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The Internet is an excellent medium for any start-up to promote their cause and manage their organization. You can use Youtube to promote your group, raise awareness and generate traffic to your site. Take a look at Youtube Nonprofit:



Also, there is a plethora of free software and tools available, either web based or as a download. A lot of these tools are under utilized, not used to their full potential. An example would be using a Google account. Aside from using Gmail, this account allows you to have a lot of features, such as using Google Docs, it contains a word processor, spreadsheet, presentation and forms. This is ideal for someone that wants a minimalist approach to computing, or simply just lack the resource and funding to purchase an office suite of application. Any computer can be loaded with just a web browser and it can do a majority of the tasks. It can be run on older generation of computers with a small harddrive, because all the files are stored in the Google account. As long as the user can access the Internet with reasonable speed, then it is sufficient for basic computing needs. This is one of the major differences of using a web based application versus application that runs on the computer. The user is dictated by Internet connectivity. Check out this Youtube video on Google Docs.





But one must caution with the use of free software and programs, you have to wonder what the provider is gathering from your data and usage. What are Google and Microsoft really using your data for? What are they data mining? Will you be "sold out" to other corporations in the future? May be your information is sold already and you would never even notice.

Nielsen Online research found that on average, 3 hrs 10 mins per month is spent checking and updating Facebook, which remains the most popular social networking site in the world. The study states that more time is spent on social networking than on email. What medium or platform will replace social networking in the future? What's the next "in" thing?

Facebook could be used for different reasons, both good and bad. Students could use it to cyber bully their teachers (insulting comments, etc) But then again, one could look at this as their channel to express their opinion about their instructors. Is it any different then a political forum or discussion board where citizens come and express their anger towards politicians? Burning a George Bush effigy is a bit extreme, and what about drawing devil horns on Steven Harper's picture or degrading him by drawing a political cartoon? It seems it is okay for a political cartoonist to mock our prime minister in national publications such as newspaper or magazine, but it is not okay for a student to mock a teacher by posting a sketch on a Facebook group? There are many grey areas in these issues, and there will never be an answer that will satisfy all parties.

Last year there was a controversy at Ryerson where a student faced expulsion from school for running a Facebook group, on the grounds of academic misconduct. My personal opinion is that this incident was blown out of porportion and was unjustified, a waste of administrative resources. It is no different then students gathering in a library study room and trading notes. Facebook is just a different medium and platform for them to share their 'knowledge' and help each other for homework assignments. I don't agree with the school's prosecution of this student on the grounds of "academic integrity".

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I agree with the article "Critical media literacy is not an option" that education should be politically neutral and have an un-biased approach to addressing the issues. There’s always a different angle to every story. One of the activities I did as a student was to analyze the main articles of different newspaper, to examine the position they are portraying. I feel this was a good exercise to introduce to student the different writers and political stance of individual networks and publications. As a responsible citizen in this society we must need to think critically about the message being delivered to us by the media. By having a discussion forum allows you to see how others are thinking and differ or similar from your opinions.

Up until a couple of years ago, if you want to respond and voice an opinion to a magazine or newspaper article, you actually have to write a letter to the newspaper, and wait for it to get publish at a late date. But now, you can instantly provide feedback on an article you have just read on the Globe and Mail and voice your comment, in the Comments area. This is a great form of democratic debate and participation (whether it is civilized or free of personal attacks is a different story). And they also provide an option to share this article with your social network such as Facebook, del.icio.us, Digg etc.




The New York Times have a fantastic website, in addition to the sharing capability, when you are reading an article and come across a word that you don’t understand, you can double click on it and a dictionary will pop up instantly. This is extremely helpful for users that don’t need to open a separate browser window for an online dictionary or have a printed version on their desk. This is a priceless addition to the website. I wish more website could utilize this function.




It is ironic that with more technology we are introducing, the more we are starting to exclude, because most people just can’t keep up with the next “in” thing (either lacking financial or technological resources).

The online forums and discussion boards provide a space for people to gather; this is great for the individuals that are technologically literate. But for the ones that cannot have access to technology, they are “digitally excluded” from the online world, and that includes not just the technologically challenged, but also individuals with accessibility issues such as the visual impaired.

It is unfortunate that even in Toronto, the communication fee is ridiculously high compared to other metropolis of the world. Cell phone and Internet connectivity is astronomically higher then even US and UK. Take a look at an older chart (shown below) from 2007 comparing mobile access rate. In July 2008, the CBC provided a very interesting iPhone Index, where the key comparison is total monthly phone cost in relation to the GDP that reflect the consumer wealth of a country. And once again, Canada is the second most expensive country to own an iPhone.




The Canadian government need to do more to connect people wirelessly. Affordability is the crucial part in this problem. Internet and mobile service are just too expensive in this country. In the present economic condition, many household have to decide which service they need to cut or reduce spending on, such as internet access, cell phone plans, HD TV subscription. Most would agree that they don’t really need 300 channels or to have a $60 monthly Internet or cell phone plan. These subscriptions would either be reduced to the basic plans or ultimately be cut from the monthly household budget. May be they will just give up watching Youtube and all the media rich websites and stick to dial up. Since a reduction of $30 from their communication subscription might go a long way, such as using it for groceries or fill up on gas. Eventually they will just give up using the Internet at home because dial up is just too slow, so what's the point in waiting 10 mins for a Youtube video to load?

The government need to address this issue or else a generation of non-users would get left behind and simply be forgotten and neglected by society. If we can change as a society and adopt an accessibility plan for the physical disable, by building ramps to entrance of restaurants, and wheelchair accessible bathrooms, we should do the same for affordable mobile access for the mass.

PS:
In the class discussion we mentioned several forms of literacy, such as health, technology, financial, etc. Here is an example of a popular financial educator. Some people love him, some thinks he’s just another promoter. But if you have heard about the Rich Dad Poor Dad books, then you will know who Robert Kiyosaki is. He is the guy that keeps talking about getting rich by being financial literate. Similar to another TV financial advisor Suze Orman, they preach about how everyone should be smart financially, educating themselves with financial knowledge. Like everything else in the media, you should decide for yourself how valid are these strategies. There’s seven parts to this series. I have embedded part 1 of 7 in this blog. The rest can be found here.

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With the prevalent usage of computer-mediated technology, such as online learning and computer-based training, learning has become more accessible to a much larger audience. The concept of lifelong learning is getting easier for working individuals. Training employees in a large organization are much more cost effective, thus enriching the human capital of that organization.

In the academic setting, often it is the students that come to the institution to seek knowledge, albeit to upgrade their skills or for a career change. They reflect what the current marketplace needs and lack, thus the academic institution needs to perform the needs assessment to determine what kind of courses to offer to cater to this group of potential students.

In the corporate environment, management identifies the needs of their employees, albeit the skills they lack or needs improvement, such as updating their current skill set to adapt to newer technologies. The goal is to enrich the corporation’s human resources, instead of their employees coming to them for help; the company should act first and offer the necessary training. Thus it benefits both sides, as the company can retain their human resources, and make the employees feel they are a valued part of the company.

But management should conduct a needs assessment before implementing any new technology. They should not jump on the bandwagon just because everyone is doing e-learning, or the fact that they want to invest in technology training so they can get on the 50 Best Employer list. They need to realize the cost involved and the resources available at their disposable. There are several elements they need to consider, or else it would be a waste of time and money. Such as additional capital invested in future upgrades and continual technical support, and the willingness of the staff to learn and adapt to the new technology.

Also, there are some limits to computer mediated learning, such as vocational and practical subjects. They are all technical and applied learning subjects that require intense hands-on learning. Student-centered assessment requires the participant to actively demonstrate what they know. An example would be learning welding techniques. Although the participant can learn from the on-screen demo, it is impossible to display the techniques or skills needed to use a welding torch by simply clicking on the multiple-choice tests. It is hard to teach someone how to golf without teaching them how to hold a golf club properly; looking at a diagram in a book is very different then having the student actually swinging the golf club.

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