Steve Hargadon – Classroom 2.0
Submitted by Kay Dean
In Partial Fulfillment of the Class
EDU 255

Interestingly enough, Steve Hargadon showed up at the conference as a participant, and ended up a presenter. The two points I have chosen to comment on are: Point #2 Topic or content may not be as important as engagement and Point #4 A network must fulfill some compelling need.

The President of Bennington College, Dr. Liz Coleman, would definitely not agree with Steve on Point #2. I don’t agree with a lot of what Dr. Coleman said, but if I am to use a Ning in my classes, then topic and/or content is NOT “trumped” by engagement. In the literature block of courses, engagement is certainly important, but topic and content still reign supreme. In mathematics, for instance, content and topic definitely are the priority. Engagement may assist in obtaining knowledge about the topic, but does not surmount it. It is debatable whether or not, as Mr. Hargadon states “that engagement changes our lives and sense of learning in ALL (emphasis added) areas we are interested in [sic].

His point about a network fulfilling a compelling need certainly rings true. Folks need to have a good reason to come to a site and spend valuable time and energy interacting with others. So, for example, a student in my class will have to design a Ning site that classmates will want to use. This will need supreme monitoring from the instructor, as middle school boys and girls are pretty much focused on aspects of social interaction that will require censorship.

In summary, Mr. Hargadon makes excellent points including important aspects for our entire society – be polite, understanding, encouraging, supportive and make things better.