Dubbed "the explainer" by Wired magazine, Michael Wesch is a cultural anthropologist exploring the impact of new media on society and culture. After two years studying the impact of writing on a remote indigenous culture in the rain forest of Papua New Guinea, he has turned his attention to the effects of social media and digital technology on global society. His videos on technology, education, and information have been viewed by millions, translated in over ten languages, and are frequently featured at international film festivals and major academic conferences worldwide.Prof Wesch has a stimulating post on Participatory Media Literacy: Why it matters, he draws heavily on a fine essay Participative Pedagogy for a Literacy of Literacies, by Howard Rheingold. With one of the longest running stimulating gurus of digital collaboration (Rheingold) and one of the hottest - recently voted Prof of the Year - US tertiary teachers around (Wesch) there are plenty of stimulating ideas to reflect on.
Howard Rheingold is a critic and writer; his specialties are on the cultural, social and political implications of modern communication media such as the Internet, mobile telephony and virtual communities (a term he is credited with inventing). He is the author of The Virtual Community and Smart Mobs. website: rheingold.com vlog: vlog.rheingold.comReading the two underlines WHY teaching about digital literacy (beyond the standard "how to use the library catalogue, online databases and Zotero to research and write an essay in a Wordprocessor") is vital whether one is teaching Chemistry, Anthropology or Old Testament.
Just as it was not merely the technology of moveable type that changed the economics of literature in early modern Europe, but even more the ways that technology was adopted and used that revolutionised the culture and the thought that changed "everything". If Luther and others had not adopted the technology and used it to undermine the old power structures in politics, theology and the academy the technology alone might have enabled a very different world, where Rome and the aristocratic families of Europe licenced print and censored its contents...
In 2009 the failure of banks and auto manufacturers demonstrates that the notion of a "free market" that can adjust itself successfully is evidently false. Yet if the new(ish) communications technologies are to have a liberating effect (like that of print) we have a greater need of an open market than ever. To achieve this we need literate users using the technologies, so that those who would harness them for their own benefit alone can be hampered as Luther's rude and crude cartoons scandalised those in power in late medieval Europe.
As Rheingold tries to demonstrate only a participative pedagogy is up to this task. So, the deep questions are:
- Can teachers learn fast enough? or
- Will the volunteerism of "Web 2.0" be enough to open the doors?
Labels: culture, digital, teaching, technology, thinking
¶ 10:29 AM
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Hey, I've been thinking a lot about this topic through my work at Project New Media Literacies, and I'm thrilled to see so many people searching for actionable items in respect to participatory pedagogy. You can read a recent blogpost I wrote on this here: http://newmedialiteracies.org/blog/2009/01/and-what-rough-beast-its-hour.php
By 
Jenna, at
January 9, 2009 2:11 AM
Some authors achieve this status because their thinking is so clear, and their communication so straight and clear that one must either agree or disagree with them - they polarise. [Some of us are so good at seeing every facet of an issue that following our thought is like walking through untracked forest, a series of tiny decisions,rather than one momentous one...] Lewis earned his "brand" that way, and so has Carson.
He addresses a Christian approach to technology, and begins (predictaby) with Rom 12:2 and (also predictably?) 2 Cor 10:5. He states that "the most dangerous movements in any age are those that are so widely assumed that it is very hard to see them" supporting his case with reference to history, though any cross-cultural worker will be as aware that today's assumptions by Western Christians look very different in most of the world.
After an interesting, though to readers of this blog unsurprising, rehearsal of some features of current digital techno-culture he concludes:
We need to hear competing voices of information from the world around us, use our time in the digital world wisely, and learn to shut that world down when it becomes more important to get up in the morning and answer emails than it does to get up and read the Bible and pray. We may also learn much from church history, where we observe fellow believers in other times and cultures learning the shape of faithfulness. We begin to detect how easily the "world" may squeeze us into its mold. We soon learn that adequate response is more than mere mental resolve, mere disciplined observance of the principle "garbage in, garbage out" (after all, we are what we think), though it is not less than that. The gospel is the power of God issuing in salvation. Empowered by the Holy Spirit and living in the shadow of the cross and resurrection, we find ourselves wanting to be conformed to the Lord Jesus, wanting to be as holy and as wise as pardoned sinners can be this side of the consummation.Do read the whole editorial (HTML or PDF), and since Themelios does not have a comment feature (how I wish the church, and especially Evangelical Christians, would recognise that openness and discussion are healthy and not persist in old authoritarian modes of discourse) you are welcome to post any short responses
Labels: internet, technology, theology, thinking
¶ 12:54 PM
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But in the end I'm so conventional, and here's my list of five of the blogs that make me think (for some of the others see the sidebar lists!):
- Imaginary Grace - I just love the title, that alone still has me thinking! But also see for example Angela's recent Writing in Biblical Studies.
- Lingamish - again the name does it, but also the African context of the Bible reading helps, see Window on the World: Africa in Amos.
- if:book always stimulating about the future of intellectual life and "books" - a team blog with no bad apples.
- Better Bibles Blog - a group blog that is focused, and often thought-provoking about Bible translation (another team blog - hey, maybe there's a message about thinking in teams here...)
- Graham Doel - see my post below, or notice the title of this one Does “Thinking Team” include thinking about Church Planters?
Labels: contrarian, thinking
¶ 7:19 AM
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David Ker (Lingamish) commentst that Blogger captcha codes are a major barrier for people in the third world. He asks:
You might comment for me that I wrote:
"Considering all the restaurant reviews on this blog I can hardly imagine that is an accurate title! ;-) Bless you, Tim for the nomination. I've received it before so you might have to search for one of the few people left in the blogosphere that haven't been nominated..."
By Tim, at
May 15, 2007 6:34 AM
Not restaurants, "merely" cafes, though we are finding that this is a good way to catch up on some of the "meals out" we have missed out on over recent years. Besides Blog names do not have to describe their owners, it may be that like dogs, the owners grow more like their pets, have you ever seen a tall thin person with a bulldog, or a scruff with a poodle?
By Tim, at
May 15, 2007 6:37 AM
Thanks for the shout out, Tim. I admit that I haven't taken a bible study course since my freshman year in college. Please don't quiz me on anything I allegedly covered in class.
By The Contrarian, at
May 23, 2007 2:44 AM
I think it is safe to say these's never yet been a quiz on THIS blog! Not even the one about What Kind of American do you Speak Like?
I try to make people think (and quizzes try to stop people thinking)! I also appreciate Oscar Wilde's: "In examinations the foolish ask questions the wise cannot answer!" too much...
By Tim, at
May 23, 2007 6:38 AM
