Connecting to Each Other

Maxx made a good point about being able to use technology to connect with people and cultures around the world. I think that technology has allowed me to understand things that I cannot see in my area of the world. Using a webcam kept me connected to a friend who studied abroad in England, and watching videos online has helped me learn more about distant people and places.

When I was younger, I had pen pals from around the country and around the world. I can only imagine how much more I might have learned if we had been able to use webcams in the classroom. I have never used them in my school life, but in my personal life they have helped me connect to friends and family members around the world.

...so much trooouuuuble in da world

Mr. Marley, you sing the truth.  

Pick up a newspaper and look at the front page headlines.  I challenge you to find a glimmer of hope amidst the black and white print.  Oh, you're reading the "paper" online?  Ok, well in that case I dare you to scroll up and down to find a gem of joy at some point on the screen.  Good news is hard to come by.  With so many depressing things happening all around us all the time, how are we supposed to stay afloat?  How is humankind supposed to overcome the reality that crushes our spirt with every morning news cast?  

Enter: Laughing Babies. 

While certainly a mood elevator, the link is provided in jest.  A clear cut panacea for global dismay is not something I am prepared to offer in the paragraphs to come.  However, I do believe that the use of technology can help us remain optimistic in spirit and action.   

Technology provides us with immediate access to information on a global scale.  I do not believe that ignorance is bliss, and as technology enhances my learning by granting me access to any information I might need at any given time, it also provides me with an outlet to take immediate action on a global scale.  Granted "action" from behind a computer screen is limited in certain ways.  How can I feed a hungry family across the ocean from my desk? Well, I would argue that technology provides us convenience of action.  If feeding a hungry person required of me a plane ticket, an investment in 2 weeks of travel, and figuring out logistics for the allocation of resources, I might be less inclined to follow through with a desire to help my global neighbors.  However, with access to hundreds of websites I can more easily research my cause, and contact organized parties for specific ways I might be able to help from home.  By helping to close pockets of ignorance the internet and technology at large create a sense of moral responsibility and course of action. 

Furthermore, as my esteemed colleague, Megan Hart, points out, technology improves peoples' learning (and motivation to learn) by providing information through another context: images and videos let learners in on another level of understanding that sheer text cannot include.  To run with the example of global hunger, perhaps seeing images or videos of those communities in need inspires us to act more quickly.  Connecting to the universal human characteristics on a physical level might help us to form a bond with a stranger, and foster a sense of empathy within us. Of course this is not a complete analysis of our global situation, nor of the psychology of giving, but I do believe it offers a positive look at our situation.  Plus, now you have the joy of Bob Marley singing to you in your head.  

Sesame Street

I am a visual learner. I remember more by what I see then what I hear. I have a better chance of telling you the plot of a movie I saw last week than the topic of the conversation I had only two minutes ago. That is one reason that I am grateful for technology that allows us to watch videos and see pictures of things we are learning about. Although this is only one small piece of the broad term "technology," I believe it has helped me in many ways during my lifetime of learning.

In my life, I have used visual technology to see things that I would be unable to see in my life. In school as a child, I remember watching videos on history, different countries, animals, and even a series on sea life and ships. Because we were unable to visit other countries or watch animals in their native habitat, videos and pictures were an important aspect of understanding those topics. One may describe a traditional dance of Lakota tribe, for example, but in order to understand it better, it helps to be able to see it visually.

Videos, DVDs, and television have enhanced my learning outside of the classroom as well. Watching movies and television shows, taping my own videos, and being able to see photos taken by friends and family as they traveled have all affected my learning. Besides, where would we be without shows like Sesame Street to watch as children?

Four blind people approach an elephant...

Four blind people approach an elephant, as they want to learn about the essence of the animal and describe this essence to their friends as best they can. The first person is standing face to face with the elephant and when she reaches out to feel the animal she grabs hold of the elephant's long swinging trunk. Elephants are like snakes! she determines. The second person climbs and sits atop the elephant's back. He reaches out and touches the back side of the elephants head and ears. Elephants are like enormous butterflies, he concludes. The third person approaches the elephant from its side. This person reaches out and feels the elephant's wrinkly underbelly. Elephants are like whales of the land, this person decides. The fourth person approaches the beautiful elephant from the back. He reaches out and feels the elephant's skinny and bristly tail. Elephants are like paint brushes! he delights.

When the four people gather around the fire later that night, they share their experience of the elephant with one another. "What an elegant giant," the man who sat atop declares. "Elegant giant?" questions the first. "Elephants are not so large." "Yes, elephants are small," agrees the fourth. "I could fit one in my pencil case," he says. "What are you talking about? The defining characteristic of an elephant is its grand size," chimes the third. Its grand size....

Technology is like the elephant. Grand in size it can be approached from multiple perspectives, all of which can be useful and relevant. When looked at from afar, the vast application of technology can seem enormous and intimidating, but when examined from up close, from more than one point of view with more than one application in mind, technology can be dynamic and exciting. Or so I hope it will be for me...