501 final blog post: الحمد لله

501 Final Blog Post: In the words of Benjamin Franklin “Wealth is not his who has it, but his who uses it."
So it is with our new knowledge of Web 2.0, may we all continue to use it...



Well, ladies and gentlemen, the university Web 2.0 tech course I enrolled in a few months ago is ending, and this post is the final grade toward my course requirements. I am somewhat disheartened that the course is ending, because, despite that I am able to continue my Web2 learning on my own, there is nothing like an instructor-directed course that is organized and arranged by an expert: our Joanne.

Each week as we moved through the various tools that Joanne thought best to learn about, I made tremendous growth in the area of connecting my learning with my professional practice. It is difficult for me to imagine how I used to sit through PD sessions and in-services and hear references made to Web2 technologies yet those references never really had any meaning to me, because I didn’t know what was being talked about. I am almost embarrassed to admit that I had never used most of the tools form this course before. I know they have existed, in some cases, for years, but without regular access to the internet, I didn’t know what the hype was about. I guess I was a happen-chance internet user, simply acquiring maneuverability within a couple of Web2 tools that would allow me to access music and videos. Early-on in this 515 Web 2 journey I realized that to D/L music and videos isn’t really making full use of the amazing capabilities of the internet…. But, while my approach was wrong, I think I represented a large number of internet users who never have an opportunity to explore the Web with a purpose.

 So, what’s my purpose? Ha! That’s a funny question!! I think there millions of people searching for the answer to just that question in their lives. However, I ask that question in the context of my Web explorations: What’s my purpose, now, in using Web2 tools? Each week that we delved into a distinct realm of Web2 learning, and we created accounts for various services and tools in the E-sphere, I created a second account for each of the tools that will be part of my professional profile. The new user I.D. I have, and the accounts I generated all parallel my CNRG radio profiles, but they are related to my professional life. I am excited at the thought of being able to use my energies to build a professional profile for myself that can speak for me, and about me through my Web2 knowledge, and the interests I attach to using technology. Looking back, I can see several important opportunities I missed because I did not have a clearly defined online profile where others could access the work I am doing, and the successes I have in my teaching and learning. I guess I am just concerned about this course ending because I work well under pressure, and the deadlines we have are the motivators that I have always loved in life. Without deadlines in place, and without a high level of accountability, I am afraid that I might slip back into my happen-chance use of the I-Sphere to take from the internet without giving back in the form of ideas and information I would like to share with others. I really like Anderson’s (2007)outline,

“Web 2.0 is more than a set of ‘cool’ and new technologies and services, important though some of these are. It has, at its heart, a set of at least six powerful ideas that are changing the way some people interact…The six ideas:
1 Individual production and User Generated Content
2 Harness the power of the crowd
3 Data on an epic scale
4 Architecture of Participation
5 Network Effects
6 Openness”
So far this course has taught us to engage in each of the six primary directives that Anderson identifies as critical to Web 2.0 technologies. (*Kudos to Joanne*)

I think the biggest limiter to my prior access to the internet and Web2 tools was definitely ca$h. As a university student I didn’t have much money because I had to pay for my education on my own, striving to secure as many scholarships and bursaries as possible. And, while technology is pretty much low-cost today, I missed out on many crucial steps toward what we know today as Web2. I didn’t have a computer growing up because my parents couldn’t afford one. My high school didn’t offer computer classes, and the only computer use I had back then was 30 minutes per day in the library. (See Anderson, 2007, p.54 “Libraries have skilled staff with professional expertise that can be leveraged to rise to the challenge of Web 2.0, not only in collection and preservation, but also in usercentred services. They are also the guardians of a long tradition of a public service ethic which will increasingly be needed to deal with the privacy and legal issues raised by Web 2.0. Library staff should be encouraged to think and act pro-actively about how they can bring this to bear on the development of new, library and information service-based technologies.” Well, as I mentioned, my university studies prevented me from purchasing a computer, as well as any other technology. I remember I crashed at one guy’s house for a semester, and his roommate had a computer, and that guy used to download material from the internet, but I had no idea what he was doing. Then, after graduating from university I was too strapped for cash to get a new computer, and after a couple of years of working I returned to teacher’s college, and sank myself into another dearth. Believe it or not, I continued dubbing cassette tapes until last year when I realized I can listen to music on my computer. And, I can admit, quite shamefacedly, that my use of technology totally skipped over DVDs and CDs, and I have never bought either because I had not TV, no CD player, no DVD player, and I couldn’t make copies, so that is a technology I never figured out (similar to many countries in Africa that never got telephone landlines, and went straight to cellular technology, missing a large, dinosaurish step in development). Well, I finally got a computer two years ago, and I learned that I had been missing a lot of learning along the way. But, then again, when I spent a semester living in my tent in a park down by the oceanside, without walls, without electricity, without noise, with birds and squirrels as my neighbors that wasn’t half-bad either! And, there was no way I could have included a laptop in the backpack I carried to lecture everyday with my sleeping bag, tent, mats, cooking utensils, clothes, not to mention my books and papers. I think I was just pretty much not set-up for technology physically, but I was mentally developing a consciousness for being a responsible, effective internet user.

And, you’re probably thinking, what in the world is this guy talking about!?!? Consciousness? Computers? Well, for years I have been divesting myself of material items, taking with me only the necessary things I needed to make my world a minimally complete yet comfortable place to be. When I got gifts from others, I always encouraged them to find me the smallest things available, like miniature chessboards or miniature atlases, or miniature reference books, so I could carry them with me. It’s funny because I have a collection of pocket protectors set aside for different uses: one with measuring gauges; another with fine writing instruments; yet another with adding tools like a miniature calculator and rulers, and a miniature weight scale, etc; and another with tools for repairing things like miniscrewdrivers and mini ratchets. So, how does all this relate to technology? I believe that the more you know, the less you carry; which is a principle that stays with me now as I own my own home, and build a new collective consciousness around technology. There is so much information available on the internet through the tools we’ve explored, but there has to be an entry point to accessing that knowledge, as well as an exit point for being able to recognize misinformation and to know when enough information is enough. I found that when doing my explo with socialbookmarking, I could have kept bouncing around the world from user to user to user ad nauseam because there are infinitesimal ideas and links to be explored. But, there really need to be limits even to exploration to keep one’s goal and one’s focus in mind.

What benefits can I see for Web2 and computer use in my own future? Well, as I talked about, I hope to upload all of the materials I create for work so others can use them through my professional profile. I will definitely continue to podcast, because I am an auditory-kinesthetic learner, and listening activities are a fun challenge for me, and I like to learn things by listening while performing other activities. I haven’t got a video or digital still camera to make videos, but I will get a camera in the next year or so, since I have some great ideas for short movies that I’d like to make. I have all of my manuscripts of books I’ve written stuffed away in a room in Ukraine, so I will probably make my way back there to get my things in the next few years, and scan the materials into digital format, and hopefully post those as well. I suppose that life really is full-circle, because here I am fulfilling my role as a student during these past two years, and depriving myself of purchasing technologies. I wonder if the opportunity cost is really worth it in the long run, to deny myself immersion in new technologies in favor of education? My friends who’ve never been able to call me on the phone because I have been spending my savings on education probably understand by now who I am, and the direction my life is headed toward…. (*thank you for your understanding*) but education doesn’t always provide the necessary avenues to keep in contact with others. Well, in the past it didn’t, because I didn’t know about Web 2.0!

In the future, I know I will be able to better communicate my travels to the networks of friends and families who follow my journeys because it is quite a simple and enjoyable process of capturing moments in time and presenting them for others to appreciate. Just last week I was in Helena, Montana, which is one of my favorite cities in the west, and I had to get some fuel at the Stop’n’Plop while on my way to Coeur d’Alene, and in the gas station, there was a gallery of enlarged photographs the owner of the station had taken during his travels to the Fertile Crescent area, and it was amazing to live through his images that took me away to foreign lands and diverse peoples.



I am hoping to extend my teaching skills into the European market in the next few years, so I can write a couple of books when I am there. I know that Web2 tools and technology will be my best assets while away because they will keep me connected with my friends and family, and they will help me to get my works available to a large market.

In the more immediate future, though, I know that my high school students will benefit from my own increased knowledge of Web2 tools, as I have already begun integrating more technology into the curriculum, and students really enjoy finding their own voices in their creations. The use of blogs, podcasts, and vlogs in our class experience makes learning more enjoyable because it is more intuitive to Net Generation users. Thompson (2008, p.1) outlines hits the nail on the head with the idea that Web 2.0 is successful because it does not require users to have a knowledge of html or programming code, “Web 2.0 thus exemplifies the increasing prominence of the individual as anyone can reate and upload print, udio, and video to the Internet. Not too long ago, adding Web content was the province of Internet designers who had the necessary knowledge and time to create Web pages using complicated computer programming. Now, easy-to-use Internet sites encourage users to post their own materials to the Internet without having to know HTML programming codes. Through Web-based applications and services such as Web logs (blogs), video blogs (vlogs), podcasts, and wikis, anyone with a computer connected to the Internet can be part of the Web 2.0 experience.” As this course ends, I don’t want to become a zealous convert preaching that everyone should rush out and gain an understanding of a field of knowledge that is now benefiting me, but I think more teachers would gain a considerable advantage from taking Joanne’s Web2 course because it would allow them to understand what students bring to the classroom, and lessons can be built on students’ existing and prior learnings.

I liked this term how Joanne got our class reading one anothers’ blogs right from the beginning. There were so many great ideas presented to me from readings about the troubles and triumphs my classmates were having with the same experiences I was immersed in. Since I don’t have a TV or other electronic amenities save my computer and some altmodische radio transmitting equipment, I am not able to express my ideas in terms of multimedia the way B.ran.di did with her posts, but her ideas were always very eclectic, and they always brought a smile to my face. Nicola’s postings were always food for thought during the weeks when I was learning and growing, but not knowing what to do with my newly acquired understandings. One of best quotes I can provide about how much I learned from Nicola, is, “By actively participating as a learner, contributor, collaborator and creator teachers will realize that these Web 2.0 tools are primarily about communication resulting in a revised view of the role of SNSs in learning.” I’m a shy person, and engaging in conversation is sometimes difficult for me, and much of the learning I experienced from classmates was subtle and unspoken. Lois blog, Steep Learning Curve was pertinent to the beginning of our journey:

“These past two weeks have felt like a steep climb up the side of sheer mountain.

I didn't realize there were so many opportunities to connect with other professionals in your field, so many different ways of getting out your message or to have the ability to do a ten to fifteen minute professional development right at your desk.

Its overwhelming at times and at other times its exciting to have so many tools at your disposal.

I have to keep in mind to stay balanced and continue to scale that mountain one step at a time.”

And, I couldn’t have found a better way to express how the beginning of this course was for me.

I really think that the creation of an online portfolio or profile is therapeutic, because it allows a user to create their identity in a controlled, paced environment. And, I can’t imagine a better way to develop confidence with learning about these tools than to take one’s time, and explore with them to make them one’s own. Below is a video that is composed with self-composed song by David Lee King called, Are You Blogging This?



Last year I spoke at a conference and during the presentation my computer crashed and I felt like a complete failure. My experiences with Twitter during this course have been very reminiscent of the emotion of failure I felt. I wish I could have had better success with Twitter because it seems to be the technology of today, more than any other social networking utility. I remember asking Joanne during our Elluminate session, how could people not have predicted Twitter, and why is it such a success despite having MySpace and FaceBook available at the same time? There really is no rhyme or reason of why groups accept one technology over another other than cost and functionality. I think about that question often in the frame of reference as to ‘what new technology will be next?’ Twitter was a success, I think in part because it is so easy to access via mobile technology. Also that texting in short bursts is a better form of blogging for younger users with less content to share, and more form to create. Similarly, YouTube seems to be the video twin of Twitter, allowing users to upload short bursts of video from mobile devices. I still wonder what the next technology will be for Web users who interweave their receptive skills (listening and reading) with productive skills (speaking and writing) that will further build collaboration and instantaneous communications between users…. Maybe i a few months I will be able to echo Esteban's (2009) words, "It took me a while to find how to use Twitter beyond self promotion, but once I did I'm really a fan of it. As web media and wit a very simple structure, their contents are easy to classify and find ways to 'play' with them, on visualizations over any other way."


I can’t think of any better way to end this course than to thank everyone for their encouragement and positive comments along the way. I would especially like to thank Joanne for the time and energy she invested in putting together a curriculum that works. Joanne, your influence has already changed the direction of my teaching, and I hope we can reconnect in the future so I can give you evidence of the great things I hope to achieve with the skills you’ve imparted.

With my deepest and humblest appreciation to you Joanne.

doЯ|Rob

a peaceful song to fade back into the greenery....




References

Anderson, P. (2007). What is Web 2.0? Ideas, technologies and implications for education. Retrieved from: www.jisc.ac.uk/media/documents/techwatch/tsw0701b.pdf

Beyond Web 2.0: How the Next Tech Revolution will Change the World (2007). retrieved from: http://www.archive.org/details/2007-11-29-BeyondWeb2.0

Esteban, C. (2009, February 13). Visualizing Web 2.0. Retrieved from: http://infographicsnews.blogspot.com/2009/02/visualizing-web-20.html

King, D.L. (2006). Are you blogging this. Vlog retrieved from: http://www.archive.org/details/Davidleeking-AreYouBloggingThis151

Kuhn, N. (2010, March 20). No need to knock, my door's wide open: Facebook and social networks. Retrieved from: http://sevensummitslibrarian.blogspot.com/

Lois. (2010, January 14). Steep learning curve Message posted to http://loisblog-lois.blogspot.com/

Thompson, J. (2008). Is Education 1.0 Ready for Web 2.0 students? Retrieved from: http://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache:0tNxcomd4VwJ:csdtechpd.org/file.php/1/moddata/glossary/4/26/Is_Education_1.0_Ready_for_Web_2.0_Students-.pdf+Is+Education+1.0+Ready+for+Web+2.0+students%3F&hl=en&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEESh7BnwxUEjBBFdnmQDHzkTpgSkIsYPSqEJo58IsSZcAeVP1z3CYIIz5RD3Hgp7KTEz2c9ChlfX-VK4reayPEpA-UK9a1DjmWB9TjFR3DsTJRF7BSLUxPSYzvqP5FY8mxBtPkHM_&sig=AHIEtbS-Amp8tQ-ATLbLp4i0c6YCFKnUvA



...seriously.... I'm gonna totally miss this class like you can't believe, because I really like what we're learning, and I like the pace of the class. Joanne, don't be surprised if we meet again REALLY soon! (*smile*)