The Internet has become so pervasive that to be truly literate in 2006 demands some degree of technological fluency or at least familiarity. According to the Pew Internet & American Life Project, 73% of American adults had used the Internet or e-mail as of March 2006. For the first time, the National Association of Adult Literacy–the most wide-ranging U.S. study of literacy–will test computer literacy in its 2008 survey that measures overall literacy. With such a large proportion of reading and writing taking place on the Internet, literacy has changed from a solitary pursuit into a collective one. —Maureen Farrell —How The Internet Saved Literacy (Forbes.com)
From an excellent special report on books in the digital age.
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Dennis: Here is the link to the November 29th, 2006 Science article posted on Yahoo! about imagination moving wheelchairs. The technology is appropriately called "Braingate", an appropriate cognitive metaphor for life in the 21st century.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20061129/sc_nm/brain_dc
I agree with you and Mike that the Internet is increasing literacy. The stats were convincing. There are great websites like http://www.starfall.com which local school districts
(and home schoolers) can use with young kids. While I'm not a gamer, I respect their ability to inspire the imagination. Just read in the paper how new biotechnology for quadriplegics allows them to move their wheelchair by imagining a picture of a rolling wheelchair. Neurons fire, the brain implant interprets it, and makes their chair move. Visual imagery in mirror neurons makes learning happen. Why should it be any different for the internet?
Excellent material throughout this report! It's good to see I still have reason to be optimistic.
So does gaming come into play with this? Do computer games threaten reading or enhance literacy more or less than the internet? Gamers seldom read directions. Novel tie-ins to games are often horrible. I think the only books I've bought as a result of a game are strategy guides, and these are usually tables and charts. And even there, I've often found better guides online. Reading your post below about "Hammer" and the Half-Life mods you're teaching in New Media Projects, I wonder how English students see this stuff as fitting with their major.