The Endangered Encylopedia

I have a friend on Facebook who posted a couple of days ago, thanking her mother for having an encyclopedia set in their house, even though it took up a lot of space.  This got me thinking about the last time I used an encyclopedia.  I remember in elementary school, we had to do reports and the first source we would always go to in the library was the encyclopedia.  I know that I (although I was kind of a dorky kid) thought that it was so cool.  A set of books that has information on everything.  What’s not to love?

Apparently, the bulky books, the space it takes up, the cost of a set that changes every year.  Why go through the work it takes to look up a word, in tiny print, amongst so many other tiny words?  With the internet came a new, great idea.  Why don’t we make the encyclopedia more accessible to everyone, everywhere.  And with that thought, Wikipedia was born.

Don’t get me wrong, I love Wikipedia.  I google (since when has that become a verb?) something and the first link is the Wikipedia entry.  I can click on it and find a vast amount of information on my query, and it gives me links to other sources for further reading.  It is extremely user-friendly, and for the most part, accurate.  As with most things, the internet has taken things that would take us time to do, and made it much easier, with only a couple clicks of the mouse (or, in the tablet and smartphone age, a couple touches to the screen).  It isn’t only research either, but connecting with friends and family who live far away (or close), making crossword puzzles, and reading a new book. 

Sometimes, I feel overwhelmed with the technology that we have.  It has overtaken our lives at a scary rate and is everywhere we go.  There is a QR code at the store so you can access their website for deals right now.  There are facebook pages and twitter names posted on the walls at the art gallery so you can talk about them online right now.  I can send my grandparents in Arizona an email and have them receive it right now.  Our society is in a place of instant gratification.  If we do not get it right now, we move on to the next thing, forgetting about what has happened only minutes before, because it is in the ‘past’.  We are extremely impatient, speeding through yellow lights to avoid the red ones, doing drive thru at Tim Hortons every morning because we cannot wait for our pot of coffee at home to brew.

How can we teach our children to take a step back and just wait?  To take things as they come, when they come, not trying to expediate the process?  I have just moved into a new condo and was so excited to receive my first power bill, because it was a piece of mail for me.  I wish that I could receive letters from friends and family, wishing me a happy birthday, or just to say hello.  But, this does not happen because why would we want to wait for that when we can get the same thought instantly on our facebook walls?  Kids that I work with have not received a letter in the mail before, they receive an email or a note over (their parent’s) facebook.  They will never know the anticipation of waiting for a letter in the mail, or the surprise at receiving something unexpected.  Instead, they will have to wait minutes for the email from someone who texted them that something was coming.  In this age of instant gratification, we miss out on the wonderfulness of the wait.

So, is the encyclopedia in danger of becoming extinct?  It very well could be.  Wikipedia has taken over its domain, and researchers utilize the internet to find out what they need to know in an instant, instead of having to get off of the couch, find an encyclopedia set, and then search through the huge A book for the entry on antelopes.  My advice to encyclopedia salespeople, find a new career, because yours is only on a time limited offer.

Friends-Joey and the Encylopedia Salesman

Everything I Need to Know, I Learned from being a Girl Guide Leader, Concrete Facts and Beyond!

Thanks GuidesQuebec for this awesome list!
While I have not done everything (ie light a fire with two sticks), I this this list is more than just practical, useful things that Guiding has taught me, but it is also things that do not have a product that you can see immediately. I am so grateful for all of the wonderful opportunities I have with Girl Guides, especially everything that I have learned, from my co-Guiders and from my girls. Further, I receive lessons in humility every week. I do not know everything and I am sure that I learn something from the girls every week, be it a fact or something more personal, about myself.

How does this transfer into teaching? As teachers, we cannot have the notion that we are a master of our subject and know everything. We need to realize that sometimes we may not know the answer, and admit that to our students, promising to find the answer for the next class. Further, we need to allow ourselves to learn from our students. I may have a student who is very musically gifted, or music theory may come to them naturally. I can learn from my students, and must accept this. I believe that as teachers, we have a duty to instill the value of life long learning into our students. And the best way to lead is by example.

Everything I Need to Know, I Learned from being a Girl Guide Leader.