Somewhat Chastened: Chapters 3, 5, 7

I haven't been called to the altar quite yet, but I must say that Will Richardson is beginning to make a convert out of me. My initial misgivings were, of course, about the quality of literature found on the web. However, after reading the chapter on RSS feeds (and his humbling response to one of my posts), I find myself getting close to dipping my toes in the baptismal font... just to try things out a bit. It has been my practice in life to steer clear of acronyms as much as possible- obviously this preference did not play a part in my career choice. So, just seeing the term "RSS feed" made me a little nervous. Then I started seeing it EVERYWHERE! But the letters scared me off. Seriously, though, if I had known what it was, I would have been all over it. Despite my discomfort with numerous technologies, I can tell you that I gave up my newspaper long ago and now spend my morning hour sipping coffee and visiting a list of six or so websites every morning to find out the latest info on my favorite topics. Is it laziness to want my news to come to me? It's like the daily paper being dropped off at my doorstep each morning, but I don't have to tip the paperboy! Seen in an educational light, RSS feeds are actually a perfect answer to my initial concern of retaining or ensuring quality in the literature our students read online. I agree with the author's comments to this blog that we need to teach students how to muddle through and decipher the substantial from the empty. However, RSS feeds have the power to minimize the scope of the Internet to a cozier space for your students serving as a weeding out tool for those writings on the web of low quality. I can't wait to start my own.

Two ever present topics in these chapters were the ideas of community and connection. I love the ease in which students in Louisville, KY can communicate with others from around the globe. I remember in grade school having pen pals from different parts of the world each year and what delight it was to receive their letters each month. Each student was also paired with a Peace Corps volunteer. From them, we learned about water irrigation systems, poverty, service, mosquito nets among many other things. I still remember that my pen pal from Mexico had to check his shoes every morning for scorpions. Their descriptions of life gave me a broader, richer understanding of the largeness of our world, but my communication with these people made it a smaller, friendlier place. In our modern world, students have so much access to people and cultures all over! It's an exciting time to be entering the classroom.

When I think about the ease in which we are connected to so many so fast, however, I wonder how our "real" (as in physical, not web-based) encounters suffer. For example, are teachers opting to "connect" students to a Chinese girl across the globe through the Internet for some exposure to Chinese culture in lieu of having a Chinese-American parent/student/etc... come in to the classroom as a guest to speak with the class. Is there a difference? Does it matter? My fear is that the more we seek connections via the Internet, the less we will seek them in our own backyard. Although I don't think this is a reason not to collaborate and communicate with others through the Internet, I do think that one needs to provide a balance. In my field placement last semester, there were students in the class that did not know the names of other students. Did I mention this was a class of thirty fifth graders who spend five days a week together? We need to make sure we are building community in our classrooms, schools and neighborhoods as much as we are trying to strengthen those connections abroad.