The mass amateurization of information--and what it means for teachers and students

There is the constant din of online conversation regarding it. Unlike similar conversations in the 1990’s—where the background noise consisted of clanking coffee cups and wooden chairs sliding back from a café table—the predominant sound heard during this conversation is the whir and hum of computers, the clickity-clack of keystrokes, and the click of computer mice. This conversation is not only new, but the way in which it is being discussed is new—a reflection of the fact that wherever we are headed with web 2.0 technology, we are already firmly on the road to our destination: we are not standing at the divergence of two roads in a wood. No—we have already chosen the one that is quickly becoming more traveled by, and that is making all the difference.

The 2008 Edition of “The Horizon Report,” on page six, notes that “The growing use of Web 2.0 and social networking—combined with collective intelligence and mass amateurization—is gradually but inexorably changing the practice of scholarship.” To “the practice of scholarship” I would also add “the practice of life in general.” As a high school teacher today, the way in which students interact amongst themselves, their parents, their school subject content—even the way in which they think—reveals to me that one of the promises of web 2.0 has already become a reality: the experience of finding and using information has switched from an institutional-centered transaction to a user-centered transaction.

A simple example:

No longer must the student skip into the (institution’s) library to use (institution-created and maintained) databases to locate and learn from (institutionally chosen and maintained) information. Now the student perhaps reaches into his or her pocket, pulls out an iPhone, and browses a few websites and blogs to get a feel for a certain topic—a feel that will not be determined only by such iconic sources as Encyclopedia Britannica and “the dictionary,” but a feel that will itself be nuanced by the innumerable points of view published online surrounding the given topic.

At this point in the example it’s important to STOP: of course a huge problem with the above illustration is this: by what standard is the student measuring the legitimacy of the information encountered? This issue gets at the heart of what is for educators perhaps the most difficult aspect of transitioning into a web 2.0 dominated world in the classroom: the successful acquisition of content often becomes of secondary importance, as content around nearly any given topic is ubiquitous today. What becomes of primary importance is instilling in our students a strong skill set in the area of finding information that is quality—tools and methods for effectively judging the quality and legitimacy of information. This skill is not just a vague “need,” but a pressing requirement. Imagine a future wherein the witty and tech-savvy dominate the world of the web—mass marketers with tiny budgets but huge audiences—and unknowing web users report to their grade 3 teachers that “pineapples are a common cash crop in northern Alberta—it says so on the internet.” While this example utilizes the absurd to get the point across, I wish that it was inspired by only fancies of imagination; however, even my grade 12 students have yet to break the habit of, when asked about a source they used for a presentation and where they found it, replying with, “the internet.” I remind them that this is equivalent to saying, “a book,” and that I would love to know which book—or site.

What this all points to for me, as a teacher, is the fact that my focus must change because my students’ focus must change: I wouldn’t send my students out to drive a car if they only knew already how to properly ride a bike, and I won’t send my students out to do online research if all they properly know how to do is use book-based research materials.