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On October 10, we organized the professional event for our Secondary School Program titled: “Focus on the screen! Conscious media usage even during the pandemic!” which revolved around the challenges of conscious media consumption in our lives. Considering the current pandemic risk and the infrastructure of the MCC building, we felt it was necessary to secure the participants health as much as possible, thus we maximized the number of participants to 80.
Our lecturer in the morning was Veronika Pelle, lecturer at the Institute of Communication and Sociology of the Corvinus University of Budapest and digital literacy development staff member of the National Media and Communications Authority. Her exciting presentation aimed to provide some ammunition for how to live more media-consciously in this not-so-simple period.
Afterwards, students were able to choose from several programs running in parallel during the afternoon.
Kinga Györffy, rhetorical-storytelling consultant and trainer, and university lecturer held a workshop called "Express yourself - Secrets of a Vibrantly Exciting Performance" that revolved around the tools of professional storytelling, providing participants with useful tips and advice. Ildikó Lipták's session "What did I want to say?" the students were acquainted with techniques and methods that can be used to reduce stage fright during a public presentation. The “Speech technique and improvisation training” by Zita Kraszkó (from Hepp! Theater) revolved around the question of how flexible handling of unexpected situations can make everyday life easier. In addition, 15 of our students took part in the museum pedagogical session "Reflections" of the Hungarian National Gallery.
Réka Sie, our student of the Secondary School Program, has written a report on the event.
“Fortunately, we had the opportunity to participate in the Secondary School Program's professional event this month too, which I was particularly pleased with, as it was the first occasion for me since February. Although in some respects it was different from the usual (due to precautions related to the coronavirus), I still managed to gain new knowledge and experiences.
During the morning we heard a presentation by Veronika Pelle on conscious media usage, which has become more important than ever since the outbreak due to more frequent internet use and a plethora of “fake news”. As 21st century teenagers, we could consider ourselves conscious users because we know how different platforms work, what we can post, and what we should rather keep to ourselves. But we could hear shocking facts in the presentation, after which we will certainly not press the “I Agree” button without reading the terms of use first.
Before the usual pizza, we could talk in small groups about the lessons learned from the lecture. This was also a good idea because without the board games that stretch into Friday night of the program, it’s pretty hard to meet new people, so we were able to initiate a conversation more easily, which we could continue during lunch.
Among the afternoon workshops, I chose "What did I want to say?" by Ildikó Lipták. I was a little surprised when I entered the big room and the presenter asked if anyone would like to take the stage with a performance. It was no longer so surprising that no one would, as we chose the program to overcome our anxiety. With this, the lecturer wanted to show us that stage fright is a natural thing, but we do not have to throw ourselves into the deep water right away to overcome it, we have to take small steps. During the afternoon, we did exercises that moved us out of our comfort zone. Even though I knew few people there, I didn’t feel tense because the tasks created a very loose atmosphere.
As usual with MCC programs, time flew by rather quickly. Throughout the day, I faced thought-provoking questions, made new friends, saw old faces again, and worked on my confidence. ”
Sie Réka, Secondary School Program
The detailed program is available by clicking here.
