D E C E P T O L O G Y: Teaching kids about false advertising with summertime kiddie pools

Another instance of buyer beware. This is one of the hidden difficulties of virtual shopping, whether online or from an advertisement.

D E C E P T O L O G Y: Teaching kids about false advertising with summertime kiddie pools: "- Sent using Google Toolbar"

Steering Clear of Scams « Fibromyalgia – Fibro Blog

I live with fibromyalgia. This article gives many of the same warnings that are part of my critical thinking classes. Real life application of solid principles. :)

Steering Clear of Scams « Fibromyalgia – Fibro Blog

The Big Picture - Boston.com

This photo site is worth much more than a thousand words. How many events do you recall?

The Big Picture - Boston.com

Assange detention sparks total cyberwar > Botnet > Vulnerabilities & Exploits > News > SC Magazine Australia/NZ

Fascinating! This may well be the first of a very different sort of "war". Makes me wonder what the future holds now that this new type of guerilla warfare has opened the eyes of others who will surely jump on the bandwagon.

Assange detention sparks total cyberwar > Botnet > Vulnerabilities & Exploits > News > SC Magazine Australia/NZ
 
Here's another look: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503543_162-20024973-503543.html 

Margaret and Helen

Hee, hee... This is definitely my kind of granny!

Margaret and Helen: "- Sent using Google Toolbar"

D E C E P T O L O G Y

D E C E P T O L O G Y: "- Sent using Google Toolbar"

Caveat emptor - There's a fishy, fishy world out there.

Appendices

Because the navigation is limited in the additional pages, one would need to create an appendices page and then create the other pages to list after it. Links to those pages can be put on the Appendices page like this:

12b - Annotated bibliography
13b - Review of literature

The long view

Slate has an exceptional series on "The United States of Inequality" (http://www.slate.com/id/2266025/). While the entire series is worthy of serious consideration, there's one graphic that's particularly telling: http://www.slate.com/id/2266174/entry/2266218/fs/0//

Visit the site for an in-depth explanation of the significance.

Stunning

Edgar Mueller's 3d street art images are remarkable feats of trompe l'oeil on a grand scale. http://www.european-street-painting.com/displayimage-album,28,pos,13,waterfall-3d-9.jpg.html Can you imagine what it would be like to come home from work and try to negotiate a street that looked like this one: http://www.european-street-painting.com/displayimage-album,29,pos,0,Street%20Art%20-%20Use%20your%20eyes.html Just looking at the photo is disorienting.

The Letter

A reflection from a colleague. This is a far more eloquent summation of my feelings about war than I could write. The Letter

Roadkill and Digital Living

The range of digital living subjects seems never ending. Here's a guy who's using technology to research his passion: road kill. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/13/technology/13roadkill.html

Notice the mention of wanting to hire someone to create a phone app to further his research? That's a new job market that's opened up with the implementation of smart phones.

First papers

I've begun picking up the first set of essays for review. I'll admit this is not my favorite part of teaching. It's as difficult for me to comment on someone else's text as it is for my students to do peer reviews. And I must do it dozens of times more than they do.

The best part of essay review is that I invariably learn something from at least one or two who are bringing new ideas into my view. I'll never forget how my views about hot dogs were changed by one student's diligent research into what really goes into them. And the essay about the economics of prostitution written mostly in second person -- and therefore calling ME a prostitute throughout -- was one of my favorite. That student was quite chagrined to realize the effect of second-person narration.

Hopefully there will be comments to draw from many of the essays this term, as well as many new pathways that require my attention. We've only been together a couple weeks, but already these four classes seem filled with interesting, engaging personalities. I'm a lucky teacher.

Best sites for free books

Make Use Of has posted its list of "10 Websites for Free Audio Books." These sites are not only great for those of us who spend a lot of time driving or walking, they're also terrific for families with children. Here's the link: http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/easy-listening-pleasures-10-websites-free-audio-book-downloads/

Up close and personal...

Check out the UK Telegraph's slide show of electron microscope scans (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/picture-galleries/7924099/Creepy-crawlies-Amazing-Scanning-Electron-Microscope-pictures-of-insects-and-spiders.html). Gave me a whole new view on those with whom we share space. :)

"The Pain Chronicles": The science of pain

This one is going on my 'to read' bookshelf. Most of my life has been molded by the ever-present pain of fibromyalgia. Years before doctors decided the syndrome needed a name, I was seeking help for it and being brushed off by doctor after doctor. That was an era when it took a lot of chutzpa to argue with a doctor, so I went through a lot of them! "The Pain Chronicles": The science of pain

Week 1 - COS E1

Wow! The first week went so much better than it did last term. There were a couple of big snafus -- Bb dumped almost all student users and Banner wasn't accepting add codes -- but even so it was pretty good. I'm chalking it up to better preparation on my part this term. Unlike previously when I had waited until classes started to set up email groups, etc., this time I did it a week early. So, when the technoworld crashed, I still had all the info needed to keep in touch with students.

The second best thing was the way the students came in this time. There are still questions, but it appears students read the files (for the most part) and because of their efforts, things went pretty smoothly -- even though I asked them to create personal blogs for their reflective writing.

I think this is going to be an excellent group to work with. :)

Assessment

Here's another article about the way we learn and how that needs to figure into our methods of assessment. http://motherjones.com/kevin-drum/2010/08/testing-kids-testing-teachers I wonder if we will ever come up with a truly useful way of assessing student -- and teacher -- progress.

One thing seems self-evident, though. Our children are NOT learning what they need to learn in order to do well in a competitive world. Even worse, they are not learning what they need to learn to become thoughtful citizens. These two problems bode poorly for the future of our nation.

This is demonstrated in the slipping of the US in world education rankings. We now rank 33rd in reading, 27th in maths, and 22nd in science. http://www.geographic.org/country_ranks/educational_score_performance_country_ranks_2009_oecd.html

E1 Update

Well, after a really shaky start -- what with add codes not working and Blackboard having a major malfunction -- we seem to finally be on track. It's good to see so many getting 1a done. It's the orientation quiz and critical to staying in the class. Every class has a "first session", and the orientation quiz is mine, so to speak.

I'm a little surprised, though, that the scores are relatively low so far. After all, the assignment listed exactly which files were used to create the test, and students were told they could have any of those files available to look up answers. I would have expected everyone to earn very near 100%. Lesson learned.

Testing a hypothesis

A hypothesis doesn't have to be huge. Here's a light-hearted theory that may have interesting implications for political mavens. It's from Mother Jones, one of my favorite online reads. http://motherjones.com/riff/2010/07/elections-garden-good-and-evil

Pay close attention to the description of development of the hypothesis and the test that was created to test it. Finally, there's a cogent description of the findings and their potential use.

Are you well prepared?

Was just checking out a friend's blog. Not only did I discover it's been quite awhile since she's posted, but there was also a terrific list of what might be termed technical literacy needs among students at COS. What do you think? Do you know enough technology to compete in today's market? Read the list here: http://taratommy.blogspot.com/2009/11/digital-literacy.html

Especially for nursing students

If you're in the nursing program, check out Harvard's list of "100 Useful Twitter Feeds for Nursing Students." http://www.nursingschools.net/blog/2010/08/100-useful-twitter-feeds-for-nursing-students/?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=socialmedia&utm_campaign=080910_tw

Educational Assessment

High School valedictorian Erica Goldson's speech caused me to reflect, once again, on how learning does or should happen and how we can know that it has taken place.

The question of assessment and how it enhances or impedes learning is one most teachers have been engaged in for years. Would that it were as easy as just chucking the grading systems that have evolved and go for a more enlightened approach to self-learning. However, experience has shown that few of us are willing or able to take on the responsibility for personal education; there must be some means of confirming a level of learning in any field. I wouldn't want a doctor to do surgery on ME if that person had not demonstrated proficiency.

There is increasing emphasis on defined learning outcomes for each course at every level of schooling, and that may bode well for change. I can envision evolution toward demonstrating competence with the defined learning outcomes in order to receive credit for a course. That would allow the very bright or very ambitious to move ahead as quickly as possible within the bounds of their own intellect and energy. It would also enable those who are not as self-directed to achieve similar goals by engaging in a structured and teacher guided learning program.

Civil Rights Argument

US District Judge Vaughn Walker struck down California's Proposition 8, which banned same-sex marriage. (http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE6735XI20100804)

The arguments about this issue will continue, and it's likely the US Supreme Court will eventually hear a case to decide which side will "win". This is an excellent case for tracking different types of arguments, and especially for noting when an individual or group argument is internally contradictory. For instance, BBJJ commented on the Reuter's article: "Anyone can marry anyone they wish who is of the opposite sex. It is the same for everyone. Absolutely no one is being discriminated against." However, the claim that "anyone can marry anyone they wish" is contradicted by the very next phrase: "who is of the opposite sex."

Inherent in that contradiction is the assumption that no same sex couple would desire to be married, which is obviously not the case. In addition, singling out one segment of society to live under special rules is antithetical to the Constitution's "equal protection under the law" position.

This is an issue embroiled in debate about civil liberty versus majority rule. When, if ever, does the majority have the right to impose its will on the minority in social situations? Very muddy waters, indeed.

Data Liberation

The amount of personal data collected and stored can be staggering, and I'll admit to a modicum of conflicted paranoia about the whole issue. After all, I LOVE the tools Google makes available, and the only price (so far) is that Google be allowed to know every last detail of who I am and what I do with each tool so it can tailor a marketing strategy that meets my needs to a T.

Did you know Google has a "data liberation" site? http://www.dataliberation.org/ There's a list of Google products and how you can "liberate your data" from each. Hmmm... Why isn't WAVE on the list?

I was intrigued by the number of Google products I CHOOSE to use: Gmail, iGoogle, Contacts, Calendar, Blogger, Health, Maps, Picasa, Reader, Voice, YouTube, Docs, Sites, Web History, Bookmarks. And today I offered myself as a willing guinea pig for new products.

Long live Google... but hooray for the chance to get ME out of their storage should I choose to leave.

School daze

Just 3 weeks left until school starts. When I was a youngun, the beginning of a school term brought almost as much joy as the end of one. Now that feeling is less so, but there's still an energy born in the anticipation of getting to know another group of students. I love the journeys they plan for me as they delve into academic research, sometimes for the very first time. I can hardly wait to see what I learn from the upcoming group.

There's still so much to do. I wonder if I'll be able to get enough done before classes start. I still have to write the last six assignments, do all the audio recordings, and choose articles for at least the first 3 weeks of discussions... not to mention writing and recording the lectures.

Ahhhh.... mind sex...

Have you ever really connected with someone? I mean really connected... as if your thoughts were so parallel that the level of intimacy was almost more than could be imagined? Well... it might be all in your mind. No, really. And it could happen between you and a teacher even (but apparently NOT with an online teacher ;). Check out this article about language / mind connections: http://www.scientificamerican.com/blog/post.cfm?id=of-two-minds-listener-brain-pattern-2010-07-27

How are you at multi-tasking?

I did pretty well on the focus test, but task swapping was off the charts poor. Give it a try yourself: http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2010/06/07/technology/20100607-distraction-filtering-demo.html

Interpretation

We often think we know the 'truth' of a situation, but the reality is our 'truth' is colored by the interpretive inflections given by others. In that swaying, our reality is developed, and our response to the world around us is cast.

Check out this example of how interpretation makes all the difference.

Ready, set, go!

Haven't been using this blog much at all, but I've decided rather than having students create both a web site for their research projects and a blog for journaling, we'll just do blogs and add pages to them. This should reduce the amount of stress students feel, as well as make it easier for us to keep track of one another.

I'm excited about this research project and hope the students find it interesting to delve into some aspect of digital living. We'll see. :) The project will have several parts, so having a place early on to store them will be more efficient than trying to put them together at the last second.

One-day wonder - The Boston Globe

How does a word become a "real" word? Does it have to make it into the OED, or is it enough to simply be used? One-day wonder - The Boston Globe

150 Resources to Help You Write Better, Faster, and More Persuasively | OEDb

150 Resources to Help You Write Better, Faster, and More Persuasively | OEDb

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Glider

I'm betting Wayne will do this more than once!

Don't confuse them with facts

A wall is, in fact, a wall!

Read the article to see the sad state of critical thinking and how it's begun to affect the way we act.

Editorials & Opinion | Don't confuse them with facts | Seattle Times Newspaper

Visualizing Information

Here's another example of how a well crafted image can give more information than a ton of words:

http://www.rasmussen.edu/articles/haiti-by-the-numbers.asp

Huff n puff

Way too much to do. Guess I'll spend a few minutes regenerating through laughter... Sleep Talkin' Man blog, here I come!

Why I teach online...

Photojournalism

http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/01/03/it-was-all-started-by-a-mouse-part-1/

Errol Morris provides insight into how photos are used to explain and to manipulate.