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TLDR 58

Too Long; Didn't Read Issue 58

Published: 2016-08-12 • 📧 Newsletter

Welcome to issue 58 of the TL;DR Newsletter. In TL;DR we're documenting the news of the week in literacy, technology, and education. If this is your first time here...welcome. :)

This week we discuss your role as a digital citizen.

You can review archives of the newsletter. Alternatively you can also check out TL;DR on Medium.

This week I worked on the following:

🔖 Key Takeaways

🎧 Listen

Seth Godin recently returned to The Tim Ferris Show for a quick (about 30 minutes) episode. The link above will take you to the archive of the episode on YouTube. It's audio only...so you can play it in the background and listen.

The full episode and associated links are available here.

I'm a regular listener to Tim's podcast, and I've also been inspired by Seth's ideas...most notably the AltMBA program. In this short episode you'll receive a lot of guidance on focusing on what is important, and creating your brand or "narrative." I've taken a lot from this episode and thoroughly recommend it.

📚 Read

This week there was a flurry of discussion online after this post on the Academics Anonymous section of The Guardian's Higher Education Network. I recommend reviewing this response from Dean Burnett and this response from Kevin Gannon. I'd also recommend checking out the #seriousacademic hashtag on Twitter.

I'm working on a response to these discussions and most likely this will dovetail with the chapter submission I shared above, and this post I shared last month. I think there is a lot of value in using social and digital tools for research, teaching, and service. As with all literacy practices, I think it has to come down to why you're using these tools.

I also believe that we all need to (academics included) consider our digital identity and how we craft the ways in which we're represented online. Most of us spend a lot of time thinking about our reputation and "real world" identity. We need to be cognizant of these online spaces and try to identify ways to write ourselves into being. Or not....it depends on what works best for you. But, you need to think it through and make a decision.

Post by Erica Hodgin on DML Central sharing opportunities to engage learners in participatory politics. This post builds on a recent publication from Erica, Joseph Kahne, and Elyse Eidman-Aadahl.

The two resources focus on redesigning civic education to take into account the new opportunities and challenges in educating for democracy in the digital age. Specifically, they describe four core practices that are central to civic and political life in the digital age: investigation and research, dialogue and feedback, production and circulation, and mobilizing for change.

Anya Kamenetz on the MindShift blog discussing connections between student achievement and digital tool use.

Not surprisingly, Anya notes:

The studies include research on K-12 schools and higher ed, both blended learning and online, and show results ranging from mixed to negative. A deeper look into these reports gives a sense that, even as computers become ubiquitous in classrooms, there's a lot we still don't know — or at least that we're not doing to make them effective tools for learning.

One of the key mantras I've recited in workshops, classes, and PD is that technology use in the classroom should always begin and end with student learning objectives. Why is your use of technology going to improve student learning and achievement. Just adding the internet or digital tools to pedagogy doesn't mean that it will automatically make it better. We still have a lot to learn.

Editorial in the NY Times from Tony Marx, President and CEO of the NY Public Library. Tony discusses the role of the library system in providing internet access for citizens in the NY area that need it the most. He then indicates that the library system cannot do this alone. We need to provide all citizens with affordable opportunities to access high speed, high quality broadband.

Luckily, the FCC seems interested in closing this digital divide by fighting for net neutrality and breaking up the monopoly that the big internet providers have in the U.S. The hope is that opening up opportunities for municipal broadband will allow for inexpensive internet access. Put simply, your town, county, or state would be able to serve as your internet service provider and pipe data to your house in the same manner that they provide you with water and electricity. For those of us that consider internet access a fundamental human right...this is a good thing.

Sadly, this week a federal appeals court ruled that the FCC could not block two states from setting limits on municipal broadband expansion. The monopolies and big money that operate behind the scenes are working to keep this fundamental right away from those that cannot afford it. Keep yourself informed and advocate for those that need our support.

This week in TL;DR we've been talking about whether you can, or should be able to be a digital citizen. This post from David Weinberger discusses the recent work by Tim Berners-Lee to decentralize the web.

The challenge is that for many people, using the internet means scrolling through Facebook or skimming Pinterest. I want to shriek when students tell me that they don't need to create their own website or blog because they're "already on LinkedIN." The challenge with this thinking is that we're living in silos where companies and businesses use your identity as a commodity.

This work by Tim Berners-Lee echoes our recent discussions in BadgeChain. We're investigating opportunities to use decentralized distributed ledger technologies to allow all individuals to maintain their own networks and connections to others online. Put simply, we're thinking about ways to have each individual build their own website or online resume and connect this to other learners that share the same affinities. Imagine having a virtual resume/CV that would contain digital badges and that would connect online to the experts and institutions that know you and your work. Very exciting stuff. :)

🔨 Do

Guidance from Jon Pennington on EdSurge on using voice dictation with students as part of their work process.

Many of our devices have built in microphones and the software needed to simply speak to the computer. We can talk to Siri, Google, Alexa, and many other devices to help us take our fingers off of the screen and keyboard. I'm wondering how we can fold in some of these voice activated technologies to help scaffold student reflection and metacognitive strategies. Perhaps an opportunity for some future research. :)

🤔 Consider

"The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are." — Joseph Campbell

This week: your role as a digital citizen.

Digitally agile researcher chapter on social networks for research and dissemination. Seth Godin Tim Ferriss podcast - I'm a regular listener, inspired by AltMBA, thoroughly recommend it. Serious academic Instagram debate - I'm working on a response, dovetail with chapter. I also believe we all need to consider digital identity and craft how we're represented online. Redesigning civic education for participatory politics four core practices. Anya Kamenetz on computer use and learning outcomes - technology use should begin and end with student learning objectives, we still have a lot to learn. Digital divide municipal broadband - internet access as fundamental human right. Tim Berners-Lee decentralizing web - I want to shriek when students say they're already on LinkedIn. BadgeChain distributed ledger for virtual resume connecting to experts. Very exciting stuff. Voice dictation for student reflection - perhaps opportunity for future research.

The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are.

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Part of the 📧 Newsletter archive documenting digital literacy and technology.