You can’t swing a power cord these days without hitting
an online learning opportunity of some kind. Whether
it’s MOOCs, webinars, or
TED Talks, there’s no shortage of ways to learn via the
web. But, as we have known
since the early days of the
internet, just because it’s online doesn’t mean it’s high
quality. And it certainly isn’t
intended to replace face-to-face learning entirely.
I read a couple of discouraging blog posts recently about the accuracy of
information in TED Talks.
Both authors posited that
TED organizers need to do
a better job vetting the con-
tent of the talks they select
( goo.gl/O41YyG, goo.gl/
xMmAzf). I call these posts
“discouraging” only because
I am a huge fan of TED
Talks and hate to think ill
of them. But as Kevin Folta
says in his post appealing
for more accurate science
content, “C’mon TED. Let’s
not keep our minds so open
that our brains fall out.”
Education writer and self-
described “rabble-rouser”
Audrey Watters echoes this
call in a March 2013 blog
post ( goo.gl/yLHQD):
But once something
becomes a TED Talk,
it becomes oddly unas-
sailable. The video, the
speech, the idea, the
applause—there too
often stops our criti-
cal faculties. We don’t
interrupt. We don’t jeer.
We don’t ask follow-up
questions.
As with any promising
technology, we need to
continue to be discriminat-
ing in how we make use of
the tools. Applying some
simple practices to find
high-quality resources can
help you make the most of
today’s vast array of online
learning opportunities:
Consider the source. Do you
trust the provider?
Ask for referrals. You know
what you need, and chances
are good others have found it
already, so reach out to your
personal learning network.
Be skeptical. Use your critical thinking skills to identify what will best meet your
needs and fit your learning
style.
Read on to learn more
about how this issue’s L&L
authors are making good
use of today’s online learning landscape while expanding—not losing—their
brains.
—Kate Conley is ISTE’s periodicals
director and the editor of L&L. She
holds a master’s in journalism and
was a high school English teacher.
She has been with ISTE for 15 years.
Don’t Let Your Brains Fall Out
❝
❞
How can educators incorporate the tools young people
use every day to promote meaningful learning while
preventing cyberbullying and identity theft?
See page 32
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Look for links to L&L articles
and the latest Point/Counterpoint
questions.
iste.org/counterpoint
Join ISTE’s LinkedIn group to
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debates.
Follow L&L’s editors
Senior Editor Diana Fingal
@dianafingal
Managing Editor
Paul Wurster @Paul_Wurster
Associate Editor
Andra Brichacek @andramere
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Send letters to the editor,
and we may publish them.
iste.org/LL
Find L&L and other great
ISTE resources online.
tech we like
Check out the useful resources the L&L team
discovered while producing this issue.
Vocaroo: vocaroo.com
Kate Conley had fun playing with this free
voice recording tool that students, even
younger ones, can use to give peers
feedback (page 11).
ARt Gallery: jasonohler/aste2013
Andra Brichacek was fascinated by this
movie showing how augmented reality
art works (page 16).
Future Me: futureme.org
Diana Fingal likes this site for reflections
and reminders (page 28).
Rethinking Assistive Technology:
goo.gl/5lkASM
Tamara Kidd appreciates insights of
framing AT and IT as tools to enhance
creativity and learning (page 36).
