In today's world we are being increasingly inundated by information. This information comes to us in many ways. Traditional media like print and broadcasting, have been supplanted by cable, the internet and mobile devices. We all have more ways to communicate with each other than at any point in human history. We are truly living in an age of information overload.

In the past, the world of "multi media" was reserved for those in the publishing, recording or broadcasting industries. It required expensive and specialized equipment, knowledge and resources. Today, thanks to the internet, we can all be "mass media" producers and distributers, all it takes is a personal computer or a smart phone. 

The problem is, with so much information bombarding us in so many different forms, how do we interpret it? How do we know what we can trust? And on the other side of the coin, how can we personally take advantage of these new forms of communication to make sure our messages are clear and effective without being subject to mis-interpretation?

It has become essential for teachers to be sure their students are intelligent consumers and producers of information. We believe that when teachers encourage students to enhance their writing with audio, video and images, that they become more effective communicators and more critical consumers of media as well. To support the use of media production in the classroom, the BOCES Instructional Support Services offers workshops for teachers who want to learn how they and their students can best use the technology and resources they have available, to integrate multimedia into their teaching activities.