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Image
obtained from IMSI's Master Photos Collection, 1895 Francisco Blvd.
East, San Rafael, CA 94901-5506, USA.
| "The
underlying goal of this project is to grow beyond using the
Internet merely to disseminate knowledge. Rather, we hope to
use this as a forum to engage in the process of creating knowledge." |
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Introduction
A Living Article,
as we hope to implement it, begins with the presentation of a strong
and possibly controversial article related to the field of technology
and adolescent education. The readers of the article are then asked
to respond to what they have read in the manner of an open forum,
using the resources of the Internet to collaborate with other readers.
Our concept of a Living Article has evolved over the course of several
years and through discussions with a rotating group of Meridian's
Review Board members. The underlying goal of this project is to
grow beyond using the Internet merely to disseminate knowledge.
Rather, we hope to use this as a forum to engage in the process
of creating knowledge. We want to expand the possibilities of academic
collaboration to include the entire audience of Meridian. In so
doing, we hope to create a new forum for academic discourse.
This Living
Article is an experiment. As with any experiment, there are sure
to be some glitches as we go along. There are bound to be some unforeseen
problems. As we discover these problems, some of the information
surrounding the Living Article may change. If you discover any such
problems, we hope that you will make us aware of your discoveries
and offer some potential solutions. Our hope is that this collaboration
will inform not only the content of the article but the process
of creating it as well.
The co-authors
of this article are doctoral students in Counselor Education at
NC State University who are also members of Meridian's Review Board.
Since this project has been up for discussion for some time among
the Meridian Board, we were unable to put this article through the
same blind review process that is our usual policy for all Meridian
articles. However, we have solicited feedback from our board members
and faculty advisors prior to publication and we plan to document
the process that we implement throughout the life of this project.
We hope to make this documentation available to Meridian readers
in a future issue.
The content
of our first Living Article focuses on the use of technology as
a tool for promoting healthy adolescent development. We have used
examples of school violence (particularly the incident at Columbine
High School) to highlight the need for promoting healthy development
among students. We have then used the literature on adolescent development
to outline the age-appropriate developmental tasks for middle school
students. The major question posed by this article is "How
can we use technology as a tool to promote the successful resolution
of these adolescent developmental tasks?"
How
to Respond to the Living Article
We encourage
responses to any and all elements of this article. Our goal is to
create a living document that will reflect numerous points of view
that are based on personal opinion, experience, and anecdotal evidence,
as well as rigorous educational research. Obviously, we are hoping
to generate some answers to the questions that we have posed. However,
that does not preclude the possibility that this article may generate
additional questions. The exciting thing about this living document
is that we really don't know where this will lead. That is up to
you. We are anxiously waiting for your responses.
Responses may
be sent in the body of an email message or as an attachment and
should include your name and professional affiliation (work setting,
title, etc.) as well as complete reference information for any material
that you may cite in your response. Be sure to include any relevant
Internet links so that we can include those as additional sources
of information for our readers. If sending an attachment, please
describe the type and version of software used to create the attachment
and include contact information so that we may get in touch with
you if there are any problems in reading the attachment. Send all
responses to Meridian
with the words "Living Article" in the subject line of
the message.
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