Thing #5

I am an avid user of Web 2.0. I did not know the technologies I was using were given a name. I was slow to get involved in the technology but slowly started learning about them as a necessity to keep up with the people around me and the music industry. It has been he breath of fresh air to a stale music business. It facilitated independence and a way for musicians to promote their music and to communicate with their audience. It seems to be a necessity now since things have changed to keep up with the trends in fear of being left behind. It is essential for music students to know how to utilize these tools if they are going to become successful professional musicians. You no longer have to work for a record company or television station. You can video tape your show, stream it, upload it, distribute it on the new Web 2. 0 technologies while at the same time you can inform your audience about your performances, correspond, and sell merchandise through the site. It is also a place where you can teach music. I use it regularly to learn about new music technologies. People love to show off new toys. I also can listen to the new repertoire that I am working on. There are beginning to advanced levels of instruction and people demonstrating how to perform well known musical works. I can give the links for the musical works to the students to watch and listen to while they are preparing.

I think through the use of these technologies teachers and individuals can find a technology that will assist them with any topic that you can think of from simulations to real-time streaming of media. The uses are endless. Instead of going through publisher who edits and screen your work, you can instantly publish it for the review of your peers. I just met a man who emigrated here from a hostile country. He told me about politics and the wars. I suggested that they write about their experiences on a Web page so people can hear the stories from the people who experienced the history. Teachers can use the Web to create lessons from people who were making the history. You can gather lesson materials from all over the world on nearly every topic. One thing for sure is that the children love watching movies and playing video games. If education was more like playing video games all day the kids would be excited about learning. I have been telling people for a while that YouTube is actually a great learning tool. Unfortunately bad press has created a negative image for Web 2.0 technologies. A few bad incidents blown out of proportion have led school to lock students out of these sites and sanctions instructors who frequent them. It appears that the education world is trying to go paperless and collaborative. You no longer need a book. You can derive all your lessons from a collaborative community of experts on the topics. Students are exposed to an unlimited supply of resources.