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As you explore technologies for high tech learning, you'll find many issues arise. Who controls access to information on the Web? How is information organized? What's acceptable for young people? Who regulates access?

You can probably think of many more issues, but we'll start with the ideas below. Use the following links to quickly access resources on this page:

American Education Issues: Eager Thinkers or Empty Children?

As we explore ways to use new technologies, it's important that we reflect on the purpose of formal education. From mandates like No Child Left Behind to the constant barrage of new educational theories and methods, learners and their teachers are bombarded with conflicting messages about the role of formal education. The skyrocketing technology resources and tools for teaching and learning add to this information overload. With all these opportunities, does the American system of education promote eager thinkers or empty children? How? Why?

try itWatch the short video titled Empty Children. Some people would argue that formal education systems aren't meeting the needs of today's children. Do you agree or disagree? How can technology help fill the void of empty children or contribute to the problem? Do books like The Underground History of American Education by John Taylor Gatto promote misinformation or advocate real alternatives?

What's the role of school and public libraries and librarians in promoting formal and informal opportunities for learning? How can technology play a role?

 

Information Organization Issues: Taxonomies vs Folksonomies

In the past, professional information architects and other scholars created formal taxonomies for organizing information. From Library of Congress Subject Headings to AACR2, library processionals made decisions about how information would be presented to the public. Since the advent of the Web, patrons have become creators as well as consumers of information. Web 2.0 provides increasingly sophisticated ways for people to describe web resources. Both creators and consumers can add tags to individual web pages or groups of pages to personalize the description.

A folksonomy is a collection of data informally generated by a social group through the use of tags and other descriptors. Using criteria specific to the online community, data is sorted and ranked then shared with groups members. For example, the LibraryThing social network provides an area called Zeitgeist that shares the "big picture" of this information such as the largest libraries, most reviewed books, top books, authors, and tags. Tag clouds can be used to visualize this information. In addition, individual members can compare their resources with others and make contact with others with similar interests.

Can you imagine the hassle of physically relocating a book every time someone invents a different Dewey or LC number? Or, physically adding new subject headings to card catalog cards. No way. However in a virtual world, it's easy to rearrange information, collapse information, and expand descriptions.

For more information on this topic, explore:

 

Legislative Issues: Filtering

Like those who want to filter web resources, many U.S. legislators have also backed bills that block social networking tools. For example the (H.R. 5319) Deleting Online Predators Act expands the Communications Act of 1934 "to require recipients of universal service support for schools and libraries to protect minors from commercial social networking websites and chat rooms." The Act is aimed at many high tech learning spaces, not just social networks using the following criteria; "offered by a commercial entity; permits registered users to create an on-line profile that includes detailed personal information, permits registered users to create an on-line journal and share such a journal with other users; elicits highly-personalized information from users; and enables communication among users."

The ALA Legislative Action Center tracks key legislation that impacts freedom of access to information and legislative issues of this type.

check means readRead Beth Yoke's testimony (PDF) before Congress regarding the positive uses of social networks and online communities.

check means readRead the article House Misfires On Internet Safety by Larry Magid for an overview of the issues associated with the bill. He states that the bill is "well-meaning" but "ill-conceived" because rather than punishing child predators, it removes a useful learning tool for children and young adults.

Skim DOPA - a six-pack strategy for change to learn how you can voice your opinion. Follow the DOPA discussions at Technorati.

Beyond this legislation, there are many other issues related to access to technology.

check means readExplore Electronic Frontier Foundation. Be sure to check Electronic Frontier Foundation: Fighting for Blogger's Rights.

 

Legal Issues: Law and Copyright

When working with digital media, be sure you know your rights and responsibilities. For example, as you consider subjects for digital photography, keep in mind your legal rights.

Skim The Digital Learning Challenge: Obstacles to Educational Uses of Copyrighted Material in the Digital Age by William McGeveran and William W. Fisher at Social Science Research Network (August 2006).

checkRead What are my rights as a photographer in public places? (PDF) Although the article notes that you have legal permission to photograph young people, consider restrictions when photographing in your library or on school property. Also keep in mind that you should get the permission of parents when using the names of young people.

To learn more about your rights and responsibilities related to digital media, go to Law, Copyright, and Grassroots Media and Citizen Journalism.

 

Data Storage Issues: Intellectual Property

When you store your files on someone else's server, who's responsible? Who owns the content? Who has access to those files? Internet users are increasingly using remote storage to share and back up files. However before you upload documents, read the fine print. Are you turning over rights regarding the use of these files? Be sure to examine the places where you store web pages, photographs, and other documents. What's your school or library's policy regarding data storage?

Examine the following options for online storage:

 

Links to the materials in this section can be found in the navigation bar on the left side of this page. Continue to the arrow means an internal linkHigh Tech Learning: Open Source page.

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