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Comment by Lora Cowell on October 27, 2009 at 9:15pm

(Excerpted from my post on LibraryRemix (blog) in response to Mastrion's comments about Point/Counterpoint on Brick-and-Mortar Libraries)

Kudos, to Doug…obviously. Yes, I am a school library media specialist and I appreciate the support he offers to our programs, particularly in light of Mastrion’s out-of-touch stereotyping that leaves me “alone, in [my] information monarchy” surrounded by words, words, words…and nothing more.

But it isn’t enough to disagree with Mastrion’s point-of-view…

…let’s start with Mastrion’s assertion that Google offers a simpler and more efficient means of finding information for students today. I tested that theory in a quest to find out exactly “who” Johnson and Mastrion are, and how their thinking is impacting learning, specifically with regards to technology.

Now, I’ve read Johnson before. He’s a well-known writer ... Still, would the novice researcher find his work as easily online as off? The answer is YES. I Google his name, and irregardless of its commonality, Doug Johnson’s site hits the top of the list. Johnson has made his ideas and research available across platforms (print and online).

Next, I Google Mastrion’s name and get 751 hits. Below are the results:

Hit # 1 – He graduated in 1985 from Courtland High School in Fredricksburg, VA. I can’t tell more, since this is a subscription site to which I do not belong. Hit # 2-3 – Mastrion’s page on the ISTE ning. Not much here.

Hit #4 – Readingman.com on AboutUs Wiki pages. Promising. But the domain link takes me no where (its for sale). No more information here. A search for “readingman” yields a mind boggling list of articles about men from places called “Reading.”

Hit # 7 – The Curry School of Education schedule (mentioned the school in his ISTE piece) … a list without much information about Mastrion, himself.

Hit # 8 – Finally… Reader’s Digest Association Announces Its 1999 American Heroes in Education. According the article, Mastrion donned “cape, shield and size-18 sneakers” as ”…READING MAN!!! …a young man not afraid to make learning fun. Enthralled by Reading Man and his wondrous, book-lined Read-it-torium, Mastrion’s rural South Carolina students have become eager readers and overachievers. ‘If some adults don’t get it,’ he says, ‘then so be it.’”

Hit #9 – Link to an architectural firm’s mock-up of “a Reading Village concept proposed by Mastrion. Another link to readingman.com, which is defunct.

Link # 10 – Link to New York Creative Managements list of Currently Available Children’s Books. Mastrion’s book 12 Crabs in a Basket is listed. A side-search for the book itself, on Google and on Amazon (in quotes and out, numberical “twelve” and spelled-out) yields nothing more. (Sigh…)

# 13 – A link to the Village Montesorri School’s parent connection site, which features a quote from Masterson and note that he was 1998 National Teacher of the Year.

Finally…Hit #20 yields me Mastrion’s BLOGGER address…a blog that began (and ended?) with a single post on September 1, 2009

I could go on…through the 70+ pages of links. Clearly Google does not do Mastrion the justice he deserves as an recognized educator. But, if I were an adolescent (or most adults), I’d give up now. As noted in The Anatomy of a Large-Scale Hypertextual Web Search Engine--"the number of documents in the indices has been increasing by many orders of magnitude, but the user’s ability to look at documents has not. People are still only willing to look at the first few tens of results."

I decide to look at one more page of results. Surprise…Mastrion’s response to an editorial by Doug Johnson, “A Proposal for Banning Pencils,” written in 2006 and reviewed on the blog -- edfocus -- just this fall. It would seem Johnson and Mastrion are arguing on the same side. Mastrion writes:

"Ban. It’s a powerful, frightening concept, packed into such an elementary word. The mentality behind it, most often ignorant and fear-based, has the power to ruin, even end lives. We’re the lucky ones. We don’t have to tolerate its usage too much. But consider the world around us. Consider those struggling against bans imposed upon them … My best classrooms were always microcosmic democracies … Throw in the great number of disruptive technologies in the hands of our students, and you’ll understand some teachers’, some administrators’ and some districts’ hesitancy toward adopting higher usage of technology … Still, that’s no excuse … Education is a tool that needs to be used, worked with, experimented with, worn and torn to the point of breaking … as educators we’re duty bound to place the tool of technology firmly in the grasp of the masses we teach. If we don’t, it could cease to become a tool in the hands of everyone and quietly become a weapon in the hands of a self-selected few."

And yet, Mastrion’s own words lead me to ask Mastrion a few crucial questions:

1. With ONLY 50,000 books on Google (+ what’s online at other sites), should we limit students to reading ONLY these texts? In fact, if we limit students to online access resources, are we not, in effect, banning materials that do not lend themselves conveniently to online consumption. It’s all good (well, not really) to suggest reading online for children who consume 15-30 page stories that are largely visual. But reading on screen is, for the most part, a skimming activity. Imagine reading a Harry Potter novel on the screen of your laptop. Many students simply couldn’t situate themselves so (it’s downright uncomfortable to “curl up” in bed for 6 to 20 hours straight with a screen). Many students simply wouldn’t!

2. If the classroom is a microcosmic democracy, how can we, in good conscience, teach a child to trust Google to simply “deliver” the information they need at the push of a button. Libraries are more than repositories of print. School libraries are PROGRAMS that teach children to dig deeper and ask questions about the information they encounter.

3. Finally, if all children do NOT have access to a laptop and/or a father (much less a well-educated, reader of a father), are we not limiting education to the “self-selected” few?

Mr. Mastrion, considering your apparent championship of literacy, are you serious?

(entire post is here: http://libraryremix.com/?p=622)

Comment by Caren Cranston on October 8, 2009 at 5:40am

I'm interested in others are doing in lower schools with cloud apps.

Comment by Andra Brichacek on September 4, 2009 at 10:41am

Find out how a small rural district, a large urban district, and a state program made online learning work in the Sept./Oct. issue of L&L, now available online.

Comment by Paul Wurster on August 6, 2009 at 10:03am

Check out a new feature at Learning & Leading with Technology: Tips&Tricks

Comment by Andra Brichacek on August 5, 2009 at 6:23pm

Choose the perfect tools for 1:1. Find out what six important questions you should ask before implementing a portable learning initiative at your school in the August edition of L&L.

Comment by Diana Fingal on August 4, 2009 at 4:13pm

Want to get your hands on ed tech stimulus money? We'll show you how to fund projects that will transform your school, in the August issue of L&L.

Comment by Andra Brichacek on August 3, 2009 at 10:41am

Got a computer, a projector, and a pen tablet? Learn how to make your own "brightboard" with more flexibility, a bigger screen, and a much lower price tag than an interactive whiteboard, in the August edition of L&L.

Comment by Andra Brichacek on June 30, 2009 at 11:27am

Want to see your name in print? Find out how to advance your field by writing for L&L or another ISTE publication at an informal session today at NECC. "Writing for ISTE Publications" will be held in Room 102 A from 2 to 3 p.m.

Comment by Andra Brichacek on June 28, 2009 at 9:28am

Did you catch the excerpt from Scott Meech's blog post about the responsibilities that go along with being a NECC attendee in today's Daily Leader (page 6)? If you want to add some of your own responsibilities to Scott's list or comment on the story, reply in Scott's discussion forum.

Comment by Kaya Hardin on June 19, 2009 at 9:40am

Going to NECC? If you've written for L&L--an article, a Learning Connections piece, or even a tip--stop by the Daily Leader office in Room 204A and get your ISTE Author ribbon.

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