Module 6 - Addressing the Digital Divide

Differences in technological access exist across cultures, gender, and socioeconomic groups. Thornburg also challenges you to think about ways to create a climate of acceptance in which people not only have dreams but can actually experience these dreams as a reality in their lifetimes.

As a leader in educational technology, I can do several things to help make emerging technologies valuable to others while maintaining gender, cultural, and socioeconomic sensitivity. For some, technology is not the main focus of their daily lives or there’s no personal access to the Internet. As a result, there are actually some people who don’t realize the technology that is available to them. I know lots of people who only try things when they hear good comments about it by word of mouth. As humans, once we learn something we normally became fixated with that particular thing. For instance, when I learned about PowerPoint, I used it for a long time. I continued to use PowerPoint when I was introduced to Notebook Software a couple of years ago. To me, PowerPoint was and still is what I know well. Oftentimes, I am afraid to try new technologies for fear that I will not figure it out or it won’t have the same outcomes as other technologies that I am accustomed to.

Basing all of this information on the group of teachers I’ve worked with over the years, to make emerging technologies valuable to others, I can let others know about the new technologies that are out. I can also share my experience with the technologies to others while encouraging them to try it for themselves. It is also important to make sure that others realize that the new technology is not necessarily something that they have to learn. Rather, it is something that if learned, may be of benefit to them.

Dr. Soloway (n.d.) made a very interesting statement when he stated: to address the leveling of the playing field is to eliminate the digital divide by putting Internet access on cell phones. I couldn’t agree more. Today, just about everyone of age has a cell phone. Due to the advance in technology, cell phones are basically mini-computers. Anything that we can do on the computer can also be done on the cell phone today. Therefore, if a new technology were implemented in the cell phone, then lots of people would probably learn about it and also be willing to try it.

References:

Soloway, E. (n.d.). The digital divide: Leveling the playing field [vodcast] Retrieved from: http://sylvan.live.ecollege.com

Thornburg, D. (2008a). An amazingly incomplete emerging technologies bibliography. Lake Barrington, IL: Thornburg Center for Space Exploration.

Thornburg, D. (2008). Evolutionary technologies. [vodcast] Retrieved from: http://sylvan.live.ecollege.com

Module 5: Increasing Returns and Red Queens

When I noticed that I had to view a movie for Module 4, I automatically thought about Block Busters or any other video store that was strategically located near my home. Although I am always on my laptop viewing different videos and other types of multimedia, it didn’t dawn on me to search for this particular assignment online. I have never used Netflix or a similar vendor of video on demand. I can see how using Netflix would be beneficial; however, I often wonder about the extra work that I would have to do to return the movies rather than dropping them off at the movie store.

I believe that the current competition between DVDs and video on demand is definitely an example of increasing returns. Thornburg (2008) describes increasing returns as two innovations that hit the market at about the same time but by chance, one technology stays locked in and drives the other to extinction. Although the video on demand came out after move rental stores, it is still all based on renting movies on demand. Lots of people go to store and rent movies to have movie nights with their families and so on. Movies on demand have begun to get more and more popular. Therefore, as a result, I see movies on demand driving movie rental stores into extinction eventually. It may take a while due to the fact that some people still may not have Internet access in their homes; therefore depending on the movie rental stores.

According to McLuhan’s tetrad, I think video on demand will eventually begin to replace DVDs. However, as of current, I think the two are still in competition. Too some, this is a matter of convenience. To others, they stick with what they know which is going to Block Buster or Movie Gallery to rent the movies that they would like to view. It all depends on how the situation is looked at. On the other hand, Block Buster looked at the fact that Netflix could run them out of business. As a result, they had to add some type of video on demand for their customers as well.

References:

Laureate Education, Inc. (n.d.a). Increasing returns [Podcast] featuring Dr. David Thornburg.

Laureate Education, Inc. (n.d.b). Red queens [Podcast] featuring Dr. David Thornburg.