Todays blog is off topic for the class, yet in another way its not. I am currently taking an engineering managment class on organizational change. I am thoroughly enjoying the material and looking at things from a very logical and discrete view again. It is my comfort zone.
We are reading Collins book Good to Great and Kotter/Cohen The Heart of Change along with Who Moved My Cheese. It is an interesting combination of books and the content not so unlike looking at why teachers wont change to use technology. In Good to Great and The Heart of Change the change discussed comes from the leadership and a shared vision. After having the right people in place the change is then, according to Kotter, sprung from a sense of urgency. With that that sense of urgency, it is difficult to get people motivated. A logical argument does not motivate change like a sense of urgency does.
So what creates a sense of urgency in teachers to change to use technology. Is there leadership that spurs it on? When considering asking one teacher to change, what does it take to create that catalyst for change.
It seems to me that simply making a logical argument for FOSS based on cost and its there, does not provide the basic organziational management to create change and remove teachers from their comfort zone to use technology in a way they do not desire or feel is even necessary. Maybe a different theoretical framework, one based on management, might be better utilized.
Ok.. so there is no research backing up my thoughts here.. they are just that ... my thoughts and something I may, or may not, pursue further.
Monday, March 23, 2009
A design based research project
This post is about a design based research project in keeping in line with the concepts brought out in class.
With the Linux terminal server project Jay is involved in he is proposing that providing the computers to the classrooms will make enough of a difference that teachers might integrate the technology. He has done several iterations of this type of project and one way to pull it together would be with a design based scenario. There is also a product being developed during a design based research project and theory tested.
The Product: To develop a configuration specification of hardware, software that would easily accessible to integrate into classrooms.
This is not a project for one class, but rather for a longer extended time: More to follow on this at a later date.
With the Linux terminal server project Jay is involved in he is proposing that providing the computers to the classrooms will make enough of a difference that teachers might integrate the technology. He has done several iterations of this type of project and one way to pull it together would be with a design based scenario. There is also a product being developed during a design based research project and theory tested.
The Product: To develop a configuration specification of hardware, software that would easily accessible to integrate into classrooms.
This is not a project for one class, but rather for a longer extended time: More to follow on this at a later date.
My project
Since I wasnt able to be in class on Thursday night, I'm going to recap my project here. I have been working a lot with FOSS from many different ways.
So with this said, the rest of my semester looks like this:
The small paper: Here I will look at the barriers to teachers using technology, the internet, and FOSS that I can find in the literature. This will be the lit review for my project.
The project: Based on the barriers discovered above, a weekly survey will be created and given to the teachers using the LTSP above. This weekly survey will be a pilot for the project to ascertain what questions SHOULD we be asking. If I get a chance to interview some of the teachers, so much the better.
I'm going out to the Episcopal School on Tuesday morning. Hopefully I will have the survey done by the middle of next week, and can send it out. This survey will then become a tool in the iterations of a larger, design based project I would like to do.
- Through the Linux Terminal Server Projects that Jay has been working on. Currently there are two such projects of interest: one in Cumberland County, and secondly the Episcopal School here in Knoxville. Both are using servers and thin clients for computer services in the class room. It is in this area that I will be doing my project -- but more on that in a bit
- Through a class, we have been looking at perceptions of using FOSS as a before and after analysis. That is, what do the students (preservice teachers usually) think about FOSS when the start the course and how do they view FOSS at the end of the course.
- Through my summer teaching of high schoolers and their perceptions of FOSS both before and after being exposed to it. One comment I might make here is the ease with which these students were able to use FOSS. No training required. Simply tell them where the software was (in this case word processing) and they were able to use it with no instructions.
So with this said, the rest of my semester looks like this:
The small paper: Here I will look at the barriers to teachers using technology, the internet, and FOSS that I can find in the literature. This will be the lit review for my project.
The project: Based on the barriers discovered above, a weekly survey will be created and given to the teachers using the LTSP above. This weekly survey will be a pilot for the project to ascertain what questions SHOULD we be asking. If I get a chance to interview some of the teachers, so much the better.
I'm going out to the Episcopal School on Tuesday morning. Hopefully I will have the survey done by the middle of next week, and can send it out. This survey will then become a tool in the iterations of a larger, design based project I would like to do.
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Next...........
I think I’m on a roll today objecting to the papers presented. Maybe that is because I am a more critical reader… Maybe I’m just in a bad mood and laying into things.
I think to start this discussion I am going to state my definition of the digital divide : it is the gap between those who use computers and those who do not. It is NOT about using computers to further the agenda of socially marginalized groups who do not show a lack of technology usage.
The paper we read had three distinct studies in it: the CNI the LBGT and then the Afya Community action plan from SisterNet. In theCNI and the SisterNet, projects both discussed how community action can be used as empowerment for the groups AND to increase the technology use to cross the digital divide between the have technology and the have NOT’s. However, in this middle section it was strictly about how the internet can be used to empower a marginalized group of people. No where did I see the implication that there was a digital divide to cross.
Do I believe the internet is a great tool for social empowerment. Yes, most definitely. But for some reason when I read the abstract and introduction I was expecting more about how the empowerment would affect the digital divide. Yet, the main focus was more how the web can empower people. To me, it appeared the authors used the digital divide as a “smoke screen” to further their empowerment objective.
I think to start this discussion I am going to state my definition of the digital divide : it is the gap between those who use computers and those who do not. It is NOT about using computers to further the agenda of socially marginalized groups who do not show a lack of technology usage.
The paper we read had three distinct studies in it: the CNI the LBGT and then the Afya Community action plan from SisterNet. In theCNI and the SisterNet, projects both discussed how community action can be used as empowerment for the groups AND to increase the technology use to cross the digital divide between the have technology and the have NOT’s. However, in this middle section it was strictly about how the internet can be used to empower a marginalized group of people. No where did I see the implication that there was a digital divide to cross.
Do I believe the internet is a great tool for social empowerment. Yes, most definitely. But for some reason when I read the abstract and introduction I was expecting more about how the empowerment would affect the digital divide. Yet, the main focus was more how the web can empower people. To me, it appeared the authors used the digital divide as a “smoke screen” to further their empowerment objective.
Digital Divide
I feel sort of negative about this week's readings on the digital divide. The first article I read was the Ono one. When I finished it I felt like I had gone through mental gymnastics to understand the statistics of what common sense might has told someone. It simly could be said that based on the statistics from the US Census, it has been shown what one might expect.
If you are an immigrant and speak Spanish, the your availability and use of the internet are less than if you are a native of the US. The findings include:
Gap of education and technology use among immigrants has widened not lessened (with the recent influx of the Spanish population in Knoxville it would stand to reason the gap has widened here)
The findings mirror already established patterns
Not knowing English is an obstacle to using the web
Lack of a social support network is an obstacle
The purpose of the paper was to investigate the effect of the English ability on using the web. And started off with measuring IT usage in many different categories. From the findings the Immigrants were significantly lower. OK .. at this point I have to say it so DUH! and we are surprised how? Less money… less money to buy a computer and obtain access.
Next findings.
· US Natives speak English better
· the longer an immigrant is here the better the English becomes
· computers in libraries and community centers and other locations have not succeeded in reducing the gap.
I guess now that I have taken the time to read 20 some pages of “proof” I’m all the wiser.. but DUH.
If you are an immigrant and speak Spanish, the your availability and use of the internet are less than if you are a native of the US. The findings include:
Gap of education and technology use among immigrants has widened not lessened (with the recent influx of the Spanish population in Knoxville it would stand to reason the gap has widened here)
The findings mirror already established patterns
Not knowing English is an obstacle to using the web
Lack of a social support network is an obstacle
The purpose of the paper was to investigate the effect of the English ability on using the web. And started off with measuring IT usage in many different categories. From the findings the Immigrants were significantly lower. OK .. at this point I have to say it so DUH! and we are surprised how? Less money… less money to buy a computer and obtain access.
Next findings.
· US Natives speak English better
· the longer an immigrant is here the better the English becomes
· computers in libraries and community centers and other locations have not succeeded in reducing the gap.
I guess now that I have taken the time to read 20 some pages of “proof” I’m all the wiser.. but DUH.
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Design-Based Research
I like this!
I enjoy designing systems and classes along with analyzing things and improving them. OK, so I'm a grad student and probably should have known to look at this .. but its that old thing, you dont know how to find what you dont know exists. So anyway
The paper I read this week is The practice of esign-Based Research: Uncovering hte Interplay Between Design, Rsearch, and the Real-World Context by D. Joseph
Here is a summary of that paper and then thoughts.
Design-based research projects -- the combination of research, design, and pedagogical practice.
Through iterations of designing learning environments that get better and better at supporting the learning. Using prior research knowledge the design effectiveness is imporved. In this particular paper, the author is the designer, the research and implements the practice.
The project is a passion school project where the learner interest is used to drive the design and goes through two passion curriculum trials. The two are:
I enjoy designing systems and classes along with analyzing things and improving them. OK, so I'm a grad student and probably should have known to look at this .. but its that old thing, you dont know how to find what you dont know exists. So anyway
The paper I read this week is The practice of esign-Based Research: Uncovering hte Interplay Between Design, Rsearch, and the Real-World Context by D. Joseph
Here is a summary of that paper and then thoughts.
Design-based research projects -- the combination of research, design, and pedagogical practice.
Through iterations of designing learning environments that get better and better at supporting the learning. Using prior research knowledge the design effectiveness is imporved. In this particular paper, the author is the designer, the research and implements the practice.
The project is a passion school project where the learner interest is used to drive the design and goes through two passion curriculum trials. The two are:
- weekly summer program around the theme of flight for 8 year olds
- an after-school program in a public elementary school called the Video Crew
Narrowing the questions based on the passion school:
Here critical questions are pinpointed and then artifacts are developed to test the questions using what the author refers to as the lens of design. The design in turn then narrows the questions further and pinpoints further things to test.
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Hodge Podge
This weeks post is going to be a variety of things from class:
On Teaching Online
This is my first semester of teaching online and I must say I am enjoying it tremendously. Of course it helps to have a good group of students who are working hard. There are some things that have surprised me about teaching online and one in particular that related to the discussion on distributed learning. Part of being an effective teacher is to look at feedback from students and adjusting teaching methods and presentation to help engage and accommodate student understanding of material. Online this feedback is by far more difficult to ascertain. The more students email, post to blogs and converse with each other have now become my clues to the progress of the material. And now, instead of seeing faces, body stance, the questions in class, I am relearning these small nuances in terms of the posts and other types of interactions. I am glad that I have a great group for this for they do provide the feedback needed!
On Learning the Basics
Along with the discussion of distributed learning we talked about the need for prior knowledge to be able to build and grow further. When student enter the IT concentration there are certain classes that students are scheduled to take to provide the basics for further technology classes. These were well for those students coming into the program with little technology background. On the other hand, for those coming in with a more technical background but little education background, they are on their own to figure out what background is needed. While with the help of good friends who pointed me to the a couple of great resources I made it through that rough transition and I don't see the need for students to be tested on the basics of education terminology, there could be a happy medium where either the basic foundation class is recommended first. Or, there could be a recommended couple of articles that explains the basic concepts.
On the project
This has been a difficult choice for me this semester. I usually have ideas of what area I want to research on but this semester has been a tough one. The project at the top of the list right now appears to be doing research about what factors correlate with successful use of the web 2.0 wiki technology. Do wiki users need to understand web design? what about word processing? or even simple email? In the next couple of days I have to get my head around this project.
On Teaching Online
This is my first semester of teaching online and I must say I am enjoying it tremendously. Of course it helps to have a good group of students who are working hard. There are some things that have surprised me about teaching online and one in particular that related to the discussion on distributed learning. Part of being an effective teacher is to look at feedback from students and adjusting teaching methods and presentation to help engage and accommodate student understanding of material. Online this feedback is by far more difficult to ascertain. The more students email, post to blogs and converse with each other have now become my clues to the progress of the material. And now, instead of seeing faces, body stance, the questions in class, I am relearning these small nuances in terms of the posts and other types of interactions. I am glad that I have a great group for this for they do provide the feedback needed!
On Learning the Basics
Along with the discussion of distributed learning we talked about the need for prior knowledge to be able to build and grow further. When student enter the IT concentration there are certain classes that students are scheduled to take to provide the basics for further technology classes. These were well for those students coming into the program with little technology background. On the other hand, for those coming in with a more technical background but little education background, they are on their own to figure out what background is needed. While with the help of good friends who pointed me to the a couple of great resources I made it through that rough transition and I don't see the need for students to be tested on the basics of education terminology, there could be a happy medium where either the basic foundation class is recommended first. Or, there could be a recommended couple of articles that explains the basic concepts.
On the project
This has been a difficult choice for me this semester. I usually have ideas of what area I want to research on but this semester has been a tough one. The project at the top of the list right now appears to be doing research about what factors correlate with successful use of the web 2.0 wiki technology. Do wiki users need to understand web design? what about word processing? or even simple email? In the next couple of days I have to get my head around this project.
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Distributitve Cognition
Distributed cognition: Domains and dimensions
John Sutton -- Macquarie University
I found this article is a mental exercise in terminology and vocabulary and have tried to simplify the article in the summary below.
This is an article about the different aspects of distributitve cognition, and how they might be studied.
He starts off with there is a variety of, or motley mess, as a way of looking at this, but then defines two "domains"
He is going to look at basically two domains Kirsh's distributed cognition and Clark's extended mind DC and EM In his opinion these two are important and deserve further research.
1.1 We use external items and writings to help us process what we think about. Therefore this distributes our thoughts
1.2 We use our natural perceptions and use of technology create meaning as well.
1.3 Our interactions with others also affect how we think and process information.
1.4 Our bodies, skills and capacities influence our thought processes and the sense we make things
1.5 The actual physical neural functions and the strategies we use to remember things
2.0 How can we analyze distributive cognition?
Where we do different things based on different inputs: A person will come to different conclusions about what they take in if there are with someone or if they are by themselves
Where we do the same things with an input no matter our surroundings: There are some things we do that are highly repeatable..and reliable -- that is we process them all the same way
Because of all the interwoven internal and external inputs, then possibly shouldnt research be ethnographic and wholistic.
John Sutton -- Macquarie University
I found this article is a mental exercise in terminology and vocabulary and have tried to simplify the article in the summary below.
This is an article about the different aspects of distributitve cognition, and how they might be studied.
He starts off with there is a variety of, or motley mess, as a way of looking at this, but then defines two "domains"
He is going to look at basically two domains Kirsh's distributed cognition and Clark's extended mind DC and EM In his opinion these two are important and deserve further research.
1.1 We use external items and writings to help us process what we think about. Therefore this distributes our thoughts
1.2 We use our natural perceptions and use of technology create meaning as well.
1.3 Our interactions with others also affect how we think and process information.
1.4 Our bodies, skills and capacities influence our thought processes and the sense we make things
1.5 The actual physical neural functions and the strategies we use to remember things
2.0 How can we analyze distributive cognition?
Where we do different things based on different inputs: A person will come to different conclusions about what they take in if there are with someone or if they are by themselves
Where we do the same things with an input no matter our surroundings: There are some things we do that are highly repeatable..and reliable -- that is we process them all the same way
Because of all the interwoven internal and external inputs, then possibly shouldnt research be ethnographic and wholistic.
My "Other Brain"
So this week is all about distributive cognition. Most of the articles we read for this week are fairly well written. However, the one that I was reading was so "overwritten" that being "newbie" to distributive cognition, I found it almost unreadable. I hope the author of that article is not considered notable in the field because I have no desire to read any more of his work. But enough of that, I'll save it for class.
I've glanced through the blogs tonight too and found John's comments about Google making us stupid to be interesting. This last week I have been looking at Google as a business and its philosophy.
"Google's mission is to organize the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful" www.google.com
Of particular interest was an interview I found of Eric Schmidt, the CEO of Google. In this interview Schmidt discusses how that people are doing things much faster than before and for us who have not grown up with the in that fast pace feel it more as a bad thing, while today's generation that is growing up has only seen the "fast pace" and to them it is the norm and they are adaptable. http://www.mckinseyquarterly.com/Googles_view_on_the_future_of_business_An_interview_with_CEO_Eric_Schmidt_2229
My interpretation of this also means less patience with rote memorization when things can be found on the web much faster. Instead they will be come experts in searching and finding what they want. They will create their own 'local search memory" by tagging locations they want to remember then being able to search their own custom tags. And then, if they cant find something in their own personal external brain, they will turn to the larger search sites such as google.
I've glanced through the blogs tonight too and found John's comments about Google making us stupid to be interesting. This last week I have been looking at Google as a business and its philosophy.
"Google's mission is to organize the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful" www.google.com
Of particular interest was an interview I found of Eric Schmidt, the CEO of Google. In this interview Schmidt discusses how that people are doing things much faster than before and for us who have not grown up with the in that fast pace feel it more as a bad thing, while today's generation that is growing up has only seen the "fast pace" and to them it is the norm and they are adaptable. http://www.mckinseyquarterly.com/Googles_view_on_the_future_of_business_An_interview_with_CEO_Eric_Schmidt_2229
My interpretation of this also means less patience with rote memorization when things can be found on the web much faster. Instead they will be come experts in searching and finding what they want. They will create their own 'local search memory" by tagging locations they want to remember then being able to search their own custom tags. And then, if they cant find something in their own personal external brain, they will turn to the larger search sites such as google.
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Internet Privacy -- Take off from J
Finding me on the web!!
To help spur me on with more to write this week I read the challenge on internet privacy. My name is fairly uncommon so I've never found anyone else with that name that actually has a web presence. I suppose I shouldnt be surprised that now has changed, but it has.
I remember as a child not liking the fact my name was so different from everyone else but now I have learned to emabrace and enjoy that fact. I really had a sense of dislike when I found the other person with the same name that has an active web presence. While there are other people who would come up in a phone directory type listing, this was the first to have pics of herself.
I wont comment on what I found -- I dont think it was the fact of the content as much as there was just someone.
Privacy?? Not when things are published publically
I had a 2. 5 hour phone call the other night over a discipline matter with youth sports. I volunteer many hours with youth sports and recently during one game unfortunately there were some players who let's just say let their tempers get the better of them. Apparently, someone was filming the game being played at the time and shortly there after a clip of the video was found on YouTube. In addition, comments about the game were being made by some of the players in the game. Of course the screen names did not reveal exactly who these players were but the comments were extremely inflammatory. While these were children, it would be the same type of comments that would get a professional player fined, suspended or both.
While there had been some discipline given after the game, this particular hearing would not have been held had it not been for the online video and public comments. What is worse, the players could not deny anything-- it was all public and documented with the video.
The final results of the hearing is still being deliberated so I'll refrain from further comment on that here... but just another example of people not understanding the public nature of the internet and the social sites that exist.
To help spur me on with more to write this week I read the challenge on internet privacy. My name is fairly uncommon so I've never found anyone else with that name that actually has a web presence. I suppose I shouldnt be surprised that now has changed, but it has.
I remember as a child not liking the fact my name was so different from everyone else but now I have learned to emabrace and enjoy that fact. I really had a sense of dislike when I found the other person with the same name that has an active web presence. While there are other people who would come up in a phone directory type listing, this was the first to have pics of herself.
I wont comment on what I found -- I dont think it was the fact of the content as much as there was just someone.
Privacy?? Not when things are published publically
I had a 2. 5 hour phone call the other night over a discipline matter with youth sports. I volunteer many hours with youth sports and recently during one game unfortunately there were some players who let's just say let their tempers get the better of them. Apparently, someone was filming the game being played at the time and shortly there after a clip of the video was found on YouTube. In addition, comments about the game were being made by some of the players in the game. Of course the screen names did not reveal exactly who these players were but the comments were extremely inflammatory. While these were children, it would be the same type of comments that would get a professional player fined, suspended or both.
While there had been some discipline given after the game, this particular hearing would not have been held had it not been for the online video and public comments. What is worse, the players could not deny anything-- it was all public and documented with the video.
The final results of the hearing is still being deliberated so I'll refrain from further comment on that here... but just another example of people not understanding the public nature of the internet and the social sites that exist.
Article for Class
I've had a tough time deciding what to post about this week. I had originally intended to do more than just the review for the article I chose but nothing has come to mind. So to try to get things rolling here is the article I found that I thought would be good to share with class.
The good, the bad and the wiki: Evaluating student-generated content for collaborative learning
Wheeler, S., Yeomans, P., & Wheeler, D. (2008). The good, the bad and the wiki: Evaluating student-generated content for collaborative learning. British Journal of Educational Technology(0).
Qualitative Study
Study consisted of
Who:
35 Students enrolled in Bachelor of Ed with Honors program
1st, 2nd, and 3rd year students
Ages: 18 - 25 + 2 older students
What:
Students used wikis during their classroom sessions as space to store and edit work from their research exercise and as a discussion forum. They were invited to post their views of the use of the wiki on a discussion board during the semester and completed a post-module questionnaire via email --(Did not say that all 35 of the students agreed or if any opted out etc)
Findings:
Over all Comments generally positive
Limitations
Students confused at the first session.
did not suit the learning preference of all students -- too unstructured
Some apportioned responsibilities but a limitation of this was to create individual areas as opposed to collaboration areas
Ownership and property rights became an issue-- others welcome to read but they did not want their work changed.
All students don't participate equally -- few students write.. many read
Benefits
Student were aware of unseen audience and had a desire to write accurate and relevant content
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Lessig on Keen
This is a blog of Lessig's response to Keen. Interesting.
http://www.lessig.org/blog/2007/05/keens_the_cult_of_the_amateur.html
http://www.lessig.org/blog/2007/05/keens_the_cult_of_the_amateur.html
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Truth?
Andrew Keen's Cult of the Amateur is going to be a difficult read for me. Not so much in the words but in the thoughts themselves. Even reading the cover and overview the DUH sensation takes over. Of course the Internet is going to change our way of life. Just like printing changed the Scribes, so will the internet change our way of communication. But wait... maybe I should not read Keen's book till some scribe gets around to writing it for me?
I'm really just getting started reading in depth and to page 17 before I felt the need to start typing on the blog as a response. "In the era of exploding media technologies there is no truth except the truth you create for yourself." I dont think the first part of that sentence is needed. I do think it is very true that "There is no truth except the truth you create for yourself." The difference is NOW with the media we no longer have that "truth" dictated to us by the media. Now we have broad platforms of information to gather and to make our own informed decisions. If we do not use the technology to our advantage to learn and to grow, well then we sell ourself short.
So now, back to my reading until something else makes me want to type on this blog.
..... Time passes and I'm now on page 31 of the book. I'm back to feeling insulted again by Keen. Does he think that I am not capable of reading things and not believing everything I read? Teaching one to read critically and not to believe everything is one of the basic principles I learned in school longer ago than I can remember. Maybe Keen will propose this later in the book instead of just whining about change, but maybe, just maybe, we should start teaching children to read critically and to check sources more carefully now that we do have the internet to use. Teach them to use the internet as a tool to research and question, not just believe.
Ok.. back to the book.
Page 48 and I've finally found something to agree with Keen on. That when it comes to facts, that there will be both blogs of junk and then more accurate posts by trained profressionals (in this case the media reporting on Katrina). I do believe that more and more we will find sites, news media, etc that we can rely on for objective facts (I wont speculate which or who here) and we will tend to gravitate to them when we see something that is sensationalized. Therefore, I dont think trained professionals will be out of a job, but I do think their role and how things are submitted on the web/marketed will change .. just dont ask me how yet.
More discussion about YouTube and can we tell the difference between entertainment and commercial. The answer to that is ... there may be cases where the ad is subtle. I have no doubt that is the case. So far I've read the changes he doesn't like. I'm still waiting for him to offer a solution.
After YouTube, now is the closing of a music store, change in movies, and newspapers and blaming it on the web... so...... ?
So after reading.. I'm now starting in on solutions - chapter 8. I read the introductory paragraphs and had to stop to type here again. I'm back to major frustration with him.. Can anyone say, "I want my cake and eat it too?"
One minute he is point out how the music industry adapts by selling ringtones etc.. the next he is saying we dont want to allow the "public" to destroy the industry as we know it. From what I know, it has NEVER been the consumer's responsibility to keep a merchant in business, rather it is the merchants responsibility to meet customer's needs and provide a service the customer is willing to pay for. How is the web different? Doesnt it behoove a merchant to find ways to embrace the internet and use it for their advantage ? What is wrong with YouTube ads?
"Parents too can play a key role..." where he is talking about protecting children from internet predators. The primary role of the parent is to protect their children. Or at least that was/is my role as a parent/grandparent. Why is it any different on the web than other life activities? While I am sure there are some parents who dont protect their children (there are some parents who allow 4 year olds to play in the street with cars coming to..) I dont rely on anyone else to protect my family and that includes MySpace, Facebook, NetNanny, etc, etc.
Hmmmmm. So we need to keep our entertainment industry that has shaped our culture and values? Personally, my values are NOT those of the entertainment industry. Shall we not simply go back to the Puritan age and enforce those values ?
So now that I've finished the book, I'm not sure where web 2.0 is headed but I am sure that stopping it in the interest of culture is not the right thing to do... anymore than using scribes instead of type setting is the right thing to do.
I'm really just getting started reading in depth and to page 17 before I felt the need to start typing on the blog as a response. "In the era of exploding media technologies there is no truth except the truth you create for yourself." I dont think the first part of that sentence is needed. I do think it is very true that "There is no truth except the truth you create for yourself." The difference is NOW with the media we no longer have that "truth" dictated to us by the media. Now we have broad platforms of information to gather and to make our own informed decisions. If we do not use the technology to our advantage to learn and to grow, well then we sell ourself short.
So now, back to my reading until something else makes me want to type on this blog.
..... Time passes and I'm now on page 31 of the book. I'm back to feeling insulted again by Keen. Does he think that I am not capable of reading things and not believing everything I read? Teaching one to read critically and not to believe everything is one of the basic principles I learned in school longer ago than I can remember. Maybe Keen will propose this later in the book instead of just whining about change, but maybe, just maybe, we should start teaching children to read critically and to check sources more carefully now that we do have the internet to use. Teach them to use the internet as a tool to research and question, not just believe.
Ok.. back to the book.
Page 48 and I've finally found something to agree with Keen on. That when it comes to facts, that there will be both blogs of junk and then more accurate posts by trained profressionals (in this case the media reporting on Katrina). I do believe that more and more we will find sites, news media, etc that we can rely on for objective facts (I wont speculate which or who here) and we will tend to gravitate to them when we see something that is sensationalized. Therefore, I dont think trained professionals will be out of a job, but I do think their role and how things are submitted on the web/marketed will change .. just dont ask me how yet.
More discussion about YouTube and can we tell the difference between entertainment and commercial. The answer to that is ... there may be cases where the ad is subtle. I have no doubt that is the case. So far I've read the changes he doesn't like. I'm still waiting for him to offer a solution.
After YouTube, now is the closing of a music store, change in movies, and newspapers and blaming it on the web... so...... ?
So after reading.. I'm now starting in on solutions - chapter 8. I read the introductory paragraphs and had to stop to type here again. I'm back to major frustration with him.. Can anyone say, "I want my cake and eat it too?"
One minute he is point out how the music industry adapts by selling ringtones etc.. the next he is saying we dont want to allow the "public" to destroy the industry as we know it. From what I know, it has NEVER been the consumer's responsibility to keep a merchant in business, rather it is the merchants responsibility to meet customer's needs and provide a service the customer is willing to pay for. How is the web different? Doesnt it behoove a merchant to find ways to embrace the internet and use it for their advantage ? What is wrong with YouTube ads?
"Parents too can play a key role..." where he is talking about protecting children from internet predators. The primary role of the parent is to protect their children. Or at least that was/is my role as a parent/grandparent. Why is it any different on the web than other life activities? While I am sure there are some parents who dont protect their children (there are some parents who allow 4 year olds to play in the street with cars coming to..) I dont rely on anyone else to protect my family and that includes MySpace, Facebook, NetNanny, etc, etc.
Hmmmmm. So we need to keep our entertainment industry that has shaped our culture and values? Personally, my values are NOT those of the entertainment industry. Shall we not simply go back to the Puritan age and enforce those values ?
So now that I've finished the book, I'm not sure where web 2.0 is headed but I am sure that stopping it in the interest of culture is not the right thing to do... anymore than using scribes instead of type setting is the right thing to do.
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Thoughts on the other blogs
I've created a strategy for reading everyone's blogs. I'm planning on reading John's and Jeff's blog each week and in addition pick one other blog to read in its entirety from the last time I read it. This week I chose Olivia's. Her perception of perception, perfectability and learning was a topic that I am extremely interested in. I really appreciated her post on John Seely Brown -- I've spent over a half an hour browsing that site and have marked it to come back to for possible thoughts on my dissertation! Thanks Olivia!!
Group Action Just Got Easier
According to Shirkey that is the thesis for his book Here Comes Everybody. The ways that people come together in ways they couldnt before. I posted one other talk by Shirkey below so I wont integrate the video, but this is where he states his thesis for the book. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J80PE1h9OuA
While Shirkey's book gives a lot of great examples I went searching on the web for specific workplace applications. With the Net-Gen workers coming up one might expect them to use the same tools they have grown up using for work purposes.
For example: http://www.brandon-hall.com/workplacelearningtoday/?p=45 . In that site, the McDonald franchises use social networking to solve the "case of the buns that wont rise." In this case, one franchise has buns that wont rise and post it in a social net work and others then chime in they have the same problem. They finially figure out the why. Before social networking this would be much more difficult.
Another example using social tools for workplace is linkedln. I've resisted joining for a while but finally started my network today as an experiment to see how it works this semester. Anyone want to network with me there?
Still another example of social networking affecting or maybe more importantly being integrated with business is ebay. Without the seller/buyer rating (nothing more than social feed back) it might have affected the success of the business itself. While I cant speak for everyone, I know I look at the seller's rating before I buy from them. If they have poor ratings I dont buy. In this way it helps keep the quality and expectation of the products sold on ebay.
Ok, this is a start of examples of using the internet for social learning. Anyone want to add other examples? I'm open to any experiments on internet learning on here as well. Ideas?
While Shirkey's book gives a lot of great examples I went searching on the web for specific workplace applications. With the Net-Gen workers coming up one might expect them to use the same tools they have grown up using for work purposes.
For example: http://www.brandon-hall.com/workplacelearningtoday/?p=45 . In that site, the McDonald franchises use social networking to solve the "case of the buns that wont rise." In this case, one franchise has buns that wont rise and post it in a social net work and others then chime in they have the same problem. They finially figure out the why. Before social networking this would be much more difficult.
Another example using social tools for workplace is linkedln. I've resisted joining for a while but finally started my network today as an experiment to see how it works this semester. Anyone want to network with me there?
Still another example of social networking affecting or maybe more importantly being integrated with business is ebay. Without the seller/buyer rating (nothing more than social feed back) it might have affected the success of the business itself. While I cant speak for everyone, I know I look at the seller's rating before I buy from them. If they have poor ratings I dont buy. In this way it helps keep the quality and expectation of the products sold on ebay.
Ok, this is a start of examples of using the internet for social learning. Anyone want to add other examples? I'm open to any experiments on internet learning on here as well. Ideas?
Here Comes Everybody
This weeks reading was Here Comes Everybody by Shirkey. I thought I'd start my blog by looking up the book title on YouTube and guess what! I found a talk by the author about the book. See what you think.
I think my comments on this week's reading are going to pertain to wiki's. I like the comment's in HCE where he talks about his motivation for posting to Wikipedia. Exercising the mind, vanity and a desire to do a good thing all rolled into one. I think any volunteer work might be a combination of these things.
However, I think the use of wiki's can be used in the workplace as a valuable tool for collaboration -- even more so than email. Since I do consulting I have mentioned this to a few companies and have met with much of the same resistence.. they dont know what it is, how it works and are resistent to what they see as MORE work that is difficult. I truly believe that if companies would use wiki's as opposed to so much email that it would create a more efficient method of collaboration along with creating a natural documentation and organizational learning. The easily searchable content by everyone (or it can even be restricted as necessary) could possibly revolutionize a company. At this point, I have no data to back this up -- so my next step is to see what I can find.
I think my comments on this week's reading are going to pertain to wiki's. I like the comment's in HCE where he talks about his motivation for posting to Wikipedia. Exercising the mind, vanity and a desire to do a good thing all rolled into one. I think any volunteer work might be a combination of these things.
However, I think the use of wiki's can be used in the workplace as a valuable tool for collaboration -- even more so than email. Since I do consulting I have mentioned this to a few companies and have met with much of the same resistence.. they dont know what it is, how it works and are resistent to what they see as MORE work that is difficult. I truly believe that if companies would use wiki's as opposed to so much email that it would create a more efficient method of collaboration along with creating a natural documentation and organizational learning. The easily searchable content by everyone (or it can even be restricted as necessary) could possibly revolutionize a company. At this point, I have no data to back this up -- so my next step is to see what I can find.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Reading Reflection - Week 1
As We May Think
Amazing! I went looking for the Life Magazine article to see what they depicted the Memex to look like. You can follow this link to the concept published in 1945. Memex
While maybe some of the implementation details are off, the end result of the knowledge at the fingertips has become the norm of today's society.
The Culture Logic of Media Convergence
This article is about 5 years old and I'm going to start by looking at the comments by the author about the 2004 presidential election and the statement that blogging affected it. Likewise the New York Times printed figures from the election of how Obama use YouTube for for 14.5 million hours at what would been a cost of $47 million if purchased on TV. (NYTimes Article). As pointed out, the way the internet was used during the campaign appears to have played an outcome in the election much in the way televisison was used with Kennedy. Also, now days if a TV show is missed its quite possible you might be able to watch it online.
As this article points out media is converging and nine points of what are called negotiations are pointed out. Among which is regulating media content. In some ways this has become easier on an individual level with the new converging of technologies. It is possible to easily record desired shows and to only watch those.
The article also discusses redesigning the digital economy and comments the free web will be only amateur and academics. To date, I'm not sure I agree with that has happened. What about the sites that give away information in the hopes that it will attract consumers which would then see a product about that information which might prove useful (i.e. computer virus information on sites selling anti-virus software, health information on sites selling vitamins and many others)
I do agree however with the basic premise that the convergence of the media will continue to change even as it has since this article was written.
Toward a Connective Ethnography of Online/Offline Literacy Networks
Where to begin with this article. While I know it is important to look at the methods used by these researchers, I think I'll start with one of the findings that surprised me.
I was surprised by the findings of the culture in Trinidad in 2000 and the fact their culture was shaping how they used the web and the finding the practiced their national identities online. I can't help but wonder if that trend is still in existence today and if so, to the same extent.
For me, this article is valuable in seeing the different types of ethnographic studies that have been done and this is especially true as I'm just beginning the required qualitative statistics courses for the PhD. In that the reading was timely for me.
Stay tuned for the next post for more on this article!
Amazing! I went looking for the Life Magazine article to see what they depicted the Memex to look like. You can follow this link to the concept published in 1945. Memex
While maybe some of the implementation details are off, the end result of the knowledge at the fingertips has become the norm of today's society.
The Culture Logic of Media Convergence
This article is about 5 years old and I'm going to start by looking at the comments by the author about the 2004 presidential election and the statement that blogging affected it. Likewise the New York Times printed figures from the election of how Obama use YouTube for for 14.5 million hours at what would been a cost of $47 million if purchased on TV. (NYTimes Article). As pointed out, the way the internet was used during the campaign appears to have played an outcome in the election much in the way televisison was used with Kennedy. Also, now days if a TV show is missed its quite possible you might be able to watch it online.
As this article points out media is converging and nine points of what are called negotiations are pointed out. Among which is regulating media content. In some ways this has become easier on an individual level with the new converging of technologies. It is possible to easily record desired shows and to only watch those.
The article also discusses redesigning the digital economy and comments the free web will be only amateur and academics. To date, I'm not sure I agree with that has happened. What about the sites that give away information in the hopes that it will attract consumers which would then see a product about that information which might prove useful (i.e. computer virus information on sites selling anti-virus software, health information on sites selling vitamins and many others)
I do agree however with the basic premise that the convergence of the media will continue to change even as it has since this article was written.
Toward a Connective Ethnography of Online/Offline Literacy Networks
Where to begin with this article. While I know it is important to look at the methods used by these researchers, I think I'll start with one of the findings that surprised me.
I was surprised by the findings of the culture in Trinidad in 2000 and the fact their culture was shaping how they used the web and the finding the practiced their national identities online. I can't help but wonder if that trend is still in existence today and if so, to the same extent.
For me, this article is valuable in seeing the different types of ethnographic studies that have been done and this is especially true as I'm just beginning the required qualitative statistics courses for the PhD. In that the reading was timely for me.
Stay tuned for the next post for more on this article!
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Thoughts on the Class
Learning and the Internet --
I do think the internet and this Net Generation will revolutionize schools and learning in the workplace. Exactly how? That remains to be seen. Since one area of research I'm extremely interested in is adult learning and learning in the workplace, learning and the internet seems to be an important aspect of those interests. I'm not exactly sure why I did it, but I went to YouTube and found a video that I think sort of says it all... at least for now until things advance further.
I do think the internet and this Net Generation will revolutionize schools and learning in the workplace. Exactly how? That remains to be seen. Since one area of research I'm extremely interested in is adult learning and learning in the workplace, learning and the internet seems to be an important aspect of those interests. I'm not exactly sure why I did it, but I went to YouTube and found a video that I think sort of says it all... at least for now until things advance further.
Introduction - Day 1
This is the first blog of many for the semester on internet learning. I think I'm going to find writing in this blog difficult at first but I'm sure as the semester progresses it will become easier.
When considering Prensky's digital immigrants vs digital natives, by all definition in terms of where I am in life, I should be considered an immigrant. However, I am an extensive internet user and rely heavily on technology for information and communication. I am much more comfortable sending an email as opposed to telephoning and I even started chatting online with instant messaging in the early 1990's as a master's student in computer science. I will admit that then the variety of people with which to chat was very limited. Most were computer science majors like myself, or others in more technical fields.
I can't think of many days I haven't been on the internet since the early 90's although, dialing in to UT's network on a 2400 baud modem is a far cry from where I am today. In spite of being such a "heavy user" I will admit to this being my first blog. It will be interesting to see if this sticks after the class or if it will become a tedious "have to" before the class is over.
So why am I reflecting on this in my first blog? I am curious to see if my background will influence how I see the internet and learning. Only time will tell as we progress through the class.
When considering Prensky's digital immigrants vs digital natives, by all definition in terms of where I am in life, I should be considered an immigrant. However, I am an extensive internet user and rely heavily on technology for information and communication. I am much more comfortable sending an email as opposed to telephoning and I even started chatting online with instant messaging in the early 1990's as a master's student in computer science. I will admit that then the variety of people with which to chat was very limited. Most were computer science majors like myself, or others in more technical fields.
I can't think of many days I haven't been on the internet since the early 90's although, dialing in to UT's network on a 2400 baud modem is a far cry from where I am today. In spite of being such a "heavy user" I will admit to this being my first blog. It will be interesting to see if this sticks after the class or if it will become a tedious "have to" before the class is over.
So why am I reflecting on this in my first blog? I am curious to see if my background will influence how I see the internet and learning. Only time will tell as we progress through the class.
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