Dave Brubeck and the Rise of Cool

Dave Brubeck passed away today.  The jazz genius, who gave us "Take Five" and other notable classics, will be remembered as the performer who was popular despite the onslaught of rock and roll and the British Invasion.  If Elvis was the King of Rock and Roll, then Brubeck, to me, was the King of Cool.

Dave Brubeck - Take Five

Dave Brubeck  RIP "King of Cool"

Social Media and the Weblog World

As I reflect upon the vast interconnected system of communication present in today's world, my thoughts revolve around the influence that social media holds on distinct cultures.  Do Germans uphold cultural heritage when they use Facebook?  Can a government, like India's, promote or control social agendas via telecommunication devices?

Perhaps these questions are answered in the weblog research projects created by my Global Impact of Social Media students.

Good research begets informative results.  The use of Web 2.0 technologies, like blogs and Twitter, allows people from geographic distances to learn about new and exciting cultures.  A new method of border crossing experience that is real, relevant and interactive.

Wikipedia and the College Student

The ongoing debate, and great knashing of teeth, regarding the merits of college students' reliance on Wikipedia as a valid resource tool strikes at the foundation of academic and intellectual integrity.  Moreover, the discussion probes the issue of adapting new learning technologies within an established research model.  It is clear, however, that this debate will not cool in the near future; rather, the questions addressing  reliability, access and expert creation and review need to be rectified if college students, and their professors, proceed in clear and meaningful research endeavors.

My Global Impact of Social Media students at Ashland University recently examined this concern.  Responses to the questions of Wikipedia merit as a research venue were enlightening and frightening.  Students enjoyed the speed and access employed by Wikipedia listings.  They felt that the descriptive language in references was easy to follow and not too wordy.  However, they had no problem with the unaccounted citations (citation needed icon) found in almost every listing.  Some used the Wikipedia source as their only measure of information and they did not seek to follow the multiple listed citiations as platforms for further enveloping knowledge.

What can be concluded?  As professors we must work to establish guidelines for Wikipedia use and tests of reliability when our students begin academic research.  We are their best mentors and role models.

Social Media and the Global Connection

As we move beyond our little circle of Facebook friends and local retweets, a broader and deeper appreciation of connectivity informs us.  Maybe it is a blog about China.  Or it is an archive of Egyptian protest videos found on YouTube that could lead to critical thought, effective research and engaged discussion. 

So go ahead.  Search the Internet sphere.  Mine all of the Web 2.0 tools that you can.  Span the globe for stories, videos, images and words about people and events.  Bring these elements into your blog, website or Facebook page.  Spread the word and connect the world.

Social Media and Identity

What aspects shape our identity?  Our age?  Our gender?  Our job?  Psychologists, sociologists and the neighbor across the street ponder this question daily.  But what is identity in a Web 2.0 world?  How is it different or similar to the personal understanding of self faced by a multitude of previous generations?

Descartes inquired about his own existence with "I think, therefore I am" but is this maxim enough in a social media-fueled life?  Maybe we exist with a multiplicity of selves, like the masks worn by actors in a play or movie.  Social media research suggests we are often kinder in a mediated world than we are in the physical world.  Should this information surprise us?  We are closer to in connection to anyone in the world than we have ever been, with perhaps only four degress of seperation from each other.  Are the masks of kindness shown in a net world more than an organic world? Does the net world also construct the multiple characters in our self, who are in search of an author?  Certainly, we can use a different name in our chat or gaming experiences.  We do not need to be who we are in our Twitter universe.  Even in this blog, I list myself as Dr. McCoy, not Dave McCoy.  Can these be two different people, or two different selves, occupying the same body?

Digital Natives in the Classroom

Digital Natives are all around us.  They populate our classrooms and walk focused and connected around our campuses.  We are their Digital Immigrant professors, full of learned knowledge and lacking in technical acumen.  When we gather in class there is often a disconnection.  It is not really anyone's fault.  We just need to converge our thoughts and share our discoveries.

My journey toward understanding the Digital Native is in full motion this semester, as I teach a course at Ashland University called The Global Impact of Social Media. The class is a fantastic forum for appreciating the vast power, and pitfalls, of Facebook, Twitter and other novel Web 2.0 tools.  In class discussions and online demonstrations, I am growing more and more impressed with my digitally- cogent students.  And I am learning, too.