Digital Nation

 This week we watched a click from a PBS documentary, "Digital Nation," which gave some insight on what the future of the digital world may have in store for us. This one part of the documentary took us to an inner city school in the Bronx, where students were performing well below average before each student was given a laptop to help them complete there school work. The students who struggled with reading and math before given a laptop, started to improve drastically. The students knew how to blog and even perform proper research techniques along with improving their test scores while having their own personal laptops. However, their were some distraction due to this new way of approaching teaching. Students began to go on websites or listen to music during class time even though the students were obviously not supposed to do during class time. The school can monitors the websites that the students go on by blocking sites and even by having the principal remotely monitor each students computer via web cam, but  the student still access the sites and music.

As I watched this I thought to my self is this really necessary? These students are young and should have some sites that may be inappropriate to use blocked, but for the principal to have direct access to everyones computer is over the top. I feel like this is crossing the boundary a little bit. Sure the school doesn't want their student playing games while they are supposed to be doing their work, but this could be a breach in privacy. Every young kid gets distracted in class at one point regardless if they have a computer or not. If this school think that these students are old enough and responsible enough to be given a computer, they shouldn't be monitoring them so strictly. As long as the students are doing their work the school should be more lenient towards the students.

One Laptop Per Child

For quite some time now we have been discussion the digital divide and it's effects on other countries. Countries who are living in poverty or have low income don't have the technology advances that most people in our country have. Recently our country has not only realized this but also has a plan to try and eliminate the problem through the One Laptop Per Child project. This project intends to give affordable technology to country who are not as economically stable as the United states. Although this seems like a good idea, some may think that this is not the way we should be helping this country. Countries who are strongly, like Nigeria, can use the help but they need to have the help come in different ways. They country needs more food, water and clothes; worrying about laptops may not be people's or a government's first concern when assisting countries that are struggling. 

However, I think a lap top maybe the tool that a country can use to start rebuilding their country step by step. Not only will a laptop be able to help students learn and develop, it will make it easier to communicate with people when they need food or water.  Food and water is essential and may be something that is needed more than a laptop for countries in poverty. But what we want to do is help these countries advance and get on the same page with other countries who are more advanced in technology. Without certain technology, this just can't be done.

Digital Divide

Digital Divide can refer to the gap between people with a high access and availability to the digital technology to people with limited access to digital technology. This gap can obviously refer to people who have higher or lower income throughout the world but it can also refer to a gap on a smaller scale, mainly a generation gap. Digital information has become more accessible and is easier for a younger generation. Also what is important to adults is not as important to a younger generation. Privacy is a big issue with digital technology the generation gap. Being active on websites require a lot of users to give up some personal information. For instance to join a social networking site you first have to create a user name and password; one's user name being their email address. For some, giving out email addresses can alarm older online users. Many adults have a fear of giving out their email address online for the fact of receiving countless unwanted emails, spam, or viruses. Along with conversations, pictures, and videos that other users to see, many users upload their living address, interest, favorite movies, even their relationship status. For a young generation, this information could be put up without hesitation. However, adults wouldn't display this information or would at least think twice about what is put on their profile. Digital technology has certain perks, but there are definetly some features to this technology that will always create a digital divide.

Facebook

This past week, I was sitting in the library with two of my friends studying and having a conversation about our test coming up when suddenly both of my friend's blackberries went off because of a new message they had received. They had just both been tagged in facebook photos from the previous weekend. They began to laugh, chat and recapture the memories of the previous weekend by going through all of the photos in the new picture album at that very moment. Not having been tagged in any new photos I became an outside to their new conversation and was only left at the table sitting as if i was the only one there. As I sat and watched them go through picture after picture on the blackberry devices, I began to think of my MDIA 393 class discussion/ video we had recently watched. The video and discussion pretty much recapped how much time we really spend doing things we feel important as well as how tech savvy we have really become. With this in mind, I began to target these two girls I was sitting with as examples of our class movie. Instead of studying and working on the work in front of us, my two friends had to check their blackberries as well as their facebook the minute something new has come up. The time people spend the most with is their technology. It brings you to think what will be in store for us in the future.