The tyranny of nodes
One of my professors wrote an article which he shared with us. I found it apocalyptic because the life (aside from university) he predicts for us and in particular my young daughters is not one that I find appealing. It described an impossibly time-contrained, mercenary and technology-driven future. In 2027, will the transformation of university as knowledge factory for economic progress finally be complete? If my daughters want to study ancient literature, will I have to send them to the only university left (maybe in Copenhagen) that has professors who haven't retired yet?
We have the "slow food" movement. I'd like to see a "slow university" movement that values the social aspects of learning and doesn't attempt to mediate all discourse with technology. Of course, there is a place for networking. But learning is as much about personal identity as it is about knowledge, and personal contact will continue to be demanded by students for both practical as well as emotive needs.
Today my aggregator contains this article by Ulises Ali Mejias entitled The tyranny of nodes: Towards a critique of social network theories. Whilst some may believe we are determined to fall (I use those words advisedly) into a hyperconnected learning world, Mejias suggests that we need to ask ourselves some serious questions.
Category: (e)learning
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