Writing for the Web or the Stupid? Published 2008-06-19 under civics

What is the rule for writing for the Web and is it making use dumber?

Are you stupid or do you just have an attention span of a flea? If you listen to the usability experts, then you are probably just scanning this article, looking for keywords that pop out of the text.

You might just look for

Headings

• Links
• Words that standout in a sentence.
• And of course lists!

Last week, I found an interesting link thanks to Brian Lamb's del.icio.us bookmarkings. The link was to an article from "The Atlantic" by Nicholas Carr titled "Is Google Making Us Stupid". This sounded really interesting; I bookmarked it to use in my Week In Review posts. You see, I don't believe that the Web (or Google) is making us dumber. I still feel that we have the same or perhaps better capacity to delve deep into a subject.

It wasn't until later that I realized that I only scanned the article and didn't actually read it in depth.

While I may believe that I still have the ability to sit for long periods engulfed in a book, I know that my mind wonders. I am constantly thinking how what I just read relates to a project that I am working on. Or I read something that sparks an idea of a new project. This constant attempt to contextualize the information that I am reading is not necessarily a bad thing, but it does speak to either my impatiences or my restless nature.

I have since read Carr's article and agree with the general premise that attention spans are decreasing; folks just want the "facts" wrapped in a quick and easy to digest package. The Web both offers, enables, and even promotes this behavior.

What I found even more interesting was Carr's suggestion that Google (perhaps as representative of the God of the Internet) believes "that intelligence is the output of a mechanical process, a series of discrete steps that can be isolated, measured, and optimized." In other words, Google is attempting to solve the problem of artificial intelligence using their vast number of smart people who work at the GooglePlex supplied with terabytes of click activity that they capture daily from our activity on the Web. His fear is that intelligence is being defined as vast amounts of information readily at hand and "ambiguity is not an opening for insight but a bug to be fixed."

I personally, don't share Carr's fears. In the first place, the Web offers an unbound source for both the Cliff notes edition of information as well as access to the primary sources and deep discussions on the information. Actually, the Web embraces ambiguity through dissenting opinions. This post is an example. I also don't fear Google's quest of artificial intelligence. Actually, my concern is more that Google is confusing click activity with actual answers. Just because a site is popular does not mean that it is the best soruce for a particular piece of information. But my concern is tempered by the knowledge that the brains at the GooglePlex probably realize this and are motivated to excel at connecting us with the best source for the information that we seek. I am also aware that popularity not equating to the best is just as relevant in the printed world as it is on the Web.

So what does this mean for us who write for the web? Well, if I am writing copy for a page that will be scanned, I will keep in mind the differences between print and online content. But that does not mean that there are not places for the narrative or storytelling on the Web. Similarly, the Web offers a perfect platform for papers that promote deep thinking and expanded intelligence. But unlike other mediums, the Web also offers the platform for reflection, commentary and further discussion.

Tech Tags: digiwalks, web, writing, google, usability

Edutopia Membership Published 2008-06-17 under civics, professional+development

Edutopia is a fantastic resource for teachers striving to be their best. Are you a member yet?

If you have not already become a member of Edutopia, I would highly recommend it. Here are some of the benefits of becoming a member:

• Subscription to Edutopia magazine - a great treat in your mailbox.
• A New Day for Learning, a DVD discussing how learning can be extended beyond the classroom.
• Occasional opportunities to chat (online) with education thought leaders and change agents.
• A copy of The Best of Edutopia Cool Schools: Project Learning. Have not gotten mine, so I can't comment :-(

But this list fails to mention the most important benefit of your membership - that you will be supporting an quality organization with an outstanding vision:

Our vision is of a new world of learning. A place where kids and parents, teachers and administrators, policy makers and the people they serve are empowered to change education for the better. A place where schools have access to the same invaluable technology as businesses and universities -- where innovation is the rule, not the exception. A place where children become lifelong learners and develop the technical, cultural, and interpersonal skills to succeed in the twenty-first century. A place of inspiration, aspiration, and an urgent belief that improving education improves the world we live in.

Edutopia - About Us

Why am I pushing this group? In fact, Edutopia represents a better organized and funded version of the non-profit organization that I am in the process of founding. To some, they may be seen as the competition or at least a group that already exists with our purpose. Just one look at the focus of edutopia.org and you can see that they value most of the exact topics I value: Project Learning, Technology Integration, Teacher Development, Social and Emotional Learning, and Assessment.

It is this similarity that gives me such passion for Edutopia. Their vision and path toward change is consistent with mine. And, regardless who is carrying the torch, I want to support these values. I hope that you will join me in your support for Edutopia and perhaps later offer your support for my organization when it gets off the ground.

PS - for more information about the organization that I am founding or if you want to get involved, drop be a line at rob{at}myhallpass{dot}com.

Tech Tags: digiwalks education learning reform edutopia

What Your Profile Says About You Published 2008-04-01 under civics, culture

What do you include in your online profiles? In a recent study, teens are happier with the way they look online than their real looks. Is this because they fabricate their online identities? Suggested in the recent Digital Natives post, "Profile of an Avatar: Teens and Online Identities", online profiles are not necessarily false but rather "constructed". We put in the things with which we want to be associated.

I list my occupation as "Trainer and Learning Modules Developer" in my Blogger profile. This is how I want to be identified. It is not false. I do train and I do create learning modules. But that is not all that I do; it does not give the full picture. I am not trying to be disingenuous, only that these activities are more relevant to my writings than my activities as website producer and administrative software designer.

Because your online profile is self-constructed snapshot of you, should we discount it as a true reflection of you? I would argue no. Who you want to be is as important as who you actually are. Shame on me if I rely solely on your online identity to hire you. But if I read that you are also a "Learning Modules Developer", I know we have an interest in common - regardless of how good or experienced a developer you really are.

Similarly, getting to know your students' online identities will offer insight into how they want to be seen. At a minimum, it will give you something to talk about with your students. "Hey Monica, I would have never thought of you as a dragon. Why did you select that as your avatar?"

In some cases, it will be the things missing from the profile that are more interesting than what is actually there. If you have a student who does really well in your writing class but there is no clue that this student is a writer from the online profile, I would want to know why. For many students, they don't see their success in the classroom as part of their identity other than perhaps in generalities like "I am good at science" or "I suck at math". Perhaps it will never make it to their online identities, but helping a student realize that he is a writer may help shape his future (on and offline) identity.

Tech Tags: identity profile digital+identity

Don't Regulate Resess Published 2007-09-06 under civics

A Colorado Springs elementary school is banning the game of tag on its playground -- after some children complained that they'd been chased or harassed against their will.

Assistant Principal Cindy Fesgen of the Discovery Canyon Campus school said running games will be allowed, as long as students don't chase each other.

TheDenverChannel.com

Well as long as running in itself is not outlawed... Come on! There were around 39,000 fatal car crashes in 2005 Dept. of Trans., but you don't see a ban on driving. Instead we have laws that punish dangerous behavior. So why take the drastic measure of banning all games where kids chase each other when working with those students who are harassing other students will solve the problem (and be more constructive)?

I remember being attacked in a kickball game during recess in 5th grade. I also remember getting into a fight during recess in the 2nd grade - again I think it was a kickball game that was the setting. Should kickball be banned? I would argue that such incidences are part of an education. I would never want my daughter or any child to get into a fight, but there are lessons to be learned. I not only remember these fights after 35 years, but also remember the emotions running through me at the time. Specifically, I remember the efforts by adults to work out the underlying reasons the fights broke out. In one case, the boy that attacked me was having difficulty at home and in the other case I was jealous that my friend did not pick me for his team. As a result of these discussions, I ended up with more compassion for and understanding of my fellow classmates.

It seems like we as a society are often taking the easy way out by regulating activities in lieu of the more time consuming task of educating and forming appropriate behaviors.

That said, I do remember the terror that consumed me during recess in kindergarten when the girls attached the boys in a game of kissing tag. Now that kind of tag needs to be outlawed!

Way To Go, Midd! Published 2007-05-01 under civics, creativity, culture

Do you remember what you did during the summers while you were in college? Get a job, hangout with friends, travel? But for a some students, this summer will be spent capturing radio narratives of children in Uganda, running a workshop in Jerusalem encouraging people living in the divided city to test their idealism against political and physical realities, hosting religious tolerance workshops for youth in Pakistan. All of these not-so-typical summer activities are being made possible by a group that encourages students to use their summers for life learning opportunities.

The Kathryn Wasserman Davis 100 Projects for Peace is a wonderful program that funds innovative summer projects for college students. "The objective is to encourage and support today’s motivated youth to create and tryout their own ideas for building peace in the 21st century."

The projects mention above are three of five projects submitted to 100 Project for Peace by students from Middlebury College. While these three projects were accepted by the organization for funding, Middlebury decided to fund the other two projects itself. As a result, one group of students will be heading to New Orleans to work with youth in civic peace and another will see a senior head to Thailand to explore the effects of micro-credit loans on the country's economy and environment.

This is about taking advantage of that four-year window and doing something that is a little scary... For many students, it seems as though they have so much to do and they’re so busy. They’re trying to get on to that next thing when they graduate, sometimes graduate school, which means they’re checking the boxes. And they don’t even think about the fact that they have these opportunities.

Middlebury College has setup what they call "The Project on Creativity and Innovation in the Liberal Arts", a new initiative encouraging all Middlebury students to expand their education beyond the classroom. The goal is to direct extra funding and administrative support to aid student projects and to find a way to inspire similar projects in students who aren't as eager to leap "outside the box".

Our educational system fosters a safe place for students. By safe, I am referring to an intellectually safe environment. There are factors that affect our students physical and emotional safety but in general, we try and create an environment that fosters success. Our curriculum is designed to walk students through a subject exposing them to the necessary knowledge and skills for them to succeed.

Contrast this with the risky behaviour of our youth. Kids like to take risks; it is part of growing up. Many of these behaviours (sex, drugs, alcohol, crazy driving) we consider anti-social in that they don't make the world a better place. But what if that propensity toward risk taking were directed toward venturing out to help in a homeless shelter or crafting a program to bring awareness to environmental problems and solutions? What if students got their high by helping rather than consuming?

It is so exciting to see programs like 100 Projects for Peace and institutions like Middlebury College and their Project on Creativity and Innovation" that encourage students to extend their learning to beyond the classroom. Check out this article for more details on this fascinating project. I am always amazed an in awe of students who create outside of the classroom and am convinced that the education they gain from such projects is at least as valuable than that they get in the classroom.

Technorati Tags: education life learning Middlebury 100ProjectsForPeace

CDC + SL = Hygeia Philo Published 2007-03-20 under civics, culture

How do you make public health sexy? You create a good looking, hip, red head who can spread the word. This is exactly what the Center for Deasease Control (CDC) has done. Meet Hygeia Philo (Love of Health), the CDC's Second Life (SL) avatar who is tasked with engaging SL folks in conversations about health.

John AndersonAnderton, the man behind the woman, is CDC's social networking expert who created Hygeia and developed the CDC's precence in SL. You can read an interesting interview with Mr. Anderson (aka Hygeia) on the social marketing blog Spare Change. Though the post if from November, 2006, I just discovered it. I really struck by Mr. Anderson'sAnderton's response to the question "Are there specific health issues that you tend to focus on that are more prevalent among Second Life residents because of their demographics and behavioral risk factors?"

I would like to gradually introduce the topic of sexual health into the space, as a way to promote discussion about the links between what one says and does in Second Life, and then one's actions in real life. Liaisons in real life, foreshadowed and even pre-enacted though virtual spaces have led to documented disease transmission, and discussion about this seems generally absent from SL.

Here, here! Not only does the CDC embrace education in the form of discussion rather than preaching, they are willing to explore non-traditional methods of engaging their audience.

Second Life is not for everyone, but it is certainly appealing to many. Why not use it to engage an audience in real conversations. Has anyone heard of any political candidates who have a SL presence?

Side Note: I heard an interesting story on NPR regarding use of video games in political campaigns.

Correction: Appologizies for misspelling Mr. Anderton's name.

The 2010 Imperative Published 2007-01-11 under civics, webinar

The 2010 Imperative is a "teach-in" event produced by Architecture 2030 addressing global warming and climate change. This 3 1/2 hour web-cast offers design students around the world to participate in a discussion in the role the design community has in the global warming crisis.

I think this is a fantastic example of using online technology to discuss a global issue with folks around the world. While the target audience are design schools, professional design firms and governmental entities, there certainly is a place for high school students. Global warming is a great example of a multi-discipline issue giving students a chance to apply their knowledge is math, science, economics, history, etc. to a single problem. This is a wonderful opportunity for students to participate in a real-world issue.

I would propose forward thinking schools the following:

Begin discussing the issue of global warming and climate change having students research the subject. After a cursory bit of research to get a handle on the gist of the subject, students should be encouraged to find a particular aspect of the discussion on which they would like to focus through further research. They could then post their findings and opinions online a blog so that other students can learn from their research and join the discussion.

Then have the students listen and participate in the web-cast as a group, discussing issues as they are presented and emailing questions / comments to the panel members.

Finally, students could post to the blog their reflections on the event describing what they have learned from the web-cast specifically and the project in general.

Global warming is an important issue, but this web-cast offers more than just a discussion on the topic. It give us an an opportunity to engage students in a real-world issue where they can become informed, offer their opinions and debate with people around the world.

To register for this free event check out The 2001 Imperative website.

Tags: 2010Imperative, webinar

Powered by Qumana