Most of my plays, so far, have been originally written in English, just because they were written for American audience at the beginning. I went to school in the states and that is where I started writing plays. That is the truth.
9. Coming from a humble upbringing how has Minnesota played a role in your life and in your professional development? Can you explain or provide insight as to why the U.S was the place to come and study and were there other choices at that point in time?
I think that America played a very important role in my personal and professional development. I moved to Minnesota when I was only 17 and lived there for almost 10 years. I am sure I have grasped many things from the American culture. The opportunities that I was given in the states were crucial. Being able to get a college education, for example, through scholarships was wonderful. When I was just a boy, growing up on the farm, I used to hear incredible stories about America; on how everyone has a car and people walk on the street and pick up their dog’s feces. Those stories, I guess, have awakened my curiosity about America and its people.
10. What do you think is the most important information you want to share with your readers and followers of your novel? What do you think is important about the novel and the Paraguayan experience?
I would like them to read and know that this is a true story and that many people were brutally murdered in Paraguay and in many other countries for just thinking differently. The other aspect for people to understand is that a dictatorship is not just part of history. Many countries in the world, today, still deny basic rights to its people. Freedom is not necessarily free for everyone in around the world.
11. Augusto Roa Bastos as a noted Paraguayan novelist and short story writer, and one of the most important Latin American writers of the 20th century. Do you consider the comparison to be fair? What is your reaction to the claims made in the media that he was never nominated for the Nobel Prize and you are? Is he an influential figure for you in what you do or someone you hold esteem in your country’s culture and history?
Augusto Roa Bastos is the most important writer in Paraguay. His literary works are remarkable, for which it would be totally unfair for him to be compared to me. The other big difference is that he is mainly a novelist, not a playwright. He has documented so many important moments of our history and has uprooted our culture at the same time given us great pride for representing us in Paraguay. I feel so proud to have his daughter illustrating this book. Roa Bastos will live forever.
12. What is the image and take away you want everyone to learn from this experience?
Everyone has incalculable potential. That everything is possible and that it is worth to dream. Education is the key for a better tomorrow.
Rose Colored Photo via Flickr Black Lives Matter Protest
Once upon a time exchanging and connecting on social media networks was a practice to embrace. Fast-forward to the present, as more people have joined major social networks tendencies have become publicly visible when discussing delicate topics like racism.
The Pew Research Center (PRC) has published numerous studies on the narrative and sentiment that takes place on social media. The latest analysis by the PRC revealed significant differences how black and white adults interact around news-breaking events and race-related topics via social media.
The social media channel analyzed in this particular study was Twitter. From the collection of tweets collected the PRC found that the most used hashtags for the history of the microblogging company, Twitter, were #Ferguson and #BlackLivesMatter.
What makes social media indispensable is how it can become a catalyst and a vital communications medium to spread the word in real-time. These cutting-edge platforms offer a different narrative than traditional media outlets can time and time again.
When it comes to usage and exchanging information black social media users, 68 percent, are twice as likely as whites, 35 percent, to assert posts on social media are relevant to race.
Additionally, the PRC carried out three content analysis case studies using publicly available Tweets. Specifically, they used the Crimson Hexagon, which is a computer coding software. In the first examination that spanned over 15-month period (Jan. 1, 2015 to Mar. 31, 2016) there were 995 million Tweets posted about race. On average 2.1 million tweets shared daily about the subject at hand.
To review more details about the other content analysis you can visit the original study and learn more insight into the data compiled.
Of these Tweets mentioning race 60 percent were directly tied to news events (church shooting in Charleston, South Carolina, and Grammy performance of Kendrick Lamar.
This shift in the narrative on Twitter is unique and highlights the growing power of social media. Prior to this revelation of differences among the social media adult users there was a tendency to keep quiet about heated topics or social issues off of these social networking sites. Almost two years ago, the PRC had published a separate survey titled“Social Media and the ´Spiral of Silence´”.
The previously mentioned study highlighted hesitation on the part of users on social media and to a certain degree self-censored themselves about policy issues. This was also in light of the revelations made by former Central Intelligence Agency employee Edward Snowden about the National Security Agency (NSA).
Twitter in spite of suffering user growth and engagement is still a reliable source for public debate. Furthermore, it is an instrumental tool for citizen journalism. It brings to the national dialogue topics that are often ignored and reshapes the sentiment around the topic.
This is still far from fixing the problem, but it is raising the awareness of the harsh realities of racism towards specific groups. And collectively as a multiracial nation will have to have these contentious conversations, so we can finally push meaningful change to social injustice.
These findings from the survey are from the general public and were conducted by landline or cellular phone. The study was from Feb. 29, 2016 to May 8, 2016. The size of the sample was 3,796 U.S adults.
Anthony Carranza 