The internet has impacted my learning in a very unique way. I grew up in a time when the internet and readily available access to computers was just showing up. Saying that, I should also mention that I grew up rather modestly for most of my childhood, which meant we didn't have a computer in our home until I was in the 7th grade. The first reports I typed as a child were done by using my mothers old typewriter. Having a computer in the home was one thing, having the internet was something completely different. We didn't have the internet in our home growing up until I was in the 10th grade, and even then it was "dial up", which meant that it took longer to connect to the internet than it did to do the little bit of research I had to do.
It is truly amazing how fast the World Wide Wed has evolved. The internet has not just changed my life, but arguably the entire worlds. It has made research and access to knowledge amazingly efficient, and has allowed me to reach out to the world in an entirely effective way. Having access to different theories and opinions in a very interactively rich environment makes learning that much more fun.
I generally go to a few sites for my news and worldly current events. For example, I will use both CNN and FOX News to check for up-to-date stories. I generally use these two sites to see if there are differing spins on the same story, or if one of them might cover a different angle of a story. I use the History Channel's website frequently for my history classes, (they tend to have some fun facts about certain eras of history) and Stack.com for athletic conditioning. When it comes to "following" an author or site, I typically pay attention to my favorite athletes and sports teams.
The Web helps good learning for me by having that instant access to knowledge at the touch of a button. However, it can also be distracting when it's so easy to stray to another site that pulls you in with a headline that is "breaking news". It can get a little overwhelming with the amount of sites that are available for any one topic. I sometimes catch myself straying away from an article that I'm reading for class and find myself reading or watching a clip on what happened in the previous nights game.
Technology and learning is a double edged sword for me. I love all the access today's technological world offers, on the other hand, being a high school teacher it can be very distracting in the classroom setting as well. Ultimately, I feel that technology has an obvious place in the educational setting, however, there needs to be limitations to what students have access to while in a school setting. This of course, coming from a teachers standpoint, I've seen the good and the bad uses of technology in the learning environment.
I feel that the authors bring up a good point when discussing that the an "academic blogger" might be more inclined to share their opinions and criticisms when they have the protection of their screen. I enjoyed what the article mentioned when discussing the blogger being more concerned about their voice in the blogosphere rather than it being heard in an obscure journal (Williams and Jacobs, 2004). Blogging in the learning environment is something that I don't have a lot of experience with, but I'm starting to really enjoy.
Reference:
Williams, J.B, and Jacobs, J.(2004). Exploring the use of blogs as learning spaces in the higher education sector. Australasian Journal of Educational Technology. Vol 20(2): 232-247.
It is truly amazing how fast the World Wide Wed has evolved. The internet has not just changed my life, but arguably the entire worlds. It has made research and access to knowledge amazingly efficient, and has allowed me to reach out to the world in an entirely effective way. Having access to different theories and opinions in a very interactively rich environment makes learning that much more fun.
I generally go to a few sites for my news and worldly current events. For example, I will use both CNN and FOX News to check for up-to-date stories. I generally use these two sites to see if there are differing spins on the same story, or if one of them might cover a different angle of a story. I use the History Channel's website frequently for my history classes, (they tend to have some fun facts about certain eras of history) and Stack.com for athletic conditioning. When it comes to "following" an author or site, I typically pay attention to my favorite athletes and sports teams.
The Web helps good learning for me by having that instant access to knowledge at the touch of a button. However, it can also be distracting when it's so easy to stray to another site that pulls you in with a headline that is "breaking news". It can get a little overwhelming with the amount of sites that are available for any one topic. I sometimes catch myself straying away from an article that I'm reading for class and find myself reading or watching a clip on what happened in the previous nights game.
Technology and learning is a double edged sword for me. I love all the access today's technological world offers, on the other hand, being a high school teacher it can be very distracting in the classroom setting as well. Ultimately, I feel that technology has an obvious place in the educational setting, however, there needs to be limitations to what students have access to while in a school setting. This of course, coming from a teachers standpoint, I've seen the good and the bad uses of technology in the learning environment.
I feel that the authors bring up a good point when discussing that the an "academic blogger" might be more inclined to share their opinions and criticisms when they have the protection of their screen. I enjoyed what the article mentioned when discussing the blogger being more concerned about their voice in the blogosphere rather than it being heard in an obscure journal (Williams and Jacobs, 2004). Blogging in the learning environment is something that I don't have a lot of experience with, but I'm starting to really enjoy.
Reference:
Williams, J.B, and Jacobs, J.(2004). Exploring the use of blogs as learning spaces in the higher education sector. Australasian Journal of Educational Technology. Vol 20(2): 232-247.