A major task for EDER 679.05: Technology and Society was to post six blog entries and respond to six peer entries. Throughout the course, my greatest concern was ensuring blogs were posted on time and that responses were occurring.  Keeping track of our class collective was a challenge until I decided to develop a concept map.  The visual of each blog and who was responding to who brought the collective concept to life.  With a concept map image I could visualize our collective.

Our class is now over and I just spent a few days assessing the blog assignment. The following list the criteria for assessment as outlined in the course outline.

• Personal reflections and connections to society and technology are clear.
• Personal voice and style is apparent.
• Appropriate word length.
• Content is focused and message is clear and effectively delivered; links to additional relevant and good quality online sources / experts are provided
• Mechanics: Includes correct sentence structure and punctuation, appropriate terminology and paragraph construction, and APA referencing for all cited sources.

The inadequacy of the criteria is obvious to me now.  Thomas and Brown (2011) state that the purpose of blogging is to join the collective.  Posting blog entries started our EDER 679 collective.  By responding to each other, we connected to each other.

Upon assessing the blogs, I realized that some individuals did not create external links in their posts.  Without linking to the outside collective, our EDER 679 collective remained apart from the broader collective.

Belonging to the larger Internet collective required linking to others that exist in the collective.  To borrow from Davis’ and Sumara’s (2006) images of complexity, external links bring us into ‘the’ collective that Thomas and Brown describe. Earlier in the course I could not see our connection to the greater collective. Just like in complexity theory, one may not realize the circles that surround them.  However, by creating external links, our awareness and belonging in the encircling broader collective begins.

My course outline criteria for assessing the blogs did not reflect Thomas and Brown’s notions of joining the collective.  After a term of critical reflections on what it means to blog, I understand that being part of the broader collective is essential.  Upon reflection, I would revise my original assessment criteria to incorporate the collective and inclusion of images or video.  The new revised criteria would be as follows:

Blog Features:

• links to additional relevant and good quality online sources / experts are provided
• relevant images/video enhance content.

Blog Content:

• Personal reflections and connections to society and technology are clear.
• Personal voice and style is apparent.
• Appropriate word length (250 – 500 words).
• Content is focused and message is clear and effectively delivered;
• Mechanics: Includes correct sentence structure and punctuation, appropriate terminology and paragraph construction, and
• APA referencing for all cited sources.

How will the revised criteria for assessment affect the creation of a new collective differently?  What new understandings of blogging may be revealed by starting with the intentionality of joining the broader collective?

Krista

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Davis, B., & Sumara, D. (2006). Complexity and education: Inquiries into learning, teaching and research. Mahwah, New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum.

Thomas, D., & Brown, J. S. (2011). A new culture of learning: Cultivating the imagination for a world of constant change. Seattle, WA: Create Space. http://www.newcultureoflearning.com/

Blogging and responding to classmates’ blogs is a major assignment in our EDER 679.05 class.  With six required blogs in the term, I found keeping track of the responses to blog posts a challenge.  With a few skills, I have referred to myself immodestly as a spreadsheet queen.  As I diligently recorded names in my spreadsheet, I hit the wall wondering if I was recording who responded or whose blog was responded to. Even new column names did not seem to help.  Halfway through tracking I could not remember how the comments tracked. Using linear approaches for keeping track of our cyclical collective was giving me cognitive overload (Globe and Mail as cited by Theresa).  I was lost, unable to see the forest for the trees.

(Re-)Reading through everyone’s blogs today gave me a fresh perspective.  Instead of recording who was responding to whom in Excel, I started anew with a concept map.  Luckily, we have a small class and the mapping task was fairly straight-forward.  I assigned a code to each blog post that very briefly summarized the general content of the blog.  I also represented each blog with a colour similar to the blog’s theme.

Representing the comments required a different representation.  Instead of content, I chose first names. Some graduate students posted images of themselves on their blog.  Their images represented their comments.  If there was no image, I created a comment with a matching colour to the person.  For instance, Huong  used a peach pattern for her blog theme.  Her blog posts are represented with a peach colour.  All her comments are also peach.   The map enables one to visually trace Huong around the collective. See the map below.

Having an image of our collective certainly reduced my cognitive overload.  Rather than dreading trying to keep track in Excel, I am excited to see the interaction patterns in the blogs.

Now I can see who is responding to whom.   Some graduate students who sit next to each other in class also respond to each other.  However, there are many blog conversations with students who sit on opposite sides of the classroom.  Without a visual, I did not connect the class seating configuration to blog responses. The concept map helped me see the forest. Does blogging permit connections that might not occur otherwise?

Thomas and Brown (2011)  remind us that we cannot control the collective.  Gee  and Chris are entirely accurate when they stated our collective is forced with grades assigned for posts and comments. But forced does not mean controlled.  The content, format, and presentation belong to each blogger.   The concept map enables us to see the emergent nature of the collective.

With a visual, the collective seems real not abstract.  Perhaps other collectives are worth visualizing, too.  One topic in class and in the blogs was Personal Learning Environments (PLE).  Are PLE’s another visualization of a collective?  Do visual representations permit an individual can make sense of the personal with the collective?

The hyperlinks do not work on these images.  Click here for a version where the hyperlinks work.

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Thomas, D., & Brown, J. S. (2011). A new culture of learning: Cultivating the imagination for a world of constant change. Seattle, WA: Create Space.

In our Technology and Society class, everyone is required to blog every other week.  The content is the choice of the individuals.  In a comment to Huong, Colin noticed how his content unintentionally aligned with hers.

It’s amazing to me how much my blog post this week, without trying, is in a way a response to yours. It’s more of an indirect response mind you – Colin

Our peer-peer collective is beginning to synergize our content.  Thomas and Brown (2011) define a collective as a collection of people, skills and talent that are actively engaged with the process of learning.  Unlike a community, which can be passive, collectives are active.  In a collective people belong in order to learn.  The medium, the blog, defines the collective space where learning can take shape.  Thomas and Brown define the medium, the collective space, the process, and discuss the emergence of a collective. What are the characteristics of the collective?

In the collective seeking of knowledge through networks that develop on the Internet conjures up notions of connectivism:  a learning theory that accounts for learning in digital spaces.  Knowledge is distributed on a network of connections through actions and experiences (Downes )

Both Thomas and Brown’s notion of the collective and Siemen’s and Downe’s notions of  connectivism do not include a concept of synergy emerging through connected blogging about shared interests or topics. Our group of collective bloggers is starting to notice a synergy of thoughts and ideas in our blog posts.   I must be thinking of the Borgs again, but is synergy of thoughts and ideas a component of a collective?  Is synergy an indicator of belonging in a collective?

Krista

Thomas, D., & Brown, J. S. (2011). A new culture of learning: Cultivating the imagination for a world of constant change. Seattle, WA: Create Space.

Participating and publishing in a digital world is blurring the lines of academic credibility.  Many traditional paper based peer-reviewed journals are moving to an open access web-based format.  Access to peer-reviewed articles is becoming easier and cheaper.  Yet as Bate’s asks, why journals are hanging on to pre-digital age existence?

To respond to Bate’s blog question “Do we need academic journals anymore?”, Jacobsen chose two media platforms: an editorial in a peer reviewed journal and a comment on Bates’ blog. Her chosen platforms highlight a crucial difference in publishing formats.  The blog enables comments and debate on site.  The journal does not not. The journal is static.  The blog is dynamic and evolving.  I agree with Bates, academic journals need to walk the digital talk. When is OJS  going to add a comment feature so academic journals can participate in the collective?

Connectivism, a theory about the digital collective, blurs the boundaries of academic credibility.  Published in a blog, the connectivism learning theory  was not peer-reviewed. Some question the credibility of the theory without the peer-review stamp of approval.  Following the connectivism debate gives insight into the basis for the theory.  Marielle Lange critiqued the theory in Wikipedia.    I found out that Marielle critiqued connectivism because Jenny Mackness critiqued Marielle’s critique from her blog.  I found where Marielle published her argument on Michael Bauwen’s blog.  Following the connectivism debate through journals, blogs, and Wikipedia is making me as dizzy as trying to follow John’s alleged fall from grace in the Anusara yoga scandal.  Despite the fact the connectivism was founded in a non-peer reviewed forum, the theory is now published in peer-reviewed journals.  The theory has gained credibility without following the traditional path.

Yet, I cannot help but question what academic publishing changes mean for me.  I am tempted to blurt out my ideas for research and post my rejected papers on this blog.  But I am still a pretty recently minted PhD graduate.  I have a vested interested in the peer-review process as it does represent the keys to the academic kingdom.  Will blog publishing help me in an academic future or will it hurt me?

I missed posting a blog last week.  Skipping posts is definitely not a good path to follow.  I always have many excuses for not writing but here is one.  Now that our class has found a definition of blogging, I realized that blogging places me on a soapbox.  The blog is a place for me to publically muse and discuss my scholarly pursuits.  For some reason, this realization humbled me.

One of my many scholarly lessons since graduation is about the academic peer-review publishing process.  Learning to deal with rejection part of the process.  Having lovingly crafted papers ripped apart is akin to having your heart torn apart.  Yet rebuilding is valuable. The peer-review process can improve the quality of an article.  Finding the right venue for an article is another lesson.

I just had one (co-authored) freshly minted article mailed to me in print form.  This article was previously rejected twice. First I submitted the article to a high school mathematics teaching journal.  The article was rejected because the math problem was too easy.  Next, I sent the article to a junior high mathematics teaching journal and the article was rejected for because the problem was too hard.  As I was licking my wounds, wondering what is between junior high and high school, an email requesting submissions to a special issue for elementary mathematics teaching arrived. Rather than throw the article out, I sent it off. The article was accepted with minor changes.

I have another article that has been rejected four times. The first couple rejections really helped me improve the article.  I am learning to be grateful for feedback from peer- reviewers. Now I am confident in the quality of the article.  The editor from the last rejection stated that the article was solid but their journal was not the right place. Learning how to find the right journal is my challenge.

By blogging, I can publish my academic thoughts immediately.  I can get my ideas out, but there is no peer-review.  I have confidence in my writing once it has been reviewed and accepted. Are blogs credible without peer-review? I wonder how publishing a blog will influence my scholarly pursuits. What can I learn about writing and publishing from blogging?

Krista

Last week when I was organizing our class definition for a Blog, one category struck me: a soapbox.

I realized that I have been standing on my soapbox using this blog to proclaim my new understandings about blogging.  On top of that, I wondered why I have no comments.  I really am a slow learner.

My master’s was from the CDE at AU.  Coursework always included CMC text discussions on a forum board.  We were instructed to make two posts, one a response to the instructor’s question and the other a response to a peer.  In all of my course work, my posts were rarely responded to.  Thus started my thesis research.  I wanted to know the characteristics of messages that ‘triggered’ discussion. I compared two models of CMC interaction and coded 100,000 sentences according to the models.  At the end of it all, I had tendonitis in my wrists and a ‘duh’ moment.  The messages that ‘triggered’ discussion were brief and asked open-ended questions.  To elicit conversation in online discussions, Socratic rules applied.  If you want to invite conversation, you need to ask a good question.

I never asked questions in my CMC posts.  I merely pontificated my understandings of the reading. I wondered why I was rarely responded to.  For the past month of blogging, I have done the same thing.  I have pontificated and wondered if anyone will respond.

Here I am using another online forum attempting to attract followers and elicit comments.  I have yet to ask a question to elicit conversation.  Ammarah’s and Brendan’s comments ask questions. They seem to know the etiquette of conversation better than I.  Do I respond or wait to see if someone from cyberspace will respond?

Here is my question for this post.  What are the similarities and differences between online forum discussions and blogs?

Krista

In last night’s Technology and Society class we brainstormed a definition for ‘blog.’  Heidegger’s (1977) Question Concerning Technology was also on the menu last night, so organizing our definition according to Heidegger’s explanation of causality seemed prudent.

The causa materialis, the material, for the blog is any open source web log publishing tool.  This blog is created on WordPress.

The causa formalis, the final shape, of the blog is the form.  Unlike webpages that replace old text with new, blogs preserve old posts in reverse chronological order.  The appearance of the blog can be customized with themes or CSS skills.  We questioned whether our definition included video in addition to text and images.  There is another name ‘vlog’ associated with video.  Our consensus was to include video in the form.

The causa efficiens, the blogger, is the individual.  The blogger is the one who chooses how to put together the material and form to create the blog.

The causa finalis, is the purpose of the blog.  Common purposes included: to create a collaborative space, to attract followers, and to invite a conversation not a monologue.  A blog typically has regular posting and is evolutionary.  The content was as varied as the individual creating the blog.  A blog could be about anything.

Krista, Tahany, Catherine, Theresa, Salima, Ammarah, Gee, Huong, Rob, Colin, Jody, Nancy, Yvonne, & Lisa

If an unknown community of followers is part of what it means to blog, then perhaps I am beginning to understand Heidegger’s (1977) notion of enframing in relation to social media.  Heidegger discussed technology as a mode of revealing what is concealed.  The ability to publish on the WWW is what is revealed to me through a blog.  The identity of the readers of my blog is concealed. I have no idea if anyone is reading my blog.  Or if someone is reading it, I have no idea who they are.   By publishing the readers of my blog (if they exist) are concealed.

Judging by Heidegger’s discussion about the environmental impact of a windmill or the true nature of an airplane on the runway, I am not sure if the identity of a collective of blog readers is what Heidegger meant by revealing and concealing.  But maybe it is.

Enframing means that way of revealing which holds sway in the essence of modern technology and which is itself nothing technological (Heidegger, 1977, p. 20)

The creation of the all hardware and software that permit me to blog is beyond my concern.  I try to choose products that minimize impact on the environment and do not contribute to the tungsten wars in the Congo.  In reality, I have no way of knowing where the materials in my computer came from.  Even though I may have doubts about how ethically my equipment was built, I still push along keeping up to date with my modern technology.  Maybe that is also Enframing.  However, the environmental impact is true of all technology.  What is unique about the blog phenomenon?

The essence of modern technology lies in Enframing.  Enframing belongs within the destining of revealing (Heidegger, 1977, p. 25). Enframing blocks the shining-forth and holding-sway of truth… There is no demonry of technology, but rather there is the mystery of its danger (p. 28).

Is the danger of technology the impact of manufacturing?  Or is the danger of technology something else?  What is the danger is writing and publishing on the web?

Writing is a form of handing down memories and understanding (Gadamer, 2004).  But a blog is different from a book.  A book is a physical object.  A blog is a digital artefact. Both are released into the world to be read.  With an Internet connection, a blog is instantly available through a Google search.  A book requires a trip to the library or bookstore or postage through Amazon.  Both can have a following of readers, but a blog invites readers to comment.  There lies the mystery.  The invitation for comments and a potential for dialog with the author summons the unknown.

Krista

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Gadamer, H.-G. (2004). Truth and method. (J. Weinsheimer & D. G. Marshall, Trans.) (Second.). New York, NY: Continuum International Publishing Group.

Heidegger, M. (1977). The question concerning technology. The question concerning technology and other essays (pp. 3-35). New York: Harper & Row.

Heidegger (1977) tells us that we frequently view technology as a means to an end and a human activity.  I have no trouble acknowledging that the creation of a blog is a human activity.  However, I am still struggling with what exactly is the ‘means to an end.’  More accurately, what is the ‘end?’

From Gadamer (2004), I learned that writing is a way of handing down memories and understandings.  From Thomas and Brown (2011), I learned that the purpose of creating blogs is to join a collective.   Gladwell (2010) helped me understand that social media’s ties are weak.  Perhaps the weak ties are exactly why I am not sure who is reading my blog.  Why does an unknown readership bother me so much?

Heidegger (1977) suggests that perhaps there is no end.  If there is no end, then perhaps we cannot master it.  Maybe Heidegger is right; is my purpose in blogging to have control or to master this blog?

In some ways, I do have control.  I have control over what I write and what I choose to publish.  I have control over what the blog looks like, within the confines of what WordPress and the web permit. I have no control about who reads my blog.  Is this why I have been so concerned about the anonymous collective?  Is this why I wonder how I can strengthen the ties to my blog?

In my Technology and Society class, each graduate student is required to blog and comment on one of their peer’s blog.  The requirement to respond strengthens the weak ties and creates a blog community within our own group.  Is the response requirement a mode for me to gain control or to master what is part of the actual essence of blogging?  Perhaps an unknown community of participants is part of what it means to blog.

Krista

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Gadamer, H.-G. (2004). Truth and method. (J. Weinsheimer & D. G. Marshall, Trans.) (Second.). New York, NY: Continuum International Publishing Group.

Gladwell, M. (2010, October 4). Annals of Innovation: Small Change. The New Yorker. Retrieved from http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2010/10/04/101004fa_fact_gladwell?currentPage=2

Heidegger, M. (1977). The question concerning technology. The question concerning technology and other essays (pp. 3-35). New York: Harper & Row.

Thomas, D., & Brown, J. S. (2011). A new culture of learning: Cultivating the imagination for a world of constant change. Seattle, WA: Create Space. http://www.newcultureoflearning.com/

The platforms of social media are built around weak ties. (Gladwell, 2010)

Watching Star Trek: First Contact last night gave me nightmares about being captured by a Borg and transforming into the collective.  I dreamt of excruciating pain when my eye transformed into a technological eyeball.  Instantly, I knew I was Borg and my individuality vanished.

The Borg collective easily aligns with Thomas and Brown’s definition. The Borgs are a “collection of people, skills and talents that produce a result greater than the sum of the part” (Thomas & Brown, 2011, p. 52).  The individual impacts the collective and vice versa.

Yet, I can’t help but notice a few differences between the Blog collective and the Borg collective.  For one, I have been blogging diligently for a month and I do not know if I am part of a collective.  One knows instantly when they become a Borg.  For another, I still have my own personal control and identity.  As a Borg, individual thoughts are part of the collective.  Thirdly, there was only one female Borg who had her own thoughts.  She was the ‘I am’ Borg: the one with the memories.  She controlled the collective.  The blogging collective is uncontrolled as Thomas and Brown point out.  Fourthly, Gladwell (2010) points to another difference.  Blogging ties are weak.  Borg ties are unbreakable (unless you are Data or Jean Luc).

If the ties were stronger, then I would know I was in the collective.  My own thoughts would be closer to the whole.  I would know who was in command and follow orders.  The collective would absorb my individuality. From this perspective, I am quite glad that the ties of social media are weak.    Will the ties ever be strong enough to let me know if I am part of a collective?  What exactly is the whole collective?

I cannot believe I have become one of those academics who argues about terminology. In undergraduate classes I would have slept through this whole discussion. But, now I am at a loss as to what to do with Thomas and Brown’s collective definition.  Should I discard it or rework it?  If I discard their definition I am back to wondering what is the purpose of my Blog.  I do want to share ideas with others.  Can the sharing of ideas still be part of a collective with weak ties? I could say that the purpose is share ideas through a platform of social media. I just don’t like the terms ‘platform of social media’ as much.  As a Star Trek fan, the term ‘collective’ has more appeal. I might still hang on to the word collective with a few caveats.

Krista

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Gladwell, M. (2010, October 4). Annals of Innovation: Small Change. The New Yorker. Retrieved from http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2010/10/04/101004fa_fact_gladwell?currentPage=2

Thomas, D., & Brown, J. S. (2011). A new culture of learning: Cultivating the imagination for a world of constant change. Seattle, WA: Create Space. http://www.newcultureoflearning.com/

Borg Queen Image from http://www.ex-astris-scientia.org/gallery/borg1.htm