Sections
| Getting to Know the G.C. | The Virtual Book in Cyberspace |
| History of the G.C. | My Proposal for Mining the G.C. |
Mapping the Generational Curriculum is like creating a whole new world. This Generational Curriculum is what the generation 4, 409b students were writing about in their 4th report for Dr. Leon's cyberpsychology class. One student, by the name of Travis Abe, talks about organizing the Generational Curriculum by using search engines, CGI maps, tour guides, and tables. Travis stresses the importance of organization and planning. He goes on and describes each of those navigating alternatives I mentioned above and states that his personal favorite is the Common Gateway Interface (CGI) maps. Just like me, he likes to view attractive graphics and usually stays at a site longer if there is more pictures and less words. Travis hates the tour guide alternative because it makes him feel dumb. I don't feel quite the same as he does because it depends on what the content is that you are looking for. For example, I would feel more inclined to use a tour guide in something huge like the Generational Curriculum especially if its growing larger day by day. Want to see more of his report? Click here: Travis Abe's report 4.
The one main thing that the G4 students stated was the use of a map site or CGI and how it appeals more to the user. Generally, this is true because most people prefer looking at visual designs as compared to complex words. I am truly amazed at the way these students progressed with mapping the GC.
On the Home Pages of the generation 6, 459 students, I was delighted to see the many similarities and differences of their reactions to the 18 links of Leon James Home Page. It would have been very helpful indeed if I looked over their reactions before I started on my summaries. This is so because it gives me an opportunity to broaden my horizon to other people's opinions and reactions. The concept of expanding your knowledge is an important part of the Generational Curriculum.
The article titled "Creating an Online Learning Environment..." presents the results of the various aspects of the online generational community of students. In other words, this is where you will find the backbone of the History of the Generational Curriculum. Just click on the title above and you will see what I'm talking about.^
The history of the GC dates back to the 1970s where students initially typed reports that were later referenced by a succeeding generation of students who were taking courses from Dr James. The several college courses Dr. Leon James taught in the University of Hawaii were Social Psychology, Statistics, Personality Theory, and the History of Psychology as a Science. I think that the creation of the GC is astonishing because it allowed the opportunity and the starting point for students to interact at an incredible level so much that from 1970, technology leaped profoundly into 1997 with the sophistication of an online community via the internet. What does this tell me? The world is evolving and community inter-relations should also evolve. This leads us to wonder, how does it feel to be part of the Generational Curriculum? It feels as if we are in a world where means of communication is unlimited. From the basic lecture hall to your own personal computer, you can communicate with other people in your community. Each and every one of our ideas can be expressed and dealt with feedback through online communities. I feel like I'm part of that community where I know there is a relationship bonded through this Generational Curriculum. The growth and expansion of the GC is my vision of its future. It is entitled to a boundless journey into the 21st century where soon our great grandchildren will learn and improve from it.
This article deals with the different perspectives between Dr. Leon and his friend about the use of the Internet. It also integrates the functions of a home page, links, psychological characteristics of hypertext links, and informational content of home pages. Let me first talk about Dr. Leon and his friend. Dr. James tries to convince his friend that there is more to the Internet than just retrieving files. He states two ways of looking at the Internet: An internal view or an external view. The former is a pure example of an active Net user or a cyberspace cadet. The latter is business prospects that view the Internet as tools or means to an end such as profit. "Are we going to benifit from it? Or how can we use it to increase sales?" These questions rumble on in the minds of people with external views. I prefer to be both and have a balanced attitude towards the internet. I also was impressed with Dr. James idea of being a virtual god, as he states, "you are acting like a virtual god -- building a cyberspace architecture through virtual pathways to people's minds." This is a cool statement because in a way it is true. People are influenced by the architecture of your home page. Do you want to see more of what I am talking about? You'll find it here.
The "virtual book" in hypertext is like an encyclopedia
of information on the Internet. However there are significant
differences that must be known. First, the "virtual book"
is inevitably changing and growing to an enormous size and has
the ability to capture thousands of people at the same time. If
you take out the virtual from book, you will see that a book is
limited to just that! A book. With it being virtual, you have
the rich environment of information, communication, relations,
and flexibility. All these features allows you to journey into
another dimension far from just reading a text book.
So what might be the problems with hypertext navigation we might
ask? Simple, The complexity of a Web site is greater if it just
contains clusters of links all bunched up together. These links
could be in the form of words which would make it more complex
to the novice user. Psychologically, people are geared towards
links that have some sort of graphic appeal to them. Not to mention,
people need a purpose or direction to what they are looking for.
Another problem is download time. It would be ludicrous for people
to search each and every link on a Web site because of this download
time.
How does the complexity of the virtual book affect navigation? It depends on how well you design your links and how effective the methods you use for navigating them through these links. Like I've said, people are more inclined to navigate only if it appeals to them or they have a purpose to.
First I read Skye Nakayama's report on "Web design principles" and it astonished my ever growing mind. Skye's page is well organized and easy to read. He includes an introduction with an overview of what you will expect giving you a chance to read on or just leave. He gives his reactions to a home page called Glover com. and to my observation, he dislikes it with a passion. The next topic he covers is the psychological aspect of a Web design with ideas from the "Social Psychological Principles of Home Page Architecture." At the end of his report, Skye talks more about himself which gives the reader a first impression. Fortunately, I am impressed at how he reacts to the many Web designs and home pages on the Internet. I agree in part with his reactions because it gets very frustrating when you are waiting for a picture to download and then finding out it wasn't worth the wait. I feel in the future this won't be a problem anymore. Information will travel faster than we could possibly imagine. I like Skye's report because he gives his true feelings about Web designs and how people are so boring as to just using the same templates with different written content. Especially if you are in Dr. James class, you need to be creative. By reading Skye's report, it makes me think of creativity and its impact on your readers. You need creativity to make it into this Web design technology. What lures people and what keeps them on your Web site is your creativity.
Erin Tanaka's report is very well organized and the text could
be read very easily. However, I would suggest using a more appealing
background than just plain purple. She also talks about the Glover
com. home page but unlike Skye, it appeals to her in a positive
way. On her report you will find a brief description of Glover's
"Top Ten Ways to Tell if You Have a Sucky Home Page."
These ten ways is very much what she agrees with. Another interesting
content I found on her page was how she talks about what to expect
in Dr. James class by giving you important pointers such as avoiding
procrastination and using Netscape Navigator Gold to type out
your reports. I am impressed at the way she tries to give a helping
hand to future generations. This is a very important aspect to
the Generational Curriculum because not only should you help your
own generation, you should also help future generations as well.
I like Erin's report page because of her friendly expression she
portrays to her readers. For example, she states, "The main
concern that I have for the instructor is . . . remember that
most of the students do not have an extensive background in computer
terminology." I appreciate the way she looks out for the
future generations. My kudos goes out to her very much.
The Generational Curriculum is indeed growing into vast proportions and we, as students, are contributing rich information to supplement its growth. This is where a map comes into play. By creating a map that resembles or appears like a family tree, you are allowing the user to initially start from the ground where the roots are. These roots could be the first generations or even Dr. James home page allowing you to visually see the foundation of all the generations to come. These ever growing generations are the branches that extend from the trunk of the tree. However, the GC, unlike a tree, never rots but keeps on growing as if it is a tree from Heaven. The GC is a growing cultural resource because each generation has its share of the cultural pot. Each person in their respective generation reveals in some way their culture through written reports as well as their Web site designs. The problem I see for future navigation is the complexity of a profound amount of information. Not every single person will be able to read and enjoy each students' reports in every past and future generations.
The WIB did not succeed because it was only limited to the present generations and no one from the public knew about. This is similar to a product that never gets sold because it is not known to the general public. Advertising is the answer to these problems. Getting the word around the Cyber community will enable more involvment leading to more responses.
The Generational Curriculum can be made more available to students
and the public by posting an ad in the Kaleo newspaper, Honolulu
Advertiser, and maybe in a computer magazine. There are also various
possibilities of having the past, present, and future Cyberpsychology
students incorporate in their home pages links to the GC. By word
of mouth is also an effective way of making it available to other
students. For example, I might be able to tell my friends to take
Dr. James Cyberpsychology class because they could learn and contribute
to a growing life long Generational Curriculum.
Earl talks about how the Generational Curriculum is a gigantic storage of information. He links you to other areas where it might help you to know more about where things are. I think Earl is more capable of providing a more richer content of ideas for mining the GC. His proposals are quite limited but they are subjected to more growth.
1. Do not Procrastinate!!!
2. Never speak in class while Dr. James is speaking.
3. Always ask questions when in doubt.
4. Help other students when they are in trouble.
5. Never use blue colored fonts on a black background.
6. Make sure that the Help desk people at the ITS lab are actually helping you.
7. Try to give truthful criticisms to your peers and not just praise.
8. Don't use the same template or design from previous generations.
9. Invest in Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.0 with Internet Assistant for Word.
10. Have fun! Be Creative … Be Creative … Be Creative …
I am certain you G8 students will carry on the work of the Generational Curriculum to a boundless journey into the 21st century. Good Luck!
As for the instructor, I appreciate your understanding and
giving us an extended due date for our 1st report.
You have actually taken into account what your previous G5 409b
student suggested, " The main
concern that I have for the instructor is...remember that most
of the students do not have an extensive background in computer
terminology. I think that the basic terms should be reviewed during
class time with a complete definition and example of each term.
Also, the instructor must be patient. Some people have more knowledge
about a subject than others and don't assume the next person knows
as much as you do."
