The EdTech Daily

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In a blog post from 2006 Andy Carvin discussed his recent experience being temporarily disconnected from the Internet and takes the opportunity to reflect on those for whom this situation is not temporary. In his article “New Govt Report Exposes the School-Home Digital Divide ” he reviews a report from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a division of the US Department of Education. The authors of the study found that despite the fact that students now have near 100% access to the Internet at school there is still a huge divide between who has access at home and who does not. Not surprisingly, the divide breaks down according to racial and socio-economic lines.

Mr. Carvin ends off by asking what can be done to ensure that this divide does not put these children at a disadvantage later in life. He poses an excellent question, albeit not a new one. Will there ever not be some sort of Divide, as long as there is an economic divide? Poorer children will always lose out as long as we are not a socialist country. If the schools are doing their best to eliminate differences, how much more are we obligated to push at home? Especially when parents might not even be aware of how important this is – it’s as much parent education, as it is student empowerment.

America is not a socialist country, but neither are we completely capitalistic. We do have social programs such as welfare, social security and Medicaid. Where do we draw the line? Perhaps the government should invest in the appropriate infrastructure to bring Internet access to all areas of the country without subsidizing actual Internet accounts for individual families, no matter how poor. People can still choose to do without cellphones and computers in their homes; it does put their kids at a disadvantage both socially and educationally but that’s their choice, as parents.

Where does society have the right to draw the line between the haves and have-nots?

Net researcher Danah Boyd reported recently at the Personal Democracy Forum in New York that rather than becoming a digital melting pot the Internet is mirroring social divides found offline. She explained that “Social media don’t eradicate social divisions” but rather are “making the old social divisions obvious in totally new ways.”

Everyone knows that Facebook is the new MySpace, and that users have stopped creating MySpace accounts in favor of Facebook accounts. However, the numbers don’t really bear this out. The two social sites have about the same number of unique users - currently about 70 million each, according to data recently released by ComScore .

Apparently, teens are choosing Facebook or MySpace based on where they perceive it will be easier to find other kids like themselves. Boyd interviewed many teens from across the US and found that, as usual in high school, reputation is everything. Facebook was perceived as being more “high brow,” more cultured, than MySpace. MySpace users tend to consider Facebook users as more “stuck up”, or more “goody two shoes.” In return, Facebook users consider MySpace users to be less educated and even obnoxious. Snobs offline naturally transform into snobs online.

Boyd concluded that the online social divide she found is the new “white flight” - akin to the flight of the well-to-do from crowded cities to more spacious, quiet suburbs where people tended to move to communities made up of, you guessed it, people like them. Boyd found that

“Whites were more likely to leave or choose Facebook. The educated were more likely to leave or choose Facebook. Those from wealthier backgrounds were more likely to leave or choose Facebook. Those from the suburbs were more likely to leave or choose Facebook. …Those who deserted MySpace did so by choice but their decision to do so was wrapped up in their connections to others, in their belief that a more peaceful, quiet, less-public space would be more idyllic.”

Boyd ends off by warning that “…If we don’t address this head on, inequality will develop deeper roots that will further cement the divisions in our lives.”

What can be done about this cultural divide? Is there a way to use Internet communities to bring people together, instead of further driving them apart? Much like the famed American melting pot around the turn of the 20th century which in reality turned into immigrants living with other immigrants from similar backgrounds, it’s very possible that the Internet will not be a new landscape where differences disappear and we all blend into one homogeneous group. Perhaps it only can ever be a reflection of our offlines lives and extension of the way we currently communicate.

Yes, the Internet breaks down geographical barriers. Yes, it increases communication speed. But since it is a tool used by humans, won’t we still fall back to our natural instincts of enjoying the company of similar individuals, people who understand us, share our background and interests, and communicate on similar topics?

Without belittling the power of technology to break down barriers and open new worlds to its users, does that really have the power to change human nature? Perhaps it’s more important to focus on how we can get different groups to understand and respect each other, rather than forcing them to hang out after school and pretend their differences don’t exist at all.

This post is based on a report of Boyd’s presentation found at http://causeglobal.blogspot.com/2009/07/white-flight-online.html .

Digital Humanities Quarterly has an interesting article on “The New Economy of Attention” . It discusses the effect of technology and specifically Social Media on students’ attention to a lecture and whether a “distraction” really takes away from learning. Perhaps focused, relevant distraction can actually help a student to learn better. The article suggests that it is human nature for attention to wander, even when interested in a topic, simply because that is how we learn best - by taking in everything in a learning environment, not just the lecture itself.

Laptops and mobile phones can be very distracting in a classroom during a lecture if the student is simply browsing the web, catching up on reading, or doing some shopping. However, if these distractions are incorporated into the lecture environment  and used to add to the discussion rather than take away, they can enhance the learning that takes place.

How to best incorporate web browsing and social media such as Facebook and Twitter may not be 100% clear, but what is clear is that ignoring potential distractors that will not go away anytime in the near future means missing a fantastic opportunity for educators to enhance their students’ learning environments.

So here’s an article that pretty much contradicts my last post . In it Rob Weir argues that older students tend to be more successful than younger ones and complete more online courses than his younger students, despite less familiarity with the technology. He claims that younger students love the idea of learning online but often drop out before the end of a course. Older students, in his opinion, are more self-motivated and better organized.

While statistics seem to bear out his conclusion, a closer look is warranted. This seems like a classic example of the principle that “correlation does not imply causation.” Yes, the most successful students in his online courses recently may have been the more mature students. But it is only their maturity that makes it easier for them to pass his class?

In my experience, older students tend to spend more time planning to take courses, online or offline, and do more research about the courses. They are more focused on what they want and tend to take fewer courses than full time students - so they will give more attention to each course they take.

Additionally, a student who has been out of school for a long time isn’t in “school mode” - older students often have to get back into the routine of school. They will easily adapt to the demands of whatever course format they are enrolling in - whether it’s an online course, or offline. Current students, on the other hand may not realize before enrolling in an online course how different it can be from a traditional class and therefore may not be prepared for what is expected of them.

Perhaps a simple orientation outlining the various differences between delivery formats would greatly increase performance in younger students. I do not believe that younger students lack the ability to complete online courses at the same rate as older students. Maturity and focus are certainly important when it comes to success in school at any age, and older students have more of both than younger students. However, it is a matter of expectation, not ability, and it is harder to switch between course format than to adapt to one format and stick with it.

Given the prevalence of “blended” courses on college campuses where even traditional classes are being partially conducted online it is only a matter of time before younger students become much more adept at handling different delivery formats and the balance of younger students to old who are enrolled in online classes will change.

One of the hardest things about distance e-learning is trying to stay focused and motivated when sitting alone in front of a computer. There are several factors that can determine whether distance learning is appropriate for a particular student, including self motivation, ability to filter out distractions, and strong reading comprehension, among other skills. But there is no doubt that for many people the isolating feeling of staring at a computer screen can be a big turn off.

The leading factor in not completing an online program for many people is the lack of companionship and support during the program. Many students feel online interaction can’t compete with real face-time. On the other hand, nearly all colleges have added on online component to their coursework, even courses taught on campus in a lecture hall or classroom.

If social isolation is such a problem for distance learning students then why is the phenomenon growing on college campuses across the US? Could it be a generation gap, where those who grew up without cellphones, email, IM, and SMS view them as a supplement or replacement for the “real” thing?

Perhaps students who’ve always used these tools first as foremost as social tools, as opposed to those of us who began using them in the office and then spread to our personal lives (especially since so many of use spend most of our day in the office, instead of socializing) are much more comfortable with them as a primary form of socializing rather than a supplementary form.

I predict that online learning will continue to grow despite the drawbacks of lack of “face-time.” As students become more comfortable socializing via a mediator such as a computer or cellphone, and as kids who are already comfortable with this become university students there will be less resistance to the perceived lack of socializing in a computer mediated course.

Thoughts? Feel free to comment below.

In the current economic situation many people are finding themselves either unemployed or with jobs that have been cut back to part time. While it is frustrating to worry about paying bills during this time or be continually stressed by looking for a new job, it is encouraging to know that although many companies have cut back there are just as many that are still hiring.

It can be really useful to take this rare free time and use it to add to your job skills. This will make you more desirable to employers and can actually help you find a job faster. Many job seekers are using this time to start a graduate degree, which is a fantastic boost for any career. Those who cannot afford tuition during the crunch need not lose out; there are many free online courses that offer incredibly useful, practical information that you can put to use at your new job.

Nearly any job today requires some sort of computer skills. Many people learn the skills they need on the job, but knowing how to perform certain tasks in Word or Excel won’t necessarily translate into knowing different tasks that might be needed for a new job. Take the time to learn how to use all the available features in a program and you’ll be able to jump right into a new job and prove your productivity from day one.

Free Online Computer Class Resources
http://distancelearn.about.com/od/isitforyou/a/FreeComputer.htm
http://www.gcflearnfree.org/computer/
http://www.homeandlearn.co.uk/
http://www.free-ed.net/free%2Ded/InfoTech/default.asp

The workplace today has really become a global environment. Businessmen routinely travel to Europe or the Far East for jobs that used to be much more local. Foreign languages are now required for certain jobs and are a big plus for many more. You can brush up on your foreign language skills by taking a free online language class and add more punch to your resume.

Free Online Foreign Language Class Resources
http://www.studyspanish.com/
http://www.learn-spanish-online.de/
http://www.zigzagworld.com/class/
http://www.bible101.org/hebrew/home.html
http://www.deutsch-lernen.com/
http://www.germanfortravellers.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=24&Itemid=40
http://www.travlang.com/languages/german/ihgg/

Since MIT launched its OpenCourseWare Initiative and put content from hundreds of classes online and made it available for free many universities have followed suit. You cannot earn college credit by taking these courses but you can access course materials and lectures for many high level university courses on almost any topic.

Free OpenCourseWare Resources
http://ocw.mit.edu/OcwWeb/web/home/home/index.htm
http://ocw.jhsph.edu/
http://www.cmu.edu/oli/
http://ocw.utah.edu/

For no investment other than your time you can have access to nearly unlimited free resources. Use your time wisely; skill improvement is an important part of job hunting and can make the process go faster.

Good luck!