The Egyptians were some of the first people to write. They used an alphabet system called hieroglyphics to write down stories and laws. At first, they had to carve everything into stone, but soon they discovered that Papyrus could be easily used as something to write on and writing became more popular. Until the end of the 15th century, things had to be hand-written on paper and every copy of something had to be hand-written, but the printing press allowed people to write things once and then copy it, making writing easier, and writing became yet again more popular. In 1808, the typewriter was invented, which made writing things easier because instead of handwriting something, they could just type it up and then copy it, which made writing even more popular. In the 21st century, Web 2.0 has made writing accessible for everyone because they can just type something up and share it on the Internet. With Web 2.0, everyone is an author. There are many pitfalls to this such as the disappearance of privacy online, distraction, and political discourse, but the opportunities that the Internet provides us with (self expression, personalized and interactive education, and a way to change things) make the Internet a very positive force in our society.
One of the most significant ways the Internet is a positive force in our society is through using technology in the classroom. If used properly, technology can be a way for kids to be interested in what they are learning, collaborate with others, and easily access resources that they may otherwise never have seen. In his book, Grown Up Digital, Don Tapscott compares the primitive “Industrial Age” teaching style of teacher-focused, lecture-based, and one-size-fits-all learning to the Net Gen-friendly teaching style of student-focused, interactive and discovery based, and customized learning. He says that for the Net Gen to be successful, educators must, “improve teaching and the curriculum to make it more relevant and engaging for young people” (Tapscott 128). Claire and Cherise made a point in their Prezi that, “because students can not only access information but generate it as well, education is developing into a hands-on experience that teachers and students alike must learn to manipulate in order to succeed” (Carr). This “hands-on” and “relevant and engaging” learning is exactly what is going to improve education in this country and the easiest way to achieve this learning style is through the Internet.
The Internet is also a very good way for people to express themselves, and it can be positive expression if used wisely. With Social Networking sites like Twitter, FaceBook, MySpace and more, people can express themselves and have an audience to express to. Twilebrities (twitter celebrities) use the Internet to express their feelings and thoughts and have gotten a following of people who agree with them or are entertained by them and have become a version of a celebrity. It is easy to express on the Internet because of sites like this and also because Web 2.0 is all about user contribution and collaboration. It is extremely easy to make a website or blog and express yourself on that place, where before Web 2.0, one would have to be a journalist or an author to get their ideas published. Ever since the beginning of the interactive Internet, a very popular subject for blogs has been fashion. One girl who has trumped fashion-blogging is “Gala Darling” who started a blog a few years ago. She started it to express herself as a self-love project and since has become an icon among the blogging community, but also the fashion industry, magazine world, and more. (galadarling.com)
The most important use of technology is to create political discourse. Some of this has a negative effect, but the majority of discourse going on (especially in recent days) is having a positive effect on the world. The Middle East Spring is one of the biggest movements of Revolution in history. The Internet played a very big role in these Revolutions, of course the Revolutions themselves did not happen on the Internet, but it still was extremely helpful for the people in them and the people who needed to know about them. In Tunisia, two men named Foetus and Waterman started an organization named Takriz and it had an extreme role in the Tunisian Revolution. Takriz used the Internet and, “street culture, slang, and obscenities to fire up street youth”. They said in an interview, “’We were online every day…and on the streets pretty much every day, collecting information, collecting videos, organizing protests, getting into protests’”. The Internet was an effective tool for Takriz to mobilize people into fighting back this authoritarian regime and it spread their views, but “the street is where history happens” (Pollock). Another group of people using the Internet for political discourse is the Occupy Wallstreet movement. They have a camp set up with computer programmers monitoring the Internet, creating different websites and pages, spreading messages and videos and pictures, and more. Once again, the movement isn’t actually taking place on the Internet, but the movement is spreading at viral speed. “Not only has the Occupy Wall Street movement spread from city to city; live streaming has caught on around the world, too. There are now demonstrations streaming live from Los Angeles to London” (Porzucki). The Internet is the only possible way for this political discourse to be spread so quickly and effectively to the entire world.
The Internet has its faults, but it’s improvements on education, resources for self-expression, and ability to spread political discourse have made it a positive source in our lives. This is all of course if you know how to use it properly and effectively. With more and more people joining and contributing to the online world, there are more resources available to the users, but it also makes it difficult to differentiate between good and bad sources. Internet literacy is knowing how to use the Internet, but to be literate you have to know how to use it in a positive way. Be aware of what you are reading and what you are posting and who is reading what you are posting. With every improvement in technology since Papyrus, there have been faults and cautions that go along with it, but they still prove to be important to the world and to the average person.
