Cathy Nelson’s Professional Thoughts

I sent this in an email to staff, and shared via facebook too. This is a snippet from my reader (Jenny Lucca’s Lucacept–Intercepting the Web) about a recent Ted Talk (Formal Title — Ted: Ideas Worth Sharing). Ted is pretty much a favorite video blog, and I’m always playing catch up with it. The snippet below is where Jenny Lucca, who is from Melbourne, Australia, and (and a member of my PLN) blogged about it. Of course as soon as I read it there I had to go view.

Jenny wrote:

… it deals with something not apparent to all, but something that will definitely affect us all. Eli Pariser is the author of The Filter Bubble, and in this talk he explains how personalized search might be narrowing our worldview. Eli explains how web services that know what we like and direct results to us that meet our likes, are allowing us to get trapped in a “filter bubble.” The filter bubble prevents us from exposure to information that could challenge or broaden our worldview. Here’s another lesson for not just the adults in the room, our students need this kind of understanding if they are to become architects of their digital lives. After watching this, it’s apparent that personalized search, where organizations are making decisions about what we view, is dangerous territory indeed. Dangerous territory that can lead to lack of tolerance, an inability to forgive, and a decided lack of empathy. There’s the link you need to make these two talks some of the best learning that could take place in a classroom this week.

To add to this commentary, I am sharing with my staff that I certainly will be adding this to my instruction on searching, and also add it as a good reason to use the DISCUS (and now EBSCO,) the vehicles to databases we use as the primary source for information for research, and not the favored search engine. I am a Google FREAK no less than most students, but I understand that it is not the best source for authoritative research that is accurate, unbiased, often refereed, current, and reliable. Many of our kids do not yet understand this.

I wrote to certain ones on my staff this added comment as well:

Since I feel you challenge your students to think critically, this would be a wonderful ten minute video that could spur debate or more in your classes. The video is located at:

http://www.ted.com/talks/view/lang/eng//id/1091 (directly form the Ted Talks site)

as well as from Youtube

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B8ofWFx525s

If Ted is blocked, we need to work to have it unblocked–it is that powerful (but that’s another soapbox for another day.)

Please share in your department where you think this is relevant.

At this time of the school year, when most standardized testing is done (the only thing left to my knowledge is AP Exams, and they are almost done) it is difficult to kindle interest in much schoolwork–among students and teachers.  I think Ted Talks could drive our entire curriculum for these last fifteen days of school. 

Tags: Information Literacy, K12, School Library