Cognitive Surplus

November 13, 2011

This book was quite the eye opener for me as in many respects I have not taken the time to contemplate the many and varied ways “new” technology has changed just about everything in the past twenty or so years. What specifically struck me in the book was the manner in which my own thinking changed regarding technology and how it has and continues to be used to involve more and more people worldwide in the evolving “game of Life.”

As a child I can readily recall the limited influence technology had in my life with respect to the world of media or social connecting/communication. Most of my social connections came in the form of face to face contact be it family gatherings, playing with friends or being involved in organized activities.  Growing up I was strongly encouraged to find things to do to keep myself busy. This of course meant I did not have an abundance of tv time, as it was so affectionately called by my parents, but when it was on, it was captivating and I would agree with Shirky that in my household television was king. It was truly the media my family relied on to get most of our news from the outside world as we did not subscribe to newspapers or magazines and radios were for music. How quickly what I once knew as standard has changed now that I am one of the heads of our household.

With a 17 year daughter I found myself repeatedly drawing comparisons to the book and the world as she knows it. The life she has come to know and understand is one that has truly benefitted from the powerful combination of having not only the cognitive surplus but also the many tools at her disposal to make tremendous change for good and for so many individuals. The interesting story in the book about the teenagers in Korea who drew worldwide attention due to the beef recall ban being lifted is very similar to what my daughter’s friends are currently experiencing in their attempts to make a difference for students in her school. A recent decision by the school board prompted a number of students to “go public” with their message to get the board the reverse the decision. The all out campaign, though on a smaller scale than the Korean incident, started with students texting, tweeting and blogging about the injustice as they saw it. From there a small group of student organized, posted pieces about their displeasure and now the uproar is in full swing, with board presentations and lawyers willing to act as council for the students. The students involved in this effort are not only demonstrating initiative, but what a fabulous example of positive deviants (Shirky, page 127) working to improve their lives.

The act of sharing information and collaborating absolutely got this effort off the ground and like so many of the examples in the book, these situations more than not tend to bring out the best in people. As I read about the various scenarios in which Shirky described people as wanting to do something for others I was not at all surprised by the fact it seemed most people did not care if they were compensated for creating a website or managing a fundraising operation. From most of the media I am able to access this generosity is rarely newsworthy and

may show up as special clip once a week on the 6 PM news. I do believe however, most people by nature are caring, considerate people who want to participate in activities that interest them or make them feel like they are making a contribution, a difference for others. The Crobians discussed in the book is such a cool example of this big picture use of technology to make a significant impact on people all over the world. The part of this story I enjoyed the most was the simplicity with which a couple of folks got the ball rolling and turned their love for a musician into a huge success and they did it basically from the basements of their houses.

Another interesting piece of this explosion of communication and collaboration is the fact it spans all groups and ages. , though in some situations old thinking has persevered.  I say this as I have a father who three years ago basically unplugged his computer and has not looked back. Actually many of the “older” folks I know have not expressed much interest in technology and find the “old way” of connecting with people just fine. Shirky also discusses this “preserve the old thinking” model on page 39 with his example of PickupPal. Though many people could see the overwhelming benefits of this program, fewer cars on the road, less gas consumption, creating additional social connections, when it comes down to money being lost, in this case for the bus company, then the use of cognitive surplus is seen as a detriment. Shirky further exemplifies this thinking in his explanation of Napster and how it begin as a way to share music and ended up being disband primarily due to financial reasons.

As with many things in our lives we gravitate to things that are of interest to us. Sometimes we sustain this interest but chose not to take it past ourselves. Fortunately today we have numerous platforms to share our interests should we elect to do that. We now have virtually unlimited ways to share our thinking, interests or to connect with people nearly anywhere in the world. Like the young ladies in Korea if we want to take our interests to the next level we do not need the consent of anyone to share our story. Now it is a matter of a few clicks here and a click there and before you know it your group of friends and what you can do together can it capable of accomplishing just about anything. A pretty smart feeling knowing we are no longer passive absorbers of media, but participants who have the control to be as involved as we want to be.  

Molly's EDL 755 Blog: Reflection on Misa's Leonardo to the Internet

Molly's EDL 755 Blog: Reflection on Misa's Leonardo to the Internet: Thomas J. Misa’s book, Leonard to the Internet , takes a look at the history of technology, dating back to the 1400’s. Misa lay...

The Shallows book reflection

The Shallows

Reflection

A couple days ago a few colleagues and I started a conversation about cell phones and what they are capable of doing now days. Most around the table possessed the high end, do everything except the dishes phone and felt they could not live with these features. At one point in the conversation I was asked pointedly about the apps my phone had. With a Cheshire grin I replied, my phone is ten years old and does exactly what I need it to do – talk to people.

Now do I believe me getting additional apps on my phone will compromise my ability to learn, understand or consolidate information as Carr suggests in his book? No! But I do believe our conversation is connected to the larger piece Carr was trying to get out in his book – have the Internet and other technologies changed our way of thinking and how we process information? I guess your perception on this comment will determine which side of the fence you stand on. Carr does acknowledge there are advantages to the “new brains” technology has developed, but also made it know he feels technology has contributed majorly to the shallowing of our thinking, to the point where it has become increasingly difficult for even highly intelligent people to sit down and read a book.

                                                      

Has recent technology changed our thinking that much that we can’t focus long enough to concentrate on a character’s development or determine a story’s theme and its plot? Again, I think it depends on where you stand. It wasn’t that long ago television sets were accused of doing the same thing to people – turning their minds to mush, taking them away from reading and other self directed activities that stimulate the mind and promoted deeper thinking. However, similar to today the technology of yesterday did bring about a lot of new learning for families. Televisions brought nature and educational programs that previously could not be gotten or found in books at the library. Granted there may have not been great educational value in Gilligan’s Island, but I do believe kids learned things from shows like the Brady Bunch or the Andy Griffith show.

That said of course I understand the explosion of technology today is unlike the past and society has been impacted in untold ways as a result, much good and according to Carr, and I can support to certain extent, some not so good. I agree the Internet has and will continue to change our brains and thinking. This I feel is a given as the Internet is here to stay thanks to the likes of Google and the other engines that will be around to promote it and newer technologies like artificial intelligence and the like.  But with this understood I do believe we can continue to acquire new knowledge through technological sources that will keep our minds supple and engaged without overloading them. The key to keeping ourselves on top potentially burned out brains is to be proactive and know when it is time to turn off the technology and step away for awhile. Unfortunately for many this has or is becoming the greatest drawback to technology.

On page 7 Carr shares he used to be a scuba diver in a sea of words, now he is a guy on a jet ski zipping along on the information surface. I really like this analogy, but from my vantage point this is a situation Carr and others have worked themselves into. What I mean is we all have choices in our lives, like Carr, to determine how we want to prioritize our time and energy. Being in an educational setting it is very frequent I hear parents say I am exhausted from running my kids all over town from this practice to this practice, then to a friend’s house and maybe be home at 9 to do homework. Similar to families who feel their kids need to participate in every sport and activity, users of technology have to also know when enough is enough. From my vantage point I believe our society and or culture has fostered technology overload through the belief if we don’t know everything, you don’t know anything. For example, at what point do say how much social media to we really need? It unfortunately has become almost expected that you have to stay connected at all times and in all places. Really?  We don’t need to be plugged in all the time, which is why in my opinion some people are finding it increasingly difficult to concentrate, dig deeper and focus as Carr says. Do I need to know in 140 characters or less that you just finished reading this paragraph? Do we really need more video games, Hulu, You Tube or reality shows to fill our time?  I appreciate Carr’s diagnosis of the situation and agree technology is changing how we think, behave, socialize and try to navigate our futures. But are the drawbacks to our technology satiation all technology’s doing?  To this I disagree as it is our personal responsibility to determine how far down the “mush mind” superhighway we are willing to travel.

I shared the little ditty in my opening lines as I believe it is a good example of what Carr says on page 212 “We shouldn’t allow the glories of technology to blind our inner watchdog to the possibility that we’ve numbed an essential part our self.”   Though I saw again and again throughout Carr’s book his more pessimistic view of technology and or the Internet, I do have to agree with his thinking in this statement that we must be mindful when it comes to being online and offline.  If we allow ourselves to become so absorbed with always having to know the latest information, we are in essence saying a life of constant interruption and fragmentation is accepted and necessary. For me, I choose not to subscribe to this mentality. My current employment asks me to be connected for many hours each day and I accept that fact. However, when I get the chance, either planned or accidently, technology “sabbaticals” rule the day as quite honestly the cognitive surplus file drawer needs to be emptied once in a while.  

Leonardo book summary

October 25, 2011

Leonardo book reflection

Though much of the technology of the 15^th and 16^th century seems rude and elementary to us now, even then it had a positive impact in many ways on the lives of those living then. Youngsters taking jobs as apprentices were already involving themselves in the use of technology to provide additional income for their families while at the same time gaining valuable skills that would support them as they grew older and had families of their own.

Of course the technology employed during these years continued to improve and eventually brought us the printing press. This piece of technology may, depending upon your position, be one of the most important technological advances for mankind. Its creation brought about sweeping improvements in communication, the spreading of knowledge through the written word and significantly reduced the time and expense needed to produce documents. As a result of the printing press information became valuable and helped with opening more of the known world to a new age of commerce.

The Dutch, as indicated in chapter 2, relished during the 18^th century in the technology of commerce. New technologies of the day improved ships, advanced mining techniques, increased production of iron, brass, rope and greatly increased the amount of trading that took place between the Dutch and their neighbors.  Following the Dutch lead other countries also took advantage of the new technologies coming and further pushed trade and commerce to the new world, hence reshaping culture and society.

As with most things technology did not stagnant during the 18^th and 19^th century. In fact during these years technology brought about many very positive changes in the way work was completed. Now instead of needing a stable of horses or hundreds of human to bring products to market, technological advances brought about steam engines and other mechanical devices which increased the amount of product that could be produced and greatly reduced the cost of making each item, therefore dramatically increasing the profits realized. Beyond the lure of big money, technology also brought about numerous important changes that improved overall living circumstances and safety for workers, though these changes came at a slower pace than the greed for huge profits.

Heading into the 20^th century technology experienced what the book called a 2^nd industrial revolution. With many technologies being brought to market earlier, this time span saw the refining of technology which then brought us new products such as synthetic dyes, new fabrics for clothing, artificial fertilizers and organic chemistry. With the creation of untold numbers of new technologies all designed to increase human comfort, there quickly evolved a consumer mentality unseen in any previous generations. Humans began to expect there would continually be “new” products or practices to make their lives more and more comfortable and those commanding the technology were more than happy to oblige the thirst for more.  This quest for more and more of course brought about immense competition which led to patent wars between companies as each wanted to the first to bring new products to the consumer society they helped create. Being the first, like Ford, Edison or Huntsman brought these capitalists not only immense wealth but also granted them much power, influence and control in the market.

As the 20 century roared on modernism became popular and spawned yet more new technology to support its growth. This time also saw an increase in abstractism, use of new materials to build structures and more improvements in communication structures and transportation. In the middle of this century, as chapter 7 indicates, technology refocused society on the creation of the “war machine.” This mindset brought about some of the most ghastly uses of technology including atomic and nuclear weapons bent on human destruction, creation of powerful artillery and incredible losses of money for technological concepts that never came to fruition. Benefits of this war machine mindset brought about advances in computers, digital computing, factory efficiency and increased standard of living for many.

In reflecting on where the technology in this book started it hard to imagine what new things technology will bring us. In the last forty years the growth of technology has exploded. It used to take rooms and or buildings to house a computer. Now we have handheld technology that can turn the lights on from across the country and music devices that house more music selections than a wall of 8 tracks. The internet is now a given and most of you who have read this far can not remember having access to it.

Technology has globalized our world, improved our living conditions and accelerated the formats with which we communicate. Technology has increased our incomes, reduced poverty in many locations around the world and affords us the opportunity to access information in seconds.  Where will technology take us in one, three or five years?  Guess we don’t know that but we will look back on what we currently have and wonder how did we ever do it “back then.”

ED 755 Blog: Visual Learning

ED 755 Blog: Visual Learning: The move from education being in a classroom to online will hinge on the success of visual technology. I’ve seen many online class formats...

Class reflection 3

Class reflection

October 9, 2011

As a member of an educational environment I can see tremendous potential for the use of the visual learning tools we learned about this week. In the classroom students would benefit nicely from visual learning opportunities as many students are visual learners and engaging them in activities that play to their learning strengths will only increase their participation and interest in the content. Asking students to demonstrate what they have learned via visual technology would be a fantastic way to assess their learning and gives them real life experiences to apply the skills they are learning in other technology classes.  Utilizing this week’s technology would also provide students with untold opportunities to work together in a virtual sense, again another skill will need to have as they continue to move forward with their education.

For staff I see visual tools strengthening the instructional package they can bring to the table. For example if there are students in the class who are struggling to access the textbook due to the complexity of vocabulary or some other reason, putting things in a visual format may very well be exactly what those students need to connect more deeply to the learning. How cool to have the teacher explaining how to do a lab on UTube and if a student needs to replay it several times to get it right, great they can and the teacher won’t have to explain the process over and over.  Using visual learning can also free up some time when it comes to having to create tests and such to assess students’ learning of the standards/curriculum. As I mentioned earlier students eat up the chances they get to show what they have learned. Why not take advantage of that energy and let the kids do the work within the parameters that have been set.

As a building the use of visual learning tools will be a fabulous way to support our implementation of the PBIS structure. Specifically I can see asking our Cool Tool committee to work students in the building to record demonstrations of our school expectations and post them on our website and or on UTUbe. Additional use could be me recording personal message for families regarding the importance of coming to Parent Teacher Conference, creating a homework completion plan at home or posting presentations regarding social issues and how parents can address them with their children.

Most of us understand our students grew up with technology and for the most part are more tech savvy than most of their teachers or principals for that matter. I continue to be impressed with the confidence our kids demonstrate when it comes to navigating visual learning tools and technology in general. When I ask kids where they learned about these programs the response is almost the same – heard it from a friend and just kept working with it until I figured it out. I envy this near reckless abandonment with which they attack technology when they want to learn how it works. The lack of fear for making a few mistakes along the way is a mindset we adults need to adopt as it will increase our use of technology and integrating it into our teaching and classrooms.

reflection 2

Having had minimal experiences with social bookmarking this week’s learnings have been quite interesting. I am very used to my current practice of finding sites that I believe are beneficial for my research and bookmarking them for me. Learning about the easy and benefits of sharing sites has got me really thinking about the possibilities for improving instruction within my building.

This year we have implemented the use of the PBIS framework within our district. As there are numerous layers to this framework I see the use of social bookmarking as a great tool to keep our staff supplied with ideas and strategies to keep the momentum going. Recently we got our PBIS subcommittees launched and it is easy to see how social bookmarking can make their work much more productive and efficient. I also see the use of social bookmarking (i.e. Diigo) as a wonderful way to provide staff with an easily accessible location to share sites regarding information on different types of researched based interventions they can be using in their classrooms.

Regarding the social networking this too has untold possibilities for improving communication within a building, district and community. For me I am constantly trying to build upon the communication we provide our families with regards to what is happening in the school both daily and long term. Some of the social networking options learned about would have positive benefits for us as additional tools to connect with families. With more and more of our students and families securing consistent access to quality internet connections platforms like Facebook and the such are the more comfortable mode of communication. Utilizing them will be only to our advantage in the long run as it affords us the opportunity to connect with a broader range of stakeholders.

The primary concern I have with the use of these many various forms of social networking in the loss face to face time between human beings. Now granted the personal touch may not be of significant importance if I am simply pushing out information about the volleyball schedule, picture day or when the next in-service is coming.  But when it comes to truly connecting with people, these platforms in my humble experience do not succeed and at times I feel worsen situations. Being in education I have had too many experiences with students who have used social networking to get revenge, start rumors and heighten anger with a foe. Unfortunately these texts, Tweets, likes and de-friends find their way back into the school environment and we are then called upon to sit the kids down and work it out.

As a novice in the area of social networking and bookmarking the video clips and creating of accounts has been a valuable experience. The benefits of social bookmarking definitely has peaked my interest and desire to share this information with colleagues as I do believe it will make our jobs easier and more efficient. I see social bookmarking as a wonderful way to provide our parents and community as well with additional information about instructional practices and programs we are employing in the school. Regarding social networking I do see the benefits of being more connected through the use of these platforms. Social networking is comfortable for people so I have to change my perspective and embrace the possibilities that can come from these tools.