Welcome to my little corner of the Internet. My name is Laura, and I am a German teacher lucky enough to teach at the middle school level. I am currently in my 3rd semester of a graduate program through George Mason University, with a focus on digital learning and design.
As new initiatives and technologies (like Project Based Learning and Google Classroom), gain momentum and popularity in education, I felt it was important to become more versed in the ways educational technology can increase student learning and success. It is not only important to understand what these new technologies and mediums can do for our students’ achievement, but also how they affect and change our students’ thinking and processing of information.
Which brings us to the purpose of this blog. I am currently reading Nicholas Carr’s The Shallows: What the Internet is Doing to our Brains, a fascinating book that digs deeper into the effects and consequences of an Internet saturated lifestyle. Carr is realistically aware that the Internet is inescapable; with the invention of smartphones and wireless hotspots, we can always be connected to the digital world..and usually are. So just how is this constant connection affecting our brains? Well, to start, it’s getting a lot harder to sit still and focus on one thing, especially when that thing is reading.
In the beginning of his book, Carr describes how he used to easily read long stretches of text at a time, whole books in one sitting. He would spend hours researching into a topic about which is was writing, and would even print his essays in order to edit them in pencil before returning to his word processor to make changes. Later, after the surge of the Internet, he began to realize he wasn’t reading anymore, but rather skimming and skipping along, looking only for the most important or useful information. He was saving time in his research by Googling and picking through the search engine’s findings. He even began editing his writing within the word processor itself, no longer needing a hard paper copy to organize his edits. His desire for connection and information soon became overwhelming, and be began to “miss [his] old brain.”
It is eerie how accurately his experience with technology and the Internet follows my own. Haven’t we all just Googled the TEDTalk rather than read the book for class? Wouldn’t it just be easier to listen to the YouTube video made by the author rather than schlep through his article? Even while reading Carr’s introduction and first chapter, I had to pace slowly around the house with book in hand just to stay focused. This blog, too, is guilty! It’s just a way for you to learn about Carr’s arguments and ideas without actually having to pick up his book. The irony is not lost on me, dear reader.
So what exactly is going on here? Are we all developing attention deficit disorders? Are we losing our ability to contemplate, ruminate, philosophize, and reflect? Are we really going to get our news from the headlines of our Facebook feeds?!
These questions need answers. I invite you, therefore, to join me as I work my way through Carr’s book (I promise to read it!), and share my findings with you here. Enjoy!
