I am lucky enough to work at a school that is involved in the Take2Video project. Essentially, schools are provided with high-def documentary footage of either Sudan or Cuba and are charged with the responsibility of creating something of note. Last year my co-teacher and I embarked on this journey with the footage of Sudan and while watching our students create an amazing documentary had an experience that truly defined our thoughts on education in the 21st century. This year, we are back for round two with the Cuba footage. Here is where the story begins.
One group of students is working on a documentary about the cars of Cuba and needed to know if the cars they were using were American, thus supporting the argument they were building about the effects of the embargo on all aspects of Cuban life. Since they knew very little of cars, as did I, I offered my father’s assistance. My dad grew up in the age where young men bought cars and worked on them in the driveway, where they took pride in figuring out how things worked and making masterpieces out of nothing. (I hesitate to mention to my father that he might have more in common with Cubans than he realizes.) So the students sent me 25 screen shots of various vehicles and in less than an hour, my father had responded with their make, model and year. Viola!
Those that choose to argue against technology, often point to the faceless interactions that it provides and how people truly are not connected. This recent example of our being able to tap into my father’s expertise and his willingness and availability to answer our questions, almost immediately, clearly argue against this. In this case, with this project and this task, technology allowed three people who may never have come in contact to connect. I can’t think of a more worthwhile purpose.
In the several weeks since Educon 2.2, I have spent quite a bit of time trying to frame what I have learned and puzzle it all together. Jim Heynderickx made some great observations in his conversation, “Many to Many—How Entire School Communities Can Collaborate.” I have to credit his session with helping me brainstorm ways to get more and more people connected inside and outside of our school. I really enjoyed his idea of having multiple generations of students networking and collaborating. I know many of them do this unofficially on Facebook, but I would rather turn that power toward the task of inquiry just as we did with the cars of Cuba.
So I guess this is a long-winded response to those who say that technology eats away at our humanity, I would argue the opposite, and that it helps keep the village together.
*Image from Take2Video, Karin Muller
