A famous parable suggests that it is appropriate to save the best for last. In my opinion, this was a wise decision, as now the foundations for deigning opportunities to learn with technology have been laid. Now we are being treated to a plethora of technological innovations which have the power to transend communication. We see in Web 2.0 the ability to mediate the sort of communications which are present outside of the digital rehlm. Spicifically, blogs, social bookmarks, and wikis.
iGoogle is a nifty gadget. I was able to customomize a home page, which has the look and feel of the Mac desktop with gadgets visible. My home page is populated with "Art of the Day," a "Calendar," "Date & Time," "Weather," and "News Headlines." A second tab on my iGoogle site is my Google Reader.
Words crafted into thoughts/ideas can be searched by web crawlers, spiders, and human created indexes, and the compilations of these thoughts can be served up to your computer in a variety of means. We needn't be bombarded with sexy graphics luring us to the content (although this might come along with the content) so that we will click on it, it simply comes to us. In terms of efficiency, this seems to me to be an extremely efficient paradigm. Some of us might be ill-equipped to avail ourselves of this efficiency.
In a previous course, a group of colleagues and I looked at the "digital divide" from a number of perspectives. As we explore Web 2.0, my thinking is shifting to a new definition of the "digital divide," as one in which some individuals will adapt to comprehending reality in a virtual space and time brought about by technological advancements, and others will not.
A doctoral student in our cohort expressed in her blog a concern for the needs of special education students. Her concern rings true in this new "time-space" continuum, particularly with students with spatial disabilities. (This might be an interesting topic for a dissertation??).
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3 comments:
Of course my eyes went directly to the mention of the word "sexy."
You wrote, "We needn't be bombarded with sexy graphics luring us to the content (although this might come along with the content) so that we will click on it, it simply comes to us."
That's a great point. One of the most annoying and inconvenient features of Web 1.0--Adware--will hopefully become obsolete. I like your thinking.
Ahhh the Digital Divide....what memories... Seriously though researching that topic really opened my eyes to what teachers are using and what they should be using to convey "the message" in their classrooms. If only we could convince them that it is not more work it is different. We need to touch all types of learners. Many teachers are coming around and see the benefits of presenting information in many forms.
Many times decorative graphics do get in the way of the information being presented. And Pop ups how aggravating...
I'm just beginning to get into igoogle and its features. I think Web 2.0 is going to help me keep track of a bunch of data that otherwise would be clogging my e-mail. I've got plenty there everyday.
Steve
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