The Dawn of the Internet Age

1. Set Focus
Pose this essential question: How does innovation lead to further innovation—and economic growth?

2. List Vocabulary
Share some of the challenging vocabulary words in the article (see below). Encourage students to use context to infer meanings as they read.

• cumbersome (p. 18)
• transmission (p. 18)
• succinct (p. 19)
• prophetic (p. 19)
• disk (p. 20)
• proliferation (p. 21)

3. Engage
Ask: How big do you think the first computers were? Then have students examine the photos of early computers on page 20. Have them share their observations and what they find most surprising or interesting about the photos. 

4. Read and Discuss
Ask students to read the Upfront article about the creation of the internet. Review why the article is a secondary source. (It was written by someone who didn’t personally experience or witness the events.) Then pose these critical-thinking questions and ask students to cite text evidence when answering them:

• Explain each of these: the internet, the Transmission Control Protocol and the Internet Protocol, the World Wide Web, and search engines. (The internet is a system of connected computers; the two protocols are sets of rules for how computers communicate, which allows them to connect, thereby creating the internet; the World Wide Web is a system of public webpages accessible through the internet—because of the protocols; and search engines are programs that make it easier to find things on the web.)

• Based on the article, what role did the U.S. government and universities play in the development of the first computers and in the early years of the internet? (In the 1940s, the government funded the first all-electric computer for general purposes. In the 1960s, the U.S. Department of Defense created ARPANET, the precursor to the internet. In the 1980s, universities built up their networks for research purposes, making the internet a commonly used tool for some students, teachers, and researchers.)

• What was Vinton Cerf and Robert Kahn’s philosophy about the rules they created for computer communication? The author says this had “monumental implications.” What were some of those implications? (Their philosophy was that no one should own the rules. This meant that anyone could use these rules to create networks, add to the internet, and create new innovations such as the web and search engines.)

• In the last section, Charles Severance says that the internet is not inherently good or bad. How does he support his claim? Is his argument strong? Explain. (Severance supports his claim through logic, by saying that there were great things and bad things about humans before the internet. Students’ evaluations of his argument will vary but should be supported by text evidence.)

5. Use the Primary Sources
Project, distribute, or assign in Google Classroom the PDF A Glimpse of the Early Internet, which features excerpts from a New York Times article published in 1990 about how sending messages by computer was affecting society. Discuss what makes the article a primary source. (It provides firsthand evidence concerning the topic.) Have students read the excerpts and answer the questions below (which appear on the PDF without answers).

• How would you describe the tone and purpose of these excerpts from the news article? (The tone can be described as straightforward and objective. The purpose is to explain how sending messages by computer is affecting society.)

• Based on this article, in what ways had the Internet started to change daily life by 1990? (By 1990, the internet, which allowed messages to be sent between computers, had started to change how people met the person they would marry, how they participated in local government, how they shared information at work, and how they communicated with friends.)

• Brian Dear says, “It’s a fascinating way of making friends.” What did he find fascinating? Why do you think he had this point of view? (He found meeting someone first through messages sent by computer and then getting to know them in real life to be a fascinating way to make friends. He probably found it fascinating because it was a completely new way of meeting people.) 

• What does the author contrast in the section “Much Debate on Impact”? Where would the last section of the article fit into this debate? (The author contrasts the benefits of electronic communication with concerns about it. The benefits include that many people all over the world will be able to communicate and that this communication can happen more quickly and more easily than by letter, telephone, or television. The concerns include that teenagers might not develop strong in-person social skills and that privacy may be invaded. The last section, about how computer networks have improved communications in various work settings, fits into the benefits part of the debate.)

• Based on the Upfront article and the excerpts from the news article, compare how people used the internet in the late 1980s and early 1990s and the concerns they had then with how it is used today and current concerns. (Students’ responses will vary but ideas should be supported with evidence from both texts.)

6. Writing Prompt
What are three ways your daily life would be different if the internet had never been invented? Would each difference have a positive or negative impact on the quality of your life. Explain in a brief essay.  

7. Quiz
Use the quiz to assess comprehension.

8. Classroom Debate
Should computer science be a required course to graduate from high school?

9. Multimedia Presentations
Have small groups create multimedia presentations for their predictions for how the internet will be different 40 years from now—and how those differences will affect daily life. After all groups have presented, lead a class discussion on which predictions students think are most likely to come true.