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I am eating an elephant. Yes, it is a big undertaking, and I am not sure when I will finish my task or that I ever will. I didn't desire to be an elephant eater, but surviving current times dictates I learn to like elephant since it is becoming the global food. I am referring to the information explosion elephant, or more descriptively put, the computer technology elephant. So how does one go about eating an elephant? Trying a new food is fearful, especially when the subconscious screams, "You won't like it." So . . . the body must adjust to digesting a little elephant every day until it can handle a steady diet of it. Developing a taste for elephant is really quite adaptable for English teachers since they are the world's greatest lovers of bedtime stories. Developing a taste for elephant and engagement in bedtime stories follow the same centuries-old process: 1) set a secure place and a definite time, 2) retain a sense of humor which generates anticipation of a pleasant experience, 3) establish a warm bond between storyteller and listener, 4) make connections from earlier stories to later ones by storyteller/listener interaction, and 5) continue from the leaving off point if the listener has fallen asleep before the story ended at the previous setting. Yes, this is the way to make bedtime story time successful; likewise, this is the way to make eating an elephant successful.
If you could close your eyes and let your mind pull up a picture of your very first literary experience, what would it be? My memory pulls up an elephant trapped in a hunter's net with a very small mouse nibbling at the netting ropes to free the gigantic, but helpless, animal. I suppose this picture was keyed into memory from my bedtime storyreading mother who introduced Hans Christen Anderson, Grimm, Scott, Longfellow, Shakespeare and Aesop in bedtime stories over half a century ago. Each of mother's bedtime stories was totally sensible and always contained a profound moral--or she created one. Yet my memory consistently retrieves a picture of an elephant trapped in the net when all the recent Fable books show Aesop using a lion. How did an elephant get in my net? How do elephants become ingrained in almost anyone's life? How did society become saturated with elephants? Society is saturated, you know. White elephants represent the useless objects which we give as gag gifts at Christmas parties or donate to a neighborhood garage sale. Dumbo has become the universal symbol of anything with big ears, little sense, or the combination of both. Pink elephants appear if someone is nostalgic, romantic, or intoxicated. Elephant jokes fit somewhere between Knock Knock and Dumb Blond jokes in the history of inappropriate humor. I even remember my children (the tennis shoe generation) rolling in hysteric laughter as they informed me that the elephant wore pink tennis shoes " . . . because the white ones were in the wash."
Even publishers continue to include Cromwell's "Shooting an Elephant" as an appropriate essay model in the most popular readers. Society is saturated with elephants. Multicultural disciplines all over the world are guilty of using the term elephant to represent some hidden message, something tremendously overwhelming, or something magnetically mystical. Yes, people need the term elephant. Historians needed the term to label the industrial revolution, for no one knew how to digest what was happening to lifestyle changes created by that revolution. Adjusting to changing lifestyles was an overwhelming, mysteriously magnetic chore. Now, only a few generations later, the whole world is facing a similar crisis with an information explosion. This new elephant--computer technology--is also overwhelming and mysteriously magnetic. What does society know of dealing with this elephant? What are its secrets, and how do we go about ingesting the nature of this animal? How can we even begin to develop a taste for elephant?
Chomsky, the author of deeper meaning theory, would be proud to know that I am suggesting it is possible to understand the deeper meaning of this new elephant by studying the stories of real elephants? I chose elephants because I believe it is the special art of a storyteller to make real things and unreal things seem sensible as my mother used to do with literary greats as well as fairytale greats. In the preface of All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten,Robert Fulghum states the license of a storyteller allows, " . . . the permission to rearrange my experience to improve a story, so long as it serves some notion of Truth." Storytruth has a way of making complicated things simple, especially at bedtime. It seems logical then to examine elephant stories to see how storytruth applies to the art of eating a new breed of elephant--the computer technology elephant.
It is a true story that Barnum and Bailey circus was famous for the performance of a herd of well-trained adult elephants until the night of their circus fire. After the fire, the owners were forced to replace every elephant used in their internationally famous act, a tremendous loss--not only financially but in years of training. You see, if a baby elephant is secured at birth with a very big chain connected to a very big stake, the new baby pulls in vain against the chain and stake until it determines them to be the stronger. As the baby grows, the image that the chain and stake hold it captive remains in the elephant's memory even though its own size and strength increase. The circus master eventually reduces the size of the chain and stake because the elephant never forgets the image that the chain and stake constitute authority. Reaching adulthood, the elephant doesn't willingly stay chained to a small stake because it is tame; it stays chained because it still believes the stake is still the authority. The night of the Barnum and Bailey fire, the elephants spooked and pulled their stakes up allowing them freedom. None of the elephants could ever be staked again because they had replaced the image of their authority with a new image.
Computer technology follows the same pattern. Computer experience limits are imposed in the head with first experiences. These limits will be broken only when professional heat (a fire) forces the making of a new image. Professional heat set in on me when I realized my students were coming into the classroom with more technology than I. I had to pull up the stake of past intimidation and take assertive action to actually put myself on a computer learning pathway. The first step, the same as with the bedtime stories, became the setting up of a secure place and definite time to study computerism. Unfortunately, while my English department works hard to obtain adequate access to office and computer time, funds filter down to serve the part time teachers last, so I found myself fighting the champagne-appetite-on-a-beer-budget syndrome. Does that sound familiar to anyone? Currently, much pressure exists at all levels to keep pace with progressing technology. Budgeting is not increasing at a rate equal to the need of updating network capacity and machines. Reality dictates that setting the place and time to gain computer knowledge becomes a personal responsibility, not an institutional responsibility. Accepting this personal responsibility and stepping out on my own was a major, major step for me which I recorded in the following journal entry in 1995.
"Being a mother of five kids, my computer illiteracy prevailed long past the time it should have because our family resources went to keep the KIDS on wheels and in word processors. I don't know how many other teachers will relate to this predicament, but I am happy to announce that finally my number five, the last of the children, is near completion of his Engineering degree; thus, I have declared 'The Year of the Mother'. This means I will finally get my home computer updated which in turn means . . . I will have to learn to use it.
Setting this goal for myself led me to prevail upon some of the others in the department to teach me where to continue. I say 'continue' because I really started a long time ago. It took me three 'Introduction to Computer' courses from Vo-Tech (that's when the Eastern Idaho Technical College was still called Vo-Tech) to realize that a computer really would not begin to smoke if I pushed the wrong button. In my childhood, we still had tubes in our radios and TV's--actually we never had a TV until I was a senior in high school. The children in our family were warned--no THREATENED--about touching buttons because too much flipping of switches got everything out of 'whack' (whatever whack was). Additionally, if we bumped these magic machines too often, we may work the tubes loose and cause shorts in the electrical system which could burn up the tubes, the machine, and the house. A toaster fire caused from an electrical short in these years may have made me an unchallenging believer, but being the good obedient child that I was, I never disputed this parental notion. A generation later my husband bought our first Texas Instruments Computer, but the kids monopolized Wormy and Pac Man, so until I went to Vo-Tech, I maintained my preconceptions and emotions even within my own home.
Fortunately, in my search for department knowledge, Allen Hackworth invited me to attend his Computer Composition course, which I did do. I'm afraid it became a case of my eyes being bigger than my stomach, for I fancied tons of ways I could apply his knowledge if I could only hang onto it. The computer could certainly make my life easier if I could work smarter instead of longer. Mentor Hackworth was patient. Over and over he would explain the same answers to me until I finally was smart enough to ask the right question to make the information come together in my mind. I began using his ideas and programs to solve my problems. When I commented, 'I'm stealing hours and hours of your life,' he responded, 'That's okay. I hope it will make your life easier.' I discovered Master Hackworth was serving others the same way. He had already put his personal program for grammar reinforcement onto the library computers. With an electronic grammar tutor accessible in the library which I could monitor from my office computer, more classroom time became devoted to developing excellence in writing skills."
Think of what that meant to a teacher who had multiple low skills students. My fire was lit. I felt extremely fortunate that when I made the personal decision to develop a taste for elephant, I found a helpful mentor, Allen Hackworth. However, this giving individual can mentor anyone with Internet. He has compiled an outstanding homepage including his grammar drill and test net programs and offers them free to any individual who wishes to download them onto their personal computer via Internet. He has written a Net Tutor feature on his homepage that leads step by step into the places a writing teacher needs to go to be abreast of computers and writing. Knowing I was new to this technology, Master Hackworth asked me to follow the tutor instructions and report any snags to him for rewrite. We found very few.
Allen Hackworth has continued to add very valuable information to his homepage. Though his computing has been with experts, he is keenly adept at putting technical information in layman terms for computer illiterates like me. His page offers step by step progressions for many shareware experiences and some marvelous links for exploring. His page offers a pathway into a higher level which I intend to follow as my ability to digest elephant grows. I highly recommend spending time at his address or go directly to his Net Tutor or Writing pages:
http://www.srv.net/~allenh/homepage.html http://www.srv.net/~allenh/writing.html http://www.srv.net/~allenh/tutor.html
As a California researcher stood watching elephants, she sensed something strange in the air that caused organized responses from the elephants. She could hear nothing, but sensed vibrations in the air were affecting the elephants. The researcher returned to the building for an odometer to measure sound waves. She discovered that the elephants were talking to each other in a sound wave below that audible to the human ear. No one had ever realized elephants had a language before this discovery because no one could hear their low pitched sound. The researcher synchronized the source of the sound to the actions of the elephant herd and discovered the elephants were receiving directions from the matriarch. The elephants were surprisingly in harmony with one another even to the point of playful games. It was as if the elephants shared a sense of humor or pleasure communicating with each other. They appeared to enjoy communicating.
After setting a place and time to learn to eat elephant, keeping a sense of humor and an anticipation similar to a child's at bedtime is mandatory to get through all the periods of frustration. When a graphic is off even one space, the computer, servers, or provider will not respond--major frustration. Netoric users have early built in this sense of humor. Through a language called Neoteric, a user of the Internet elephant will good naturedly flame those not in harmony with the nettors, or use smiley faces to add expression within messages. Netoric users pounce immediately on anyone posting with a negative attitude. They send elaborate picture signatures or words of wisdom to others of casual conversation. They coin Acronyms and new terms to the language of Netoric for speed and clarity. Netiquette, Netoric's Miss Manners feature, reminds users that it is impolite to make the messages too long and that one should never shout by using capital letters. I purchased Ted Alspach's INTERNET E-MAIL QUICK TOURbook by Ventana Press, ISBN 1-56604-220-8 to help me understand Netoric. Chapter eight gives multiple examples of acronyms, smileys, and signatures. Many such books are available providing a way to begin the foreign language of netoric. Following writing discussions with other professionals is also good introduction to web terms. Through Listserv discussions I have begun to understand terms such as Web Pals, Syllawebs, and Webfolios. Allen Hackworth's homepage gives information about Listserv groups. I chose a group called ACW-L, an E-Mail discussion list which includes a wide variety of issues concerning computers and writing such as teaching strategies, where to find Internet resources, and various other pedagogical tools. I am what is called a lurker since I do not have the time or confidence to engage in regular posts, but I have learned where to look for things and how to gain confidence by lurking with the experts. This ACW group was started in 1993 by Trent Batson, John O'Connor, and Fred Kemp, based on the idea of people working together to overcome the difficulties and realize the amazing opportunities of computers and the Internet revolution. You can learn about ACW at:
http://english.ttu.edu/acw
I suppose working with international students prepared me to learn the language of netoric since they have saturated me with an awareness of double word meanings. An overuse of double word meanings is a technique favored by nettors using netoric. Somehow it brings pleasure, especially to an English teacher, to play with language the way the nettors do. My bedside fable memory of the elephant wrapped in the net being chewed by the mouse is a perfect example of how Internet has a unique usage of double word meanings all its own. The fable could mean the mouse (the plastic one hooked to the computer) controls the net (the lines of gateways and pathways to everywhere), and the net controls the elephant (the information explosion). My most meaningful double meaning elephant encounter occurred while motivating my son, Steve, to graduate from high school--a very difficult task after being told he would probably only make eighth grade because of a learning disability. After multiple study sessions, Steve wearied of my messages: ". . . a mountain is climbed one step at a time", " . . . from a little seed the great oak grows, " . . . little drops of water, little grains of sand, make the mighty ocean and the bounteous land." Steve went totally silent for a very long time, and when he lifted his eyes to meet mine, he said, "Quit worrying, mother. I will eat this elephant . . . one bite at a time." My son ate his elephant. I watched Steve graduate from college with a computer degree and go on to become Novell certificated. He has just recently completed setting up a mini-network for the United States government from Delle, Utah, to Hill Air Force Base. While Steve was chewing at his profession, my own profession grew into an elephant. When I complained that I was falling behind my students in technology, Steve smiled and said, "Well, mom, I guess you will have to eat your elephant . . . one byte at a time."
After designating a place and time to study and learning to anticipate Netting sessions with the enjoyment of language, an interaction with other nettors needs to take place. In research with the real elephant, it was discovered that the matriarch elephant not only gave instructions which provided fun for the babies but that the whole elephant colony received directions from the matriarch enabling the entire colony to participate in the protection of each member. Young babies, for example, are encircled by all the elephants, even yearling brothers and sisters, if danger is present. The colony works together to keep each member strong, and the baby's bonding to the other colony members is equally as strong to colony members as to the birth mother. The computer technology elephant has established this same warm bond between experts and newbies. I have been amazed at the generosity flowing over the net. Nothing I am using from the net has cost. At the present time, I am piloting an online E111 course for Continuing Ed. I required my online students to purchase a published text as a road map. All computer grammar support programs, chat software, hot lines and documentation sources exist on the net free of charge any additional charge. All experts I have asked to help me when I hit a computing snag responded quickly and pleasantly. All inquiries I have emailed requesting copies of lists or addresses to expand my knowledge have been sent immediately--no charge. These are some supplement addresses I find interesting:
http://english.ttu.edu/kairos/1.2/index.html http://www.cas.usf.edu/english/walker/mla.html
As the research of the real elephants has progressed, proverbs of the elephant's memory has caught the fancy of specialists. The old adage claims, "One who never forgets has the memory of an elephant." Though the elephant's brain is not as big as originally thought, it does have a remarkable memory recall because of its ability to connect information. Similarly, being able to interact with old and new information on the net (experts and newbies) is an important step to eating the computer technology elephant. A chat group is a good way to start interconnection with other nettors. To avoid getting into an undesirable chat session with students, I created a special chat room for them. Again, a chat software, mIRC, is free and available through a link on Allen Hackworth's Net Tutor. Following listgroup discussions will introduce you to others involved in Moo's, Mudd's, Owl's, and addresses of teachers eager to interact. Many teachers connect their students with students of writing classes in other universities. Occasionally, challenging/offensive views show up in addresses which seem to undermine writing goals. All teachers need an awareness of such places to assure safeguards are built into personal course design for written assignments in all disciplines . A teachers should view at least one of such sites to understand accessability and influences to students.
Samples of term paper writing services: http://cygnus.rsabbs.com/~jbagot/terms.html http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/Writing_help
My final story is that of the five blind men who wanted to know about a real elephant. The first touched the trunk and claimed an elephant was like a snake. The second wrapped his arms around a leg and claimed the elephant was like a tree trunk. The third touched the ear and claimed the elephant was like a piece of canvas. The fourth touched the back with both arms extended and claimed the elephant was like a wall. The fifth grabbed the tail with both hands and claimed the elephant was like a rope. Each claimed he knew all about the elephant. With so much to learn about the computer technology elephant, the old adage, "A little learning is a dangerous thing," could well apply. Administrators, department heads, teachers, providers, and students are all holding different parts of the computer technology elephant. When only one part of the technology is touched, the true picture is quite different from that of the whole. Learning the view from every angle is a necessary overwhelming, magnetically mystical chore. If the elephant knowledge-gainer hangs onto only part of the picture, it is the same as a child falling asleep before the story is finished. A fresh beginning from an old place is imperative.
Even an online course can resemble many shapes. My first attempt at online really resembles a glorified independent study course and concentrates on the improvement of writing with a grammar drill counterpart. This is one extreme of the pendulum swing since some online instructors consider this far too linear, even considering grammar rules a thing of the past. A big trend is to call the freshman requirement 'Computers and Writing'. When I graduated from college years ago, the required freshman course was called 'Communications'. I guess I have witnessed both ends of the pendulum swing. Courses are springing up everywhere at many levels: a study type with all assignments emailed only, a campus group that meets a few times and emails or posts assignments to each other the rest of the semester, a distance group that learns in a formal classroom with a distance teacher broadcasting, a group of distance students exchanging with another college, a group of low tech students who email and chat in a room, a group of high tech students who use Moo's, and a whole different set of groups that combine the teaching of computer skills with the writing skills moving into htmls and bulletin boards. There are a tremendous number of course shapes on the computer elephant, but once the taste of elephant is developed, new recipes will continue to be cooked and eaten for a long, long time. I am in the process of building a home page posting my course, but at present, my page is very primitive. Still, it is my way to learn to cook recipes from that elephant I have just begun to chew.
Continual exploring of other's courses generates ideas and motivates nettors into new arenas. Viewing experienced low tech instructor's courses is definitely beneficial but a little bit liquid since instructors pull courses off when the course finishes. Here are a few online sites of teachers who have ongoing online course assignments which can be viewed just to get an overview of such courses:
Jim Buddell, Taft Community College (California): http://www.taft.cc.ca.us/www/tc/tceng/homepage.html Brian McKinney http://www.ccnet.com/~bmckinne George Jaeger, Cerritos College (California): http://www.cerritos.edu/~JAEGER/business-card.html Judith Kirkpatrick, Kapi'olani Community College, Honolulu, Hawaii: http://leahi.kcc.hawaii.edu/~kirkpatr/s96_courses.html Jan Strever, Spokane Community College (Washington): http://www.ior.com/~jstrever/ Air Force Academy http://www.usafa.af.mil/dfeng/w4_21st.htm Ball state University http://www.bsu.edu/classes/eng103/index.html
Grants have already begun to further the development of the taste of elephant. At present, Innovative College in Arizona has nine full time teachers hired to develop online courses under such a grant. The governors of the western states have already outlined what is being referred to as the Virtual University with plans to offer full degrees through Cyberspace.
Once an instructor bites into this computer technology elephant, the size of the elephant seems to grow bigger and bigger, but the flavor gets more and more appealing. It really is not that difficult to make elephant eating part of a steady diet. Mortimer Adler claimed there are two ways to own a book: to buy it and keep it in your possession or buy it and eat it so its components get into the bloodstream as when a person eats a steak. Books are but a fragment of the computer technology elephant. I have eaten books with Mortimer for many years. Now it is time to eat the elephant. I am reminded that a human cannot cross the river on a leaf as can the ant, but a human can use technology to recast the elements into a new service medium. Ingesting the computer technology elephant is such a project. Though you can't hold a computer in your hand as past generations have a book, the library is unquestionably bigger and more accessible. Following these five steps will help to develop a taste for this new food. Start by budgeting personal resources for dining out since institutions everywhere lack the funds to pay for menu changes. Declare a time and place to dine, and continue by creating a warm environment with others involved in the dining. Use the language of Netoric and keep a sense of humor at the dining table. Elephant really doesn't taste bad at all once used to it. Avoid overeating at one setting since it is better not to fall asleep, but if sleep sets in from the gorging, look forward to dining again later since interaction with others using words as the medium is pleasant, especially to an English instructor. After all, eating an elephant follows the same bonding process as engaging in a child's bedtime story, and English instructors are the storyteller masters with storytruth license. With the clout elephants have in society, the cyber world everywhere is rapidly experiencing the new taste of elephant. I don't want to be left behind. Do you? To reduce the chances of becoming the village idiot in the global village, shall we join in the five steps of developing a taste for elephant and learn from each other. I have found it isn't terribly bad if eaten " . . . one byte at a time."