Maps to Apps: Rhymes of History

From the time of birth, a human’s brain is wired to
respond to and interact with the stimuli in its environment. There is a unavoidable curiosity that is inherent in the human brain that drives the need to explore. Circumstances in the environment, such as drought or lack of a food source also created the need to venture out in search for the resources to ensure survival. And so, I could imagine the caveman explorer who first ventured out to explore his surroundings may not have ever returned because he became lost, got too far from a water source or entered the dangerous territory of his predators and died. So, the next caveman got a little smarter and when he went out, he devised a system in which he created landmarks and used the sky to help him find his way back to the camp. His people gave him bread and advised him to drop the crumbs along the trail so that they could track him if he did not return. As time progressed, maps became carved on stone tablets, drawn by hand on hides, cloth, and eventually paper. The portability of these tools enabled the courageous explorers to navigate even further from their homes and actually return. As we fast forward in time, recent advancements in technology, such as GPS and RDIF technology allow us to track anything, anywhere.

Thornburg (n.d.) utilizes the term “rhymes of history” to characterize advancements in technology that rekindle something from the past. He asserts that the more knowledge we have of the past, the more prepared we will be to anticipate the future. GPS and RDIF technologies bring us back to the times of the first explorers and their need to navigate the environment. The same innate curiosities that drove the cavemen to explore still exist today. Our globally connected economies and abilities to travel further distances in shorter time frames make travel an inevitable experience for many. With a GPS, the explorer can travel more efficiently and effectively and successfully return to his/her place of origin. With RDIF technology, a person or thing can be tracked and located. Today’s citizens have the same basic needs as our caveman ancestors which explains why history continues to “rhyme.” What changes are the innovations and advancements of the technologies and how we respond to them.

I feel a particular kinship with my caveman ancestors and those other souls who braved the uncharted waters before me. I am about to embark upon a journey during the dreaded “Carmegeddon” that is supposed to occur with the shut down of the 405 freeway in Los Angeles this weekend. I am relieved that I am the beneficiary of a technological era that relieves my stress from trying to use a map while driving in chaos. I can use a GPS that is built into my rental car or I can use an app on my iPad, both telling me exactly where I need to go. Crumbs….maps….apps….rhymes of history leading to innovations in the future.

References

Thornburg (n.d.). Rhymes of History. Retrieved from Walden University on July 13, 2011 http://sylvan.live.ecollege.com/ec/crs/default.learn?CourseID=5260654&Survey=1&47=5568839&ClientNodeID=984645&coursenav=1&bhcp=1

Module 2 Responses

During Module 2 I responded to the following classmates:

Lewis Chappelear

http://cathymarzialiedtech.blogspot.com/2011/06/module-2-smart-phone-tetrad.html#comments

Dolly Fernandes

http://studentofedtech.blogspot.com/2011/07/blog-post.html?showComment=1309680306173#c28614667729894726

I was unable to post response to our other team member Elizabeth Sanford because the post was not present by the deadline. I will contribute to her post when it is available.

Module 2: Progression of Smart Phone Tetrad

In his Emerging and Future Technologies blog, Lewis Chappelear created the following tetrad to illustrate the progression of the Smart Phone to an external device that begins to present communication devices with brain activation:



I believe that the trend of the future will be twofold:

1. Body integrated systems: The trend in technology is moving from wires to wireless to allow for ubiquitous access to communication and information. This access must still be activated by external, physical switching on devices. This technology will progress to being fully integrated into the brain to allow for any access to be activated by thoughts/brainwaves.

2. Fully integrative devices: There will be a greater integration of systems into one device. Currently, MP3 players, GPS technology, cameras, and phones are all combined into one device. This will be expanded to include an even wider array of needs/services and easier access. For example, the telephone conversation of the past required dialing a number and holding a spoken conversation. The conversation of the future may have a conversation activated by thinking of the person and having a quiet conversation within the brain. Or, one may be able to go through the drive-through window and they will have a scanner which recognizes the unique dietary needs of the customer which are stored in the chip in the brain.

The following tetrad illustrates this progression:

It is at this point that I begin to struggle with what could possibly come next. What do you think?

Module 2: Smart Phone Tetrad

I remember from my childhood the old Get Smart television show that featured the secret agent and his many gadgets. Little did I know that the idea of a “shoe phone” would eventually become a reality. The Smart Phone of today has gone through many progressions to arrive where it is today and is primed for where it will go next.

McLuhan's four laws of media illustrate this progression in terms of what the new technology enhances and obsoletes, what it rekindles from the past and what it leads to in the future.(Thornburg, 2008). The Smart Phone is just that, it’s smart. It enhances regular PDA and cell phone technology because it integrates a portable telephone with the ability to store and manage large amounts of information. It enhances ones ability to communicate and be productive without being tethered to the office or home. Regular cell phones and PDA’s are obsoleted because the new Smart Phones integrate the features that are unique to the cell phone and PDA and adds access to the internet. All of these functions have taken over the classic job of a secretary. The secretary’s job was to keep her boss organized, scheduled, and in communication with those who needed him. Now, the Smart Phone is like having your own secretary right at your fingertips. Thornburg (2008) characterizes Mcluhan’s idea by indicating that “every technology extends or amplifies some organ or faculty of the user” (p. 2). I believe that smart phone technology will follow this idea. I predict that eventually we will be able to have a chip implanted in us that serves as a receiver. We will be able to use our brain to communicate and retrieve the information that is stored or that we are seeking. Communication and information retrieval systems will be enhanced by becoming an integrated part of our bodies.

The idea of the “shoe phone” seemed so far out when I think back to those days of my childhood. While a phone in a shoe did not ever catch on, the idea did, and it has advanced even further than I would have ever expected. I predict that the Smart Phone technology will continue to transform itself into an even more integrative tool inserted into the body that will become as commonplace as contact lenses or plastic surgery is today.

References

Thornburg, D. D. (2008). Emerging technologies and Mcluhan’s Laws of Media. Lake Barrington, IL: Thornburg Center for Space Exploration.

Responses

During this Module I responded to the following classmates:


Lewis Chappelear
http://lchappelear.blogspot.com/2011/06/current-trend-in-educational-technology.html#comments

Maria Rodriguez
http://msrodriguez-design.blogspot.com/2011/06/emerging-and-future-technology.html#comments

EDUC 8848: Emerging & Future Technologies Week #1

Click to the Future

I have had my eye on Interactive Response Systems (clickers) for a couple of years, but my district did not want to invest in them. Just this year we finally got a couple of sets of clickers from SMART Technologies. The handheld remotes are sold as class sets and used formative/summative assessments and polling. The clickers provide students with immediate results from the assessment and the data can be exported into an excel document. Here is a link to a tutorial for the clickers
http://www.slideshare.net/Andreatej/tutorial-for-smart-student-response-system


Challenges
The greatest drawback of this technology is the cost of nearly $2000 per set of 32 handsets. I have not seen the price drop over the last few years. This clicker system utilizes a receiver (that transmits through radio waves) that is connected to the computer through a USB cable. Each handset requires two AA batteries. Since there is only one receiver per set and our classrooms have no more than 25 students, it is unfortunate that the clickers are linked to one receiver. The program is compatible with Smart Notebook Software (SMART Interactive Whiteboard). There was a change in the software since the product first emerged and the newer version seems less user-friendly and has some bugs. It is unfortunate that the clickers can only be used through proprietary means, compatible only with SMART products.

Societal Needs/Benefits
There are numerous benefits with using clickers, in education. The scoring of and feedback on the students' work is a great selling point. A teacher who might have 100 students to assess can literally give the test in 30 minutes and have the results in the students hands a few minutes later, saving a huge amount of time spent grading tests and providing students with instantaneous feedback. There is also a component that notifies the instructor when a students does not answer the question, which is key strategy to maintain student engagement. The mere use of an electronic gadget is highly motivating to students and makes them feel like they are playing an electronic game. There is no doubt that students would much rather take a test with clickers than with a traditional paper-pencil format. This digital format also reduces the amount of paper used for printing and subsequently reduces the cost of printing.

Improvement for Future
Mobile devices have already come down significantly in price. It would make sense to me that SMART would design an electronic response app for a mobile phone. The mobile devices are ubiquitous and it seems that the future sees more and more technology folded into one multi-use device. With a wireless connection or blue tooth, rather than a USB connection, students could use their i Pods, i Pads, cell phones to connect, take a test, and submit results. Because the cell phone technology is already here and reasonably priced, all one would need is to purchase the app.

EDUC 8848: Emerging and Future Technologies

My name is Cathy Marziali. This is the 6th class that I have taken in my Walden doctoral program and the only class that I am taking this term. I try to only take one class per term because I am realistic about the balance that I must maintain between my job, Walden classes and my personal life.

I am an Assistant Principal in a Department of Defense school located on a military base near Ramstein, Germany. This is my 23rd year in education and I am finishing up my second school year in this position. Before this job I was a teacher specializing in foreign language in elementary school, having taught Italian immersion and Spanish to grades K-1 at a base in Italy for five years. I also spent many years teaching Kindergarten and in various positions at district and county offices of education in California.

I'm married to a man who I met in Florence, Italy during a study abroad program in college and we have now been married 26 years. Our two kids are in college now, one in California and one in Oregon. It’s hard to live a world away from them. I am thankful for the technologies that keep us in close contact despite our geographical distances. I have also always been drawn toward the use of technology in education which explains why my Ph.D specialization is Educational Technology.

The motivation for my interest in Educational Technology was most likely born from my quest as a parent to see my own children more engaged, motivated and successful in school. My kids, who are both in college now, are right-brained kids who struggled to survive (and continue to struggle) in the traditional left-brained oriented classrooms. My goal is to help teachers transform teaching and learning opportunities so that they are relevant and teach students in the way that their brains are wired to learn. Technology can be a simple, yet powerful, tool that has the potential to provide more meaningful access to learning and success in the 21st century. While it is not the solution or an alternative to best instructional practices, it is a tool that teachers must utilize to connect with the children of this era. My current world is a school full of PK-6th grade children of U.S. Military personnel who are on the front lines of the war in Afghanistan. Approximately 90% of our students have a parent who has deployed within the last few months or so, so they need lots of hugs and TLC these days. These families are making huge sacrifices for our country and I consider it an honor to try to make the educational experience of these children the best that it can be.
I plan to have the month of July off and spend some time with family on the West Coast. I am looking forward to this class... hoping that I will be able to juggle family time and have reliable internet connections while I travel. I look forward to working with you all this term.