[wp-edu] Firewalls and WordPress

[James Groom]

> I talked to a number of teachers at WordCamp Ed whose schools block all
> social media sites as well as wordpress.com, blogspot, etc.
> Jane

Yeah, it is insane, I think the idea that the rule for schools to
close this stuff out is in many ways their death knell of relevance. I
mentioned it recently at WordCampED, but Henry Jenkins "Why
Universities Shouldn't Create 'Something Like YouTube'"
http://www.henryjenkins.org/2008/10/why_universities_shouldnt_crea_1.html

And while the title of the article suggests otherwise, the most
significant parts for me was when he talks about how the pedominant
approach to technology which is characterized by fear is in effect
de-skilling students and futhering the gap between haves and have
nots:

"As long as they react to these developments as risks rather than
resources, then those kids who have access to this online world are
going to be de-skilled as they enter the schoolhouse gates and those
kids who don't have access are going to be left further behind because
they have been abandoned by the institutions which are otherwise best
situated to address the digital divide in terms of technical access
and the participation gap in terms of access to skills and
experiences. So, yes, informal learning is taking place outside of
school for those who are able to access it but the refusal of schools
to engage with it further amplifies the inequalities between
information haves and have nots."

Jim