October 2003
October 29, 2003
Computer and Cars
For all of us who feel only the deepest love and affection for the
way computers have enhanced our lives, read on.
At a recent computer expo (COMDEX), Bill Gates reportedly compared the
computer industry with the auto industry and stated, "If GM had kept up with
technology like the computer industry has, we would all be driving $25.00 cars that got 1,000 miles to the gallon."
In response to Bill's comments, General Motors issued a press release
stating: If GM had developed technology like Microsoft, we would all be driving cars with the following characteristics (and I just love this part):
October 28, 2003
Learning Environments
There are many different types of powerful learning environments. Dr. David Jonassen has identified several attributes of meaningful and engaging learning environments that technology can assist in creating. Click on a label in the diagram below to learn about that attribute of effective learning environments
October 27, 2003
Interview with God
This is a fine example of flash. It will take a second to download but it is worth the wait. A great message and image, hope you enjoy.
Informal Learning
Informal Learning: A Sound Investment
October 2003 - Jay Cross
Workers who know more get more accomplished. People who are well connected make greater contributions. The workers who create the most value are those who know the right people, the right stuff and the right things to do.
It's all a matter of learning, but it's not the sort of learning that is the province of training departments, workshops and classrooms. At work we learn more in the break room than in the classroom. We discover how to do our jobs through informal learning observing others, asking the person in the next cubicle, calling the help desk, trial and error and simply working with people in the know. Formal learning classes and workshops and online events is the source of only 10 percent to 20 percent of what we learn at work.
October 26, 2003
Kid Internet Contact
The Kim Komando Radio Show®--Kim's 10 Commandments for Kids Online©
Sometimes, the Internet can be an unsafe place. Because of this, I am making this agreement with my parents to help keep me and my family safe.
October 25, 2003
Self Grading SCCS readiness quiz
Self-Grading SCCS Readiness Quiz
Self-Grading SCCS Readiness Quiz
15 questions.
Please rate your compliance with the following statements as honestly and accurately as possible: only you can determine whether you are ready for online learning
Cyber School Registration Policy
Here is another policy page that I pulled together from a variety of sources, if you know where it came from let me know and I will give credit where it is due.
Saskatoon Catholic Schools
Cyber School Policies
The Cyber School Contact: Agree Before Registration
You need to read over this contract and agree to the terms before you can register for courses in the cyber school!!!
GENERAL INFORMATION
Cyber School is a service provided by Saskatoon Catholic School Division. The system administrators of cyber School are employees of St. Pauls RCSSD #20 and reserve the right to monitor all activity in the cyber school. On acceptance for registration within the cyber school, students will be given an account name and password. Although called a student "account", there are currently no charges to students of the Saskatoon Catholic School Division for courses. The purpose of this policy is to establish and promote the Christian, ethical, legal, and secure use of cyber school.
October 23, 2003
The Chapel Discussion Terms of Service
I compiled this terms of service from a couple of different sources, if you recognize it please let me know so I can give credit where it is due.
I have been asked a few time is I had such a thing so I thought I would share it here.
Saskatoon Catholic Schools
Chapel Discussion Terms of Service
The Chapel discussion terms of service: Agree Before Entering!
You need to read over these terms and agree to the terms before you can enter into the discussion in the cyber school chapel!!!
GENERAL INFORMATION
1. Chapel Discussion users will be assumed to have read and agreed to these Terms of Service and, by occasional rereading of them, to be aware of changes and updates to the Terms of Service.
October 22, 2003
Find Unsolicited Commercial Software
Some of these commercial softwares on your machine can cause problems with Webct or other learning platforms.
All the parasites I currently know about are only compatible with Windows, and some only affect the Internet Explorer browser. The script on this site when it is run in IE for Windows can detect many of them.
October 20, 2003
E-learnspace
elearnspace. everything elearning.
Learner-centered, lifelong learning has been the cry of knowledge society visionaries for the last decade. Yet learning continues to be delivered with teacher-centric tools in a twelve week format. Society is changing. Learners needs are changing. The course, as a model for learning, is being challenged by communities and networks, which are better able to attend to the varied characteristics of the learning process by using multiple approaches, orchestrated within a learning ecology.
Laptops for middle school students...
The first day of school felt a whole lot like Christmas in September for the bright-eyed seventh and eighth graders at Nobleboro Central School in rural Maine. Along with new teachers, textbooks, and class schedules, they all received their very own $1,300 Apple iBooks, fully loaded with the latest software. "I was looking forward to getting my laptop all summer long," says seventh grader Lesley Yates, 12.
Children and the internet.
BBC NEWS | UK | Education | Children 'need to improve web use'
Children should be taught to use the internet "more creatively", rather than spending their time playing games and chatting to friends, a report recommends.
October 16, 2003
Tour of Cyber Schools
The advent of the Internet has opened the door to a much wider range of possibilities for education provision. While the traditional fixed-location local, city or regional school will probably endure for some time, its supremacy as the only 'place' for formal education is now being challenged. Internet schools are on the rise, following on from the proven success of online provision in the tertiary sector, and the establishment of international cyber universities.
October 11, 2003
Article Critique by Darren Cannell
Article Critique
If e-Learning is the Answer, what was the Problem?
The title of the article was captivating. When searching for an article, this title ambushed me. I wanted to know if the authors thought the problem was the same as the one that materialized into my head upon reading "If e-Learning is the Answer, what was the Problem?" The past tense of the verb "was" confused me.. The problem in my head still existed so "was" just did not work. The word "if " in the title was also very compelling because I did not ascertain from the article that the authors believed that e-learning is the answer. "E-learning" is a expression not used in Canada or United States, where the global term "distance learning " is common.
Want to read more?
Meta-analysis very cool. An article by Darren Cannell 2003
Acquiring the skills to be an effective researcher is a daunting task. This is illustrated best by Gregor (1971) "Anyone who cannot negotiate Chi Squares, assess randomization, statistical significance, and standard deviations is less than illiterate; he is preconscious." To first select a topic, then focus questions, design a study, collect, analyze, and interpret the data and then inform others requires a frightful amount of skill. Also, to do all of this in a non-biased systematic logical progression and in the end, inform others leads me to pause. However, there must be a type of research, which could allow me to become informed, increase my knowledge, help me theorize and come closer to the elusive truth. I found Meta-Analysis, the answer to the non-skilled researcher.
Want to read more?
Download file
October 10, 2003
A mini help page
We put together a mini help page for student's technical problems. Anyone out there that has a similiar page and would like to share, please let me know. We are looking to revise this one.
October 7, 2003
These motion circles
I have no idea what this has to do with Teaching and Developing Online but it is so cool. Wait...Wait...I got it, this is the way I feel at the end of a good day at the Saskatoon Catholic Cyber School. These are all static circles, they just appear to be moving...
October 6, 2003
SCCS Registration Agreement
I thought I few of you out there might find this interesting.
Saskatoon Catholic Cyber School Policies
The Cyber School Contact: Agree Before Registration
You need to read over this contract and agree to the terms before you can register for courses in the cyber school!!!
GENERAL INFORMATION
Cyber School is a service provided by Saskatoon Catholic School Division. The system administrators of cyber School are employees of St. Pauls RCSSD #20 and reserve the right to monitor all activity in the cyber school. On acceptance for registration within the cyber school, students will be given an account name and password. Although called a student "account", there are currently no charges to students of the Saskatoon Catholic School Division for courses. The purpose of this policy is to establish and promote the Christian, ethical, legal, and secure use of cyber school.
Due to the access students will have to the internet, the students of cyber school must adhere to strict guidelines. They are provided here so that students and the parents of students who are under 18 years of age are aware of the responsibilities they are about to assume. The School Division may modify these rules at any time by publishing the modified rule(s) on the Cyber school. The agreement(s) at the end of this document is (are) legally binding and indicates the party (parties) who approve the agreement has (have) read the terms and conditions carefully and understood their significance.
COURSE PREREQUISITES
It is the student's responsibility to check and make sure that they have the correct prerequisites for each of the courses requested.
INFORMATION CONTENT & USES OF THE CYBER SCHOOL SYSTEM
Students agree not to publish on or over the Cyber School System any information which violates or infringes upon the rights of any other person or any information which would be abusive, profane or sexually offensive to a reasonable person, or which, without the approval of the system administrators, contains any advertising or any solicitation of other members to use goods or services. Students agree not to use the facilities and capabilities of the System to conduct any business, or solicit the performance of any activity which is prohibited by law.
The Division may find it necessary to access and disclose information from computer and network users' accounts to the extent required by law or to uphold legal, contractual obligations or other Division policies, and to diagnose and correct problems in network performance. Because of this, no user of the Division's computing resources or electronic communications systems should consider their messages or files private. In addition, because of the volatile nature of digital information, and the possibility of system failures and possible software or hardware problems, no user should consider that their messages or files are secure or preserved.
We believe that access to valuable information and interaction on a global scale on the internet far outweighs the possibility of encountering material that is inconsistent with the Division's mission and goals. Students (and the parent(s) of students if student is under 18 years of age) specifically understand that the system administrators and the cyber school do not have control of the content of information residing on these other systems. Students and the parents of students who are under 18 years of age are advised that some systems may contain defamatory, inaccurate, abusive, obscene, profane, sexually oriented, threatening, racially offensive, or illegal material. The system administrators do not condone the use of such materials and do not permit usage of such materials in the school environment. Parents of minors having accounts on the System should be aware of the existence of such materials and monitor home usage of the System. Students knowingly bringing such materials into the school environment will be dealt with according to the discipline policies of the individual school building, and such activities may result in termination of their registration within the cyber school.
ON-LINE CONDUCT
Any action by a student that is determined by a system administrator to constitute an inappropriate use of cyber school or to restrict or inhibit other students from using and enjoying cyber school is strictly prohibited and may result in termination of an offending student's ability to continue in the courses. Students specifically agree not to submit, publish, or display any defamatory, inaccurate, abusive, obscene, profane, sexually oriented, threatening, racially offensive, or illegal material; nor shall students encourage the use of controlled substances. Students who observe or experience violations of Division's policies on computing and electronic communications should report those violations to the Principal or Assistant Principal of cyber school. Violations will generally be treated in the same manner as violations of other Division's policies. If violations appear to constitute a criminal offense, as defined by local, provincial, or federal statutes, the appropriate authorities may be notified.
Use of any copyrighted material, whether text, digital image, audio, or video, via the Division network (email or web publishing), is subject to all restrictions imposed by the copyright law. Individual users will be held accountable for violating copyright restrictions. Individuals who knowingly make, acquire, or use unauthorized software or equipment shall be subject to immediate disciplinary action.
Students are responsible for maintaining current virus protection on their systems, and for implementing virus checks of any downloaded files. Users who do not follow these procedures and/or who knowingly spread computer viruses may be subject to disciplinary action. Deliberate attempts to degrade or disrupt system or network performance will be viewed as criminal activity under applicable provincial and federal law.
Vandalism will result in cancellation of privileges. Vandalism is defined as any malicious attempt to harm or destroy data within cyber school.
Any user identified as a security risk or having a history of violations with any services provided by the Division network may be denied access to the cyber school courses.
REAL-TIME/INTERACTIVE COMMUNICATIONS AREAS
The administrators, at their sole discretion, reserve the right to immediately terminate the account of a student who misuses the real-time conference features (talk/chat/internet relay chat).
SECURITY
Students may not let others use their account and password. Passwords to the system should not be easily "guessable" by others, nor should they be words which could be found in a dictionary. Attempts to login to the system using another member's account or as a system administrator will result in termination of the account. Students should immediately notify a system administrator if their password is lost or stolen, or if they have reason to believe that someone has obtained unauthorized access to their account.
The cyber school administrators reserve the right, at their sole discretion, to suspend or terminate student's access to and use of cyber school upon any breach of the Terms and Conditions by a student. Prior to a suspension or termination, or as soon after as is practicable, the administrator will inform the student of the suspected breach and give the student and parents an opportunity to present an explanation.
October 5, 2003
"Internet: A New Forum for Proclaiming the Gospel"
This is a message by the Pope about the internet, an interesting read.
PONTIFICIUM CONSILIUM DE COMMUNICATIONIBUS SOCIALIBUS
MESSAGE OF THE HOLY FATHER FOR THE 36th WORLD COMMUNICATIONS DAY
THEME: "Internet: A New Forum for Proclaiming the Gospel"
Sunday, May 12, 2002
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
1. The Church in every age continues the work begun on the day of Pentecost, when the Apostles, in the power of the Holy Spirit, went forth into the streets of Jerusalem to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ in many tongues (cf. Acts 2:5-11). Through the succeeding centuries, this evangelizing mission spread to the far corners of the earth, as Christianity took root in many places and learned to speak the diverse languages of the world, always in obedience to Christ's command to preach the Gospel to every nation (cf. Mt 28:19-20).
But the history of evangelization is not just a matter of geographic expansion, for the Church has also had to cross many cultural thresholds, each of which called for fresh energy and imagination in proclaiming the one Gospel of Jesus Christ. The age of the great discoveries, the Renaissance and the invention of printing, the Industrial Revolution and the birth of the modern world: these too were threshold moments which demanded new forms of evangelization. Now, with the communications and information revo
Counsellor recommendation.
Cyber school has been a beneficial addition to the educational options open to students at St. Joseph high school. Cyber school affords the student the option of learning within an alternate educational environment other then just the traditional classroom setting. This helps to meet the needs of students who may want to learn through a more self directed, technologically based approach. This in itself is an awesome opportunity, but I believe the biggest educational factor which Cyber school affords to students is that of flexibility. Many student situations arise where a variety of constraints hamper their ability to get the educational requirements that they want to achieve:
1) Students who are upgrading their grade twelve diploma and working full time have the option to take classes during hours that are convenient to them.
2) Students who have not been successful in passing a class have the ability to get caught up by taking the course through Cyber school.
3) By taking a required course through Cyber school, a student may be able to open space in their timetable for elective courses that they otherwise would not have had time for.
4) Students who are involved in pursuing personnel goals in activities outside school, or students who have medical conditions which keep them out of school for extended periods of time, find that the flexibility offered through Cyber school allows them to stay academically on track.
5) Cyber school also allows students who have moved away through educational exchanges to stay academically current.
Cyber school is a viable educational option for any student that is motivated to succeed in their academic program. It is an excellent educational alternative for any student.
Rob Revering
Guidance Counsellor
St. Joseph High School
(306) 668-2952
October 2, 2003
Cyber Rosary
This one is on prayer: Cyber Rosary.
On October 1, I have posted a note to invite students to pray the Rosary in our cyber chapel. I wasn't really sure how it would work, this idea of prayer on line. It took off very well, one of the students suggested, that we will be posting prayers of the rosary until we complete one. If someone isn't familiar what rosary is, just look it up in any search engine. So we started posting one by one "our Fathers" and "hail Marys." Why are we doing this prayer in October, it is because it is a month Dedicated to Blessed Virgin Mary and the Pope has asked us to pray to her. Some students are also posting intentions along with the prayers.
Cyber Chaplain Fr. Andrew
