Resource Review 6: E-Palling Around

Article: Demski, Jennifer. (2009). E-Palling Around. The Journal (online). Retrieved from http://thejournal.com/Articles/2008/11/01/EPalling-Around.aspx?Page=1.

Article synopsis: Demski, a freelance writer from California, focused mostly on the SchoolMail application through EPals.com, a teacher-monitored email system that educators across America are implementing into their curricula. She describes the ease of navigating the interface and the benefits of being able to limit the inbox/outbox to certain approved classrooms or recipients. She also answers the obvious question: is it safe? Demski writes, "Confined to and tailored specifically for student use, SchoolMail complies with the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act, the Children's Internet Protection Act, and the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act standards" (Demski, para. 2), which ensures the protection of children's email accounts from spammers, unwanted partnering ads and harmful messages.

The "Resource Review" verdict: One of the examples she gives is of a high school teacher from San Diego who connected her classroom to one at a university in Liuzhou, China. For one section of the class, students used SchoolMail to communicate directly with students in China, while the other section only used library and media materials to learn about China. Demski writes, "After surveying both classes, [the teacher] found that 'the students who had used ePals became more "ethno-relative," meaning they saw a lot of value in other cultures, whereas the other students kept themselves more ethnocentric-- [believing] their culture is the superior culture'" (para. 6). Having the advantage of access to email communication for both locales involves, the immediacy of the responses no doubt brought to life for students the reality of other cultures as people, not encyclopedia entries.

So in closing...: With multiple examples presented throughout the article, Demski illustrates the way in which SchoolMail definitely trumps that of the old-fashioned pen pal setup. It's inevitable that students will not only be motivated by but also learn from the email responses. Earlier snail-mail versions of this - penning a letter with great hopes of receiving a reply, but months of waiting with no reply - most likely resembled the season note to Santa Claus for students more than it did an actual letter to people who have a culture very different than their own. With the technology in place and willing educators to guide its use, there is clear evidence that learning will commence. However, it again returns to the issue of the Digital Divide. What of the more remote locations? How can educators bring those cultures to life?