The internet has the potential to be the researcher's (and the
research community's) best friend.
One of the downsides is that journals, articles and researchers
who are not very visible on the internet may become more and more
invisible and left out.
In this particular internet forum (outres) we are not likely to
hear the views of 'unwired' outdoor learning researchers -
unless you happen to have a chat with one and (with their
permission) choose to represent their views or (better) persuade
them to join.
It can be difficult to have constructive academic debate in this
forum - but it does happen now and again. We can make it happen.
Many of the internet services of potential value to outdoor
learning researchers are free and readily and instantly available
from your work station.
We could (belatedly) make far far better use of the potential of
the internet. Well used, the internet could help these huge
numbers of OE researchers (counted up by James) quadruple their
productivity by saving so much time tracking down research and
researchers, testing out ideas, finding allies, etc.
Yes, Linda, using the internet takes time, but it also saves
time. By working together we can help each other make the
internet work for us in ways that we want it to.
However, I do think that the 'opt-in' principle is a useful one.
Just as this list is an opt-in list, I think James's page about
'OE research and evaluation' could benefit from being an opt-in
list. If you happen to be worried about email harvesters (robots)
picking up your email address from the web (and inviting more
spam) you can easily disguise your address from these robots by
encoding it for free using http://www.siteup.com/encoder.html
But humans may find you too - wonderful people who share your own
research interests, which - as Linda rightly points out - may not
happen to be evaluation. The more James's page is known about the
more representative it will become of OE research and researchers
(who choose to opt in to this information service). It is at:
http://www.unh.edu/outdoor-education/people.html Make yourself
known and respond to James's request for feedback.
Thank you James for setting up this information page - through
which I might one day meet someone else who is (for example)
worried about firewalking or interested in research on reviewing.
Roger Greenaway
Reviewing Skills Training
[log in to unmask]
http://reviewing.co.uk
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