So last night, a little after 10 PM, I received an e-mail from one of my instructors with a mark for the final assignment I submitted as part of my HSRV 433 course. This 26 page paper titled “Jewish Civilization 2.0 - Fostering Jewish Identity Through Online Social Networking, Cultural and Educational Opportunities“ was worth 50% of my final grade and it received a mark of 90 or an A+, which I’m extremely pleased with. Math isn’t my strong suit and I haven’t calculated everything but unless I’m horribly off in my calculations, that last mark means I’ve passed the course with an A+ and that isn’t shabby at all. Essentially this was a part of a fourth year research project which is meant to be tied into two other fourth-year courses which when combined winds up basically being what most of you in America would call a “thesis project”. Basically the way these courses work is that the first course HSRV 433 has students pick a topic of interest and do a three-step research project on it. Then in HSRV 455 the student uses that research to develop some sort of project proposal which builds on or addresses some question raised by the previously completed research. Then finally in HSRV 477 the student is actually to apply/run the project he has developed. I’m not sure how great a job I’ve done explaining things but for those of you who are confused or want to know more feel free to click on the course links above.

I’m not sure whether or not I’m going to post my entire research paper online but now that it’s completed, marked and returned. I guess I’m comfortable enough to post the introduction for those of you who might be curious.

Anyhow here it is (the intro).

The American Jewish 20-40 year-old population is still in many ways one of the most underserved within the broader Jewish community. Because of this, this demographic is most likely to be at a higher risk of disengaging from their Jewish communities and sense of Jewish identity. Of significance is how this demographic has begun turning to the Internet as a tool (often even as a preferred choice) for expressing, understanding, cultivating and engaging their individual and collective senses of Jewish identity. Although there has been a considerable amount of research conducted in the areas of Jewish identity and culture, to date, there unfortunately exists little research on how the Internet and Web 2.0 technologies are being used (or might be used in the future) to address the unique needs of this Jewish demographic.

In order to help address this existing research deficit, the emphasis of this paper will be on discussing how emerging Internet and Web 2.0 technologies are currently being used by this demographic. Additionally, how these technologies might better be used in the future as important strategies for addressing the needs facing this segment of the Jewish population. These needs include new modes of informal engagement over traditional forms of affiliation, and an overall sense of connectedness to Jewish identity.

I will begin by briefly summarizing the data which I have previously collected and analyzed for earlier assignments in this course, all of which are topics relating to current trends within my research demographic. These trends include: Jewish Self-Concept, Community and Institutional affiliation, as well as cultural and religious engagement.

In addition, part of this discussion will include basic information on what the Web 2.0 is as well as several examples of how these technologies are currently being used to address some of the challenges facing the 20-40 year old Jewish population. I will focus specifically on the Web 2.0 and its role in facilitating Social Networking and Self-Directed Learning Opportunities. To conclude, I will provide recommendations on how these technologies might further be used to provide this segment of the Jewish population with improved formal and informal Social Networking and Learning Opportunities.

As usual polite yet constructive feedback is always welcome.

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