Through the evolution of smart objects, information infrastructures, and shared synthetic environments, our society is encountering powerful new interactive media capable of great good or ill. Today’s “couch potatoes,” vicariously living in the fantasy world of television, could become tomorrow’s “couch funguses,” immersed as protagonists in 3-D soap operas while the real world deteriorates. The most significant influence on the evolution of education will not be the technical development of more powerful devices, but the professional development of wise designers, teachers, and learners.
Predictor: Dede, Chris
Prediction, in context:In 1995, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Educational Technology commissioned a series of white papers on various issues related to networking technologies. The department convened the authors for a workshop in November 1995 to discuss the implications. The following statement is taken from one of the white papers, “The Evolution of Learning Devices: Smart Objects, Information Infrastructures, and Shared Synthetic Environments,” by Chris Dede of the graduate school of education at George Mason University. Dede writes:”How a medium shapes its users, as well as its message, is a central issue in understanding the personal impact of emerging learning devices. The telephone creates conversationalists. The book develops imaginers, who can conjure a rich mental image from sparse symbols on a printed page. Much of television programming induces passive observers; other shows, such as Sesame Street and public affairs programs, can spark viewers’ enthusiasm and enrich their perspectives. Through the evolution of smart objects, information infrastructures, and shared synthetic environments, our society is encountering powerful new interactive media capable of great good or ill. Today’s ‘couch potatoes,’ vicariously living in the fantasy world of television, could become tomorrow’s ‘couch funguses,’ immersed as protagonists in 3-D soap operas while the real world deteriorates. The most significant influence on the evolution of education will not be the technical development of more powerful devices, but the professional development of wise designers, teachers, and learners.”
Date of prediction: January 1, 1995
Topic of prediction: Getting, Sharing Information
Subtopic: E-learning
Name of publication: The Future of Networking Technologies for Learning
Title, headline, chapter name: The Evolution of Learning Devices: Smart Objects, Information Infrastructures, and Shared Synthetic Environments
Quote Type: Direct quote
Page number or URL of document at time of study:
http://www.ed.gov/Technology/Futures/
This data was logged into the Elon/Pew Predictions Database by: Anderson, Janna Quitney