Reading Response Week 2

My first impressions of using the technology-based tools this week were those of familiarity and unfamiliarity.  I have previous experiences with a blog, RSS feed, and wiki, but the extent which I’ve used these tools varies greatly.  Out of the three technologies, I feel most comfortable with a blog.  (I actually kept a blog during my time in France and recently found out it has over 1,000 views.)  I created an RSS feed and a wiki during my undergraduate studies, but haven’t taken advantage of these tools since.

I actually found all three of these tools to strongly obtain the Web 2.0 characteristics as described by O’Reilly.  All three were user-friendly, free (which takes away the exclusive, business-like models of many Web 1.0 tools), based on some form of collaboration and/or community, and easily accessible.  All three also seemed intuitively designed with clean interfaces making them easy to navigate and manage.

I can think of a number of ways a wiki could be used in my classroom, both as an instructional, organizational tool and as a tool for students to manage their artistic creations and experiences.  I think a common application amongst educators is to have a classroom wiki, which serves as a tool for communicating with students and parents, and cataloging items relating to the curriculum.  I could definitely see myself making a wiki for my class (and I’m a little disappointed that I haven’t already) in order to post units, demonstrations pertaining to those units, art news, events, etc.  I could also see students using a wiki as an art portfolio or as a source for displaying artwork and then critiquing others’ work via the comments feature.  A wiki could also be used to supplement a research project.  Perhaps students have to create a wiki about a particular artist with widgets to supplement the research.

When thinking about which part of Dale’s Cone the blog and Feedly lend themselves to best, it’s important to consider this idea from the aspect of the creator and the aspect of the viewer.  First of all, I learned each tool by “direct purposeful experiences,” meaning that I went through the steps of creation and playing around to figure out how each tool operates.  For the viewer, I think both the blog and Feedly would fit best into the “contrived experiences” tier.  In the article, it’s mentioned that an experience is contrived when “we deal with a representation that differs from the original reality in size, in complexity, or in both.”  With a level of abstract thinking applied, the blog eliminates the need for an audience to congregate in one area to listen to a story and then respond directly to the storyteller.  Feedly, on the other hand, makes it so I don’t have to obtain physical copies of the literature I want to read or constantly refresh numerous sources for updates.  Content wise, both of these tools have the ability to expand into most every tier of Dale’s Cone based on what media the creators choose to add and their intended usage. 

In the article “Falling Asleep at Your Keyboard: The Case for Computer Imagination,”

Martin Siegel gives many examples for what he defines as “computer imaginative.”  Things that are “computer imaginative” create unique experiences, employ a “coherent set of concepts,” and have a purpose.  A blog is an example of a web tool that allows for multiple people to assemble around a shared idea and participate in a discussion about that idea without the need to travel or participate within time constraints.  Those features in themselves are “imaginative.”  An “imaginative” application of a blog in an art classroom would be for students to create individual blogs with photos of ongoing work and for other students to critique that work via the comments feature.  This solves the aforementioned problems related to travel and time, and also the problem of students working on projects at home and not getting feedback until class assembles.  One might say that a group SMS could be sent to individuals, but a blog allows for a more coherent interface (perhaps the artist wants to share her artist statement and multiple photos) and opens comments up to a broader audience.

Feedly, on the other hand, solves the problems of having to physically obtain in one space the things I want to read or have my students read, and having to navigate through numerous sites for updates.  In the classroom, Feedly would answer the problem of having safe (because I’ve selected them) literature relating to a particular subject in one place that is free, user friendly, and community-based.  Student could also subscribe to other classmate’s blogs, similar to what we did, and comment as a form of critique.