On Saturday I spent the day with my nephews and my own “older” kids in Boston for Halloween. During the day we carved pumpkins and at night passed out candy while the kids did their trick or treat thing. We sat on the porch with a couple of beers but of course had to spend a little time hiding in leaves to scare the kids when they came up to the house. I helped my 7 year old nephew carve his pumpkin. He, of course, had a sharp knife. I was so excited about the whole process and how well they were doing I had to take pictures and immediately upload them to flickr, facebook, and of course text them to my son in law who could not come. Well I had just updated my Blackberry so the applications were not installed. So I had to install them so I could get those pictures up asap. I didn’t stop there – I had to have video. I couldn’t wait – the moment was right and it needed to be then. My daughter (26 years old) kept reminding me “Mom, Daniel is going to cut off his finger. You need to stop.” But I just kept saying one more minute.
So what made me think that it had to be immediate? I wanted to share the moment. I got distracted from the real intent of that day and got caught up in “I have to let my network know.” Interesting but a little scarey at the same time. As I write about multi-tasking (driving while texting!) and what we need to do for our kids, I realize as we become a part of this big paradigm shift of life that we also at the mercy of being overwhelmed.
Well I got the pictures up there and had a lot of responses. I couldn’t do the video and by the time I got to my computer at home I lost interest!
As we read through the article entitled “Multi-tasking” it is clear that many of us aren’t aware of the constant bombardment of information most of us have become engaged in and how that has incrased our need to be “connected.”Mastering_Multitasking. Communication channels are growing and the question is “how do we manage it all?” My question is do we need it??? I belong to over 10 social networking sites and oftentimes the task becomes daunting as I try and figure out who gets me tonight? It has opened up so many more opportunities for me personally and as a professional but I can’t find the time. When I sit in the car (as I did for 4 hours coming home from Boston) I am wondering how I can get online to at least “catch up.” There is no idle time. It is filled with “I wonder what facebook is up to, or are the 5 conversations I am having in Ning all straight in my head and am I a contributor or only the one that “nudges” it along. I am not sure we can really communicate deeply or with meaning when the audiences and venues have increased. We are becoming a society of speaking in sound bytes!
The article talks about how much our brain can actually handle. It is clinically telling us we can only handle so much. So are we really staying in touch or just scratching the surface where conversations occur more often but not as intensely? We have been critized for teaching a curriculum that is a mile wide and inch deep. It appears our communication strategies have followed suit.
Does this have an impact on indepth analysis and the ability to actually synthesize information (Blooms)? The article outlines strategies to teach our students so we can embrace what is currently the rage and help it become manageable. But how do we teach it if we don’t use it? I can honestly say I do but can most teachers say that. And again how it is impacting teaching our students to think, be patient, and have conversations that are meaningful.
We have spent a lot of time working with our students that are ADHD. Somehow society and its communication opportunities have pulled the rug from under us! Oh well I am ranting but actually I love the social networking atmosphere. It has been great but overwhelming at best. Am I physically gardening or blogging about it, am I actually using that treadmill or joining an exercise group in second life, am I improving my diet or spending time researching new immune system fighters on the web???? I guess my archair and carpel tunnel will be the judge of that!
Has the term gotten familiar to you yet? Web 2.0 describes the way this generation behaves. Web 2.0 is people creating content socially and intuitively. Creators and consumers meet in online communities where content creation and feedback occur. Consumers become active participants, and the roles of consumers and creators overlap. Traditional publishers are no longer the sole distributors of content, and readers are no longer exclusively consumers. Rather, authors and readers engage in an active relationship.
This change has been transformative of our society and the creative process. The classroom is no longer the sole learning environment. It is not another superficial revelation. For 30 years the research has supported project based constructivist classrooms. Web 2.0 technology embodies this philosophy. Leveraging this technology for learning gives us the tools to act.
The research is now “active” – done by our clients – our kids, students, children, pupils, etc. To create content collaboratively and to distribute their work sets the stage for authentic and relevant reflection and revision. In the article
lets_talk_2.0 the authors talk to us about the current tools students are using and that they are moving ahead as they write creatively and share that work with others. They continue to tell us that this activity is occurring whether it is integrated into our classrooms or not. Our students are writers and publishers and they are experiencing success and loving it. We should embrace what they know to enhance what we want them to practice.
Writing globally will also increase their confidence as collaborators and broaden their experiences so they can tackle the data that says our students will have 15 different careers before they retire. School will be long gone and collaborative and social networking environments will provide them with the growth they need to succeed. Access is not widespread which makes it increasingly more critical that schools provide the structure for students to work within. If we want all of our students to compete on a level playing field, no matter what the vocation, we can work alongside the business model discussed in this article and parallel the current environment our students live in by leveraging technology for learning.
This article was written collaboratively using Google Docs (allowed us to share and edit the document at the same time, live) with my 28 year old son, architect, working in Boston.
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