HOW DID INSTITUTIONS DESIGNED FOR LEARNING become so widely hated by people who love learning? It’s been almost two years (spring 2007) since Dr Michael Wesch of Kansas State University invited the 200 students in his “Introduction to Cultural Anthropology” class to tell the world what they think of their education by helping him script a video for YouTube.

The result was the disheartening portrayal of disengagement below (viewed almost 3 million times worldwide as of today):

LAST OCTOBER, Dr Wesch wrote, “Despite my role in the production of the video, and the thousands of comments supporting it, I recently came to view the video with a sense of uneasiness and even incredulity. Surely it can’t be as bad as the video seems to suggest, I thought… But when I walked into my classroom for the first day of school two weeks ago I was immediately reminded of the real problem now facing education. The problem is not just ‘written on the walls’. It’s built into them.”

The problem

“The video seemed to represent what so many were already feeling, and it became the focal point for many theories… Most blamed technology, though for very different reasons… luddites imagine students to be distracted and superficial while techno-optimists see a new generation of hyper-thinkers bored with old school ways…

“Texting, web-surfing, and iPods are just new versions of passing notes in class, reading novels under the desk, and surreptitiously listening to Walkmans… despite appearances, our classrooms have been fundamentally changed. There is literally something in the air, and it is nothing less than the digital artifacts of over one billion people and computers networked together collectively producing over 2,000 gigabytes of new information per second… Classrooms built to re-enforce the top-down authoritative knowledge of the teacher are now enveloped by a cloud of ubiquitous digital information where knowledge is made, not found, and authority is continuously negotiated through discussion and participation. In short, they tell us that our walls no longer mark the boundaries of our classrooms.

“…The walls have become so prominent that they are even reflected in our language, so that today there is something called “the real world” which is foreign and set apart from our schools. When somebody asks a question that seems irrelevant to this real world, we say that it is “merely academic.” Not surprisingly, our students struggle to find meaning and significance inside these walls. They tune out of class, and log on to Facebook.”

The solution

“Fortunately, the solution is simple. We don’t have to tear the walls down. We just have to stop pretending that the walls separate us from the world, and begin working with students in the pursuit of answers to real and relevant questions…

“We can acknowledge that most of our students have powerful devices on them that give them instant and constant access to this cloud (including almost any answer to almost any multiple choice question you can imagine). We can welcome laptops, cell phones, and iPods into our classrooms, not as distractions, but as powerful learning technologies. We can use them in ways that empower and engage students in real world problems and activities, leveraging the enormous potentials of the digital media environment that now surrounds us. In the process, we allow students to develop much-needed skills in navigating and harnessing this new media environment, including the wisdom to know when to turn it off. When students are engaged in projects that are meaningful and important to them, and that make them feel meaningful and important, they will enthusiastically turn off their cellphones and laptops to grapple with the most difficult texts and take on the most rigorous tasks.”

The other groups measured in the study were the Central Asians (Indians), East Asians (Chinese and Japanese), the Southeast Asians, Arabic (north Africa and Middle East) and Amerindian-Mestizo (Mexican and Central America). All these groups will experience a population growth.

Question: Why is global white population declining and not the other groups? Does this have anything to do with the legal recognition of same-sex couples worldwide among predominantly white nations in modern history, besides general reluctance to have babies (see Causes of “Sub-fertility replacement” on Wikipedia)?

VIDEO NOTES BY DR WESCH:
0:00 Introduction, YouTube’s Big Numbers
2:00 Numa Numa and the Celebration of Webcams
5:53 The Machine is Us/ing Us and the New Mediascape
12:16 Introducing our Research Team 
12:56 Who is on YouTube?
13:25 What’s on Youtube? Charlie Bit My Finger, Soulja Boy, etc.
17:04 5% of vids are personal vlogs addressed to the YouTube community, Why?
17:30 YouTube in context. The loss of community and “networked individualism” (Wellman)
18:41 Cultural Inversion: individualism and community
19:15 Understanding new forms of community through Participant Observation
21:18 YouTube as a medium for community
23:00 Our first vlogs
25:00 The webcam: Everybody is watching where nobody is (”context collapse”)
26:05 Re-cognition and new forms of self-awareness (McLuhan)
27:58 The Anonymity of Watching YouTube: Haters and Lovers
29:53 Aesthetic Arrest
30:25 Connection without Constraint
32:35 Free Hugs: A hero for our mediated culture
34:02 YouTube Drama: Striving for popularity
34:55 An early star: emokid21ohio
36:55 YouTube’s Anthenticity Crisis: the story of LonelyGirl15
39:50 Reflections on Authenticity
41:54 Gaming the system / Exposing the System
43:37 Seriously Playful Participatory Media Culture (featuring Us by blimvisible: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_yxHKg…
47:32 Networked Production: The Collab. MadV’s “The Message” and the message of YouTube
49:29 Poem: The Little Glass Dot, The Eyes of the World
51:15 Conclusion by bnessel1973
52:50 Dedication and Credits (Our Numa Numa dance)

FRANKLY, I DON’T KNOW what to make out of the Tibetan protests. I’ve not spent significant time researching on the issues involved. However, from what I know and remember of Chinese history, I feel quite strongly that Chris Nebe (as a foreigner with insider knowledge and experience of China) is speaking the truth about Tibet in the video here:


Nebe’s post in YouTube:
The West is trying to demonize China. Why? To ensure an upper-handed position economically, politically, and socially.

Too many harbor strong opinions about Tibet, yet know nothing more than the few slogans offered by the mass-media outlets.

The media screams:
“They killed innocent monks!” – but those “innocent” monks and other young hooligans killed innocent Chinese before a single shot was fired on them.
“The Chinese are oppressive” – do you consider freeing over 95% of Tibetans from slavery, building a state of the art infrastructure, and a new economy oppressive?
“The Chinese suppress Tibetan Buddhism” – then why have the Chinese spent a fortune restoring ancient monasteries and places of religious significance?

China doesn’t SPIN NEWS like we do. Their silence is too often mistaken as admission of guilt. Don’t be another uninformed drone. Do everyone a favor and learn truths before forming opinions.

Here’s to Peace & Harmony! The 2008 Beijing Olympics deserve support!

Reminds me of “Star Wars: Return of the Jedi”, where Emperor Palpatine said to Luke Skywalker: “The alliance… will die. As will your friends. Good, I can feel your anger. I am defenseless. Take your weapon. Strike me down with all of your hatred and your journey towards the dark side will be complete!”

By the way, the interface of the YouKu.com site looks very like YouTube.com! In the spirit of Web 2.0 and open-source, let’s hope YouTube (or rather Google) would let things be.

HERE ARE SOME PRACTICAL TIPS from a very interesting girl called June (a.k.a. princessgx on YouTube):

Therefore, Google Docs users can now:

• Create and keep presentations in one place on the web that’s accessible anytime, from any Internet connected computer.
• Manage, update and share presentations with colleagues by sending them a simple email invitation.
• Edit together online and in real time, or contribute at different times to the same presentation on the web.
• Present and control slide shows for all viewers over the web, with no special setup required. Chat with viewers in real-time via integrated chat.
• Import existing presentations to get started quickly.
• Quickly publish presentations to the general public or individuals of their choice.

AND HERE’S A VIDEO showing how users can connect through Google Talk and “can chat about the presentation as they’re watching.”

More details in The Official Google Blog. And in related news, Yahoo! Drops $350m on Zimbra; an Open Source, Enterprise RIA. Looks like we are likely to see a three-corner fight soon — Microsoft Office vs. Google Office vs. Yahoo! Office.

Another fun Simpson video:

• After this video ends, choose the fourth video from the left: “World of Warcraft in the Simpsons”.

First, I read Chillycraps’ Pinging Party post and found the official recording of the live Ping.sg webcast on Ustream:
.

This recording, however is almost three hours long! :-p So, here’s a quick guide to this video:

• 0:00 NTT and Rinaz warming up the camera, people streaming in, testing on stage…
• 39:00 Award Presentation begins with MCs Brendan and Rinaz.
• 45:00 Most Entertaining Blog: Chillycraps
• 51:15 Most Interactive Blog: EastCoastLife
• 58:00 Most Insightful Blog: Cobalt Paladin (entertaining video around 62:00)
• 71:00 Best Photoblog: Keropok Man
• 81:00 Best Blog Design: Veron
• 88:30 Most Controversial Post: EastCoastLife
• 97:35 Most Entertaining Post: EastCoastLife
• 103:42 Most Insightful Post: dk99
• 115: Best Citizen Journalist Post: dk99
• 120:30 Post of The Year: EastCoastLife
• 125:30 Blog Of The Year: Veron (Suddenly, there was no sound!)
• 131:00 How Ping.sg Got Started (Haha! Uzyn used the word “Web 2.0″ to describe Ping.sg!)

Next, read Chillycraps’ What the Fish post and found two amusing video recordings by Rinaz:

.

1. Fishes! (Technology: Reactrix)

Chinese version （中文版）:

English version （英文版）:

“Did You Know? Shift Happens – Globalization & the Information Age”
《你知道吗？环球与资讯的转变》
Created by: Karl Fisch (apparently a high school teacher/admin in the USA)
Modified by: Scott McLeod; Content remixed from: David Warlick, Thomas Friedman (”The World is Flat”), Ian Jukes, Ray Kurzweil (dubbed “the best person to predict the future of AI” by Bill Gates) and others; Music: “The Last of the Mohicans” (1992)

Thanks, Lucifer Chu. (谢谢你,朱學恆。)

Asia Social Media Directory is “non-competitive” in the sense that all Singaporean bloggers and social media activists are still encouraged to add relevant info on their sites on the Singapore Social Media Directory. However all, including those from Singapore, are welcome to join the Asia Social Media Directory Frappr map:

WHY AM I DOING THIS? Basically, I want to reach out to a much wider audience, especially people in Asia. Currently, about 50% of my visitors are coming from Singapore. Too few are from the rest of Asia.

However, there is no Asian directory available on the Internet right now (at least not one that I could find on the Internet via a Google search) that is:

• “Unconditional”: All bloggers and social media activists in Asia are most welcome to join and list their blogs and/or social media sites there without having to add a reciprocal badge/link to the directory from their sites.
• Community-managed: Anyone can add themselves in without being screened first. (Of course, if abuse occurs then abusers will be barred.)

In addition, I also plan to read more Asian blogs and start providing insights and roundups on how free/open-source/social technologies are being used in Asian business and education. Reasons include:

• More and more, Singapore is being used by westerners (Europeans, Americans, Canadians, etc.) as a springboard to Asia, and by easterners (Asians) as a stepping stone to the English-speaking countries.
• Over 50% Internet users will be Asians soon

So, would Asia Social Media Directory and my finetuned focus be of interest/value to you, my readers?

Here’s a humorous video made in support of Shutdown Day 2007, to show that “You don’t have to turn your computer on to have fun with it”:

The rationale is great, but the day is a problem! So unfortunately, for all attendees and organizers of Nexus 2007 in Singapore, the answer would have to be a resounding “No!”

(Found this on CESBloggers.com who in turn references SlashDot.)

SECOND, the Podcast Awards for 2006 are out. Among the winners are three Catholic podcasts:

• People’s Choice: MuggleCast
• Best Produced: The Signal
• Best Podcast Directory: iTunes
• Best Mobile Podcast: Catholic Insider (Catholic obviously)
• Business: Manager Tools
• Comedy: Distored View
• Cultural/Arts: Anime Pulse
• Education: Tips from the Top Floor
• Entertainment: Pottercast
• Gaming: Podtacular
• General: Rosary Army (Catholic)
• Movies/Films: The Signal (again!)
• PodSafe Music: AccidentHash
• Political: Free Talk Live
• Religion Inspiration: Daily Breakfast (Catholic)
• Technology/ Science: DiggNation
• Travel: Mouse Tunes

According to the designers, this instrument is intended to be:

• collaborative: several performers (locally or remotely)
• intuitive: zero manual, zero instructions
• sonically challenging and interesting
• learnable and masterable, even by children
• suitable for novice and advanced electronic music (i.e. installations and concerts)

Note: Found this video because someone from Harro left a note on the shoutbox on one of my websites. So I checked out his/her website. It happened to be Harro Channels which has a link to ping.sg, a community meta blog for Singapore bloggers. There was a listing of popular posts. So, I clicked on the topmost one… and voila!

Key Features (extracted from the Zoho Notebook site itself):

• Intuitive user interface with white boarding and custom layout capability
• Quick “add” buttons for adding text, graphics, photos, audio, video, RSS feeds and documents
• Combine and add Notebook pages from other applications such as Zoho Writer and Zoho Sheet
• “Content level” sharing and versioning providing fine grain control of what is shared with others
• Firefox and IE plug-ins for instant web clipping
• Real-time, simultaneous editing and sharing of content
• Skype integration for instant chat and IP telephony

Curiously, the MIT guy chose to call this “Assist Sketch Understanding System and Operation”. I believe this is a revised version of the Physics Illustrator that I was exploring a month or two ago. The software is basically “a motion simulator for the Tablet PC”:

Bring your drawings to life with the Physics Illustrator, Simply draw two-dimensional bodies, connect them in various ways and apply forces, then watch as animation makes the bodies move, collide, and interact.

(See also HOW TO: Use Physics Illustrator on non-tablet PC.)