Can Technology Make Us Wise?

Knowledge, Networks & WisdomBernie Dodge, PhDSan Diego State University1There must be fifty ways to leave your ignoranceIve never metacognition I didnt likeRepertory grid on important elements. E.g., the war in Iraq, my relationship with my family, global warming, the state of education, Use quiz bank to present triads or write something myself?DisclaimerMEWiseAn entomologist doesnt have to be a spider to write about spiders. - Mihalyi Csikszentmihalyi

2T. S. EliotWhere is the Life we have lost in living?Where is the wisdom we have lost in knowledge?Where is the knowledge we have lost in information?

T.S. Eliot's The Rock (1934)3OverviewHow the net makes us smartHow the net makes us stupidWhy smart wiseWisdom, technology and you

How the Net Makes Us SmartOr so they sayNet Penetration by Region

http://www.internetworldstats.com/AMDs 50x15 Efforthttp://www.50x15.com/

Number of Net Users Worldwide

http://www.internetworldstats.com/Internet UseAccording to the Pew Internet & American Life Study (December, 2006), each day

65% use the internet54% read or send email41% use a search engine31% get news28% surf for fun9Blogging Stats (2005)6% of US adults have created a blogAge 18-29: 19%Age 50+: 5%16% of all US adults read blogshttp://www.pewinternet.org/PPF/p/1083/pipcomments.aspWikipedia Growth

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Size_of_WikipediaThere are currently about 2.4 million articles in the English version of WikipediaFacebookMore than 80 million active usersFacebook is the 6th most-trafficked website in the world (comScore)Over 55,000 regional, work-related, collegiate, and high school networksMore than half of Facebook users are outside of collegeThe fastest growing demographic is those 25 years old and older

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17How the Net Makes Us DumbOr so they sayWhats Hot?

http://www.google.com/trends/hottrends1.misty may2.kerri walsh3.sal the movie4.sal aunese5.armor all6.anthony kim7.roger federer wikipedia8.usa jet airlines9.mark everett10.nadal wins wimbledon

Blogs, Politics & Polarization

94% of political blog readers consume only blogs from one side of the ideological spectrumIs Google Making Us Stupid?

22These things probably do not make us wiserAnd they divert us from things that might23The Machine Stops

Why Smart WiseAnd what wisdom isWisdom

http://www.nwlink.com/~donclark/performance/understanding.html26Talmudic WisdomBen Zoma says:Who is wise?The one who learns from every person...Who is brave?The one who subdues his negative inclination...Who is rich?The one who is appreciates what he has...Who is honored?The one who gives honor to others...(Talmud - Avot 4:1)

27Ben FranklinWho is wise? He that learns from everyone. Who is powerful? He that governs his passions. Who is rich? He that is content. Who is that? Nobody.

28Maybe Wisdom is Hard to DefineBut we know it when we see it29Whos the Wisest?

30Whos the Wisest?

31A Short DefinitionWisdom is expert knowledge in the fundamental pragmatics of life that permits exceptional insight, judgment and advice about complex and uncertain matters.

Baltes & Smith, 199032One more thingWisdom is rare33Amish Saying

We grow too soon oldand too late smart.34Wisdom and AgeBut only if the grapes were good in the first place.

Its true, some wines improve with age.Wisdom doesnt come automatically with age. Nothing does - except wrinkles.-- Abigail Van Buren35Age & Wisdom

After adolescence, no relationshipSo building a foundation for wisdom in middle and high school years is critical36Maybe our job is to improve the grapes

37Berlin Model of Wisdom

Paul Baltes identified five factors in two categories:BasicMeta38Berlin Model FactorsBasicRich factual knowledge about lifeConsideration of general (human condition) and specific (e.g., life events, institutions) features of life matters as well as scope and depth in coverage of issues

39Berlin Model FactorsBasicRich procedural knowledge about lifeConsideration of decision strategies, goal selection, choosing means to achieve goals, people to consult with, as well as strategies of advice giving

40Berlin Model FactorsMetaLife span contextualismConsideration of past, current, and possible future life contexts and the circumstances in which a life is embedded

41Berlin Model FactorsMetaValues RelativismConsideration of variations in values and life priorities and the importance of viewing each person within an individual framework, but also the importance of a small set of universal values oriented toward the good of others and oneself

42Berlin Model FactorsMetaRecognition and management of uncertaintyConsideration of the inherent uncertainty of life (in terms of interpreting the past and predicting the future) and effective strategies for dealing with uncertainty

43Measuring WisdomA teenager learns that he or she has failed a test that is very important for his or her future.What could one or the teenager do and think in such a situation?

Responses are analyzed forFactual & Knowledge about LifeLifespan ContextualismValues RelativismUncertainty44Good News

Clinical psychologists tested higher in wisdom, so

Wisdom may be teachable45Robert Sternberg

46Balance Theory of WisdomWisdom is defined as the application of tacit as well as explicit knowledge as mediated by values toward the achievement of a common good through a balance among intrapersonal, interpersonal, and extrapersonal interests over the short term and long term to achieve a balance among adaptation to existing environments, shaping of existing environments, and selection of new environments.47Sternbergs Advice4. Role-model wisdom because what you do is more important than what you say. Wisdom is action dependent and wise actions need to be demonstrated.5. Have students read about wise judgments and decision making so that students understand that such means of judging and decision making exist.48Sternbergs Advice6. Help students to learn to recognize their own interests, those of other people, and those of institutions.7. Help students learn to balance their own interests, those of other people, and those of institutions.

49Sternbergs Advice12. Show students the importance of dialogical thinking, whereby they understand interests and ideas from multiple points of view.13. Teach students to search for and then try to reach the common gooda good where everyone wins, not only those with whom one identifies.

50So infusing wisdom into schools should be easyRight?51

52Wisdom Isnt on the Test!At least not this yearWisdom, Technology and YouTaking the best, crowding out the rest.Why Technology?

InputsOutputsInteractionsTransformations55Habits and EventsHabits: ongoing routines that widen your inputs and refine your insights.

Events: specific learning events that have a beginning, middle and end56Sample HabitsKeep a wisdom blogDevelop a diverse feed listKeep a to-know listDevelop your own proverbs wiki57Keep a Wisdom Blog

58Develop a Diverse Feed List

59Keep a To-Know List

60Develop a Proverbs WikiSummarize and synthesize daily experience from your blog into simple statements, each with a story.Examples: Choose your battlesDont assume you deserve power even when someone wants to give it to youPeople sometimes re-enter your life at a later time so be nice61Sample Learning EventsDIY Proverbs WikisTo-Know Lists Role PlaysChoice Charts

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66Choice ChartsTake a complex human situation and identify choices of actionGuess what the consequences of each action choice would beDecide what action choices would result from each new situation67Choice Charts

68What to do next Monday?Explicitly think about wisdom when designing reading and writing assignments.Give students decisions to make and explain,questions about people very different from them,opportunities to experience different points of view.Dont think of it as an add-on.69Modal OccupationsPre-1850: Farmer1850 - 1950: Factory Worker1950 - present: ClerkNext?

Soldier or Priest

Alvin Toffler7071