a. Diagram: A diagram of the
Generational Curriculum
b. Organization, Growth, Implications: A diagram of the GC; as well as the implications and intergrations of the GC
c. Two Articles about this site: Response and review of two articles about this site in terms of its benefits and its differentiation between other sites.
A. A Diagram of the Overall Framework of the Generational Curriculum:
B. Organization, Growth, Implications: A diagram of the GC; as well as the implications and intergrations of the GC.
Because this site is a naturally expanding phenonmenon in cyberspace, a result from the manner in which it was set up, I think this site already is a great informational tool. To see the systematic development of this project in a chronological fashion
is also a reflection of the quickly advancing technological age we live in. I've always believed that the wise person observes and learns from the growth of others came before. What I see in this generational curriculum is an innovatingly historical ac
count of not only the development of these psychological courses but, to a greater degree, the unfolding of an exciting, new world of sight, sound and intelligence, right before our eyes. This cyberspace adventure is an electric and awesome discovery of
the frontier of the 21st century. This GC site is very immense, and growing day by day.
Yet, it is still well organized in a way so as not to confuse the user. Total control and
well-conceived organization is what is needed because any site of this magnitude will
probably get out of control if boundaries ar e not set in their proper place. However,
this site seems well conceived and the foundations have been set to contain and arrange
information in a proper and user-friendly fashion. The front end of any good-sized site
should be well-organized and not too cluttered. There should be only relevant information
otherwise the user might get confused with too much words on the screen. Also, the major
categories should not be excessive ly wordy either, being kept simple and utilizing basic
vocabulary, that one could read instantly. This is not to say that people are dumb. It's
just that people are very busy and need to be able to scan pages quickly. The categories
should be equivilent to one another on the basis of the
amount of words, word choice and its style. Remember to keep names and discriptions of
each category basically on the same hierarchy level. Tour guides are a nice touch for
the more complex pages to have because they are very helpful for the brand new site user.
They should be included with all sites of a certain measurable size. If you want people to
visit your site, you should help them in anyway possible to find their way around. Having
never experienced a tour guide before, I thought Calvin Cheung's tour
was so helpful because it acts like a leading, guiding force(like a tour guide in
Waikiki)that effectively and efficiently guides you through the new environment. Sort of
like "new student orientation" at U.H. I highly recommend tour guides for all newcomers.
Diane Nahl's index of search
engines is also handy to have on the global page. It's a good way to group together an
ordered or alphabeticalized list of many things(in this case, search engines). Search
engines are very helpful to locate destinations, so, as the commercial goes, "You shouldn't
leave home without it." There's
now a good variety of search engines available to help you find what you're looking for.
I was amazed to find a topic that I'm interested in, "Hong Kong Films," because most
libraries don't carry a single book on the topic. Here, on the web, I found a
list of 10 urls. The wealth of information on the web is extrodinary. The reason for this
is that the world is full of people with different interests and ideas, and up to only
recently, the only way to transmit that information to the masses was by utilizing the medi
a--which, because of its cost, remained inaccessable to all except the rich. Search
engines like Alta Vista are necessary to
have for you to find your destination. It's like a research tool to designed to help you
find the place or topic you're interested in, but, in addition, it takes you there in
"light years," which is a matter of seconds. Search engines are a neces sity for the web
to have because of the immeasurable amount of information available. If there weren't any
search engines, how would we find information if we didn't have the address. It would be
too costly to publish thick telephone books of addresses
to issue out to web users. (By the way, the phone companies should start listing phone
books on the web, so that people who don't want to utilize a bulky phonebook can access the
information via their computer.) Search engines are also a great way to
maintain some kind of control over all this information. Just thinking about the endlessness of information can give one a headache. So, search engines also serve the purpose of receiving, retaining, orgainizing and releasing the information it receiv
es. What control!!
CGI Maps such as the one for the College of Arts and Sciences at
UHManoa: The CSS map is a
useful, organized starting point for many users--especially novices like myself who need a starting point to know that I'm in the right place. The maps are a great way to categorize information--from general to specific. The generalized groupings is als
o a good way to send the user to the destination that they desire. Hopefully, with
appropriate diagramming and linking, the user will get to their destination is the quickest and most efficient amount of time. The CSS server is really helpful to have for even the non-beginner because with repetition one gets so accustomed to the clicking sequence of the server that it becomes faster to just click there, rather than utilizing a bookmark.
Another capability is interactive AI(artificial intelligence)Guides which are useful for interactive communication between users.
C. . Two Articles about this site: Response and review of two articles about this site in terms of its benefits and its differentiation between other sites.
Dr. Leon James' page onsite informationfor his cyber-psychology courses shares information about the Generational Curriculum, which I am presently an active member. The GC is differen
t from most other sites because of its content, participants and design. Every semester, his psychology students learn the web and utilizes the medium for research, communication and presentation of their reports. Topics involve psychology on the intima
te level(in terms of self-analysis, growth), as well as psychology on the large-scale
level like the massive world wide web. The GC is certainly an interesting and novel design
which is probably why these classes are the first to close during registra
tion. The huge archives are a collection of topics from students that include such topics
as,"Analysis of Songs and Dreams," and "Resistance to Better Health Behaviors," among
many, many others. So, the anyone can access thearchives for this information.