Later in our English course we will be watching the TEDTalk entitled "Connected, But Alone" by Sherry Turkle, a short video which speaks of the potential pitfalls of technology. Turkle suggests that technology may impede our communication with one another and goes so far as to suggest that "we're setting ourselves up for trouble - trouble certainly in how we relate to each other, but also trouble in how we relate to ourselves and our capacity for self-reflection".
Now, isn't it a little ironic that your English teacher plans to teach you about the potential dangers that technology can pose to our connections, but is also asking you to use technology (this blog) to discuss human connections? Hmmm...something is amiss here! I have been doing some thinking about this little conundrum (vocab word!) and I have come to the conclusion that what we are doing here is something a little different from the type of technology issues Turkle speaks of. Turkle speaks of texting at the dinner table, or "Facebooking" your friends instead of going out with them, or even going on-line instead of engaging in your most fabulous English 20-2 class (gasp!). That isn't really what's going on here.
First of all, we are engaging face-to-face every class, thinking and discussing different aspects of our course topic (the significance of human connections). Secondly, we are meeting face-to face every Friday to work on writing and editing this blog. Finally, through this project we are reflecting on ourselves and human nature, forcing us to look both internally and externally for answers. No, I don't think this is the type of technology Turkle had in mind.
In my own life I am very cautious about replacing human connections with technology. I don't watch TV and haven't watched it for over 10 years. I do not have a Facebook account, no matter how much my friends and family bug me about it. I resisted the lure of getting a cell phone for a long time, only getting one for Christmas this past year. I worry about the very thing that Turkle discusses. I worry that I will become too immersed with Facebook fever to sit and play a game with my son, or that I will be so busy texting at the dinner table that I miss out on the real conversation.
So, if I am so cautious about using technology why a blog? Well, here's the thing, I think that if we are smart about technology we can actually use it to enhance our relationships, it is a tricky thing, but I believe it can be done. In fact, Turkle herself admits that "Those who make the most of their lives on the screen come to it in a spirit of self-reflection." This is my goal for our blog. Use this blog as a way to reflect about yourself and your relationships with others. Use this blog as a way to get to know the people in this class. And then, when you see them in class, talk to them about it! We will share your ideas and celebrate them, and then we will be able to look back and say that we were indeed blogging in a spirit of self reflection!
-Mrs. Gardner
Let's show Mr. Einstein that we can have both!
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