Postman’s 5 things

Hi all,

I recently did some reading in my EDC course that considered ‘5 things to know about technological change’. As always there was some very good points made but I just wanted to share a few more of mine here with all of you. The actual author (not the cartoon) can be found here.

Technology is always a trade off

I’ve personally found that my spelling and writing abilities have dropped off a little since starting my degree. This is definitely a trade off. I can type faster than I can write but I’ve clearly lost some skill in the writing department.

Technology creates winners and losers

That’s right Pat. Technology can marginalise those further, especially within the context of the classroom, with regards to socioeconomic background.

Technology is ecological, not additive

Technology is definitely ecological. The advent of the smart phone has made things more easily available and convenient. In a more general sense, I think apps have given us the ability to speedup and slow down our lives as we see fit, choosing to tackle our daily tasks with devices like our phones.

The increased popularity of online courses is also of note. Is it strange to think that one day online university courses will be the norm? Maybe it’ll be when we find ourselves starting sentences with “I remember when…” in an attempt to converse with our great grandchildren? Nevertheless, I still find that when I tell people I’m studying a BEd online, they give me raised eyebrows. There is still the overwhelming picture in peoples minds that higher education occurs on a campus, and if it doesn’t, it should. So in the realm of technology for education, higher education at least, there needs to be more of an acceptance for techno ecology and a gravitation away from the techno ‘other’. Perhaps we can take a leaf out of Pat’s ethos of mail delivery. When the cool red delivery van is on it’s last legs, take the equally cool red helicopter to make more deliveries and make them faster.

Technology tends to become mythic

Probably the most obvious mythic technology story I can think of the use of the dial turn phone. I attempted to explain the use of a contraption of this sort a few years ago to some kids and they couldn’t stop laughing! They couldn’t imagine having to use the phone let alone having to look up a number in the personal phone index next to the phone. Who would’ve imagined Pat had to ride a bike around before his van, bike or helicopter became available?

I’ve left out There is a powerful idea embedded in every technology because I couldn’t think of any specific examples. Anyone?

Cheers

Rossco