However, colleges and universities do offer more practical ideas and tools to American lawmakers, journalists, and interest group leaders, that are far more helpful and productive. There is the wonderful work by Gerald Graff and others on teaching argument and conflict, demanding that our students know how to make an argument in class, in papers, and as they go about their lives. As the years pass, these scholars have made a difference, and my bet is that their impact will be even greater as a younger generation of faculty learn how to incorporate argument into their teaching, no matter the discipline or class size.
But even more accessible than these pedagogical paradigms and tools is formal debate itself, from policy debate modeled by national championship college and university teams, to Lincoln-Douglas-style debate, and a variety of other formats that have emerged across nations. While I was only a high school debater myself, and I’m now far outside both the high school and collegiate debate “circuits,” it is clear to me that if we can train our students – not only our student leaders and teams – in debate, and make it a stronger presence on campuses, we might build a more constructive public discourse with generational change. Anyone can debate – learn to make an argument, marshal evidence, rebut – with some instruction and practice. And these skills, once gained, can be translated into the sorts of forums our students will eventually find themselves in: workplace meetings, the PTA, community organizations, and in some cases, city halls and legislatures. We do not need to train a generation of lawyers, but we do need to train a generation of students who can simulate what attorneys and great debaters do as a matter of course.
There are many people, organizations and institutions that teach debate either for the classroom or for regional or national competitions, in the United States, abroad, and online (see here and here). But the basic elements are the same across formats: Argument, evidence, forced reciprocity and dialogue, equal time, and mandatory listening. These are precisely the elements missing from much of the contemporary debate about health care reform, and I predict they will be absent as well from the worrisome debates coming next, immigration policy reform in particular. These aspects of communication are the very building blocks for civility, and at this point at least, we have a deficit of them.
Susan Herbst is chief academic officer for the University System of Georgia and professor of public policy at Georgia Institute of Technology.
Classroom 2.0: Reviews of the Best Social Media Technology in the Classroom Textbooks
I just received “Web 2.0: New Tools, New Schools in the Classroom” and “Re-inventing Project Based Learning” both produced by the folks at ISTE. I think both are worth the money (each runs between $24 and $34 either on Amazon or from ISTE) and I think both can serve either as a guidebook for teachers wanting to implement social media tools in the classroom, textbook for a college classroom, or a guidebook for personal development day on internet technology in the K-12 classroom.
My biggest criticism of these books (and I think these are significant issues for 90 to 95% of teachers who read these texts) are the following:
• lack of a process (lack of lesson plan models or scaffolding). this could help speed up the process as well as provide some leadership on these issues.
• lack of creative ways to solve the digital divide. the inability to address the digital divide is critical to being able to fairly and effectively deal with technology issues in the classroom. how can teachers with only 1 hour a week of computer time implement these policies? how can teachers with just 3 computers in the classroom implement these policies? how can teachers use tools and organizations outside the scope of the school setting to alleviate the digital divide (ie museums)? what are practical ways that teachers have dealt with and negotiated these issues.
• assessment of multimedia digital projects. I think education is just wrapping its head around these issues. I think assessment is critical to the issues of educational fairness and motivation. Although both texts devoted about 7 pages to this issue–I think a more robust and comprehensive handling of the issue is both necessary and desirable. For instance, Solomon and Schrum do point to the work of Helen Barrett and Harry Tuttle on assessment, in addition to the use of e-portfolios such as those provided by for free by Elgg.org. However, no rubric of assessment is really provided.
• Whither Howard Gardner. the lack of mention of Howard Gardner and the extensive project based learning examples he gives, with the small exception of High Tech High, seems pretty surprising. this gives readers a potential opportunity to explore such issues in greater depth via their own research and projects.
• various other cultural and technology issues: a discussion of the issue of information overload and how to deal with the challenges technology presents. tomorrow’s workers will have to deal with a mind numbing array of information sources–dealing with information overload and the challenges technology presents is important to real digital literacy.
By the way, the 16 page bibliography at the end of Web 2.0: New Tools, New Schools is quite impressive and overall the book is power-packed with insightful advice and web link resources (I am surprised that the authors or publisher hasn’t created a wiki or blog around the book–or at least one I could find online. I guess the fact that Gwen Solomon runs Tech Learning serves that purpose–so you may want to check it out for further resources, examples, and insight.)
I liked “Re-inventing Project Based Learning” because it expanded the notions of technology beyond just typical Web 2.0 tools. There are 3 examples of mobile phones in the index–as this is in the top 5 of most applicable and accessible technologies–I wish there had been more. This is certainly an area of classroom technology and project based learning which bares further exploration and investigation.
Overall, I think the authors of both education technology textbooks did an excellent job. I would recommend both of these books for any educator, librarian, or education technologist trying to help teachers in their school wrap their heads around these new technology tools. My criticisms above are only meant to supplement the existing texts–and can serve as jumping off points for further research on the topic of social media, web 2.0, and other advanced technologies in the K-12 classroom.
Looking forward to checking out David Warlick’s books on this issue in the near future (in the mean time I’ll have to just reflect on the incredible mass of resources about digital literacy in the 21st century on David Warlick’s wiki) If you have any suggestions for solving any of the above (or any research/links/etc) feel free to leave them in the comments section. (also, feel free to leave your opinion/reviews/asssment about any of the books on this subject)
Dalton Sherman’s Inspiring Speech : “Do You Believe in Me?”
Check out this video of the keynote speech given by Dalton Sherman to Dallas teachers at the DISD. Dalton’s delivery, courage, and enthusiasm is quite impressive.
What are the core skills of a successful middle school debater?
While I was coaching college debate at a local DC University, I spent a good deal of time working with the Urban Debate League in Washington DC, and a wealth of that time was spent working with middle school debaters. Debate as practiced in the academy is the “art of (persuasive) reason giving.” Here are what I believe to be the core pedagogical skills to be taught through modeling, experiential, and simulation based learning for debate:
1) Speaking
2) Organizing/Outlining
3) Identifying Evidence/Proof (including logical fallacies and types of proof)
4) Creating Criteria/Frameworks/Argumentative Filters/Value Hierarchies (also what makes something of value to a person, organization, or institution?)
5) Constructing an argument and the A-R-E Method of Refutation
6) Brainstorming/Analyzing resolutions
7) Note taking and flowing
8] The art of distinction
9) Points of Clarification
10) Persuasion (see also rhetoric)
11) Judge adaptation (including using judging critiques and constructive criticism)
12) Dealing with the Tournament Experience and the Fog of Competition (I believe this is a hard skill to teach outside the tournament context, and so the other skills should probably be the focus. This could deal with relaxation and stress management and confidence maintenance)
In addition I might add a general understanding of current political, historical, and cultural events. Finally, the issue of framing arguments which intersects with the issue of distinctions and nuance as well as debate ethics are crucial components of any comprehensive debate education. Hopefully much of the above can be gained through exposure to mentors/exemplars, classroom mini-debate experience, note worthy speeches and arguments, and in a way which cultivates the students natural desire for exploration and learning how to learn.
6) The National Forensic League has twelve documents on the justification for forensics and debate. The first three articles speak to the pedagogical value of debate from a research and analytic point of view. The article by former NFL participant Jonathon Carr “A Better Investment Not Found on Wall Street” provides a personal narrative about the value of debate from a current graduate of the London School of Economics.
7) The Value of Forensics video from the National Forensics League on the justification for speech and debate. The video is a bit hazy, but includes Oprah Winfrey, Jane Pauley, Brian Lamb of CSPAN, Senator Richard Lugar, and Ted Turner of CNN.
10) The University of Vermont has several videos which speak to the value of debate for students. Specifically the “Why Debate?” video speaks to this issue (although it seems unavailable currently).
Education Technology Quotes from “How People Learn”
I recently read large parts of “How People Learn” in reference to 1) how people learn 2) how technology such as social media can be used to help improve both learning processes and results:
Five ways technology can help classroom learning and academic achievement:
• bringing exciting curriculum base on real-world problems into the classroom
• providing scaffolds and tools to enhance learning
• giving students and teachers more opportunities for feedback, reflection, and revision
• building local and global communities that include teachers, administrators, students, parents, practicing scientists, and other interested people; and
• expanding opportunities for teacher learning
Dr. Bradsford points to four important components of quality learning and learning communities:
Technology like the internet enable scaffolding which can further learning:
“Like training wheels, computer scaffolding enables learners to do more advanced activities and to engage in more advanced thinking and problem solving than they could without such help.”
Social networking serves educational ends:
“Since the ultimate goal of education is to prepare students to become competent adults and lifelong learners, there is a strong argument for electronically linking students not just with their peers, but also with practicing professionals.”
Online communities can also enhance learner interactivity and experiential learning:
“Through the medium of interactive computer microworlds, learners acquire hands-on and minds-on experience and, thus, a deeper understanding of science.”
The internet enables enhanced “feedback, reflection, and revision:”
“Technology can make it easier for teachers to give students feedback about their thinking and for students to revise their work.”
Social networking specifically helps teachers improve their skills and partially alleviates isolation:
“Internet based communities of teachers are becoming increasingly important tool for overcoming teachers’ sense of isolation. They also provide avenues for geographically dispersed teachers who are participating in the same kinds of innovations to exchange information and offer support to each other.”
What should drive the cultural shift toward new media technology in the classroom?
What do they need to know about learning processes? About the technology? What kinds of training are most effective for helping teachers use high-quality instructional programs? What is the best way to use technology to faciliate teacher learning?”
You can learn more about “How People Learn?” at the Center for Learning at Vanderbilt or read parts of the text on Google books (refer to first article link)
Pinar, William; Reynolds, William; Slattery, Patrick; & Taubman, Peter. (2000). Understanding Curriculum. Peter Lang: New York. [the Amazon link is to the 1995 version--sorry]
Eisner, Elliot. (2002). The educational imagination. (3rd Ed). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Merril/Prentice Hall.
Bloom’s taxonomy: A forty-year retrospective, Ninety-third yearbook
of the National Society for the Study of Education (pp. 181-202). Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
From the capitol to the classroom: Standards-based reform in the States. One-hundredth yearbook of the National Society for the Study of Education (pp. 193-216) and (pp. 217-241). Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
McMurry, C. A. (1914). Three pairs of dual principles in education, Conflicting principles in teaching and how to adjust them (pp. 261-281). Boston: Houghton Mifflin.
McMurry, C. A. (1923). Typical life projects and illustrations, How to organize the curriculum (pp. 120-184). New York: Macmillan.
Yale Report. (1829). Original papers in relation to a course of liberal education. American Journal of Sciences and Arts, 15, 297-340.
National-Education-Association. (1918). Cardinal principles of secondary education. Bulletin # 35. Washington: Department of Interior, Bureau of Education.
Related Issues to Curriculum Development
Levin, J. & Nolan, J.F. (2003). What Every Teacher Should Know About
Classroom Management. Boston, MA: Pearson Ed. (UNC Syllabus)
Curriculum Periodicals (Courtesy of Dr. William Wraga at the University of Georgia School of Education)
Curriculum Inquiry
Educational Researcher
Journal of Curriculum Studies
Journal of Curriculum Theorizing
Journal of Curriculum and Supervision
One interesting resources is Learn Web at Harvard University:
Learn Web asks you to think of a skill you have learned and what is common about the way in which you learned the skill or understanding?
Do you see any patterns?
* observing
* not giving up
* having a coach
* practicing
* getting help
* breaking a task into parts
* talking aloud
* feeling success
* trial and error
* asking questions
* having passion
* persevering
* observing and evaluating
* talking to experts
* reading
* failing
* comparing schema or general cases
* using intuition
* thinking about something
* going through cycles of doing/finding information/reflecting
The Learn Web helps teachers and learners be introspective and conscious about the learning process.
Rutgers is also using new media to probe, explore, and flesh out these issues from the “New Humanities Reader” I like the idea of looking at big ideological issues from a uniquely human perspective. I hope that really drives the future of humanities in America for the next century.
You may want to check out the New Humanities Reader website created for this new era of literacy pedagogy at Rutgers University and beyond.
What are your thoughts about the future and direction of the humanities in higher education? Or perhaps secondary education?
Some of the best e-learning blogs and resources, many of which are on the online magazine rack for media and blogs created by Guy Kawasaki at E-learning alltop.
I was impressed by about.elearning…but it doesn’t seem to serve my specific needs.
Unfortunately, I think the Alltop list isn’t deep in the curriculum or interface design area. I wonder if the user experience for the web folks is essentially transferable.
Ning Communities
Nings are free social networking communities which allow individuals to create profiles and share their expertise:
Classroom 2.0 is for e-learning in the k-12 education context, although certainly has some application for using social media and distance learning at the college level
ISTE Community. ” The ISTE Community Ning is a year round social network for ISTE Members, affiliated organizations and groups, and educational leaders.”
What are your favorite education 2.0, social media, and e-learning resources? Perhaps I’ll add more resources and great e-learning blogs as I find them.
Selecting an e-learning system is an important decision for executives or teachers to make. I recently ran across an article at Kolabora which provides ten answers to the “How to select an e-learning or LMS system question” which I sincerely believe is generally wrong and misguided:
1) longevity-bad criteria. its kill innovation and technology startups. especially in light of the usability and customer satisfaction study I just published a small section of, it suggest players like IBM are having a hard time in the e-learning space. IBM is the counter-example to almost every one of Kolabora’s examples. 2) customer base-bad criteria. it ignores unknowns in the industry. user experience and ability to create real fit and scale to your needs is far more important–and really only one of those is on the list. 3) parent-companies-bad criteria. 4) partners, probably the 9 or 10th least important unless there is a direct way the company you are working with is leveraging those partnerships and how those partnerships help your e-learning experience from a user perspective or a content perspective. 5) technological sophistication-any designer these days would scoff at this as a criteria. design and user experience is moving in the simple direction and away from technical sophitication, 6) financial credibility, customer-realistically this is probably 6 or 7 (maybe lower in terms of ranking…for instance in the educational institution context) 7) engagement protocol-sorry don’t know what this is or what they are referring to, 8} deployment options and protocols-sorry don’t now what this is or what they are referring to. it sounds like puffy industry jargon to me., 9) deployment record-this should probably be in the top 7 10) industry experience-probably in the top 7, although ultimately there are far more important issues. experience with customers in your niche and of your sizes and constraints, and descriptions. not just industry experience. 11) conformance with industry standards-what are industry standards? conformance with important industry standards. if this is the criteria #5 should be out entirely..
Also, these 11 criteria would take a long time to determine
Here are four issues I think this list overlooks at should be considered higher than most any of the criteria the Kolabora “How to Select an e-learning or LCMS system” article overlooks:
Personal Testing, personal testing, personal testing,
Personal references, personal references, personal references.
Fit and functionality, fit and functionality, fit and functionality.
User data, user data, user data.
Only then would I add three or four of the Kolabora list to the mix of considerations.
I might also take into consideration these criteria on choosing an “e-learning design firm” from Tech Republic:
On-time delivery and “people” factors: Leading Way’s Li listed several critical factors, including the promise of on-time delivery and protection of content. He also mentioned “people” factors, including whether a team has worked together before and communicates well.
Quality clients with creative samples: VCampus’ Cochran puts a lot of stock in developing a quality client list and in liking the “look” of creative examples. She also said it is important that a vendor understand your corporate identity. “The ideal firm has a good understanding of both e-learning and your needs and your technology,” Cochran said. “Finding that mix can be difficult.”
A team approach: e-Learning Solutions’ Bartholomew suggests that you interview the entire design team—instructional designers, web designers, and integrators—because they are the people you’ll be working with.
Long-term value: LogicBay’s Jacobsen said to look at the long-term value of the e-learning program and to look at who brings the best solution to the table. “Be sure that they offer an enterprise-level solution. Your project can only be as big as their vision. Look beyond your offices. By reaching out to clients, dealers, and distributors, you could turn training from a cost center to a profit center.”
Of course those criteria are looking at the choice from a more short term perspective and not an ongoing relationship, which is where (some) of the Kolabora criteria make sense (although interviewing the design team seems a bit extreme for low and mid range projects…maybe its just me–of course you want the right fit and you want your money’s worth) . So make up your own list based on all three of the lists: Kolabora, Tech Republic, my list, and whatever other considerations you need to consider as you choose an e-learning company to work with.
What do you think about choosing an e-learning system??? I may not be right, but this is a initial attempt at providing an alternative criteria. Feel free to leave a note in the comments.
How Do You Pick an E-Learning Management System from All the Available Technologies
Tony Karrar, an elearning CEO and CTO for Tech Empower conducted a survey for large, small enterprise, and organizations like government and education to determine the best e-learning technology fit for organizations of all shapes and sizes. I’ve included those systems and tools which scored above a 7.0. Hopefully this can help those looking for reviews of elearning management systems get a leg up on which EMS systems to focus on for review searches.
As a side note: I’m curious what tools exist now that were omitted from Tony’s study due to a) time b) focus and research focus.
I hope to re-visit this issue soon to fill in any gaps, errors, or omissions. Feel free to contribute and add comments at the bottom. I hope this helps you make your e-learning software decisions more effective.
Large Enterprise Satisfaction with E-learning Management Systems
Government and Educational Institution Satisfaction with E-Learning Management Systems
Frontier (Frontier AS) 9.70
Moodle (Moodle) 8.84
eCollege Course Management System (eCollege) 8.19
Desire2Learn Learning Environment (Desire2Learn Inc) 7.79
ANGEL Learning Management System (ANGEL Learning) 7.67
Skill Soft Skillport (Skillsoft) 7.44
CourseMill Learning Management (Trivantis) 7.30
Total MS (SumTotal Systems Inc) 7.04
Update: Tools with Scored Below 7.0 and above 5.0 for Education and Government
IBM Lotus Learning (IBM) 6.63
Active Learner (Resource Development Comp.) 6.57
Blackboard (Blackboard, Inc) 6.55
Saba Learning Suite (Saba) 6.52
Campus Cruiser (Time Cruiser Computer Corporation) 6.43
Geo Maestro LMS (GeoLearning) 6.12
Meridian KSI Knowledge Center (Medidian KSI) 6.05
Plateau Learning Management (Plateau Systems, LTD) 5.74
What e-learning management software systems (EMS) do you use? What is your favorite e-learning management system? Why? What would you rate it?
Two caveats for learning management systems:
• Multiple tools in each set
• Using 2 tools for different functions may prove helpful.
Dr. Tony Karrer is CEO/CTO of TechEmpower, a software, web and eLearning development firm based in Los Angeles, and is considered one of the top technologists in e-Learning.
E-learning has come a long way in the last decade since 1999, when I would imagine webinars, text, and Quicktime video were the cutting edge of e-learning tools. All the the tools and solutions discussed, except Go To Meeting and Camtasia have free options for service. Video Tools and Solutions
• You Tube (although you may want to close the comments within a day or so of the event, because YouTube is notorius for not policing its comments)
• Viddler- there are ups and downs to their video community, this is especially cool for long roundtable discussions because individual parts of the video can be tagged so users have maximum control and don’t waste their time.
• Vimeo- vimeo has a fairly professional look but you may want something thats a) more interactive b) runs lighter so that the people who watch are able to watch a smooth video stream instead of a choppy one.
• A host of niche how-to video sites like 5 minute video
• Slightly different is Camtasia, but its a much more about doing screen shots, so its applicability to most teaching opportunities is minimal.
Live Streaming Video Solutions and Tools: For Real Time Broadcast
• Mogulus – Mogulus is very popular video streaming web application
• U Stream (they had 400,000 almost a half a million people watching the 2009 inauguration from various video streams)
• For a direct comparison of the video streaming and virtual conferencing with Mogulus vs. UStream
• This allows you to add panelists to a discussion who are half way around the world. Also, if you publicizes your event, you can have more virtual attendees who are able to attend.
Video Conferencing Solutions and Tools
• Go To Meeting – Go To Meeting is primarily uses in enterprise, but makes great application in the learning and collaboration context.
There are a host of tools like the above (and below) in the virtual conferencing space, which enable distance learning.
• OoVoo for small groups of 2 to 6. (correct me if I’m wrong). I think Go To Meeting would be a preferred platform.
Additional E-learning Communication Platforms
• Cover it Live for E-learning- Karl Fisch recommends Cover It Live for collaborative virtual learning events.
• Twitter for E-learning- Twitter for real time communication and collaboration. Its a very simple platform which asks you what you are doing in 140 characters. Its very similar to a chat room. You may also want to check out Twitter clones like Yammer. Yammer is different from Twitter in that it allows you to have a private network for more internal communication.
• Blogs for E-learning- Blogs for quick communication and collaboration (you can even post your video conferencing event on your blog) WordPress is generally considered the best option for a blog platform and its free. (this blog is hosted on WordPress)
• Wikis for E-learning- Wikis for more permanent communication and collaboration (it’s a great place for posting notes and outlines). PB Wiki and Wetpaint are the most popular options and have offered free options. Check out this video that answers the question: What is a wiki and why are wikis productive?
• Two things that can empower all three of those tools as well as video:
• Ning for Elearning- Ning community to give people a virtual place to hang out and have discussions. This really helps enable a 2 way conversation. Classroom 2.0 is a great example of an e-learning community on Ning and its a great place to learn about collaborative distance learning technologies.
• Lifestreaming for Elearning- Friend feed and other life streaming content aggregation.
More Tools for Learners and Education Leaders
Open Source Elearning Content- Open Source options for learners. Universities like MIT, Stanfords School of Business, and others are providing open source education opportunities for people around the globe.
Slideshare for Elearning PresentationsSlideshare is a great place to share presentations. Its a simple way to upload Powerpoint presentations and share them with the world.
All of these tools also offer opportunities for students to create their own learning content and activities and share those ideas across borders.
100 Tools for Learning in 2008: E-learning and Distance Learning Solutions and Tools from the Experts
The short video Shift Happens 3.0 expressed the rapid speed of technological, culture, and educational changes that are happening. (The original Shift Happens video was created by Karl Fisch.
The vision of students today video which was produced by students at Kansas State University under the guidance of Michael Wesch Assistant Professor of Cultural Anthopology is also quite informative
On Revising Tenure Track Appointments and Requirements for College and University Professors: My Tips for Creating and Writing Academic Position Descriptions
It might be said that the academy is going through an identity crisis. The requirement that academics be regularly researching and publishing seems retrograde in the 21st century. There are multiple ways professors can live out their professional responsibilities to the community and their profession that extend outside the requirements to be published in respected academic journals. For instance:
• Pro bono Community Consulting Using their skills in a probono consulting role, particularly in projects oriented toward social good and the triple bottom line (Profits, People, and Planet) seem most instructive. This would allow them to be better instructors toward students who will often have to inhabit professional roles.
• Social Change and Community Projects Second, social entrepreneurial, non-profit, and other pro bono activities seem like a very reasonable exception to publication requirements.
• Student Praxis and Service Third, student activities support is instrumental to the mission of the community and the university. Without student activities support much of the social and community lifeblood of the university community would likely flounder, particularly those around academic issues.
• Classroom teaching Fourth, teaching is an interactive activity. Passionate and smart teachers learn about the discipline by being in the classroom.
Publish or Perish is Bunk: The Critique of a Dead Academic Doctrine Alternatives to academic publication model are needed for the future and viability of the university model in terms of fairness and excellence. So when academic departments, be they in the humanities or sciences, should think twice before creating position descriptions for human resources that call for a pigeon holed academic, and instead offer them multiple pathways for success in an academic setting. A movement toward practice and praxis would relieve the academy of much of the ivory tower stereotype which hangs like a noose around all academics collective necks. Revising requirement toward the values of diversity, creativity, and holistic assessments should be held up in academic communities–that is after all, what they are all about.
Teaching Reading and Literacy Resources for Elementary and Middle Schoolers
I’ve been doing some research and search engine optimization work in the education field for a helpful literacy website called K12 Reader. Whether your kid is a great student or a struggling reader, learning reading comprehension and improving reading fluency can be difficult. Several methods are available:
In financial aid news thats sure to be popular with smart prospective students in the middle class and below who would like to attend an elite university like Stanford, San Francisco Chronicle reports:
In a radical change to its financial aid program, Stanford University will announce today that it will no longer charge tuition to students whose families earn less than $100,000 a year.
In addition, the university will waive room and board fees for students whose families earn less than $60,000 a year.
I hope other elite universities are able to follow suit.
The Cultural Revolution: Is everything miscellaneous? For us? For today’s students? Folks like Weinberger and Mike Wesch and his students are asking imporant questions like “Where are we heading culturally? And is education keeping up? These are questions that I’m pretty passionate about because it frames how we relate to each other and who “we” are. Wesch’s video has been bouncing around the blogosphere since about October 12th.
Professor Wesch, whose students put this together, suggests:
This video explores the changes in the way we find, store, create, critique, and share information. This video was created as a conversation starter, and works especially well when brainstorming with people about the near future and the skills needed in order to harness, evaluate, and create information effectively.
What does this revolution mean for you and the world?
There are a number of perspectives on the web from different social sectors (education, marketing, technology, and religion) that weigh in directly or indirectly on this ongoing cultural revolution:
Inititally, the video certainly confirms that we are media snackers as Web Strategist Jeremiah suggests.
Second, DC Curry at Granger Community Church has questions about what this cultural revolution means for teens, churches, and youth ministers in his post “What students are trying to tell us.”
Certainly this changes the face of publishing and books and perhaps even Amazon. Fewer book shelves, more tagging. Merlin Mann at 43 folders suggests this means the future is hybrid. While this is true, when is the last time you purchased a wax record, tape, or cd? (to be true: the analogy is less than perfect, but instructive)
The Signs of the Revolution are Everywhere:
For those that doubt the reality of the revolution Facebook, Myspace, Google (perhaps including mobile due to a recent aquisition of Zingku), and Hulu (a new AOL/NBC video platform from with some rave reviews like Giga Om’s simple “Brilliant”) are all pushing new changes that will have ripple effects in the new media communication and culture. The Wall Street Journal and other newspapers like the Washington Post and the Politico (YouTube) have been making steady moves into the social media space. Its made the frontpage of most major magazines in country, including being featured in the Time Magazine Person of the Year for 2006. One only wonders when Apple will make its splash in social media space. Certainly, its hiring of a YouTuber to create advertising does signal that it recognizes the revolution.
What now? How can I learn more about our cultural location at the tipping point of the revolution?
For those interested in the revolution in communications, technology, and culture, Wesch has made the text of the video available here. Wesch’s students have put together about 30 videos that anthropologically explore different aspects communication via platforms like YouTube. It serves as a metaphor for interative digital communication and community. You might also like Wesch’s introduction to Web 2.0.
Your Perspective/Your Role and Identity/Your Thoughts:
What are your thoughts about this revolution? About the digital divide? About new media, mobile, and interactive digital technologies? The video questions the core our information explosion and digitally induced ADD? Wesch asks important questions like “Are we using technology or is technology using us?” on his video the Machine is Us/ing Us. What do you think? Is the revolution for the better or worse? Is it an attention economy or a trust economy or both?
Enjoy the digital culture!
Bonus: For those of you who appreciate the wisdom of Marshall McLuhan check out slideshare (thanks to Chris Brogan):
Just click on the forward arrow to see the next slide. You may just want to check out a couple, given that its a long presentation.
In Senator Obama, we win that back: our generation — and the generations that follow — get back the audacity to hope again, and to fight for justice. I remember hope. It’s alive, and it’s in us. Senator Obama is a unifying voice for a new America — one that embraces our faith, gives wings to our dreams, and propels us forward to a new destiny.
This post from Lifehack talks about using a wiki for notetaking. I think it makes a great idea for teachers, conference attenders, and its proven good enough for planning hundreds of unconferences.
Thanks for visiting. I hope my research and ideas provide insight into social entrepreneurship, innovation, and positive social change.
If you are in social enterprise or passionate about these issues feel free to connect via Twitter, Facebook, or Linked In.
Thanks and have a great day!
