Report on Hypermedia Studies Workshop

Hypermedia Studies Workshop
Report to Helen Scott
By Brett Cloyd, Catalog/Public Services Librarian

While I am new to Grinnell, I was very interested in the topic of hypertext and excited to hear about this workshop. To see how information is organized and distributed to a large group of people, for teaching and research purposes, is a worthy goal. Discovering a way to integrate this idea into the curriculum is an important place to begin a discussion.

Many of the texts which were required reading boldly declared hypertext as the bringer of active reading. The group was much more skeptical of these claims and begged for empirical research. Even while Jonathon Smith said "it [hypertext] should be integrated as much as possible into the course," (http://www.dsu.edu/~laflinj/tlwc/smith.html, last paragraph), it was not difficult to see his frustrations with student output in a hypertext supported environment.

Indeed, the sense I got from Smith's article is a feeling that if we push this stuff further along, the minds of all young people will become more critical and thoughtful. That might be an oversimplification, but my point is this: no one is sure that this technology will make students read and think better, or whether they will read enough good information to understand the main points of an issue.

Much conversation addressed where hypermedia studies could fit in Grinnell College. Many considered it a skill-set rather than a discipline or course of study. Others drew the difference between creating hypertext environments with being critical and active consumers of these resources.

The issue of a hypermedia department or concentration at Grinnell did not meet overwhelming support in our discussions. We thought we could have a Hypermedia Lab, much like the Writing Lab, to aid students and faculty in the creation of this kind of material. Additionally, the Multimedia Specialists could play a role in implementing this kind of technology in the classroom.

Our small group came up with a definition that I think encapsulates what would be necessary to institute a program of hypermedia studies. I think to have a program of this kind, an historical and theoretical basis would have to underpin it in some fashion similar to other disciplines:

"Hypermedia is about presentation of content. In the same way that the invention of the printing press revolutionized reading and the spread of knowledge and information, the development, refinement, and implementation of hypermedia revolutionizes reading and writing. A study of hypermedia would include a comparative study of the history of the book, the history of literacy, and the impact of the storage and presentation of content in the electronic age. It would also include a study of the mechanics of the book, the printed page, and hypermedia." (Rebecca Stuhr formalized and submitted this to Sam Rebelsky)

Interestingly, one of the premiere thinkers on this topic, George P. Landow, seems to write better in a hypertext environment than a linear one. The impact of hypertext on paper-writing at a liberal arts college should be an interest and concern as the College considers such a proposal.

A last comment: the classroom seemed to divide itself among teaching and non-teaching faculty. Much of the conversation came from the teaching faculty and their ideas concerning how hypertext could be included in their classes. I was hoping to see more conversation from the student's point of view. Namely, what kinds of things would students be able to do after completing a program in Hypermedia Studies. Aside from being a "selling point" for prospective students, such a program's goals felt elusive.