Yes! This is a really strong statement. I’m embarrassed that I’ve never really put it that way in my own mind, but I think it speaks to our responsibilities as parents and teachers. There will always be new tools and new modes of interaction. Frankly, I think that these developments always have inherent good, but we need to find out how they fit into our current framework.

I think about the students I’ve had who have been obsessed with things: anime, Nine Inch Nails, World of Warcraft. The challenge is not how to compete with these things, but to help the student see how they fit into their world. So many “authority figures” see these things as threats when they are anything but… It’s work to help young people build a bridge between listening to Trent Reznor, reading Crime And Punishment and participating in quality online interactions with their peers, but isn’t that also the joy of teaching?

I think part of the problem is that a lot of people see the tweets and the ims and the blog posts that aren’t “serious” and dismiss the whole venture. And there are people in the tech industry who are completely distracted, always on, all the time. They’re giving this whole thing a bad name.

And I agree with you on the issue of folks who complain that “these kids today” wasting their time with WoW and Facebook and blah blah. Well, when I was a teenager, I watched Love Boat and Fantasy Island and read Teen Beat magazine and called my friends to gossip. It’s what teenagers do. And I play WoW with people I know (and some people I don’t). How is that any worse than golf? (Except for the being outdoors part, but I do that in other ways). /rant

Lauras last blog post..Web 2.0 and the future of . . .

There is no doubt that I’m actively re-thinking 90% of what I’ve been passionate about in the last 3+ years re: my experiences in the blogosphere and the larger digital landscape. Putting what used to be spent into chasing the ‘new’ into committing to what ‘matters’.

That being said, my usage of these digital elements only increases, but admittedly I am using them in a more intentional manner…and tossing the majority of what I consider to be distraction-laden (yup, including Twitter…well, just about — wink).

I find myself — whether in posts of mine, talking with colleagues, or working with clients — coming back over and over again to the simple premise that the ‘tool’ is not the point. The real focus of our efforts must remain ‘what do we want to accomplish’ and ‘what will allow us to get there in the most significant way.’

Invariably a ‘tool’ shows up to help us if we listen carefully. And the cart-n-horse remain in the right order.

Again, great stuff, Dean!

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I’m not a curmudgeon (I’ve said that before) and I agree with you.

Where is the evidence that shows that teenagers (or whoever) were not
called upon (or entered into) multiple activities at once. I know I did! I used
to lie on the carpet watching television, plugged into my transistor radio
through one ear while I did my homework. My dog used to lie down beside
and bother me for toffee. So to those that claim all this newbie stuff about
multi-tasking, get real!

Thanks for the del.icio.us link on cells. That’s another area where my baloney
detector kicks in. There is nothing new about walkie-talkies in cars. The Police,
the taxis, the ambulances and the fire-brigades all have used them for decades!
And what about air-pilots with their contact with air-traffic control? Where’s the
evidence for distractions causing accidents there?

Okay – I’m not condoning the use of cells when driving. BUT to claim that all this
evidence of accidents being caused through the use of phones is something new
is a lot of baloney. During a huge chunk of the 20th century, there have been
thousands of opportunities for this evidence to be amassed. My hunch is that it’s
more to do with awareness. It’s the old saying about acknowledging a problem -
the first step to addressing a problem is recognising that it exists. If no-one has
been gathering evidence related to accidents caused by the use of phones while
driving, how can anyone say that it didn’t use to happen before mobile-phones
arrived? To say that is baloney and shonky philosophy.

Ka kite anō
from Middle-earth

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It’s not that I have trouble concentrating. It’s that I’m MUCH more critical. If what I’m reading isn’t engaging — isn’t relevant — I turn it off and go for something else. If your rich and meaty commentary on what-ever-the-heck-it-is-you’re-selling is boring, I’m going to turn you off. I read books – long books, complete books — and often in a matter of a day or two because they’re interesting. They engage me. And I have a very fine tuned BS detector. Trying to snare my attention with BS triggers the alarm and I move on.

In the past, I might have stuck with something because the next thing wasn’t waiting for me in the queue. I’d read the flaming emails. I’d snigger at the trolls. Now? Uh uh. I got stuff to do. Places to go. People to see. Ideas that engage me. Novels to write. Podcasts to hear.

It’s not a question of focus.

It’s a question of relevance.

What I am trying to figure out, not just for myself, but for the people who learn from me, is which methods of communication will sustain the kind of social interaction I need and can provide the highest contribution. There is no bad or good, black or white. We do have to test everything, and those of us testing everything won’t have the same experience as those who read our evaluations and make informed choices to select only the tools that seem to fit their needs. It’s completely natural for the people swimming in the media to break connections and reform them to discover potential alternate uses and benefits. When our job is to immerse ourselves in these tools, we’re going to get burned out on them. That doesn’t mean the tools aren’t good for others. Most people won’t use them as heavily and won’t see the problem.

We also need to recognize that we are playing with fire when we dabble in communications tools. Language alone can stir the strongest emotions. When amplified by multiple media options and influential social groups, we can’t take lightly the potential for social impact, personal injury and psychological damage. I think as responsible educators, we need to take inventory of our own social web presence, consider both our impact on the group as well as the effects on our person. Then we need to respect the unique experiences of our peers, and honor and support their candid reflections.

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