So I’m coming to the end of my first month at TrueTube and I’ve been caught up in a whirlwind of new and exciting things. Being completely fresh to the media world, I can safely say there is a lot to learn – but I’m getting the hang of it! Luckily, I have a lovely team around me and they are helping me get used to the bustle and fast pace of this type of work. One of the highlights for me this month was the BETT Awards. I soon discovered that being nominated for a BETT Award and attending the BETT Show at London’s Excel Centre was a real privilege for anyone in the world of education. BETT 2014 is the global meeting place for the education technology community and it’s now celebrating 30 years of powering learning (it says here). The series of events began on the 22nd of January and ended on the 25th of January, and included 300 hours of content, 400 speakers and 700 exhibitors. It’s safe to say we came away inspired! The show covered a wide range of learning technology for schools so we were spoilt for choice as we went exploring for new ideas. We were even nominated for the award “Free Digital Content/ Open Education Resources” but unfortunately for us, Microsoft’s Kodu was in the same category – not a bad company to lose to I’d say! But being nominated this year and already having two BETT Awards under our belts from 2009 and 2013 still makes us pretty tough contenders in the most sought-after competition of educational technology. We’re looking forward to next year already!
CREATION ON DEPRESSION FROM BIOMATION
The new film on TrueTube called 'Feeling Down?' has been created to reach out to young victims of depression. It provides valuable information on the symptoms, how it can affect sufferers and the people around them, and how it can be overcome. Like so many issues to do with mental health, depression is often misunderstood. 1 in 8 teenagers experience depression and often feel too ashamed or isolated to tell anybody. This makes the subject all the more important to teach. Education and awareness can make a big difference to those who feel so alone.
The film was produced by a small media company called Biomation who use animation to help people explore issues they’re passionate about. The animation and voiceover were created by a group of young people and is designed to connect with the audience on a personal level. It uses a combination of simple imagery and animated metaphors to make this dark topic seem easier to tackle. The film starts off by describing the difference between having depression and just feeling down. It then goes on to identify different symptoms of depression and provides a step by step guide on how to get better. It’s these tiny steps that can make a big difference. Young people with depression can feel like there is no way out of feeling so low and no one can help them. They may feel like they’re strange and different to everyone else and that no one would understand what they’re going through; but with guidance like this, teachers, parents and friends can help to bring this suffering to an end and let these young people know they are not alone.
The film was produced by a small media company called Biomation who use animation to help people explore issues they’re passionate about. The animation and voiceover were created by a group of young people and is designed to connect with the audience on a personal level. It uses a combination of simple imagery and animated metaphors to make this dark topic seem easier to tackle. The film starts off by describing the difference between having depression and just feeling down. It then goes on to identify different symptoms of depression and provides a step by step guide on how to get better. It’s these tiny steps that can make a big difference. Young people with depression can feel like there is no way out of feeling so low and no one can help them. They may feel like they’re strange and different to everyone else and that no one would understand what they’re going through; but with guidance like this, teachers, parents and friends can help to bring this suffering to an end and let these young people know they are not alone.
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