Bad intentions.
I had a limited amount of input at this particular session. During the very short
question and answer period, almost totally devoted to the question of how much
it was going to cost to use the encyclopedia after a promotional period of free
use came to an end, I raised my hand and asked what the developers/sponsors/backers
of this encyclopedia saw as the proper or logical use of encyclopedias in general
in education. I admit that it was a trick question - I wanted the people attending
the session to reflect on how pupils use encyclopedias, and on how teachers expect
pupils to use them. After all, what ordinarily happens is that pupils get an assignment
to write about a certain topic, and the pupils then go to the encyclopedia and
copy out what's written on that topic and present it to the teacher as their paper,
and no real learning takes place.
The answer I received was pretty much what I should have expected: an almost double-take with a scratching of the head that suggested "but of course everybody knows what you use an encyclopedia for in school", and the answer - to help them prepare their papers.
I certainly wasn't surprised by the answer. Still, it should go without saying (though of course it doesn't) that this isn't what encyclopedias are for.
Go to: Free advertising, or
Go to: New kid on the block, or
Go to: They come in all shapes and sizes, or
Go to: Too Common Knowledge.