Sounding Off Social
The word is out after recent announcements to media and local e-broadcast channels. One is the new smart phone that has ‘pro’ in its name. The other is the See America In Color Essay Contest that has ‘smarts’ in its game. Folks are ready to put the new features to work in the classroom and the marketplace.
While not a tech gadget, the essay contest gives a glimpse for how we might update and celebrate ‘smart blocks, woke civics and strong citizens’ in the community. Take for example that more and more smartphone makers have devices with three back-facing cameras. You can now take wide-angle selfies and slow-motion video. When working with the app they deliver ‘triple-vision’ to the device.
The essay contest with the help of administrators, teachers and parents works with middle, high and college students. It will help deliver a 21st century vision to blaze a trail in roots and culture. It might be exciting to have three cameras in your phone or to engage students in the essay contest, but that’s not all to getting the most out of them in the classroom or the real world. A smart phone doesn’t work only as a phone. It has other important functions for the consumer.
Some people are old enough to remember ‘black & white’ TVs before color, or the DOS operating system before Windows, or flip phones before smart phones. These technologies got us to where we are today with 5G networks and 8K TVs. Along the way, steps were taken to update things in the tech space where they operate. So how do we update our civics in the social/cultural space?
Well, think about how smart devices get a new look, feel and purpose. This gives a sense for how we update things the way tech firms do with gadgets. With each new school year there are curriculum objectives and student assignments. So, the first way we add ‘smarts’ to our Civics in the community, Social/American Studies in the classroom or Social Issues in the public space is to educate the present.
There’s often a 1-page sheet with new devices that says ‘read this first’ before using. Similarly, the See America In Color (SAIC) campaign and essay contest are about how we understand those ‘read this first’ aspects of American History, the Black to America story or Hometown Strong comebacks. We rarely read the whole manual of a new device or the full account of American history. But there’s some ‘read this first’ info from the campaign that help put the stories in context and connect the dots.
This campaign also has a kind of ‘throwback mode’ for looking to the past not to return to the past but to create the future. Consider some of the features in today’s cars like backup camera or blindspot alert. How did we function without them? We got by not having them but now they’re becoming a new standard. The campaign and essay contest offer a new standard in how we look back to create the future. Plus, there may be some ‘blindspot alerts’ that could get flagged in our civic/social space.
In the months ahead there’ll be many new and amazing picture/video postings on social media. The three-camera feature will give views of people, places and projects that are ‘out of this world.’ That’s the idea behind SAIC and the essay contest. It’s a project for how we elevate the game in civic/social issues for a higher level of citizenship. When we See America In Color, we will better understand the ‘black & white’ issues that started in the past and the multi-cultural view geared towards the future.
Lastly, this campaign is about how we update the now. Every so often we get a message on our phone or computer that says, ‘new updates available now.’ That usually means there are ‘bug’ fixes or improved features that have been made to the system. When we select ‘yes’ the phone or computer goes through some changes where it ‘updates the now.’ This gives us the latest version of the ‘bells & whistles’ with the device functions. Similarly, SAIC is about having the latest versions in ‘civic ideals & functions’ along with some new & improved changes to the system. We’ll get to move even closer to what the founding fathers called “a more perfect union.”
We all try to live our lives as ‘pros’ in some way. Whether in school, business, sports or civic duty we look to each new season or new device as a time to be better, do better and live better. SAIC and the essay contest aren’t just about how we See America In Color. They’re also about how we Do America In Color. More people will become a ‘believer’ as we reach higher for a better a nation and breath-in fresh ‘American Oxygen.’
Tracks: Imagine Dragons – Believer – https://youtu.be/7wtfhZwyrcc
Rihanna – American Oxygen – https://youtu.be/Ao8cGLIMtvg
See America In Color 