Excellent, excellent post over at the Ohio State University Digital Union blog. The post talked about the goal of using reference technology at the point of care (nursing) to make better informed decisions. Within this piece, there were three points given towards the principles which guide their program:
- Embrace choice
- Don’t assume that students will figure it out
- Information literacy, not technology
As an educational institution, you can see how these three principles have a lot of weight, and point towards sound wisdom gained and applied. The last point, however, points to something that (on the side of media, technology evangelists, and industries) that we can really fall flat on quickly if not careful.
Here’s the section as quoted from the DU Blog:
We have found that students have issues navigating the software we give them; specifically, they don’t immediately understand the structure of the resources. Students likely would have the same issues navigating the dense texts they purchased to provide the same information prior to our mobile program, but students didn’t feel like they were battling technology when they couldn’t find information they needed. We try to teach students about tools like search, cross-references and bookmarking and how they can make finding resources faster and more efficient than text versions, but there is a limited amount of time for this type of instruction and often students don’t understand the purpose until they become comfortable with the content, which usually occurs well after the instruction.
Notice how the use of the technology is bolstered with instruction on how to analyize the content. This is something that we are very familiar with in the Christian context. We understand that no amount of parallel biles, concordiances, or dictionaries means anything without the ability to understand and correctly analyize the content.
Pay attention to this commonly quoted piece of Scripture (2 Timothy 2:14-17):
…Keep reminding them of these things. Warn them before God against quarreling about words; it is of no value, and only ruins those who listen. Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth. Avoid godless chatter, because those who indulge in it will become more and more ungodly. Their teaching will spread like gangrene…
There’s a lot of good wisdom here. And primiary in the manner of how to handle the information that’s been given to you. There’s this understanding on Timonthy’s part that it matters not so much the method that he’s using to present the Gospel, but that he’s doing so in a manner that shows that he has maturity in handling it. For Paul, the onus was on him to know that he taught Timothy well enough for him to handle the word, and that the wisdom given in that time would address any of the tools that he’d employ after that.
Yes, there’s something to be gained for understanding the role of technology, but more to be gained in terms of how we understand how to use the information that mobile and web technologies afford us.
Note the emphasis on the base skills: search, cross referencing, bookmarking. There’s this overall behavior that’s being taught to become managers of their informational environment. Understaning the context and reach of your audience, not just the tools that get you out to them, are key. Teaching your audiences how to fish, not just leading them to a fancier pole.
About eight years ago, I was given a grant of 30 Palm devices to use with the Millersville University Upward Bound Program. These devices were used in a pilot class of high school seniors to teach them time management, and to epand their viewpoint towards the abilities of personal and mobile technology. To most students, the lessons learned in this class were extremely valuable, not because they got to play with a “Palm Pilot.” But, because they learned how technology is designed to enable them to better work towards attaining their goals. Some students had to work harder than others to make the technology work for the class – but that’s what I was there for as an instructor. By the end of the class, they’d traveled the internet, learned about PC hardware and software, and gained a leg up on managing the rest of their classes’ information.
For most people, some attention to the basics is all that’s needed in order for them to create life at the point of relevance.