Chris Dede at FETC 2009
Chris Dede, Wirth Professor of Learning Technologies, will be speaking about emerging interactive technology and it’s role in the educational field at this year’s FETC.
The following is and excerpt from The Journal’s interview with Mr. Dede. To read the full interview click here.
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THE Journal: How do you define emerging interactive media?
Chris Dede: These are largely Web 2.0 types of media that are oriented towards knowledge creation, sharing, and evolution. Technologies as disparate as YouTube, broadcasting, and social justice sites, for example, are all built on the same underlying structure of community learning, despite the fact that each one’s superficial characteristics look pretty different than the next. In this FETC session I’m going to sketch a few other examples like this to show that each has a common, underlying structure. If you learn to use one of them well, then you have a head start when it comes to using the others.
THE Journal: Do educators struggle with this concept?
Dede: Educators are often worried about somehow losing control, which can take different forms. For example, administrators worry that students might go to places they shouldn’t be on the Web. Teachers are concerned that students will move to topics outside of the prepared curriculum, thus putting the instructor in the position of not being able to answer questions. Students can also shift the curriculum to topics that they’re interested in–and that don’t match the planned course topics–which can also cause concerns for the teacher.
THE Journal: How can educators use emerging interactive media to their advantage?
Dede: Part of it is acknowledging that you’re in a community that creates and shares knowledge, as opposed to being in a hierarchy where an expert pours knowledge into the minds of novices. Teachers and administrators who are willing to risk moving away from that hierarchical control to having authority that’s based on experience and expertise usually wind up with engaged students who learn both in and out of school. As a result, much can be accomplished in the classroom, without the teacher having to worry about how to teach his or her students how to use technology.
THE Journal: What are immersive interfaces?
Dede: Immersion is the subjective experience that finds someone engaged in a real, comprehensive experience. For example, if you were playing an interactive game online, and if someone asks you where you are, you wouldn’t say, “I’m sitting in my chair.” You would tell him or her where you “are” in the game itself, thus immersing yourself in the online experience. In such situations, your sense of presence and identity shift from the everyday environment to the immersive environment.
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