Extra Credit Task #2

Proposition: The house believes that social networking technologies will bring large [positive] changes to educational methods, in and out of the classroom.

I really felt that both sides of this debate made excellent points. McIntosh's opening statement said exactly what I feel is true, and would tie in well with the debate over whether or not technology has made a difference in the classroom. His class would be an excellent example of where it has. He also does a good job at presenting the "tech" aspect of it all as something more than cyborgs and data chips, which is something that many people are scared of.
I tend to agree with McIntosh's view on things, I do believe that online, interactive learning can improve the way we learn. I do feel though, that it needs to be tempered by some of the issues that were brought up by the opposition. The "online" aspect of things like Facebook and Myspace can be scary, and worrying about the way they shove personal information onto the internet is a valid point. I personally also worry about the loss of human interaction in all of these advancements. Even though I don't feel the goal is to turn us into data chips, I do believe the REAL classroom is important, more-so than the online one. Online technology can certainly complement our educational system and improve upon aspects where it's lasting, but I do not feel that it should replace it by any means.
Both sides presented excellent points although I do feel McIntosh did the better job in presenting himself clearly. The opposition sounded a bit too "doomsday" at times, the whole "computers will take over the world" demeanor came across more than once which is detrimental to their argument.
I look forward to seeing where technology takes us in the educational world as I continue my college career at UCSD. The advancements in availability of scientific articles and journals online is indisputable and I am excited to see what other benefits we can reap from the "techies" of the education.