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Humans, Technology and the Digital Future
At the top of the must-read list this month is "How the Internet Gets Inside Us," an article by New Yorker writer Adam Gopnick who offers an insightful overview of the range of opinions found in recent books regarding the shifting relationship between humans and technology. He categorizes books about the Internet into the Never-Betters, the Better-Nevers, and the Ever-Wasers.… more
Digital Divides, Blog Bans, Games That Cause Change
Global Kids points us to important new resources in the digital media and learning field each month.
"It's how you play the game" (article): Followers of games and education are familiar with the opening last year in New York City of Quest to Learn (Q2L), the new 6-12 school. What is lesser known is the Ein Hayam Experimental School in Haifa, Israel, whose games-based pedagogy within this working class community of both Jews and Arabs is now five years old. While this past fall's New York Times profile of Q2L highlights the high energy of the school, this excellent overview of Ein Hayam takes the opposite approach: "Everything was so calm, relaxed and focused − hardly the typical atmosphere of an Israeli school." Devoid of the typical anti-game prejudice often found within U.S. press, this overview and interview with the school principal offers an excellent introduction.… more
Social Learning, Literacies and Recommended Resources
Paleontologist from American Museum of Natural History shows I Dig Brazil kids images of ancient animals.
Editor's note: Global Kids does a great job each month pointing us to excellent new resources.
Digital and Media Literacy: A Plan for Action (report)
This report by media literacy scholar Renee Hobbs for The Aspen Institute and the Knight Foundation is a call to arms. It begins with the declaration that "the time to bring digital and media literacy into the mainstream of American communities is now." These literacies include the ability to make responsible choices, analyze messages, create content, reflect on one's own conduct and communication, and take social action "to share knowledge and solve problems in the family, workplace and community, and by participating as a member of a community." Both this framework for digital literacies, and its action plan for using a community education movement to bring a curriculum into both formal and informal settings, is valuable for anyone concerned about digital media, learning, and issues of equity.… more