The world changes and we must change with it if we want to participate in the discussion. No other place is that clearer than in the use of technology, and specifically internet interactions. “ClimateFortnite” exemplifies this philosophy, and reminds us that it’s the audience that matters in preparing our discussion. Sometimes it’s easy to forget this as we get lost in our own learnedness. The idea of climate scientists playing a game with the younger generation in order to educate them could be more reflective of the future than we care to admit. In this of technology, with the attention spans shorter than ever, new modes of delivery in education are in need of some serious consideration.
How can students be expected to focus on the teacher or lecturer when our minds are being trained to multi-task and so many things are calling our attention. Back in the day, when I thought of something I wanted to look into, I would write it down as a reminder for later. Nowadays, even if I do that I’m itching to get my phone out for the immediate answer. I’m not alone in that.
George Dyson’s article “Childhood’s End” speaks to how smart computers have become, and we have learned to trust this technological treatise more than the human being imparting knowledge, and by which is by nature of limited capacity when compared to the binary power of the computer brain. Dyson states, “The search engine is no longer a model of human knowledge, it is human knowledge”. No defining human is providing all input, and the computer is becoming controller instead of categorizing and indexing human thoughts. This gives me pause for thought. As an educator, I want to use the means that technology affords: expanded research capabilities, faster and more efficient processing of data, easier writing and proofing, and global instant communication and collaboration. These are using the system for the betterment of humanity. As science keeps developing, and science fiction has fictionalized it, we might become the pawns in the computer game. Is it fake reality, or is it a genuine reality; either way the question really is, which is actually in control, and what does it mean for the minds of the developing and future generations?