8th Annual Teaching with Technology Conference — Final Program:
Convergent Practice: Networking and Creativity. John Hopkins, CU-Boulder — Room 1B90
The focus of this presentation is on the convergence of digital/network technology and the arts, and the opportunities for collaborating with a global network of artists. This presentation includes an overview of several specific digital arts projects in Europe and the United States and commentary about the practice behind teaching and creative artwork. (https://neoscenes.net)
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TWT Talk notes:
“teaching is an action, a practice that embodies art as a way-of-doing: a life praxis. in a matrix of social structures it formalizes the path of movement of energies between two people, the teacher and the student. at the same moment of this formalization, equal energies must reverse the implied hierarchy of this polarization and exchange the roles of the participants: the forces applied by the social matrix re-configured or simply discarded. the two collect the sum total of their knowing, rooted in their sensual awarenesses, and bring it to the forefront of relation. the harmonic flow, the oscillation, thus initiated must hold as its frequency the organic synchronicity of the two individuals and the existence of formal structure must dissipate into a Presence of genuine dialogue.”
background
did undergrad work in geophysical engineering at CSM, worked as an international explorationist for a major, quit to collect an MFA from CU in Photo and Electonic Media, then left the US in 1989 to live and work in a variety of places from Iceland to most countries around the Baltic Rim in Northern Europe running seminars at 15-20 universities each year under the title networking and creativity. here at CU as a sabbatical replacement, but about to return to Europe.
As as artist/educator, I am most interested in the occupation of social/network spaces as places for socially and personally relevant actions/activities
hope to go a bit deeper to more basic fundamentals)
caveats:
— as I am both teaching the principles of the creative use of ‘technology’ at the same time as exploring the applied use of tech as a creative medium… (a conundrum. for example, the production of artifacts by digital machines is not so important in creative innovation, rather it’s use as a networked/communications tool…) creating/facilitating a functional human network in the class is extremely important… (high-risk)
— the worldview that my creative and teaching practice is embedded in cannot be covered
— this course is an immersive class about technology, not a traditional academic class aided by technology … so somewhat different…
— one reason for this style is to emphasize the physicality of lecturing, using my embodied presence (performance!) as a tool, a mediating technology in
introduction:
I was amused when I heard at a meeting w/ ITS people once that their management portfolio included the installation and maintenance of, among other things around campus, white boards in teaching spaces.
going back to principles — principles / points:
1) caveat worldview (more complex than… (energy, flow-based, continuous, immersive, )
— status quo deployment of technology… not engaged in a critique of effects…
— an obsession on the material aspects of technological implementation is mis-directed (even in a creative sense), as it often ignores or doesn’t take into account the realities of be-ing in the world
— tossing out Newtonian, Cartesian, mechanistic, materialist…
— very disturbed by the dramatic lack of awareness of the impact of deployed technologies (command and control/surveillance?) vs open source?
2) technology (define… historical,
— mediation (simulation as special condition/case)
— mediation / filtration form always has an effect!
— definition of technology — take a longer perspective on technology — language is a mediating technology… history…
3) education/learning/creativity as rooted in human connection (attention, concentration, focus, action… (facilitation of that)
— addresssing the lack of correlation —
— methodology of chaos
— relevance! (neurologically supported ‘warming up’ when topic is raised…)
— looking at the lack of correlation between education and technology — well, why…?
— facilitating the connection of students (and faculty — or eliminating the distinction !)… distinctly non-technologically… (and the quality of the “technologically mediated dialogue increases”
— removing FEAR!
— human presence is the issue (facilitating attention, focus, concentration, and connection with others)
— one sets up situations that exercise these principles, and the subject material (or subjective materialization is…) technology…
4) dialogue
— dialogues – by facilitating human interaction, the quality of the technologically ‘mediated’ dialogue increases
— virtuality needs MORE attention and concentration (try an online chat with students), though despite this the relative filter of that particular mediation will change the character of the encounter… for each student.
5) (human) networks (as primary aspect of digital device, not artifact production) (VERSUS Hierarchic structure — i.e., network of machines is NOT a network!
— difference between EACH machine… is a different medium…
— network as a site of generative, massive energy
— artifact vs network distinction… the base power of ‘new media’ (in terms of radical praxis…which has the potential to deeply affect education to the point of changing it beyond recognition)
6) creative action… (define…
— moving from product to process to practice (life/living/momentary praxis)
— facilitating those networks, and there will be an energized outcome
— teaching students how to critically learn (and engage) technology… not rote learning (learning how to learn) and coping with the fear factor (significant!)
— creativity might be defined as the conditions under which there is a omni-directional flow of energies between (people)
— facilitating the meta-conditions of the ‘space”
7) look at di-fusion
— (maybe not)
8) conclusions
— normal materialist worldview does not allow an empowering position related to the engagement of technologically mediated practices…
— make connection with previous ‘technologies’ to understand the operation, social effects, and principles of where we are as a culture in the moment. take a longer perspective on technology (language, body, etc…)
— remember the human elements (relevance, promoting student’s confidence in their own ‘sensual’ experience in the world (energy reception)
— consideration of environment (two ways of teaching literacy — let the students find out, or tell them…) like technology management issue of control or not… open source
— constructing a network facilitating dialogues, making connections, facilitating the meta-structure
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“Education is a process that necessarily entails an interpersonal (not merely interactive) relationship between people-student and teacher (and student and student) that aims at individual and collective self-knowledge. (Whenever people recall their educational experiences they tend to remember, above all, not courses or subjects or the information imparted but people, people who changed their minds or their lives, people who made a difference in their developing sense of themselves. It is a sign of our current confusion about education that we must be reminded of this obvious fact: that the relationship between people is central to the educational experience.) Education is a process of becoming for all parties, based upon mutual recognition and validation and centering upon the formation and evolution of identity. The actual content of the educational experience is defined by this relationship between people and the chief determinant of quality education is the establishment and enrichment of this relationship.” — David F. Noble, Technology and the Commodification of Higher Education
probe for misconceptions… status of prior knowledge
criticalthinking.org (background)
feedback after self-assessment
need a proper metastructure over and above a curriculum…!