Dr. Strangecode or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the HTML

Cynthia Selfe discusses the use of technology in schools and how the setting and proliferation of technology varies from place to place.  A study conducted by the Pew Research Center collected data from 2,462 Advanced Placement (AP) and National Writing Project (NWP) teachers in order to assess their use of digital media in the classroom.  The following table is a sample of that data set, showing the general impact that technology has had on the methods and skills of teachers:

(If you want to see the basis for these numbers in a format that is easier on the eyes, click here.)

The Areas of Teaching Affected by Technology

Advanced Placement (AP) and National Writing Project (NWP) Teachers

Impact	Percentage
Ability to access content, resources, and materials	92%
Ability to share ideas with other teachers	69%
Ability to interact with parents	67%
Ability to enable student interaction	57%

Thinking on Selfe

Proponents of a nation-wide increase in technological literacy such as Cynthia Selfe delve into the educational, social, political, economical, and moral tangents associated with the inundation of technology.  Her general thesis states that technology bolsters the historic idea of furthering "progress, economic prosperity, capitalism, education, and democracy" (26) that can be broken down into one simple formula:  

America + Technology = Happy.  

In my life, I was on the precipice between a minimal and an all-encompassing inclusion of technology.  Throughout my education, work, and social life, I started to observe how technology not only advanced at an alarmingly rapid pace but also become superfluous in all that I did.  

But, for the sake of maintaining a succinct blog with as few irrelevant digressions as possible, I will discuss the effects of technology on the educational part of my life.

Class structure went from only using a textbook, then to a projector, then to a SmartBoard, and finally to including laptops.  For starters, this had a direct effect on student involvement; more students were able to relate to the technology being used, and their enthusiasm doubled their academic efforts (70).  The energy and initiative behind the actions of the Clinton administration bled into the education system.  Despite any one teacher's lack of proficiency in the ways of technology, the class had a communal knowledge from which to work, and through a communal dialogue, progress was made (70).

Of course, the flip side to the inclusion of technology within the realm of education lies in the separation of fundamental techniques and skills that can be pushed to the wayside when one is distracted by the allure of shiny things at the front of the classroom.  In Sven Birkerts's Gutenberg Elegies, he states that students who are "barred from reading and writing by becoming prisoners of electronic media" suffer heavy losses in the areas of literary and rhetorical competency (33).  Therefore, to include electronic media as the epicenter of an educational environment undermines a student's ability to retain and improve fundamental skills.  In other words:

America + Technology= Destruction.

As I said before, I was a "hybrid" in terms of experiencing life with and without a proliferation of technology and digital media.  Seeing as I am now a college student and a contributing member of society, I would assume that the inclusion of technology in my education was, for the most part, beneficial.  I can use technology to my advantage in my academic and professional career.  

HTML and You (and Me)

So, I like to think of myself as being "tech-savvy." Even in the realm of blogging, having the know-how to do wondrous things such as insert links to YouTube videos, change the text font,  paste images:

and such, gives me confidence.  I can utilize various programs on my laptop in order to complete several important tasks and daily assignments. Life is good.


Then I see this:

and my confidence dies.

But Julie C. Meloni believes that the aforementioned gobbledygook can actually help my blog.  Why?  Because, through learning how to process and synthesize HTML code, I will graduate from the "black box" understanding of the Internet to which I currently belong.  Similar to learning human anatomy, I will learn the basic functions of each "body part" and will be able to integrate that knowledge into how I approach working that part in its appropriate manner.  In theory, anyway.  It may take me a while, but I will get it eventually.  

Or not.

At least I will still be able to do stuff like this:

#SochiProblems: How 2014 Olympics Show That Saving Face in the Digital World Has Become Impossible

Technology has warped the concept of time in a manner both striking and ever-present.  Events can be broadcasted live around the world; conversations can be held across continents; news can be transmitted in an instant.  And while most tech-savvy citizens would agree that such technological innovations have improved the quality of living, some arguments could be raised to the contrary.

For example:

If, say, you are Russian (particularly the leader of Russia) and your country is hosting the 2014 Olympics, and during the opening ceremony, while attempting to display technological and aesthetic prowess, the following occurs:

which immediately warranted the creation of parodies:

so...

what is a self-respecting Russian supposed to do?

Cover-up?  Insert previously recorded footage of all five rings functioning properly to replace the live feed?  Nope.  Due to the presence of cameras and smart phones, audience members displayed the rings in their full, honest splendor, and made sure the rest of the world could view it as well.  

Dispose of the evidence?  Not without witnesses.  One snowflake sleuth succeeded in  snapping and sharing a shot of the shoddy structure:     

Even the non-broadcasted flops are put on the world stage.  Enter #SochiProblems: a hashtag which became a trend which evolved into the full-blown @SochiProblems handle, all before a pair of skis touched the snow.

To give a brief example of the depth and breadth of said account, here are a few Tweets tagged #SochiProblems:

While most of these posts provide a satirical stab at the former Soviet Union, news sources such as EuroNews point out that such problems illuminate "overarching issues" such as the plethora of security risks, health issues, and event course dangers.  But regardless of the issues, one aspect remains the same—you can't run, and you can't hide, Sochi.  

Brummett and Emig: Unrelated Relevance

Knowledge and writing.  The acquaintance with facts, truths, or principles, and the recorded set of symbols.  

How do these subjects become intertwined with the subject of technology?

Knowledge seems to lend itself to a connection with tech.  For the methodological rhetoric buffs of Barry Brummett's "Three Meanings of Epistemic Rhetoric," technology helps to facilitate any and all of the processes involved in the systematic approach to finding out things about stuff.  

Electron microscopes.  Satellites.  Audio tuners.  CERN's Large Hadron Collider (What?  Look it up.)

Technology gives a voice to the ambitions and desires of the infinitely curious, those who wish to "discover a world waiting to be found" (Brummett 1).  To such individuals, technology is crucial in forming knowledge because the very tools used to define reality have already been invented and defined by mankind.  As inventors and engineers seek to perfect technology, methodological thinkers "search for perfection in knowledge" (Brummett 3); here the connection is more obvious, seeing as methodological thinkers believe in the absolute version of knowledge through discovery while technology also works to examine and display truth and information. 


  
But what about writing?  Is there a relation between written words and thingamajigs?  Janet Emig, like Brummett, has a method of knowledge (inquiry paradigms, she calls them) which mirrors the purpose and intent of technology called "conventional inquiry."   Inquiry paradigms such as the Scientific Method blatantly represent the desires of technology to advance and investigate.  So what methods of writing technology fall under this category?

Well, seeing as Twitter, Facebook, Blogger, YouTube, Vimeo, and others are included under "thingamajigs," one would be inclined to say "yes."

Even with the early innovations of wires and morse code, communication on a local and international level began to increase through the use of technology.  Blogs, electronic books, articles, journals, allows for the transmission and easy access of written words through the use of the Internet.  History and culture expressed through language is just a mouse-click away.  The aforementioned social media provide myriad outlets through which one can voice an opinion for the world to hear.  Such inventions amplify the characteristics of communication that remain relevant in modern society. 

So those professors teaching on technology/digital media who include Brummet and Emig in their respective classes can rest easy knowing that they have not led their students astray.
















    

Considering Technology in Practical Educational Scenarios

When noting the presence of Smart Boards, Macs, tablets, and so on, it seems sensible to say that using technology as a basis for teaching is a practical means.  And in most scenarios, this format plays out quite well;  a science class focused on biomedical technology making use of advanced electron microscopes connected to a plasma-screen TV; an archaeology class holding a live Skype meeting with a professor out in the field; a music class using surround sound speakers synced to iTunes and Garageband; the possibilities are endless.

But what happens when?...

A lecture which revolves around a Skype chat goes nowhere when the connection fails.  An observation of microscopic organisms is useless when your only method of viewing them short circuits.  And unless a teacher is comfortable to sing the class songs a cappella, a stereo-enhanced experience would be useless when the speakers blow.

The root of this issue comes from one's perspective on the educational use of technology.  Jordan Shapiro, a professor at Temple University and writer on education technology and digital media, says the following in a 2013 article:

 "The classroom is not where my students listen (or consume what I deliver). Rather, in the classroom I become a sherpa. I guide them on the journey of their choosing. My job is to know where the treasures are, that all paths lead to jewels of critical thinking. This happens through nuanced conversation, through discussion, through debate and interaction."  

Outside of class is when the Shapiro implements technology.  

"Rather than lecture, I make videos and podcasts. Rather than wasting face-to-face time with slideshows full of bullet points of facts, I email the Powerpoints. If it is “content”–that is, if it can be poured from chalice to vessel, if it can be contained–it has no place in the classroom."

In this situation, each student is reliant on public or private technology as opposed to the singular source in the classroom.  Students can learn communally, collaborate on assignments, and discuss them online through blogs or social media.

So perhaps the "big" lessons which rely on technology are more precarious than previously imagined.  Adopting Shapiro's perspective gives some wiggle room for technical difficulties, provides the basis for learning outside of the classroom, and allows for expansion when the class coalesces.