TechIntersect

This summer John McCain gave a speech in front of an unfortunate, and ugly green background, prompting Stephen Colbert to take advantage of the chroma-key properties a green background offers by putting video footage in the background. Colbert challenged his viewers to submit their own entries that would “Make John McCain interesting.”

These are two of the best I have seen so far.

You have to love the Web 2.0 creativity displayed here. This work is amazing. I think these are great examples of how far technology has advanced. Not too long ago, the tools needed to make videos like these were out of reach for everyone but Hollywood studios. Now, even teenagers can easily get their hands on these tools to share ideas with a global audience. Simply amazing!

Tags: mashup, web 2.0

Yes, my secret is out. I think Web 2.0 is for wimps. Certainly, Web 2.0 technologies are wonderful for providing wider access for the general masses, but you have to really respect someone who bothers to take the time to learn about the technology that’s behind these wonderful tools we now take for granted.

I am sort of attached to Web 1.0. The largest class I’m teaching this semester is a Web 1.0 course– a basic HTML course. My students are learning to write XHTML code along with CSS style sheets. It doesn’t get any more wonderfully geeky than that. It is one thing to upload original content using an internet application that someone else has designed but it is something entirely different to hand code an interesting web page you have designed from scratch.

I recently read an article by Marc Prensky, the Digital Natives/Digital Immigrants guy, holding that programming will become the new literacy in the 21st century as those who master human-machine interactions will be leaps and bounds ahead of those who have not learned these skills.

Yes, I have my beginning web students write their first web pages using nothing more than a simple text editor. I feel I am being generous by permitting the use of a code editor such as Scintilla, which color codes the HTML tags it recognizes, and highlights tags that are incorrectly applied.

This philosophy is akin to the beginning carpenter who learns the trade using  hand tools. There will be time for more efficient power tools once you understand the basics of swinging a hammer and sawing a saw. If I let my beginning students start off using Dreamweaver, they would never bother to learn to write and edit HTML like they do writing it by hand. And you should see my advanced students once they do graduate to Dreamweaver. Inevitably, the WYSIWYG editor will do something unintended, and the student who has taken time to learn it the tedious, hand-coded way will have no problem switching to code view to fix the problem.

Certainly, I would not expect someone who makes web pages for a living to use nothing but a text editor, although I know some who do just that. Just as a master carpenter understands the trade and effectively uses power tools to do the job, so too a master web developer ought to use the equivalent power tools for that profession.

I’m just saying I think it is important not to forget to teach people the basics of web page development. By skipping directly to Web 2.0, I think we are missing an important part of the mix. Artists, designers, programmers, entrepreneurs, writers and dreamers should all understand the basics of web development to get the most out of Web 2.0 tools that they use. They might never hand code a bit of HTML ever again, but having that basic understanding will provide them a foundation of understanding for the environment in which they work.

I first learned how to write a basic HTML page while reading “HTML for Dummies” sitting in a tent while camping on a very rainy camping trip over ten years ago. It only took an hour or so to grasp the basics, and I’ve been using that knowledge ever since! So don’t be a wimp! If you are a fan of Web 2.0 tools, take a little time and learn some basics of Web 1.0. You will never regret having this increased understanding of the tools you are using.

***Disclaimer*** The author recognizes the hypocrisy of making this post using a Web 2.0 blogging application and actually does love Web 2.0 in all of its variations. I’m just trying to have a little fun here!

Tags: web 2.0

IMG_0175

Originally uploaded by floflonemo

This photo was made by Florence Neymotin at the Wakonse conference. I am writing this from Flickr, to test the “blog this” functionality. I love how these Web 2.0 applications interact with one another.

The Wakonse conference was amazing. It was my second trip to Michigan, and it was wonderful to make new friends as well as reconnect with old ones. I feel re-energized and ready to go back to work doing some great classroom teaching.

The beauty of Camp Miniwanca is simply inspiring. We went for a nature hike through the woods on the last day. I took a small group to see a small, hidden meadow that few people know about or have the chance to visit.

Most importantly, the commitment to quality instruction in the classroom has been reaffirmed. I know that college professors around the country value this aspect of their careers and I need to continue working on my teaching skills.

Tags: web 2.0

After observing what is happening around the world with educators utilizing blogs and other digital media, I am eager to get started. I recently mentioned this to a colleague I work with who teaches writing. My friend is using “blogging” in a writing course with our Axio Learning course management software in a password protected environment. When discussing the possibilities of having student write in blogs that are publicly accessible, this teacher whose opinion I greatly value, was adamant that students be offered a choice to go live to the Internet or to remain in a protected environment. Her position is that students should not be required to put their thoughts into the public domain, which is in essence what happens when you post to the web.

I countered that students knowing that a global audience can access their work, might actually put in a greater effort than they do currently in a private setting. She agreed, but is concerned that once you put something out there, it is out there forever. In her opinion, requiring students to give away their intellectual property without their consent is not the thing to do.

So I put the question to my visitors from hither and yon– By requiring our students to blog in the publicly accessible web, are we violating their rights to their own intellectual property? Are we setting up a learning environment that to some might be intimidating and even down right scary, thereby inhibiting the very learning we are hoping to instill? Or are we simply creating a unique learning experience that documents progress in thinking and learning that can always be referred back to at a later time?

One unique perspective comes from my colleague at Kansas State University, Dr. Michael Wesch. You may know Dr. Wesch from his YouTube video The Machine is Us/ing Us.  He recently published an article entitled Anti-Teaching: Confronting the Crisis of Significance. (Links to PDF).

I realize that the Edublogging community is very pro-technology biased. But I am very eager to explore this issue from every angle, because my friend’s concerns are valid. What are your thoughts? How are you creating a safe learning environment, but at the same time using the power of Web 2.0 in your classes? Have you thought about the concerns raised in this post? (Thanks to Sue Waters for encouraging me to start this discussion.)

Tags: art, blogging, critiques, education, technology, web 2.0

According to Marc Prensky, who wrote “Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants” kids growing up today have always been immersed in digital technology, while their parents have had to immigrate into this new world because they did not grow up with it. It is really similar to families who immigrate to the USA from another country, but their kids are born and raised here. With immigrant families, there are two distinct world views, those of an immigrant and those of a native.

Prensky writes, “the single biggest problem facing education today is that our Digital Immigrant instructors, who speak an outdated language (that of the pre-digital age), are struggling to teach a population that speaks an entirely new language.” I agree with this assessment and am concerned with teacher education programs that do not direct enough attention to this problem. Are we simply going to wait for the digital natives to become old enough to be teachers before we have a majority of technology fluent teachers?

Several years ago, I was a fan of Clifford Stoll’s book, “High Tech Heretic: Why Computers Don’t Belong in the Classroom and Other Reflections by a Computer Contrarian“. In it, he extols the virtue of the profession of teaching, and urges teachers not to defer to technology as a primary teaching platform. I believe many of the issues and concerns he raises about computers in the classroom back in 1999 have been resolved with improvements in technology and it’s associated costs. However, one issue where he hits the nail on the head, and it is still on target in my opinion is that by and large, teachers do not know how to effectively use the technology that they have available to them. Lack of training, lack of interest, and lack of time are all reasons for remaining ignorant in the ways of technological pedagogy. (Obviously if you are reading this, you should not be counted among the aforementioned ignorant!)

When we permit new teachers to enter the profession with little or no grounding in the principles of good technology-based education, we are only prolonging the problem. Web 2.0 is upon us, and there are many innovators, thrill seekers, experimenters and otherwise fool-hardy teachers out there who are doing a marvelous job of using the very latest in modern communications technology for teaching. Schools that are preparing would-be teachers should take notice of these new developments in technology; the rest of the world certainly is.

Tags: internet, technology, web 2.0

This is a video my Networking class made to demonstrate how packets move between networks through the Internet. The quality is a little rougher than I would like, but we are still learning video production for the web techniques.

***Note*** If you cannot see the video, you may need to update your Flash Player.

Tags: fun, internet, networking, technology, web 2.0

K-State Professor Michael Wesch achieved international recognition a year ago when a small video he made for YouTube caught on and was viewed by millions of people. His video, “The Machine is Us/ing Us” is about how the modern Internet, sometimes called “Web 2.0″, is learning from the people who use it and contribute to it.

The Internet is no longer a passive experience for many people, but instead it allows anyone to share ideas and contribute to the body of human knowledge. This has always been possible on the Internet, but until recently you needed a certain amount of technical knowledge to be a contributor. New technology developments have made it possible for more people to contribute. Anytime that you are able to put your ideas and creativity on the Internet without working directly with web pages and HTML, there is a good chance you are using a Web 2.0 application.

As a teacher, I am very excited about the new ways of teaching and learning that are becoming available with this new technology. As a resident of a small, rural Kansas town, I am really jazzed about the possibilities it offers for revitalizing our community. When else in human history could you start a home-based business far from any city, yet still have the entire world as your potential customer base? The potential is unlimited and I challenge the good citizens of Clifton and Clyde to dive it and start learning. There is no reason for us to miss the opportunities that are right in front of us. The technology of the Internet has reached a point where absolutely anyone can now be a contributor as well as a consumer of information on the web. This has enormous implications for anyone wanting to make a living on the Internet, since you no longer need to be a web developer to get started.

However, if as Dr. Wesch points out, “the machine is us/ing us” then it follows that the machine will reflect all of the characteristics of the human race, even our ugly side. This became apparent to me as I learned of the story in Florida where a teenage girl was beaten senseless by a gang of thugs she thought were her friends. These sick kids video recorded the beating with the intention of posting it to YouTube. Our culture has become infatuated with celebrity and it seems that some will pay any price to earn a place in the spotlight; even if it results in a jail sentence.

The girl’s mother was on CNN this week and she made an assertion that I find frightening. She said that parents pretty much have to operate on the information provided to them by their kids. She said that not much can be done if kids are hiding information from you. She mentioned that as parents, they were uncomfortable with some of the social networking sites such as MySpace and that they tried unsuccessfully to get MySpace to close their daughter’s account. She even stated that the family implemented filtering software on the computer that the “clever” daughter was able to circumvent.

Here’s an interesting idea– maybe the problem is not with MySpace. Maybe the parents should be removing some computer privileges if the daughter is not willing to follow some established ground rules. Parenting experts Jim & Charles Fay recommend that children not be allowed to have computers in their rooms. It seems to be pretty drastic, but look at the dangers. Most parents simply have less computer knowledge than their kids, and parents really need to be on top of what the kids are doing online. That is pretty hard to do when the computer is hidden away in the bedroom.

Wendy and I have noticed that our daughter is starting to explore a little on the Internet beyond Webkinz world. We are planning to set up a computer in a prominent location in the house so we can keep an eye on the kids as they use it. I will also probably soon be looking for some filtering software to help keep them safe. But we will not rely on software as a complete solution, only one piece of the puzzle in setting some limits.

I expect that my kids will become computer savvy enough to someday find work-arounds to defeat filtering software, so in the mean time we will have to work on building our relationship and helping them learn to make good decisions. We wear seat belts in the car for the same reason; to be safe, not because there is a law that requires it or because we cannot get away with not wearing them. I want my kids to grow up wearing seat belts simply because it is a smart choice, not because someone forced them to. I believe that a similar attitude towards the computer will help them make good decisions using that tool as well.

Kids do not outwardly appreciate boundaries and limitations, but at a very deep level they cannot understand, when they discover the boundaries, they feel loved and secure. Too many kids are growing up with few limitations, and it’s not healthy. I can’t help but wonder if the young girl in Florida was growing up with little supervision and few boundaries and limits. Maybe I’m naive, but I think parents can do a pretty good job of keeping tabs on their kids if they develop good strong relationships from the beginning.

I really want to encourage parents to look into the online activities of your children. If you don’t know what they do online, maybe you should ask. Be curious. Ask them to show you their site. See how many Facebook or MySpace friends they have. Don’t let your lack of interest or knowledge of technology keep you from taking an active role in their online lives. I’m lucky that my daughter is young. Right now, she begs me to play with her on Webkinz. My hope is these early online experiences will continue as she grows older and that she will want to keep me in the loop. One can only hope, right?

Tags: internet, technology, web 2.0