We came, we saw, we conquered....and you can read all about it on my blog.....

Primary sources....the United States Constitution, photos of Abraham Lincoln, newspapers from April 15, 1912 or October of 1929, the Zapruder film, and so on....are an essential part of engaging students in meaningful learning tasks when it comes to learning about past....history....but are primary sources on the verge of becoming history?

In today's high tech world of digital cameras, computers, cellphones that take photos and videos, and the Internet...hard copies of primary sources are being phased out. Once hand-written letters and detailed journals documenting daily life have been phased out by phone calls, email, and blogs. Quality photographs that captured events and people of the past are still being taken but by cellphones and digital cameras which lends itself to storing photos on computers where they are either lost, or amassed in bulk but rarely printed out. It is a good thing that scrapbooking came back because at least that it producing hard copies of personal family primary sources. Newspapers are going out of print and becoming digitalized which is great considering that it allows more access to a greater variety of newspapers but who knows how long the posts will last. I am all for progress and technology but my concern lies with future who may not be able to access primary sources for history because they do not exist.

OR are primary sources being revolutionized? Due to technology advances it is evident that the way individuals access primary sources is being changed but also what is considered to be a primary source is changing as well. Today individuals can access images and the text of primary sources via the web and in most instances they do. This is a huge benefit because now educators can use access images they normally would not have access too and thus further engage students by delving deeper into a topic. I must admit that the changing and adaption of primary sources greatly intrigues me and I am curious to see what the future holds.