RSS. What?

My understanding of RSS is shaky due to my lack of enthusiasm for the Internet.  I do not regularly follow any blogger or website.  In fact, maintaining this blog has proven to be a very difficult task mainly because I do not “get on” the Internet on a daily basis.  When I do need to be online for any particular reason, I find it to be rather inconvenient.  Even with that said and my limited understanding of RSS, I can see some time saving value to this tool.  As I understand it, after setting up the appropriate account or accounts, new posts published on sites I flag concerning specific topics I choose will be collected for me to view at my convenience.  The biggest hurdle for me is again, checking this new collection service on a regular basis.  As of right now, my car phone (yes, I call it a car phone because I only have it with me when I am going to be in the car.  Thankfully, it is not a bag phone!) is a pay as you go phone.  I can make calls, take calls and get fancy with sending and receiving text only txts.  My keypad looks just like the keypad of a land line phone.  If I want to use the letter E, I have to press the number 3 button two times.  Get the picture?  I do like the idea of the collection work being done for me, and should I ever upgrade my hardware, I can see myself using this tool.  It is not unlike my subscribing to the industry specific periodical, Sporting Goods Dealer, when I managed a sporting goods store.  When I took the time to peruse an issue, all articles within were related to the sporting goods industry.

I can see this specific tool working more for me in the educational field as more of a professional development tool rather than a teaching tool.  Articles concerning teaching practices could be delivered to me and then I could use that information to refine my skills as a teacher.  I know that enthusiasts would argue that articles concerning the subjects students were studying would come to the classroom to provide more opportunity for learning.  While that has a degree of truth to it, there is also great value in teaching students how to go find needed information.  In this day and age of instant gratification, it might be worth our time to help students understand that if they do not find what they need the first time they look, they need to continue to keep looking.  Students need to learn to dig deeper than the first page of results of a Google search.