WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.520 Okay, think back with me for a second. What are 00:00:02.520 --> 00:00:07.160 your earliest memories of using a computer? Maybe 00:00:07.160 --> 00:00:10.039 that old dial -up sound or a big clunky monitor. 00:00:10.140 --> 00:00:11.580 I remember thinking it was magic just, you know, 00:00:11.599 --> 00:00:13.660 looking up movie times online back in the day. 00:00:14.140 --> 00:00:16.179 Fast forward to now, wow, we're sharing videos, 00:00:16.199 --> 00:00:18.239 working on the same document from different countries, 00:00:18.339 --> 00:00:22.000 even attending events virtually. It's a completely 00:00:22.000 --> 00:00:24.239 different world, isn't it? The way our relationship 00:00:24.239 --> 00:00:26.859 with computers and information has changed, it's 00:00:26.859 --> 00:00:30.300 just... It's kind of mind -blowing. And this 00:00:30.300 --> 00:00:32.539 evolution, it's had a huge impact, especially 00:00:32.539 --> 00:00:35.119 in education. So today, we're doing a deep dive 00:00:35.119 --> 00:00:37.850 into exactly that. the journey of computer -mediated 00:00:37.850 --> 00:00:40.189 communication and what it means for, well, how 00:00:40.189 --> 00:00:42.530 we learn and teach now. We're looking at a really 00:00:42.530 --> 00:00:44.009 interesting article for this one. It's called 00:00:44.009 --> 00:00:46.149 On Computer -Mediated Communication in Schools 00:00:46.149 --> 00:00:48.729 by Gary Ackerman. It was posted on hackscience 00:00:48.729 --> 00:00:51.429 .education back in January 2024, and it maps 00:00:51.429 --> 00:00:54.570 out this whole path from early PCs to, well, 00:00:54.750 --> 00:00:57.170 today's interactive digital world. Our mission 00:00:57.170 --> 00:00:59.310 really is to unpack that journey, understand 00:00:59.310 --> 00:01:01.409 the big shifts and what it means for preparing 00:01:01.409 --> 00:01:03.429 young people today. Okay, let's get into it. 00:01:03.549 --> 00:01:05.650 So Gary Ackerman, the author, he actually started 00:01:05.549 --> 00:01:09.829 teaching way back in 1988, and his tech, an Apple 00:01:09.829 --> 00:01:12.870 Ike. Wow, an Apple Ike. Yeah, that really dates 00:01:12.870 --> 00:01:15.730 it, doesn't it? Right. And back then, what were 00:01:15.730 --> 00:01:18.709 computers for in school? Primarily individual 00:01:18.709 --> 00:01:21.209 work. Ackerman talks about using his first computer 00:01:21.209 --> 00:01:23.750 mainly for, you know, creating stuff like word 00:01:23.750 --> 00:01:26.689 processor files, think reports, and manipulating 00:01:26.689 --> 00:01:29.769 info, like in spreadsheets or making basic graphs. 00:01:30.920 --> 00:01:33.579 standard stuff for the time. Exactly. And then 00:01:33.579 --> 00:01:35.920 CD drives came along, which was a step up. You 00:01:35.920 --> 00:01:38.620 could consume, maybe create slightly fancier 00:01:38.620 --> 00:01:41.480 things, like multimedia stuff. But it was very 00:01:41.480 --> 00:01:43.920 much about you and your machine, right? Your 00:01:43.920 --> 00:01:46.400 output, what you could get off a disc. Pretty 00:01:46.400 --> 00:01:48.739 isolated, really. Yeah, absolutely. If you wanted 00:01:48.739 --> 00:01:50.140 to share something, you'd probably just print 00:01:50.140 --> 00:01:52.239 it out. What's fascinating, looking back, is 00:01:52.239 --> 00:01:55.840 how computers started as these powerful but fundamentally 00:01:55.840 --> 00:01:59.189 personal almost solitary tools. Yeah. They boosted 00:01:59.189 --> 00:02:01.629 individual productivity, sure, and let you manage 00:02:01.629 --> 00:02:04.049 data or consume things from local sources like 00:02:04.049 --> 00:02:06.750 that floppy disk or CD. The information flow 00:02:06.750 --> 00:02:08.750 is pretty limited from the disk or your keyboard 00:02:08.750 --> 00:02:11.030 to the screen or printer. That was basically 00:02:11.030 --> 00:02:12.990 it. It was revolutionary, no doubt, but yeah, 00:02:13.210 --> 00:02:16.210 very contained, like you said, solitary. Definitely. 00:02:16.409 --> 00:02:20.189 a foundational step, but limited to the classroom 00:02:20.189 --> 00:02:22.949 or maybe the home office. But that solitary phase, 00:02:23.129 --> 00:02:24.569 it was really just the beginning, wasn't it? 00:02:25.090 --> 00:02:28.590 The big change started happening mid -90s. Right. 00:02:28.590 --> 00:02:30.449 That's when things get really interesting. The 00:02:30.449 --> 00:02:33.569 internet arrives. Yeah. Ackerman mentions that 00:02:33.569 --> 00:02:35.949 in the mid -90s, he started getting his computers 00:02:35.949 --> 00:02:38.310 connected. He'd played around with bulletin board 00:02:38.310 --> 00:02:42.729 systems, BBSs back in 85, apparently. Oh yeah, 00:02:42.789 --> 00:02:45.629 the precursors. text -based communities. Exactly. 00:02:46.069 --> 00:02:48.710 But the internet was his first real taste of 00:02:48.710 --> 00:02:52.330 this massive networked information source. And 00:02:52.330 --> 00:02:55.370 by the late 90s, he describes computer labs just 00:02:55.370 --> 00:02:58.250 full of internet -connected machines. Students, 00:02:58.389 --> 00:03:00.430 teachers, everyone was just constantly consuming 00:03:00.430 --> 00:03:02.370 information from the internet. They were creating 00:03:02.370 --> 00:03:04.710 things too, websites and such. But not really 00:03:04.710 --> 00:03:07.169 sharing it widely online yet, or interacting 00:03:07.169 --> 00:03:09.289 around it much. Precisely. It was still mostly 00:03:09.289 --> 00:03:12.030 about information retrieval, pulling stuff down, 00:03:12.229 --> 00:03:14.939 and then maybe creating things internally, still 00:03:14.939 --> 00:03:18.199 kind of a one -way street in a sense. And if 00:03:18.199 --> 00:03:20.460 you connect that to the bigger picture, I mean, 00:03:20.620 --> 00:03:23.039 that was the pivot point. Moving from isolated 00:03:23.039 --> 00:03:26.900 processing to accessing this gigantic shared 00:03:26.900 --> 00:03:29.939 public library of information, the scale just 00:03:29.939 --> 00:03:32.219 exploded. Compared to a floppy disk or even a 00:03:32.219 --> 00:03:35.490 decent library, it was, well... almost infinite. 00:03:35.810 --> 00:03:38.110 Like going from your personal bookshelf to the 00:03:38.110 --> 00:03:40.969 Library of Alexandria overnight. Exactly. And 00:03:40.969 --> 00:03:42.610 it wasn't just more information. It was that 00:03:42.610 --> 00:03:44.669 potentially any information from anywhere was 00:03:44.669 --> 00:03:48.030 reachable. The focus was still mainly on consuming 00:03:48.030 --> 00:03:51.349 the sheer volume and accessibility. It completely 00:03:51.349 --> 00:03:53.590 changed the game for learning, challenged everything 00:03:53.590 --> 00:03:55.189 we thought about finding information. That's 00:03:55.189 --> 00:03:57.789 a great way to put it. But even with all that 00:03:57.789 --> 00:03:59.490 information, something was still missing, right? 00:03:59.569 --> 00:04:01.969 What was the next leap? Well, it was moving beyond 00:04:01.969 --> 00:04:04.629 just finding information to actually doing something 00:04:04.629 --> 00:04:06.810 with it together, interacting around it. Right. 00:04:06.870 --> 00:04:08.430 And that really took off around the turn of the 00:04:08.430 --> 00:04:10.610 century. Ackerman talks about how those old bulletin 00:04:10.610 --> 00:04:13.129 boards evolved. They became discussion forums, 00:04:13.509 --> 00:04:17.529 blogs, wikis, all these Web 2 .0 tools. Web 2 00:04:17.529 --> 00:04:20.769 .0, yeah. The key there was user -generated content. 00:04:20.920 --> 00:04:24.040 Exactly. These platforms weren't just for reading 00:04:24.040 --> 00:04:27.220 anymore. They were built for users to create, 00:04:27.459 --> 00:04:30.399 to publish, to connect. They made interacting 00:04:30.399 --> 00:04:33.240 over the internet central, not just consuming. 00:04:33.600 --> 00:04:35.879 It flipped the model. And then, of course, social 00:04:35.879 --> 00:04:38.319 media platforms arrived and just, well, they 00:04:38.319 --> 00:04:40.680 transformed everything again. How we interact 00:04:40.680 --> 00:04:43.339 personally, professionally, all of it. And this 00:04:43.339 --> 00:04:45.560 raises a really important point, especially for 00:04:45.560 --> 00:04:49.480 education. What did this shift mean? It meant... 00:04:49.019 --> 00:04:52.339 That line between consuming information and creating 00:04:52.339 --> 00:04:55.379 it just got incredibly blurry. People weren't 00:04:55.379 --> 00:04:57.800 just reading articles anymore. They were sharing 00:04:57.800 --> 00:05:00.000 them, commenting, arguing about them, adding 00:05:00.000 --> 00:05:01.959 their own perspectives. It stopped being a one 00:05:01.959 --> 00:05:04.680 -way street. Or even just two -way. It became 00:05:04.680 --> 00:05:07.100 this constant multi -directional conversation. 00:05:07.540 --> 00:05:09.480 Suddenly, everyone potentially had a voice, a 00:05:09.480 --> 00:05:11.560 platform. We weren't just accessing knowledge. 00:05:11.620 --> 00:05:13.990 We were starting to build it together. Online 00:05:13.990 --> 00:05:16.050 and you see that reflected directly in schools 00:05:16.050 --> 00:05:18.370 today. Just like the article points out students 00:05:18.370 --> 00:05:20.490 are discussing work online They're collaborating 00:05:20.490 --> 00:05:23.009 on documents sharing edits instantly. They're 00:05:23.009 --> 00:05:25.949 part of online communities sometimes local sometimes 00:05:25.949 --> 00:05:28.430 global Yeah, it's completely woven into the fabric 00:05:28.430 --> 00:05:31.529 of learning now and the article nails this point 00:05:32.600 --> 00:05:36.079 Today, in the second decade plus of the 21st 00:05:36.079 --> 00:05:38.759 century, we probably use our computers as much 00:05:38.759 --> 00:05:42.180 to interact as we do to consume or create information. 00:05:42.319 --> 00:05:45.019 That balance, that dual nature is critical. It's 00:05:45.019 --> 00:05:46.819 not just an information machine anymore, it's 00:05:46.819 --> 00:05:49.100 a connection machine too. Okay, so we've seen 00:05:49.100 --> 00:05:52.220 this explosion in digital interaction. What does 00:05:52.220 --> 00:05:54.360 the research say about why it works so well and 00:05:54.360 --> 00:05:56.819 why it spreads so fast? Well, the article points 00:05:56.819 --> 00:05:59.639 to a pretty clear consensus in the research findings. 00:06:00.300 --> 00:06:02.699 First off, it's effective for communication in 00:06:02.699 --> 00:06:04.899 pairs, diads, and also in small groups. Great 00:06:04.899 --> 00:06:07.139 for collaboration. And it's really flexible. 00:06:07.339 --> 00:06:10.180 It works for many -to -one situations, like Q 00:06:10.180 --> 00:06:12.459 &A sessions or polls, and also one -to -many, 00:06:12.480 --> 00:06:14.180 like a teacher sending out an announcement or 00:06:14.180 --> 00:06:16.470 lecture notes. Right. That makes sense. Versatile. 00:06:16.649 --> 00:06:18.949 And beyond that, it seems to encourage more participation 00:06:18.949 --> 00:06:21.850 in what they call ad hoc groups. Ad hoc, like 00:06:21.850 --> 00:06:25.170 temporary groups. Exactly. Groups that form quickly 00:06:25.170 --> 00:06:27.930 for a specific task and then dissolve. Think 00:06:27.930 --> 00:06:31.069 quick project teams. But it also boosts engagement 00:06:31.069 --> 00:06:33.829 in long -term communities, like ongoing class 00:06:33.829 --> 00:06:36.829 forums or clubs. That flexibility is huge for 00:06:36.829 --> 00:06:39.279 learning, isn't it? being able to jump into quick 00:06:39.279 --> 00:06:41.740 collabs or stick with a long -term discussion, 00:06:42.180 --> 00:06:45.019 much harder to do offline. Definitely. And the 00:06:45.019 --> 00:06:47.839 article highlights two big underlying factors 00:06:47.839 --> 00:06:50.379 that really drove this rapid expansion, things 00:06:50.379 --> 00:06:52.259 we almost take for granted now. OK, what are 00:06:52.259 --> 00:06:54.740 they? First, the near zero marginal cost. Meaning? 00:06:55.000 --> 00:06:57.240 Meaning, once you have internet access, sending 00:06:57.240 --> 00:07:00.220 one more message, joining one more video call, 00:07:00.500 --> 00:07:03.449 posting one more comment. It costs practically 00:07:03.449 --> 00:07:06.310 nothing extra. Ah, right. Unlike, say, making 00:07:06.310 --> 00:07:08.509 lots of phone calls back in the day or sending 00:07:08.509 --> 00:07:11.629 letters. Precisely. It removed this huge economic 00:07:11.629 --> 00:07:14.269 barrier. Interaction became almost effortless, 00:07:14.470 --> 00:07:16.389 financially speaking. It just democratized the 00:07:16.389 --> 00:07:18.649 ability to connect constantly. Okay, that's a 00:07:18.649 --> 00:07:20.730 big one. What's the second factor? The second 00:07:20.730 --> 00:07:23.490 is the wide availability of multimedia functions. 00:07:24.089 --> 00:07:26.389 This just opened up way more ways to communicate. 00:07:26.970 --> 00:07:30.050 We now create digital info with our voices, with 00:07:30.050 --> 00:07:33.339 pictures, with videos we capture. And those files 00:07:33.339 --> 00:07:35.439 instantly become part of the conversation. Yeah, 00:07:35.459 --> 00:07:38.060 think about students explaining something. Right. 00:07:38.399 --> 00:07:40.480 A student can record a quick audio explanation 00:07:40.480 --> 00:07:43.100 or share a short video clip, showing their work 00:07:43.100 --> 00:07:46.259 just as easily as typing out text. This richness, 00:07:46.639 --> 00:07:49.040 this ability to use different modes, audio, video, 00:07:49.459 --> 00:07:51.740 images, text, makes the interaction more engaging, 00:07:52.000 --> 00:07:54.620 more nuanced, often just, better than text alone. 00:07:54.759 --> 00:07:57.120 That resonates so much with how we all communicate 00:07:57.120 --> 00:07:59.019 daily now, doesn't it? Sending a voice note, 00:07:59.100 --> 00:08:01.560 sharing a picture, a GIF to make a point. It 00:08:01.560 --> 00:08:04.019 feels completely natural. Exactly. So those two 00:08:04.019 --> 00:08:06.639 things, the near zero cost and the rich multimedia 00:08:06.639 --> 00:08:09.220 options, they've fundamentally reshaped how we 00:08:09.220 --> 00:08:11.500 connect and collaborate. Made digital interaction 00:08:11.500 --> 00:08:14.459 feel almost instinctive. So we've traced this 00:08:14.459 --> 00:08:17.160 amazing path from these isolated machines to 00:08:17.160 --> 00:08:20.120 these global multimedia conversation platforms. 00:08:20.819 --> 00:08:23.759 The big question then becomes... What does this 00:08:23.759 --> 00:08:26.639 completely changed landscape mean for schools, 00:08:26.839 --> 00:08:28.839 for the institutions that are supposed to prepare 00:08:28.839 --> 00:08:32.139 kids for this world? Well, the reality is, youngsters 00:08:32.139 --> 00:08:36.080 starting school today, they've spent their entire 00:08:36.080 --> 00:08:39.539 lives learning, doing things, interacting within 00:08:39.539 --> 00:08:43.879 this digital information and connection ecosystem, 00:08:43.940 --> 00:08:46.139 as the article puts it. This isn't new to them. 00:08:46.240 --> 00:08:47.919 It's their normal. It's the environment they 00:08:47.919 --> 00:08:49.899 grew up in. It's their natal habitat, basically. 00:08:49.919 --> 00:08:51.720 Pretty much. And that puts a clear charge on 00:08:51.720 --> 00:08:54.399 schools. They have to prepare these young people 00:08:54.399 --> 00:08:57.220 to participate fully, critically, and effectively 00:08:57.220 --> 00:08:59.539 in this ecosystem. Okay, so how do they do that? 00:08:59.919 --> 00:09:01.700 Well, the good news is this ecosystem isn't just 00:09:01.700 --> 00:09:04.379 a challenge. It actually offers tons of functions 00:09:04.379 --> 00:09:06.759 that are incredibly useful for education. Right. 00:09:07.100 --> 00:09:09.519 But, and this is the core takeaway from the article 00:09:09.519 --> 00:09:11.759 for schools, the planning, the technology strategy. 00:09:12.360 --> 00:09:14.620 It must support both sides of this ecosystem. 00:09:14.679 --> 00:09:17.610 Both sides, you mean? The information side. accessing 00:09:17.610 --> 00:09:20.169 it, creating it, managing it, and the interaction 00:09:20.169 --> 00:09:22.409 side, collaborating, discussing, connecting. 00:09:23.049 --> 00:09:25.929 It's not an either situation. You need to leverage 00:09:25.929 --> 00:09:29.210 both. They're intertwined and equally vital for 00:09:29.210 --> 00:09:31.129 learning today. You can't really separate them 00:09:31.129 --> 00:09:33.409 anymore. That makes so much sense. It's not just 00:09:33.409 --> 00:09:35.730 about giving kids access to information. It's 00:09:35.730 --> 00:09:38.110 about helping them navigate the conversations 00:09:38.110 --> 00:09:40.590 around that information, too. Exactly. That dual 00:09:40.590 --> 00:09:42.809 nature is key. And for anyone listening, whether 00:09:42.809 --> 00:09:45.289 you're an educator, a parent, anyone involved 00:09:45.289 --> 00:09:48.000 with young people, understanding the balance 00:09:48.000 --> 00:09:51.080 is crucial. It's about seeing the whole picture, 00:09:51.399 --> 00:09:54.200 the integrated potential. These tools aren't 00:09:54.200 --> 00:09:56.580 just for delivering facts. They're for building 00:09:56.580 --> 00:09:59.279 connections, sparking discussions, and developing 00:09:59.279 --> 00:10:01.279 those collaborative skills everyone needs now. 00:10:01.600 --> 00:10:03.519 It's been quite a journey we've mapped out today, 00:10:03.659 --> 00:10:06.519 hasn't it? From that solitary, Apple -like Gary 00:10:06.519 --> 00:10:09.559 Ackerman started with in 88, to this buzzing, 00:10:09.840 --> 00:10:12.480 interconnected world where creating content and 00:10:12.480 --> 00:10:14.580 having conversations about it are just completely 00:10:14.580 --> 00:10:17.169 blended together. It's incredible, really. And 00:10:17.169 --> 00:10:20.549 I think what's often still missed, even now, 00:10:20.970 --> 00:10:23.429 is that while we first got excited about computers 00:10:23.429 --> 00:10:26.909 for delivering information efficiently, the truly 00:10:26.909 --> 00:10:29.750 revolutionary part, the real power, as Ackerman's 00:10:29.750 --> 00:10:32.250 experience shows, wasn't just the information. 00:10:32.389 --> 00:10:35.149 It was the way technology enabled this dynamic, 00:10:35.289 --> 00:10:38.570 almost free and incredibly rich human interaction. 00:10:38.570 --> 00:10:41.629 Yeah. That shift from a personal tool to a global 00:10:41.629 --> 00:10:44.279 conversation platform. That's the real story 00:10:44.279 --> 00:10:46.679 here. So maybe a final thought for everyone listening 00:10:46.679 --> 00:10:49.080 to take away. Given that young people today have 00:10:49.080 --> 00:10:51.820 literally always lived inside this information 00:10:51.820 --> 00:10:55.519 interaction ecosystem, how can you maybe in your 00:10:55.519 --> 00:10:57.620 own life, your work, your family, how can you 00:10:57.620 --> 00:11:00.279 better leverage both sides of that digital coin, 00:11:00.759 --> 00:11:02.639 both the information tools and the interaction 00:11:02.639 --> 00:11:04.600 tools to help foster deeper learning or better 00:11:04.600 --> 00:11:07.149 connections or maybe just more engagement? What 00:11:07.149 --> 00:11:09.250 new possibilities open up when you consciously 00:11:09.250 --> 00:11:11.690 think about balancing both information and interaction 00:11:11.690 --> 00:11:14.370 in how you use these tools every day? Something 00:11:14.370 --> 00:11:16.750 to think about as we all keep navigating this 00:11:16.750 --> 00:11:18.289 ever evolving digital world.