Republican Presidential hopeful John McCain has admitted he is web illiterate:
When questioned on his use of computers, McCain has confessed that he does not know how to use the web and relies entirely on his staff and wife to use the computer:
They go on for me. I am learning to get online myself, and I will have that down fairly soon, getting on myself. I don’t expect to be a great communicator, I don’t expect to set up my own blog, but I am becoming computer literate to the point where I can get the information that I need - including going to my daughter’s blog first, before anything else.
I find it quite alarming that a man who hopes to become the next President of the United States doesn’t even know have a basic understanding of the Internet. For those of you who don’t think this matters, it does: the next President will be making key decisions which will affect the future of the web. I project that privacy, wiretapping, and net neutrality will all be critical issues in the next term. Not to mention issues of educational technology funding and filtering schools. I don’t expect our President to be a code jedi, but at the very least he should be able to go online by himself. Even Bush uses ‘the Google.’ And honestly, how hard is it? Plug in a wire and click the little fox:
“It’s just amazing,” Jamal Simmons, a strategist with the Obama campaign, told The Daily Telegraph. “It’s very hard to even think about someone who doesn’t know how to use the internet. It’s like, ‘Really?’ My five-year-old niece can use the internet. She knows how to go to nickelodeon.com and play her games.”
Of course, there are those who exploit comedy gold where they find it: this time with a candidate so out of touch with the average American that he doesn’t even understand the most popular form of communication among young Americans:
No matter how much people want to emphasize McCain’s long experience, that only make this issue worse. When looking for a web-savvy candidate I don’t look for a candidate who still thinks about media en masse, I want a candidate who gets it (like Obama, who carries a Blackberry). Frankly, I don’t care if he is aware of the net, if he can’t even use it himself:
“You don’t necessarily have to use a computer to understand how it shapes the country. John McCain is aware of the Internet. This is a man who has a very long history of understanding on a range of issues.” ~Mark Soohoo, deputy director of Mr McCain’s e-campaign
I leave you with this parting thought: what if a major candidate admitted he was (literally) illiterate and depended upon his staff to read for him simply because he has never bothered to learn how?
It is time: time for authentic student voices in the edublogosphere; time to hear from those who are affected by education the most; time to regard students as more than just blank floppy disks to be written upon. It is time for Students 2.0 - a new generation of students: articulating their experiences, exploring the future, finding the best, and besting the rest. In short, it is time for authentic student engagement in the classroom. As I said:
For decades, students have been put in classrooms, sat down at desks, and told how to learn and what to learn. For a time when students were expected to become widgets for the vast machine of industry, this model of education was highly effective. However, we are now entering a new age: an age where thinking is more important than knowing, where the thought trumps the fact. Borders are melting away; project teams collaborate across the globe and intelligence is being continually redefined. The world’s information is at our fingertips and anybody can publish their thoughts for virtually no cost.
Everywhere, we see changes: in how business operates, in how people interact and success is accomplished. That is, we see changes everywhere besides the closed bars of education. The system continues to “stay the course” upon a falling ship. Yet, the widgets within the machine are no longer content to grind away. Ideas are popping up everywhere, across the globe. Students are continually redefining their own lives and how they want to learn and interact.
Adults and teachers talk about education and students, but rarely invite students into these discussions. Fortunately, this blog plans to change that by offering an authentic student voice upon education. This is not a gimmick, there’s no puppet master: we’re intent upon confronting the issues of modern education, never backing down from a challenge. Students 2.0 is a challenge for leaders and teachers alike: are you willing to listen to students.
Apparently, the edublogosphere is ready to listen. Our first day has been amazing:
This is beyond words… I see seismic shifts in the future if we are seeing this kind of change. Think about it: over 5,000 teachers are willing to listen to the voices of students. When we get this kind of response before even having any kind of content, it shows just how much potential there is for change. Our personal learning networks are helping to amplify this change… Thanks to everyone who helped out by blogging, bookmarking, and badging. Also, thanks to Sean for making us an amazing :
While I usually don’t share random videos, I would like to show how to practice some good digital citizenship. While we can do nothing to stop people from making despicable content, we can promote interesting and fun content which is not inappropriate. I’ll have more to say on the subject of digital citizenship once I’ve had time to think out and process this great post. Until then, I leave you with this example of good digital citizenship which can also be fun:
blog, blog, blog it all
blog it if it’s big or small
…blog even if you’re wrong
won’t you blog about this song?
You bet I will! In other news, I’m still looking for your vote. I hope to see you at the awards ceremony in Second Life. I’m also looking for support on my way to EduCon 2.0: if you are passionate about bringing student voices into education the donation widget is in my sidebar.
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