Lets Say Thanks to our Soldiers

Thought I would share this website. I used it for years with my students. They liked making the cards and it's a great holiday activity.

http://www.letssaythanks.com/Home1280.html

Michael Grahame Moore discusses The Scholarship of Distance Education

I watched this yesterday and truly enjoyed it, so I thought I would share. It's about an hour long and revolves around the scholarship of distance education.

http://mediasite.ics.uwex.edu/mediasite5/Viewer/?peid=505b5517421a4f91a4db0de736f05254

25th Anniversary of the Conference on Distance Teaching & Learning, August 4-7, 2009, Monona Terrace Convention Center, Madison, WI

AECT Wrap-Up

Last week Sara Kacin and I attended the AECT conference as graduate students. The week was not only informational and motivating, but it was also super COOL! We interviewed Charles Reigeluth, and Sara interviewed John Keller. We walked the halls, sat at lunches and dinners, and attended sessions by leaders of the field such as: David Merrill, David Wiley, David Jonassen (wow, I'm starting to see a pattern), Bob Reiser, Andy Gibbons, Michael Hannafin, and many more! One day, I attended a graduate student mentoring session that consisted of a panel of 5 leaders, and then a break out session so they could help mentor us in smaller groups related to our area of study. They provided some information that I thought I would share:

1. Your dissertation represents you looking for a place in the profession, so you should try to research a topic that fills in a gap. They directed us to a dissertation database that is kept by Dr. Edward Caffarella, and contains Doctoral Research in Educational Technology: from 1977-2006. Here's a link to it: http://cortland.edu/edleadership/edcaffarella/dissdir/displai4.htm

2. When writing your dissertation, keep in mind that "it's not about the writing, it's about the research" - Andy Gibbons

3. Publish, Publish, Publish! - Make sure it's the right piece for the right place.

4. Keep in mind that your doctoral studies is a "discovery time." Time to discover organizations that are a fit for YOU. Time to discover research and authors that fit YOUR interests.

I hope you find these 4 thoughts useful. Again, this was a session hosted by the GSA - Graduate Student Assembly of AECT. Even if you are not an AECT member you can join and follow the GSA AECT ning @ http://aectgsa.ning.com/

Have a great weekend!

Just published in the Archives of Internal Medicine is a Carnegie Mellon University study which states:

“People who get fewer than seven hours of sleep a night are almost three times as likely to develop cold symptoms as people who sleep for eight hours or more. The percentage of time in bed spent asleep – called sleep efficiency – matters too. People with a sleep efficiency of 85% or less are five times as likely to develop cold symptoms as those with higher efficiency.”

So fluff up the pillows and pull up the covers ~ preventing the cold and flu may be as easy as getting more sleep! Sweet Dreamzzz . . . . SweetDreamzzzDetroit.org

Everyone is talking Detroit: http://tinyurl.com/y89b6wd

NYT moves to Detroit

Read the article and find a way to get a local business, organization, or city hero recognized.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/21/business/media/21carr.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=detroit&st=Search

Quote

Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius -- and a lot of courage -- to move in the opposite direction.

Albert Einstein

Adopt-A-Classroom

Adopt-A-Classroom invites the community into the classroom in support of teachers and their students. By adopting a classroom, donors form partnerships with specific classrooms providing financial and moral support. The result is a meaningful contribution to education in which donors experience the impact of their efforts and celebrate in a classroom's success.

http://adoptaclassroom.org/index.aspx?Private=0&inter=0

Asian Chicken Stirfry

My Mom sent a bunch of PA green beans, and a ton of other veggies, with my best friend Tatum to give me when she came to visit this weekend. What to do with all of these green beans? Asian Chicken Stirfry!

4 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast
Fresh Green Beans
2 Green Peppers
2 Red Peppers
1 Jalapeno - (not seeded)
Olive Oil
Onion Powder
Cayan Powder
1 Bottle of Kraft Light Asian Toasted Sesame Dressing

Place Chicken in olive oil on medium heat; halfway through cooking, cover with half bottle of Dressing; season chicken with onion powder and cayan pepper
In separate skillet place peppers (cut into big chunks), jalapeno, in olive oil on medium heat
Cover vegetables (to your liking) with Asian Dressing
Sprinkle with Onion Powder and Cayan Powder
Cook until tender
Remove chicken from pan and cut into pieces
Add to vegetables and mix together
Serve. It's a little spicy, but you could serve it with rice. I personally liked the heat! Enjoy!

Educational Data by State

EEP - Education Equality Project - has created an interactive-map of the country that let's you check out key education data state-by-state. It's easy to use for quick facts. Check it out and see how your state is performing. I checked out PA and MI.

http://www.edequality.com/content/map/

Kelly Kasper Chicken

My college roommate use to always make this one recipe of her Mom's and we loved it. I still make it today and have shared it with many others. Just finished up making (and eating) it for my parents. It's super simple:


in glass baking dish mix together:

1 packet of onion soup mix

1/2 jar of apricot jelly

8oz bottle of Ken's Sundried Tomato dressing

Mix well

add 4 boneless skinless chix breast

and back for about an 50-60mins on 375 covered with foil

serve with rice!!

Showing a class of teachers some basics about social networking.

Looking for info or research on: A neuropsychological Theory of motor skill learning..who came up with it and a definition and explanation.

Summer Computer Courses

Computer Classes

Millersburg High School

6:30 - 8:30pm

Whether you are looking to brush up on your computer skills, stay up to date with the new tools, or keep in contact with family and friends, you’ll want to register for the Computer Technology Courses being offered at Millersburg Area School District. Registration is on a first-come-first-serve basis. Class size is limited to 20 participants. Payment of $20 per class is due in full in order to reserve your spot in the course. To register, please contact Kelly Unger by Phone: 717-649-8545 or Email: keltechindustries@comcast.net

Click here for topics and descriptions of courses:

http://www.mlbgsd.k12.pa.us/millersburgasd/lib/millersburgasd/Community_Technology_Course_-_Millersburg.pdf

School failure, like school success, is a process, not an event. (Holland, Dede, Onarheim, 2006)

Detroit Lives! Join mailing list. T-Shirts and Prints for sale, and local Detroit Projects. http://ping.fm/nu5pe

Simple way to satisfy your sweet craving

I'm a HUGE sweets lover, and just whipped up something so easy to satisfy my sweet fix in a healthy way.

Mix together your favorite Sugar-Free, Fat-Free pudding with some skim milk. Add a banana or two and some almonds. Simply refrigerate until ready to eat. Fast, simple, and healthy in just a matter of minutes.

It's Earth Day! Start brewing at home!

"In 2005, Americans used and discarded 14.4 billion disposable paper cups for hot beverages. If put end-to-end, those cups would circle the earth 55 times. Based on anticipated growth of specialty coffees, that number will grow to 23 Billion by 2010-enough to circle the globe 88 times. Based on hot cup usage in 2005, the petrochemicals used in the manufacture of those cups could have heated 8,300 homes for one year."

http://www.metaefficient.com/bioplastics/innovation-biodegradeable-coffee-cups.html

Check out the site to find other ways to become more earth friendly this year.

The Box Project and Blanketed with Love

My move to Detroit has allowed me to meet some really interesting people, and I'm grateful for each and everyone of them that cross my path...well, maybe not the person who smashed out my car window so much, but there has been a new addition to our GRA team, and I think she is great! I was wondering how she would adjust to our "quirky" environment in the office, but she is fitting in just fine. Throughout her two months with us she has told me about two organizations that I think are great and thought they would be worth sharing.

Blanketed with Love - Blanketed with Love is an organization started by one of Ann's daughters. Oh yeah, I should probably mention that my co-workers name is Ann :) Anyway, her daughter and a few of her friends started Blanketed with Love and their mission is to:

The mission of Blanketed With Love is to help all those in need by giving the homeless, homebound, poor, ill, and disadvantaged blankets throughout the year. Each blanket will be blessed and made with love to help the sad feel less lonely, the ill feel better, and those who have lost their homes or families feel that someone cares.

You have to check out the website! This is great! Service organization started and operated by teens who desire to help others. You go girls! If you can help them out in anyway, please be sure to check out their website http://www.blanketedwithlove.org/ Plus, ironically has the world would have it, it meshes perfectly with Sweet Dreamzzz, an organization I've been working with since September.

Ann also told me about her involvement with The Box Project. The Box Project is a national, non-profit organization that has been matching volunteer sponsors from across the United States with recipient families living in rural poverty in America since 1962. They currently serve carefully selected areas of rural poverty including: the Mississippi Delta and rural communities in Maine, Appalachia (including West Virginia and Kentucky), the Native American reservations of South Dakota and Florida.

They match people in poverty who are looking to better themselves with people who can provide assistance, not only with material items, but with a positive relationship through direct people-to-people assistance. Acquiring an education is one of The Box Project's core values. We firmly believe that education is one of the keys to increasing self-sufficiency and breaking the cycle of poverty. The goal of this steadfast commitment is to help remove some of the barriers to education and make a significant impact on the areas of rural poverty that we serve.

Be sure to check out both organizations, and Sweet Dreamzzz of course, and see if there is anyway you can contribute.

Crime in Urban America

Race Relations in Urban America - Class Notes - 4/14/09

2007: Detroit as "nation's most dangerous city," based on:

• Homicide, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, and auto theft
• FBI Data

"Detroit Police there to protect the assets of city, and not the people of the city" - student in class

Bias Data on Crime

• Police are assigned to lower socio-economic areas
• Data skewed toward those who are apprehended
• Low income/High Crime areas are more likely to report crimes

Defining Crime

• Pervasiveness of violence in culture: road rage, fights at sports events, workplace violence, family violence
• Some violence praised: War, Vigilantes
• Social Control - capacity of a social group to regulate itself according to a set of higher moral principles beyond those of self interest
• Social Mechanisms: Internalization and Sanctions; Informal and Formal

Theoretical Perspectives

• Conflict: Crime -illegal exploitation by the rich and powerful; Rebellion
• Functionalist: Crime - Occurs when socially approved means are not available for the realization of highly desired goals: Goals, Opportunities, Means
• Interactionist: subcultural approach; differential association

Broken Window Theory

• "The citizen who fears the ill-smelling drunk, the rowdy teenager, or the importuning beggar is not merely expressing his distaste for unseemly behavior; he is also giving voice to a bit of folk wisdom that happens to be a correct generalization-namely, that serious street crime flourishes in areas in which disorderly behavior goes unchecked. The unchecked panhandler is, in effect, the first broken window. Muggers and robbers, whether opportunistics or professional, believe they reduce their chances of being caught or even identified if they operate on streets where potential victims are already intimidated by prevailing conditions. If the neighborhood cannot keep a bothersome panhandler from annoying passerby, the theif may reason, it is even less likely to call the police to identify a potential mugger or to interfere if the mugging actually takes place" (Wilson & Kelling, Broken Windows, 1982).
  

Notes from MACUL - 2009

Hey hey...

The blogs that I posted today are my notes taken during the sessions I attended at the MACUL(Michigan Association for Computer Users in Learning) Conference in Detroit. I apologize if they are not thorough or detailed, but please feel free to contact me if you have any questions about the postings...I'll be glad to elaborate.

Good night...another day of conference activities tomorrow.

Extreme Makeover: Education Edition

Extreme makeover: Education Edition – Steve Dembo – Discovery Education

Blog: teache42.com
Podcasts
Virtual conference –

This is for BEGINNERS! – Take small steps; build
• Web 2.0 tools “get in, get out, done.”
• “Do one thing and do it well”
• A lot of people are not making money on these, so you don’t want to get married to a specific site. You have to realize that people are working on them on their own time
• Students are going to get this really quick
• How excited students will be knowing that they will be expected to complete the same activity when they are finished

Tinyurl.com/Makeover-MACUL

Image at Flickr to demonstrate all of the Web 2.0 sites

The music is not inside the piano – Alan Key

CrappyGraphs.com – gave an example of hair length and waist size; “in…out…done”; this is not going to raise test schools.

Let me Google that for you (?) - http://lmgtfy.com/ - Use it next time someone asks you a question that you know can be found easily on Google

Blabberize.com - edit; record; have the images mouth move
• You can put students pics up there and have their own voice
• Math: Coin and money example

Edublogs
What is the difference between websites and blogs?
Web – post information – doesn’t usually get updated that often
Usually create files on your computer and then you upload
Blog – “Fresh” information
Benefit: Is there a compelling reason to go to the school website everyday?
Ex: lewiselementary.org
Designed so people keep coming back

Twitter

Prezi.com - presentation

Moodlin' Along

We’re Just Moodlin’ Along - Tammy Maginity, Tech Coordinator, Pennfield Schools

One teacher asked “how is it different from a website?”
• The main difference is the collaboration
•
4 kinds of assignments
o Advanced uploading of files
o Upload a single file
o Online Text
o Offline activity

Quiz/Test Creation tool
Can import

“I’m not going to lie to you, you’re going to have to put a lot of time in creating this site and putting things in there.”

Moodle.pennfield.net/course/
Login as a guest


Moodle Docs

Can Incorporate US
Plays for a little and pause, RC – Click on link

Best Practices in Online Learning: The Voices of Experience - MACUL 09

Best Practices in Online Learning: The Voices of Experience
Michigan Virtual School – Krisit Bush & Julie Swartz

Key Component #1 - Platform
• Blackboard
• http://bb.mivu.org
• Cooltext.com – Banner generator
• Blending your building
o Classroom Lecture – Podcast
 Can take their classroom home and have their family involved
o Worksheet – Interactive through tools like SAS in School (now FREE)
 SAS Curriculum Pathways
• Interactive Assignments
o Core areas
• All you do is access the assignments from there. Provides instruction on how to use one of the assignments
o Written Test – Self-grading assessment with immediate feedback
 IMMEDIATE FEEDBACK
• Frees up teacher to focus on the writing portion and higher level thinking skills
o Lab or Experiment
 Google – Science Simulations
• TimeSaving Tips
o Utilize existing files by adding attachment
o E-version of textbooks
 Check your current textbooks
o Textbook company web resources
o Test Genearator
• Powerful Tools
o Discovery Education
o Respondus
o SAS Curriculum Pathways

Key Component #2 - Curriculum
• Mivhs.org
• Writing Reviser program that walks your kids through revisions
• Hierarchy
o Administrators
• Coming Soon to BB
o Curriculum Alignment Tools
 Content Standards and Benchmarks
 Reporting
• Gap Analysis
• Connect assessment results to content standards being evaluated

Key Component #3 – Assessment
• Immediate feedback

Alan November - Keynote - MACUL 09

Alan November – Thursday, March 19, 2009

Yes, we should learn the social tools that our students are using outside of the classroom, because they think “you can’t teach me if you don’t know what it is that I’m using.”

Anonymity to engage all of the people in the room – Instant Feedback

“Remember the Stars” video on YouTube – Number the Stars

Assignment – These are the 10 toughest things to learn in the curriculum and I need your help to find items that address these items – CURRICULUM RESEARCHERS

GOOGLE
Site:ac.uk – AC stands for academic
More – Even more – Custom Search
1. Organize your staff to develop a search engine for families to use in their homes
2. Work of one child contributes to the benefit of others (collaborative)
Tutorial – Camtasia – Screen casting software – Tutorial Designers – jingproject.com
• Prime Factorization example – Math – Screen shots and recorded student voice
Harness the collective knowledge to benefit the community – this is the purpose of the web.

“A whole new mind” – Dan Pink - Book

ALTAVISTA – virtual index for any website
Host:Nasa.gov

TEAMS OF STUDENTS: Search engine design team, curriculum design team, tutorial design team;
podcast team
1. Layout plan and responsibilities
2. Mic – Audacity – free software

What is the role of the learner in the 21st century? They need to have “real jobs.” You can still integrate NCLB.

End tech planning – ramp up – information and global communication planning – don’t plan for “stuff”; What information do you want…NOT what technology do you want.

Miso Soup

The snow is falling today in Detroit, so I decided to make a soup recipe that I came across a few weeks ago, MISO SOUP. I found the recipe on the 101 Cookbooks Blog. Tons of good recipes there, so you have to check it out. Go to this website for following the recipe: http://101cookbooks.com/archives/miso-soup-recipe.html

Here is what you'll need:

3 ounces dried soba noodles
2 - 4 tablespoons miso paste (to taste)
2 - 3 ounces firm tofu (2 handfuls), chopped into 1/3-inch cubes
a handful of watercress or spinach, well washed and stems trimmed
2 green onions, tops removed thinly sliced
a small handful of cilantro
a pinch of red pepper flakes

I was unable to find Soba noodles at my grocery store, so I used Maifun Rice Sticks instead. I also used the spinach instead of watercress, and used more than a pinch of red pepper flakes, because I like it spicy! ENJOY!!!

Black Identities: West Indian Immigrant Dreams and American Realitites

Thought I would share my book review for a book I just finished reading.

Waters, Mary. 1999. Black Identities: West Indian Immigrant Dreams and American Realities. Harvard University Press.

Alternate Title of the Book:

Voluntary Immigrants Assimilating in a Racially Dominated Society

Research Questions:

How can West Indians keep their cultural identity after migrating to the US? Why do West Indian immigrants feel the need to separate them self from the “black American?” How do other people’s perceptions affect your identity? How does assimilation vary for voluntary immigrants of color, like the West Indians, and that of voluntary immigrants from Europe?

Summary:

The most profound statement in the book is contained on pg. 44 – “An identity is a conception of self, a selection of physical, psychological, emotional or social attributes of particular individuals; it is not an individual as a concrete thing.” Waters shows throughout the book how hard West Indians try to separate themselves from “black Americans,” and hang on to their Caribbean identity, because the perceived being “black American” as a negative (p.8).

The immigrants feel that “because they are immigrants they have a different attitude toward employment, work, and American society than native-born Americans” (p.7). On respondent stated that American’s “figure, OK, I was born here, and because I was born here I supposed to get this” (p.66).

West Indians automatically lose part of their Caribbean identity and culture because they are first visually identified as being black. It’s not until they begin to speak that many Americans realize they are Caribbean. In this way we are shown that immigrants must sometimes utilize both cultures: the culture associated with being an immigrant, and the culture they bring with them to the US.

Criticism:

The author discusses “transnationalism,” beginning on pg. 89 and states, “Some anti-immigration advocates argue that immigrants are not becoming Americans in terms of identity, national loyalty, overall culture, and language. Some conservatives argue that immigrants who cling to racial and ethnic identities foster multiculturalism in the United States and that these competing cultures and loyalties deny the necessity of a core American culture” (p.89-90). Waters explain how many West Indians move frequently between the Caribbean and the US, and at the time this was written many Americans may say that “this is wrong and you’re either going to be an American or not,” but in 2009 isn’t all about living and functioning in a global society? People are moving in and out of countries constantly, and I believe this section of the book is a little dated for current times.

Direct Response to:

Waters uses statistically information to point out that certain West Indian beliefs about African Americans are not statistically true. She challenges their belief that African Americans do not value education by quoting Jennifer Hochschild, African American Studies Professor at Harvard, stating that, “Controlling for sex and socioeconomic status, African Americans are no more likely to drop out of school than whites, are more likely to choose and academic than a vocational curriculum, and are more likely to choose a four-year than a two-year college” (p.67).

Waters does an excellent job in Chapter 5 of pointing out how differently “voluntary” and “involuntary” immigrants interpret and react to racial discrimination. In order to complete this task she uses scholarship work from John Ogbu. He states that “voluntary immigrants,” like the West Indians came to America on their own free-will and can say, “Americans might not value my culture but I am from a place where I am valued,” and that “Discrimination and prejudice are something they plan to overcome” (p.142). Ogbu compares this thought of identity with those of African Americans who have associated their American identity with that of oppression in a dominant white society. To maximize impact of this important point, Waters also uses the work of Christopher Jencks, who compares discrimination between European immigrants and African Americans. He states that both “faced discrimination but with different psychological consequences: For Europeans who came to America because they were dissatisfied with their homeland, assimilation has often been difficult, but it has not for the most part been intrinsically humiliating…In order to become fully assimilated into white America blacks must to some extent identify with people who have humiliated and oppressed them for three hundred years” (p.143).

Suggestions for Further Analysis:

It would be beneficial to the field to analyze the reactions and responses of both black and white Americans to the statement, “because they are immigrants they have a different attitude toward employment, work, and American society than native-born Americans” (p.7).

While reading this material, I jotted down a little “note to self,” stating: Books like this give Americans a ‘reality’ checks on how others within our own country view us. What I find most disheartening is that people that usually read these types of books are the ones who are interested in making a positive change in racial views. We need to find ways to get these books into the masses. What programs are in place, outside of higher education, to educate others of race related topics, issues, interpretations, and thoughts?