Dawn Hamilton

English 5001 – Kim DeVries

Research Proposal

3/12/09

Rhetoricians and educators have been trying for centuries to develop learning methods that encourage dialogic and participatory classroom settings. The struggle to create active- rather than passive-learners has been ongoing and volatile, the challenges changing with each new generation of students. Teachers today are faced with the battle of the cell phones. No longer are we worried about students being distracted with phone calls during class; now we have to fight the distractions of silent text messaging. Are we fighting a losing battle, or can we, as educators, use this new technology to our own advantage? I propose that text messaging (SMS) can and should be used as an acceptable format for learning and communication in the classroom.

Throughout history we have seen technological advances, and their effects on society, economics, and politics. Every decade has some new gadget that younger generations can’t live without, and that older generations don’t understand. Before text messaging there was Instant Messaging on the computer. Before that, the use of cell phones was becoming prolific. Before that, pagers were the new gizmo. Before that there was E-mail. Regardless of the order or importance of past technological advancements, we are currently faced with the influx of cell phones in our primary and secondary schools. At this time, they are a distraction and a nuisance. Most instructors ask that cell phones be turned to silent and put away for the duration of class. The problem remains that many students now communicate better and more efficiently by text than they do in classroom discussion. I intend to look at the pros and cons of this new form of communication. With Generation Y in specific, I would like to show the effect that text messaging has had on the overall social consciousness of our youth.

Using the experiment on m-learning described in “m-learning: An experiment in using SMS to support learning new English language words” by Cavus and Ibrahim, I will show the real possibility of using text messaging in classroom instruction. Also, there was an experiment done in a Chinese college which used new technologies including SMS in the classroom. I will be referring to this article by Shen, Wang, and Pan to provide further examples of the possible success of technology use in schools.

As there is still much debate on this subject, I will be looking at the arguments against technology. Kaveri Subrahmanyam and Patricia Greenfield have done a well-researched article entitled “Online Communication and Adolescent Relationships”, which I would like to use to show some of these arguments.

In less specific context, I am interested in finding support for the use of SMS in extracurricular fields, such as work, politics, media, as well as social and family interactions. How we use language in our day-to-day lives has a significant impact on our brain function. How we see ourselves, how we see others, and how we relate to society is clearly being impacted by technology and SMS. This is evident not only in the media (i.e. TV shows, movies, music, books), but also in relationships between peers, child-parent, student-teacher, employee-employer, boyfriend-girlfriend, and even husband-wife. In researching the effects of SMS on the media and in these relationship dynamics, I hope to come across the answers to a few questions, including the following:

·         Is text messaging the new ebonics?

·         Are there any classrooms which currently use text messaging as an acceptable means of communication?

·         How has the use of SMS in the workplace effected an employee’s conception of acceptable formalities?

·         Does constant use of SMS affect one’s intelligence?

·         Does constant use of SMS cause one to become more susceptible to influences in media and pop-culture?

·         How does text messaging compare to Morse Code?

As may be clear, I am looking to prove my theory right by looking at anything that may prove me wrong. Perhaps there will be evidence proving that the use of SMS is a root cause for the lowered morals in our society. (If so, can’t I argue that the “lowered morals”, in fact, are rather liberations of society instead of degradations?) What I hope to prove is that the use of SMS will lead us into an era of “transforming the traditional classroom-based learning and teaching into anytime and anywhere education” (Cavus, Ibrahim 1). The result of my research will hopefully shed a new light on the possible directions of the education system. Historically, we have seen some changes in the methods of teaching. I believe strongly that a new time of change is coming. There are so many more options for learning and instructing, and it is my earnest desire to see the realized potential of our ever expanding technological resources.