Sherry Turkle & Mike Wesh: Enemies or Allies?

While at first it might seem that Sherry Turkle and Mike Wesch are on opposite sides when it comes to beliefs about technology, it seems to me that they are both actually on the same team.  




Turkle says that technology is “so psychologically powerful that it's changed how we behave.”  She argues that texting, email, and social media all allow us to “edit” ourselves rather than reveal our true selves the way we would with old-fashioned conversations.  She contends that technology is setting us up to be “alone together.”  I agree with many of her points and I have observed them first-hand in both myself and in others.  Such as going to dinner and the people at the next table are slouched over scrolling through their iPhone, or forcing myself to take a break from the classroom to go have lunch with my colleagues and walking into the teacher’s room only to find everyone spread out, eating in silence while they check their Facebook. And good luck with getting me to answer the phone if you call... Why talk on the phone when we can just text???


So it might seem that the “Tech-Happy” professor Mike Wech is at odds with Sherry Turkle.  In an effort to defy the traditional lecture-style teaching that has disengaged children from their education for years, he teaches with Twitter, You Tube, and digital video cameras.  BUT... he does it for a reason...he does it for his WHY.  He believes that students learn best when they are connected.  And he is using technology as a way to connect his students .  


Turkle suggests, in an effort to undo some of technology’s negative consequences that parents should create sacred spaces for conversations to listen to each other.  Wesch believes that technology can do just that.  Even though Wesch has turned to technology as a way to help engage his students and connect his students to their learning and to each other, he and Turkle are on the same team.  They have the same goal...connection. 









Comments

  1. LesleyJuly 5, 2020 at 9:20 PM

    You pair these together so well. Love how you frame this!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Emily SheaJuly 6, 2020 at 3:08 PM

    I found them to be on the same team as well.You did a great job explaining why they have the similar beliefs.

    ReplyDelete
  3. UnknownJuly 6, 2020 at 5:41 PM

    I agree with your assessment that Turkle and Wesch share the common goal of connection. I like the way that Wesch uses technology as a tool to foster that connection to education that students are often missing.
    Eileen

    ReplyDelete

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