Wilderness Water: World University and School, Online Universities, World Wide Web

I received an email recently from a freelance writer named Holly McCarthy in Britain wanting to write about my blog and post it to this blog. I've posted my {edited} reply and her email here:


Hi Holly,

Thanks for your email. Yes, you're welcome to write a guest post for my blog, which I would then post. And I would be happy to link to your web site. I think characterizing what's unique about this nascent World University and School Wiki vis-a-vis the other Universities you've written about might interest both you and I, and from which we both might learn. But I'm open to what you would like to write about.

Also, please post interesting courses you find to World University and School's Wiki, itself: worlduniversity.wikia.com

My web site, scottmacleod.com/papers.htm, and the Facebook page facebook.com/group.php?gid=48753608141&ref=ts offer more information, especially the folders to the right here - globaluniversity.pbwiki.com - in the first Global University Wiki. The transcripts from teaching my course "Society and Information Technology" on Berkman Island (Harvard's virtual island, but I'm not on Harvard's faculty) here - socinfotech.pbwiki.com/ - have the first avatar-mediated conversations about this global University idea. My avatar's name is Aphilo Aarde in Second Life.

World University and School is a Global, Virtual, Open, Free-to-Students, Multilingual University. The current Wiki has been up for almost a year. What's emerging is a Wikipedia-MIT OCW approach, potentially at all levels, and in all subjects and languages. In the envisioning and realizing process of this Wiki University and School, degree- and credit-granting are still only potentials. As you might see from this Wiki, part of my project is to focus on great Universities around the world vis-a-vis open courses, and also to see how the web facilitates a de facto digital standard for online academic courses (especially vis-a-vis MIT OCW), as well as a new orientation to university and school education online. I also see WUaS as being for the developing world and everyone, that is, people with video-capable handheld devices will be able to access and post video to this Wiki for teaching and learning in all languages. This might also facilitate teaching and learning among people who can neither read nor write. In addition, this should become a great archive, which might span thousands of years. I've read that Wikipedia now has more than 2.5 million entries, in more than 70 languages.

I also especially welcome healing arts' courses such as Watsu {water shiatsu} taught in Second Life, and for example, yoga and acupuncture, as well as all of the arts. I also envision a medical school, music school, Ph.D. programs, International Baccalaureate, and much more. Openness and excellence are two of my orientations. And while openness is important to me, I'm also interested in instructional courses that are really helpful - somehow the best - for people. These will also include school age courses, as well as, for example, home improvement instruction.

I hope World University and School's openness will encourage creativity and innovation in teaching and learning, through its openness. There are a lot of smart and knowledgeable people in the world, who, with their web cameras, will be able to post what they want to teach, - in quite specialized ways. And class interactivity can occur in virtual worlds like Second Life, which is developing. I'm looking for moderators in all 3,000-8,000 languages, and in many subjects, to facilitate the aggregating process of what's 'out there' on the web already.

Like Wikipedia, I think this will develop organically and gradually.

I hope this is helpful to you. (Click on the global university tag on this page to see other thoughts about WUaS).

Sincerely,
Scott

scottmacleod.com
scott-macleod.blogspot.com






----- Original Message -----
From: hollymccarthy12
To: scott@scottmacleod.com
Sent: Monday, February 02, 2009 8:33 PM
Subject: Scott MacLeod's Anthropology of Information Technology & Counterculture blog article

Hi Scott,


I came across your blog (Scott MacLeod's Anthropology of Information Technology & Counterculture) and am wondering if you would consider letting me submit a guest post on your site. I am new to freelancing, and I am trying to build my online portfolio. I don't know if you have a formal procedure or are willing to accept a guest writer, but please let me know if this is possible. I would appreciate you getting back with me with and I can send over an article for your consideration.


In terms of the topic for the article, I'm thinking about writing something that relates to the general theme of your blog, but if there is something specific you would like me to write about, just let me know. The only thing I would ask is that I can put my by-line with a link back to my writing (onlineuniversities.com) at the bottom of the article.


Please let me know if you are interested. Here are a couple of sample feature articles that I have recently written:


onlineuniversities.com/blog/2009/01/advantages-of-biotechnology-in-human-life


onlineuniversities.com/blog/2008/12/top-100-anthropology-blogs


Thank you for your time and I am looking forward to hearing from you.


Thanks,
Holly McCarthy