The Internet is so much more than chatting, games, and wasting time. There is so much valuable information that we don't really have to believe anyone any more, we can research for ourselves and form our own informed opinions. How much a person knows about a topic is now only limited by how much time they want to spend researching it, and thier ability to understand, basically their IQ. So very bright people can understand pretty much everything they want to know about a subject.

The freedom that I see on the Internet could be very encouraging. If our knowledge was used for good, there is so much we could do to help each other. But I also see the Internet as being horrific at the same time.

A case in point, the "Heat" "Frontline" program. It was very informative. I also listened to the interviews with the CEO's of the utilitie companys. That was where the horrific part came in. We have the ability to research and discover the reality of Global Warming and just how fast it is heating up our world. The enormous problem that trying to slow down and stop Global Warming is such a massive problem and will take so much participation it reminds me of the build up to fight WWII by the United States. But this is a worldwide problem and must have a worldwide solution. It is obvious from watching "Heat" that we will not be able to convince China or India that they should not model themselves after the success of the US in living off of fossil fuels. At least, to do so, we must do the research, and show the world how to switch away from fossil fuels to a sustainable energy solution. If we show them it can be done, and develope alternatives to the point they can be implemented at reasonable cost, we have a chance.

When I see the CEO's of the utilities in the US then explain that they must be regulated to control their greed, and that while we try to pass legislation to regulate them, they will be fighting tooth and nail to stop it, no matter the consequences to the planet, the task becomes an horrific impossibility. Unless we have leadership which can move ALL of America towards a unified rush to save our planet, it looks as if we will burn up from our own greed.

The Internet can provide information to almost any subject a person wishes to learn about. But it can also point to an almost one-way street to utter devestation. Perhaps someone can figure how to take back our government from the greed of big business. If not, it may not matter what the Internet can do or provide. So many will fall from the disease, starvation, drought, and wars that follow with Global Warming that the Internet will be the least of our concerns.

Hi
This is an amazing documentary. I have suggested that all my colleagues in the education dept watch this program to make themselves aware of the strong influence of things like facebook and myspace.
Jane

I have a story about online dangers that you guys did not cover and I think you'd really like to hear it.

Hi Rachel,

I want to let you know how deeply affected I was by your program. Cyberbullying certainly takes writing rude remarks on school bathroom wall to a tragically new level.

For today however, I am writing to you about Rose's story in Clip 2. Although I was dismayed by what I saw kids doing to hurt each other online and by the powerlessness of their significant adults to protect them, I was professionally saddened by Rose's voice. Here was woman -- probably an excellent teacher -- who had given 30 years to her profession and who had sidelined herself because she thought the challenge of 'retooling' to meet the demands of 21st century teaching was just too enormous to even contemplate let alone to try. It was like hearing myself speak to the world.

Her story and the right opportunity at school compelled me to forsake my Luddite ways and begin trying out new tools with my students. I started by learning about Powerpoint. I came across a couple of neat tools. I started passing these on by e-mail to my colleagues at school. By March I had become the "tech" person on an Earth Day project 3 students wanted to try (...my husband nearly split his sides laughing when her heard that...).

It's a good thing I had no idea when we began how much work and struggle would be involved, or we never would have tried to do it. Everything that could go wrong, did: we could not get fully-functioning access to the internet for much of the school day; at a critical point, our internet connection to the slide show website where we were assembling the project was shut down for 5 days! Still the boys hung in there and we made the webcast with minutes to spare.

The educational and personal outcomes of our collaboration have been immeasurable -- for all of us who were involved. One boy has made a new connection with his Dad when the dad surprised him by showing up to see the project at a student festival. He also came to school every day to work on the project. Previous to this, if he met a challenge in school he would stay home locked in his room for several weeks or even months before he'd try coming back. Another fellow found leadership potential in himself he had never experienced before. The third experienced the pleasure of completion -- of seeing the project through -- and gained insights into working as part of a team.

In my case I took a deep breath and yet again set about recreating myself as a teacher. The more I have immersed myself in trying to work out how to make instruction more engaging and more accessible by incorporating simple, mostly free, web-based tools and resources, the more re-energized I have become.

With my teaching partner, I am now giving workshops on this topic. And this brings me to the reason for my response: I would like permission to use Rose's story in an abbreviated form as part of my presentation. I see that it is possible to download the clip; however, I can't show 11 minutes in a 1 hour seminar.

My workshop is about my partner's and my journey into this world and is intended to offer hope to dedicated teachers like Rose -- to show them, as we ourselves have learned, that we need not feel like we are about to be washed away by a tsunami. We can make changes -- one tool and one lesson at a time. Yes, the kids will always be ahead of us in the use of devices and in the speed with which they pick up on how to use the tools, but they need us to craft educational opportunities so that real learning results.

If we are not prepared to take the risk of trying, we become the 'poster people' for the failure of the education system to produce individuals who can cope with change. We can't risk modeling the failure of the very enterprise to which we've given our lives to our kids. We have to thoughtfully weave new tools into our lessons -- the lessons are good, they just need to be updated. ("What's old is new again -- but better!") Our classrooms can become the place where 'old school' meets 'new'.

So in that spirit, I hope you can see your way to allowing me to trim that clip and use it in my presentation. I think more teachers and IT people need to see Rose's story and to take heart from the fact that a year ago I was Rose -- and look at me now!!!