In the article, The Good, the Bad, And the ‘Web 2.0’ author Andrew Keen (The Cult of the Amateur: How the Internet is Killing Our Culture) argued the Web has become overwhelmed with useless noise. Author David Weinberger (Everything is Miscellaneous: The Power of the New Digital Disorder) argued that Web 2.0 tools let users filter out irrelevant (or inaccurate) information.

While I agree with Keen there is an abundance of “useless noise” on the Web, I more strongly agree with Weinberger for focusing more on the positive aspects of the Web vs. the negatives. As educators, I think it is imperative we recognize both sides of the issue:
• Keen’s side for internet safety, monitoring students, and the idea of “radical trust” and investigating resources.
• Weinberger’s side for the power of the Web and the good that can be produced, created and collaborated upon.

Keen paints a dark, bleak, negative and evil perspective of the Web with his references to us as “giant cockroaches” and “infinite primates or monkeys”. Life is not picture perfect and there are many disturbing elements, people, trash and injustices that are out on the Web. As educators, it is our job to ensure the safety of our students. This is why internet safety should be discussed prior to any projects being commenced on the Web. We can do this with filters, monitoring, and programs such as NetSmartz. Our own collaborative writing piece focused on Internet Safety from the Educator’s Point of View. (Click here to check it out.)

But rather than focusing on the negative, I would rather turn the direction over to a positive note and focus on the many wonderful, interesting, educational, intellectual, positive, fun, and exciting things the Web has to offer. As a teacher, I need to focus on these elements to help my students learn, succeed and grow.

In this regard, I loved how Weinberger changed the negative Keen focus to the benefits of the Web. “Then you ask if I’m convinced that the Web benefits intellectuals. Yes, I am. And that’s because, while some talent is indeed solitary, many types of talent prosper in connection with others. That is especially true for the development of ideas. Knowledge is generally not a game for one. It is and always has been a collaborative process…” Wikipedia is an excellent example of this collaborative process. As mentioned earlier, wikis in our own classroom provided a very thorough and collaborative writing piece on Internet Safety: An Educator's POV.

Clapping my hands in delight, I love how Weinberger continued with … “We’re connected, primarily through talk in which we show one another what we find interesting in the world. That’s essential to the Web. The Web is only a web because we’re building links that say ‘Here’s something worth your time, and here’s why.” That’s what was so cool about del.icio.us and Furl, folksonomies and tagging.

Our focus SHOULD be on the rich online academic community, which brings experts and professional authorities together. Weinberger concluded his brilliant argument by stating: “We are amateurs on the Web, although there’s plenty of room for professionals as well. But we are not replicating mainstream media. We’re building something new. We’re doing it together. Its fundamental elements are not bricks of content but the mortar of links, and links are connections of meaning and involvement. We’re creating an infrastructure of meaning, miscellaneous but dripping for potential for finding and understanding what matters to us. We’re building this for one another. We’re doing it by-and-large for free, for the love of it, and for the job of creating with others. That makes us amateurs. And that’s also what makes the Web our culture’s hope.”

This course has opened my eyes and taught me how many incredible resources, valid information and intellectual thought that is so easily accessible to us from anywhere. It has showed me the value of Web 2.0 and using the Internet for educational purposes with blogs, wikis, RSS, and podcasts.

The past 10 weeks has taught me how I can use weblogs in my Language Arts writing workshops, how I can use wikis in science projects, and podcasts for greetings and updates on my teacher homepage. Yes, there is a lot of garbage on YouTube but there are also many valuable, educational messages teachers can share with their students on YouTube in reaching all types of learning styles in a digital native way. See my post below on The Importance of Educational Technology in the Classroom.

Marc Prensky made excellent points in his article, “Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants, Part II: Do They Really Think Differently?” in stating educators need to understand that our digital native students think differently. As educators, it is our job to reach all of our students and be aware of this digital gap and different style of learning/thinking.

I can use LibraryThing in my graduate courses but also in my classroom. I’ve already given thought of how I can list my textbooks and fourth grade novels and summer reading lists on my homepage. My own blog can be an excellent communication tool for up-to-date information with students and parents. Homework can be listed online for easy access outside of school. My RSS feeds can keep me informed on the best, brightest and most current information, activities and learning tools available. Overall, I applaud the Web and using educational technology in my classroom.

References
Keen, Andrew and Weinberger, David. (18 July 2007) The Good, the Bad, And the ‘Web 2.0’. Retrieved on August 4, 2007 from http://online.wsj.com/article/SB118461274162567845.html

Prensky, Marc. “Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants, Part II: Do They Really Think Differently?” On the Horizon (NCB University Press). Vol. 9 No. 6, Dec. 2001.