DAY 50 June 30, 2008

On Friday there was  a meeting held in the board room at St. Andrew's College. Dr. Hlynka, myself, Dr. Yereniuk, and Ms. Kachor were in attendance. I now have a new list of tasks to complete and/or initiate in the following month with plenty of assistance and motivation.

DAY 49 June 27, 2008

• Printed and bound hard copy of PIP blog for Dr. Yereniuk.

DAy 48 June 26, 2008

What's in a WebQuest?

What is a WebQuest? According to the WebQuest site:

"A WebQuest is an inquiry-oriented lesson format in which most or all the information that learners work with comes from the web. The model was developed by Bernie Dodge at San Diego State University in February, 1995 with early input from SDSU/Pacific Bell Fellow Tom March, the Educational Technology staff at San Diego Unified School District, and waves of participants each summer at the Teach the Teachers Consortium.

Since those beginning days, tens of thousands of teachers have embraced WebQuests as a way to make good use of the internet while engaging their students in the kinds of thinking that the 21st century requires. The model has spread around the world, with special enthusiasm in Brazil, Spain, China, Australia and Holland."

Sounds interesting, right? Here are some samples of WebQuest pages featured on the site:

• Welcome to Canada
  
• Snapshots of Confederation
• A Nation of Immigrants (American)
• What does it mean to be Australian? (Australian)
• The Light in the Forest (Native American)
• A Chip off the Old Bloc (This is the only entry under "Ukraine")

Meeting with Dr. Hlynka and Dr. Yereniuk tomorrow afternoon at 1pm and 2pm, respectively.

DAY 47 June 25, 2008

YouTube & Ukrainian Canadiana

There are many video-based websites online that are easily searched according to basic names and subject matter, but one of the most widely used is YouTube.

Here is what a basic search came up with, though there are variations in order:

• Ukrainian Canadian Archives & Museum Project
• Internment Camp Plaque Unveiling
• Beverly Dobrinsky (musician)
  
• Pachelbel's Canon in D Major - The Canadian Bandurist Capella
  
• Pid Oblachkom at the Ukrainian Festival in Toronto (2007)

Points to consider:

1. The majority of the videos in the first few pages of the basic search are related to music and musicianship.
2. Which Canadian locations are featured? What is the cultural context of those locations?
   

DAY 46 June 24, 2008

Sensibilities in the Age of the Internet: Nash Reading

In an article about "Freethought Culture and the Historical Context of Communication Media", David Nash compares how religion is inserted into technological innovations historically, and at present, the time of the so-called Information Revolution. From now on I will refer to "cultre" instead of religion, for the purpose of this article, for three reasons: it is the focus of my internship, religion is a cultural construct, and religion is a facet of "culture".

Nash discusses the Internet's role in how opinion is formed by studying how identity is shaped online, and what effect that has in the real "offline" world. The internet is used to build intellectually constructed houses to provide mental support and shelter which can shape and affirm an individual's identity. Nash argues that the ability of the internet to provide cheap, uncensored publishing affects how people construct who they are and how they interact with information. Compelling stuff.

The term "cyberspace" was coined by William Gibson in 1981, but it was then was completely different from what it is now. Cyberspace represents unlimited space, time, and distance; encompasses all forms of computer-mediated communications, and denotes a permanent virtual space. Computer-mediated Communication (CMC), as Nash posits, can contribute to community and individual identity and is linked to changing ideas about the community and how it will evolve over time. CMC is limited by who has access to a computer and internet connection, which makes it primarily the domain of people of the West, and wealthier stratas of the rest of the world which exclude the 80% of the world that does not have time for anything but work or sleep throughout the day. CMC has the power to challenge the legitimacy of authority and makes it impossible for institutions to control what is being said about them. CMCs can create a world of particular beliefs and values, and participation in that cyberspace denotes shares experiences, beliefs, and ideas about the world. 

Academics such as Brenda Brasher have made arguments that the replacement of tradtional culture by popular culture is mediated by the internet, and that it hosts a plethora of previously unrepresented - or underrepresented - communities. As Nash argues, the Internet is organic, uncensored, and in a state of constant change to suit the needs of its users.

I am ending this hastily with a list of benefits and consequences to the internet in identity and community-shaping:

The benefits of Internet-based identity shaping and participation: 

• Transcends space and time
• Allows individuals without access to a institution access to an institution
• Old ideas can be preserved
• New ideas can be developed quickly
• "Information Revolution" creates a global village
• One can choose his or her level of participation
• Denotes plurality and diversity
• Information more easily spread (because it is less controlled than other forms of media)
• Links development issues in communities which can quickly be acknowledged and discussed (the "Knowledge is power" idea)
• It provides means for contacting others and gaining support
• It is more sustainable (no paper, less pollution)

The consequences of Internet-based community shaping:

• There are issues related to unequal access
• Security risks (to computers, individuals, families, digital warfare, surveillance, etc.)
•  Social vulnerability based on notions of technological dependency
• Privacy is traded for the use of this technology
• Increased levels of consumption result (with online "supermarket" and the updating of the technology and planned obsolescence)

Many of these points are found in my lecture notes from RLGN 1450 with Nicole Goulet, and are not my original thoughts.

DAY 45 June 23, 2008

1. Emailed Chornobyl online CD shelf to Dr. Hlynka, via librarything.com.
2. Arranged meeting at CUCS with Dr. Yereniuk and Dr. Hlynka for this Friday, June 27th.
3. Reading articles pertaining to the internet and how shifts in media relate to changes in the way people interact with traditional culture, and the popular culture which replaces it. Details to follow in tomorrow's blog. 

Day 44 June 20, 2008

Today Dr. Hlynka and I went over the objectives for the remainder of the Summer months, namely:

1. Meet with Dr. Yereniuk as soon as possible with a hard copy of the blog and an update.
2. Scan Macenko's entire divine liturgy sheet music up onto the wiki (adjust quality if possible). Label in original Ukrainian and link to the St. Andrew's College blog.
3. Explore and create Webquest online "courses" for different grade levels of Ukrainian Canadian history - something that could be linked to the CUCS blog.
4. Send the online bookshelf of the Chornobyl music collection to Dr. Hlynka
5. See what can be found on Macenko at the Oseredok archives.

DAY 43 June 19, 2008

• Uploaded divine liturgy sheet music to Macenko wiki - just the first selection. My copy of the sheet music was xeroxed a little off-center, so the scans are a little crooked.
• So far the only annoyance regarding the Wetpaint wiki albums are the order in which the photos are placed - to put the sheets in order and have them stay that way I would have had to do it backwards - good to know for the next piece.
• The sheet music is large, clear, and looks good. We can discuss labelling (in English or Ukrainian, by song title or page number, etc.)

Meeting with Dr. Hlynka tomorrow at 3:30pm.

DAY 42 June 18, 2008

• Prepared divine liturgy sheet music for scanning (not to mention read the manual for my HP All-in-one!)
• First attempt to upload to Macenko wiki will be tomorrow.

Arranging meeting with Dr. Hlynka for this Friday, June 20th.

DAY 41 June 17, 2008

• PIP blog hard copy formulated for submission to Dr. Yereniuk.
• Left sidebar not printing out on all pages... I am unsure about the cause of the disparity.
  

DAY 40 June 16, 2008

Paul Macenko Research

My online search was a success. I discovered that there is a repository of information about Macenko at the Ukrainian Cultural and Education Centre archives in downtown Winnipeg. There is a summary of the collection there listed on line which I has pasted below, it reads:

36. Paul Macenko (Pavlo Matsenko) fonds. 1901-1984.

Paul Macenko (1897-1991) was a musicologist, composed and author who completed his doctoral studies in Prague. He emigrated to Canada in 1936 and worked as a choir conductor and music teacher. He served as cultural and educational director of the Ukrainian National Federation and secretary of the Board of Directors of the Ukrainian Cultural and Educational Centre.

I will contact the executive curator at the centre, Sofia Kachor, next week in order to arrange for access to the collection, if it is possible.

 

DAY 39 June 13, 2008

Today:

• Accepted administrator invite to the Macenko wiki. 
• Clicked around, explored features. 
• Changed template.
  

DAY 38 June 12, 2008

Some interesting Ukrainian Canadian related Wikipedia entries, feel free to add what you will!

1. Ukrainian Canadian
2. Centre for Ukrainian Canadian Studies
3. Joseph Oleskiw
4. Edna-Star Settlement
5. Ukrainian Canadian Internment
6. Anthony Hlynka
7. Daria Werbowy
8. Ukrainian Cultural & Educational Centre
9. Association of United Ukrainian Canadians (AUUC)
10. Multiculturalism

DAY 37 June 11, 2008

Today I created a Wikipedia account so that the Centre for Ukrainian Canadian Studies can start new pages, as well as edit existing pages. The login name is "CUCS" with the typical password, and it is not attached to any email address. This may raise some questions for new readers, namely:

What is Wikipedia?

First and most clearly, it is a wiki, which means it is a web site that operates like a bulletin board, or like an electronic report with various threads and chapters that can serve to display "concrete" information to the universe, or interject more malleable topics into a common thread for discussion from readers and subscribers. Wikipedia is a wiki encyclopedia, hence the name. This is a very simple definition working within the confines of online media I have been experimenting with so far, see the following links for more information about Wikipedia, what it says about itself, and what the Wikipedia project is and where it's going.

Why should we be interested in Wikipedia?

Well it's an incredibly useful tool, any student will tell you, and part of the reason that the internet is such an innovative tool for communication and educational purposes. In the religion department elective I am taking this session called Religion and Media (RLGN 1450) I am learning about how accessible media gives power to the masses - in ways that religious and cultural authorities may not approve of, even in a way that compromises the content of the institution or doctrine that it represents. Wikipedia is a body of our knowledge - much of it is unreliable, not cited, or created by people who are hardly qualified in the academic or professional sense to be educating others on the topic. That's kind of what's great about it. We get to see what people understand, and what they think, how they order the universe and put things together.

This is why the internet is a trap for false information, it's freedom for anyone to put anything in a public body of knowledge, but so is every other type of media - books, newspapers, pamphlets, visual art, music, and anything else can be full of contradiction, misinformation, aesthetic or moral relativism, or just plain idiocy - to be frank - but that doesn't mean that it is void of meaning, nor that it is useless information. There are contributors who take great care to show the quality of their information, and I would encourage any professional or layman alike to contribute to their "area of expertise" in the free space run by Wikipedia - it's so widely used that it is a fantastic way to disseminate quality information quickly - the audience base is unimaginable.

Also, don't forget to check out some Wikipedia's sister projects:

• Wikimedia Commons
  
• Wikiquote
• Wikispecies
• Wikinews
• Wikibooks
• Wikiversity
• Wiktionary
• Wikisource
• Meta Wiki

Wikipedia and all Wikipedia sister projects are hosted by the Wikimedia Foundation.

DAY 36 June 10, 2008

Today Dr.Hlynka and I were able to get together after school, and we have put together a task list for the rest of the month, as well as set up the first Paul Macenko Chair of Church Music wiki.
The task list is as follows:

1. Present electronic and hard copies of this blog to Dr.Yereniuk.
   
2. Scan divine liturgy sheet music and add it to the Macenko wiki.
3. Experiment with Google Labs Page Creator.
4. Create an account on Wikipedia to make entries.
5. Research Macenko and add information and photo albums to the wiki.

Days in June without entries are research days, with quick notes if applicable.

DAY 35 June 9, 2008

For anyone who reads the Winnipeg Free Press on Saturdays - "Ukrainian" was the CanWest CanSpell Canada Post-sponsored Word of the Day. It reads:

ukrainian

yoo CRAINY 'n

Definition: of or relating to Ukraine or its people or language.

The first Ukrainian immigrants to Canada came from western Ukraine.

It's nice to see "the" being pushed out of common usage finally. My meeting with Dr. Hlynka has been moved back - I'm enrolled in two courses in June and our schedules have not clicked for a few days running now. Wish me luck with my midterms on Wednesday!

DAY 34 June 6, 2008

Oh, Canada!
Lyrics in Ukrainian, brought to you by the CUCS

Click HERE

DAY 33, June 5, 2008

Meeting scheduled with Dr. Hlynka for Monday at 9AM.

DAY 32 June 4, 2008

Free Online Course:
Ukrainian Canadian Folklore

One of the best resources for Ukrainian Canadiana online is the Ukrainian Canadian Online Resource Centre accessible through the CUCS main site. During July and August while I am working on a scanning and posting project for St. Andrew's College I will also be partaking in this course and continuing with daily blogs in relation to my progress and thoughts.

Here is the course description and subsequent sections. The course was compiled by Dr. Robert B. Klymasz, and is it's free.

DAY 31, June 3, 2008

Today I began reading some of Dr. Gerus' work on the Ukrainian Canadian Online Resource Centre on the CUCS website. I am trying to decide which piece holds the most potential for an audio clip, or podcast of sorts, but that is yet to be determined. Update coming tomorrow.

DAY 30, June 2, 2008

Today I explored OttoBib.com, which is not the most useful tool for someone who is using a consistent style they are familiar with. The reason for this is because the information has to be added manually in any case. The benefit of the auto-generating bibliography-maker is that if one is unfamiliar with the formatting for a particular citation style that needs to be utilized, one can simply enter the information and will be given the citation in the correct format.