Free Culture?

Since taking a course in adult learning over the summer, I pay careful attention to areas of the curriculum that I resist. In light of transformational learning, these points of resistance can actually indicate a disorienting dilemma. This dilemma, often characterized by an argumentative mindset, provides the necessary tension to move forward by challenging habits of mind and creating new understanding (Merriam et al., 2007).
All of this to say that a point of resistance for me in this course has been the concept of free culture. It's not that I don't believe that everyone should have the right to experience the power of art, it's just that I grew up respecting the artist's work. My mom is an artist, and my dad a strong supporter of the arts. We paid for art because we could, and hopefully that money would support the artist and any efforts s/he made to offer their art freely to disadvantaged groups. However, after listening to Jesse Hirsh talk and conversing in a small group in last week's class, I am beginning to wonder if I my views might be outdated. I decided to explore a little further, as research is one of the ways I get beyond resistance.
First, I went to a website called www.freeculture.org and found this video:

Brighter from SPARC on Vimeo.

I thought it cleverly illustrated what free access to information can achieve. The website seems dedicated to exploring the concept of Open Access Universities. They have a conference in 2010 in Washington, D.C.
In my search, I also came across a book titled Free Culture by Lawrence Lessig. Of course, you can get the pdf version for free here, but you can also purchase the book on Amazon, for those who like to pay for art. This book seems to tackle the issue of free art more directly. It's author, a Standford law professor, examines how new copyright laws threaten to stifle the creative potential of the internet. Jesse Hirsh touches on this concept in his latest blog entry titled 'Resisting Internet Orthodoxy.' It's timely that I would refer to Jesse's blog, as his talk to our class provided my first point of resistance, within this course, to the idea of free culture.
I still haven't kicked my belief that if all art is free, artists may become an extinct species. However, by encouraging inquiry into the subject, I am beginning to feel more able to make an informed opinion. No doubt, it will be a topic that becomes more prevalent. I do believe in equitable access to education, and isn't art not one of the oldest forms of knowing, whether through picture, storytelling, music or dance?
On the CBC this week, they talked about the crackdown of Microsoft on Xbox 360 users who had 'tweaked' their consoles to access free online games. The company banned nearly 1 million of their 20 million online gamers. These modded consoles then flood ebay, where buyers are being warned to be careful not to purchase banned consoles. In a situation such as this, I wonder which side I am on. Doesn't Microsoft make enough money? Will banning 1/20 of their online gaming demographic hurt or strengthen their brand identity? Shouldn't these gamers pay like everyone else? As you can see, the issue of copyright in the internet age seems to elicit more questions than answers. If you have any answers, or perhaps more questions, I'd love to know what you think.

We Live In Public

I love movies as forums for learning. So, as I was browsing the Adbusters website, I came across a trailer for the movie We Live In Public. I watched the trailer here, and read a bit about the movie's creator, Josh Harris. He has been described as one of the most influential Internet pioneers that 'you've never heard of.' Following hyperlinks, I ended up on a bit of a scavenger hunt, which is perhaps how Josh has remained elusive, at least in the mainstream world that I inhabit.
After begrudgingly starting on Wikipedia, I found a New York magazine article on Harris. Here is a quote from the article that helped me to understand what he actually does:
As the founder of Pseudo Programs, the oldest and largest producer of television shows for the Internet, Harris is a major player in the race to define the post-television future of broadcast entertainment -- an area of intense interest on Wall Street and in Hollywood now that cable and phone companies are scrambling to install high-speed Internet connections into millions of homes.
While reading the rest, I start to feel out of my element, realizing that the Internet seems controlled by an elite, genius and slightly bizarre bunch of (mainly) guys. It seems his company, pseudo.com, offers Internet television programming with an interactive viewer component. As I follow the trail further, it turns out the company was a hoax, what Josh describes as "an elaborate piece of performance art," much to the chagrin of many high-powered investors who were encouraged by several articles written for the New York Times by Jayson Blair. It seems Josh is quite an Internet bandit, with many influential sidekicks!
Back to the movie before I get more lost in cyberspace. While the trailer is a bit wild, the footage I saw did speak to some of the fears I have about extreme Internet use. One of these is my worry about the effects of obsessive use on human interactions and other behaviours. I mentioned in a previous post my formerly-benign dinner guests who pulled out i-Phones during dessert to check for work email on a Saturday night. Another fear the trailer touches upon is the effects of real (or imagined) surveillance on human experience. Yes, Google Streetview is cool, but if I can see the pansies on my front porch, what do the authorities see? (Hi guys!)

What do kids think?

Steph and I have been preparing for our presentation on cyberliteracy and the digital divide. I am finding the information a bit overwhelming. The new literacy is multi-faceted. It seems that every source offers a new way to segment the different skills needed to critically engage with the Internet. For example, Carvin (2000) divides literacy into six categories. Breivik (2005) divides ICT proficiencies into seven categories. Armstrong and Warlick (2004) write about the transformation of the 3Rs into the 4Es: exposing, employing, expressing, and ethics.
I decided I needed a real life perspective to inform the articles I was reading. To provide a context, I teach grade 7 and 8 English. Media studies is one quarter of the English curriculum in our province. Kids love learning about media in general, and they love working with computers. They have grown up with them.
When I asked my students if they would mind answering some questions, they were eager; I based these on the issues I encountered while preparing for our presentation. Here they are:

• At what age did you first use the Internet?
  
• What skills do you need to effectively use the Internet?
• What do you do on the Internet?
• What do you think the digital divide is?

Informally, I compiled the results after 45 students in grades 7 and 8 answered my questions.

• The most prevalent age for first-use was 4, with 5, 6 and 7 running a close second. I noticed that boys and students with older siblings tended to start using the Internet earlier.
• The skills my students listed were varied. The majority focused on formal and effective access skills, like typing, opening and closing windows, browsing and operating a mouse. Students also recognized the need to be aware of privacy, safety and reliability issues. In addition, they pointed to requiring the traditional literacy skills of reading and writing. A few students pointed to other communication skills, such as socializing effectively and expressing purpose. I was impressed with their knowledge; however, I also work at a school where my students are relatively privileged and are taught how to engage with ICT. In a different setting, the results would likely be different.
  
• Gaming and researching were the most popular activities expressed in the questionnaire. YouTube, instant messaging, Facebook and emailing were also popular. I noticed that my students used the Internet for similar purposes I do, despite their being roughly one-third of my age.
  
• My students had many ideas about what the digital divide might be. I didn't expect them to know, seeing as I didn't know the term until about 3 weeks ago. Amazingly, some of my students grasped the concept without knowing exactly what it was called. Here are some of the answers I read:

-The divide between those people who use digital devices with ease and people who don’t use them.

-It separates the digital world from the non-digital world.

-It is stuff between boys and girls.

-The divide between Web 1.0 and Web 2.0.

-A divide that keeps the digital bugs away.

-The passover between the real and digital world.

-Dividing digitally.

-The newer generation’s preference for using the Internet over traditional ways.

-A security system.

Their answers reminded me that kids are intuitive and creative, two qualities that to me seem essential to effectively managing existence in the Information Age.

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My Internet History

Before delving into our readings, I thought it appropriate to do an inventory of my experience with the Internet. Believe it or not, I didn't start emailing et al. until second year university. Even then, I preferred face-to-face communication with my friends. Any research I did was at the UBC library; articles were not yet in full-text online, although catalogues did become available online as I completed my graduate work in art therapy. It was not until my Masters of Education that I started doing the majority of literature reviews on-line. Why not? I could do it in my pyjamas on the couch next to my dogs, instead of a deadly quiet and cold library. I have taken four on-line university courses, and I still prefer face-to-face communication with my colleagues supplemented by on-line dialogue.
Other than research, I originally used the Internet exclusively for email. As tends to happen, friends and family spread out across the country and email provided an easy way for asynchronous sharing of thoughts and photos. Both my parents are quite tech-savvy despite my mom's initial fear of the Internet. It amazed me that she needed help setting up an email account when she was using complicated animation programs such as Final Cut Pro to finish her short film.
Now I use the Internet mainly for quick access to information, communication and to read my favourite blogs. It is also a planning tool, whether for gmaps, finding phone numbers, checking in at the airport, or tracking packages that go missing. I definitely tread the middle path when it comes to being 'connected.' I don't Twitter because I am already distracted enough at is. I reply to Facebook invitations, but I don't have time to update my profile. In summary, I use the Internet on a need-to-know basis. And I don't check my phone in the middle of a dinner party. Netiquette, people!