Geek Heresy, Intro and Chapter 1

This was more of a philosophical piece; it left me wondering what the world would be like if every student in the world had access to the Internet and opportunity. I specifically liked in the intro when “opportunity” was questioned – what does one really need to succeed? Is the opportunity to do something enough (like Google jobs being posted online) or is it more important to have the means to learn and become qualified for something? I agree with the latter opinion. For Westerns, our lives and our society make it easier for us to achieve or goals. We have support nets and ways to accomplish things, which is not the case for other countries.

One of the most important sections of this reading is when the author addresses the typical reception of new technology in education; usually, new technology is declared as the future of teaching, such as movies, radio, and television. The author notes that the same thing is happening today with computers, especially with MIT’s program in which they sell laptops to countries for student use. While I think this is an interesting comparison, I think computers/the internet are a unique technology compared to radio/film/etc. The internet is highly interactive, and digital learning is often very involved. While I do not think that everything should be taught digitally, I do think that digital learning can be highly effective. It gives specific attention to a student, so teachers can pinpoint what each student needs. Things like radio, TV, and movies can also be effective teachers, but I think it is best when everything is used to reinforce each other – sort of like “transmedia teaching.”