Talking Points

Mike Wesch

Taking Points

Ok, so I am doing this based off the video of Mike Wesch. In the video he starts off talking about his college class of students and how they look like they are not connected to the real world. Not connected in the sense of not trying that hard in class, they don’t look like they are paying that much attention or they don’t even look like they are interested in knowing what is going on in front of the class. Judging by the size of the class I can see why some of the students don’t have a long attention span towards learning or at least paying attention at that present moment. Based on my experience with large lecture rooms I know that only about 25% of the class is actually paying attention. I know this because around the first couple weeks of class I would sit in the back of the class and would be able to see everything other students are doing on their lap tops such as playing games, or going on one of the many social media websites. Then there are a scattered few, who for a while will start to take notes but are easily tempted into wandering off in all the electronics. Then really the only people who are taking notes are the people in the front row because they have no other choice with the teacher standing just feet from them. I’m sorry to turn this into such a long story but it kind of helps prove my point of how students aren’t that much connected to the class room setting but then they all would participate in something like the “American Idol” as shown in the video.

                Technology is taking over, and everyone is doing everything on a computer or device with internet access. Wesch talks about the media saying that the media is not just a tool for use of entertainment, some people do actually use the media to communicate, Such as the social media, or even the ‘Mother who made the video on YouTube about the “Pickles” because her baby was a little person. She used the internet to connect with others in order to help change a label on a pickle jar. Before social media online, the only time we would communicate would be while watching TV in the same area. The only down side he said about the TV was that they only talked during the commercial which wasn’t that much time, but I don’t see it as a bad thing because it’s still some type of human contact. Another example that he used was the maps and how he used it to help people. Then he finishes off by saying media is not just a one way conversation, people are out there watching and looking at stuff posted on the internet, like the Free Hugs video. It’s like exponential growth, you tell 3 people then they tell 3 more people and so on.  It’s really easy to connect, but really hard to connect with people. If only people could connect with other people as well as they do online.

Connect, Organize, Share