February 2007
February 28, 2007
Teachers Online
A while back I postulated the idea that all teachers today should have some form of online presence. I had some varying reactions to my ideas and had to do some mental justification. Maybe I needed to clarify.
Teaching Generation Z ? Blog Archive ? Teachers Online
I can't teach properly
I’m growing increasingly frustrated in the teaching profession. I can’t teach the way that I want to, and I find it extraordinarily difficult to teach in the ‘traditional’ manner which is assumed and seemingly expected by all around me. This means I fall between two stools of conceptions of teaching.
I can’t teach properly at teaching.mrbelshaw.co.uk
Few of my favourite blog tools
northernvoice / These Are A Few Of My Favourite Tools
Through Children's Eyes
Sometimes children say it the best...Or so my three year says. Here is a comment made by a child, don't you love the way they think.
Administrator Virtual Course Tour
Each year in the second semester I spend some time reviewing your courses with each of you. Last year we had a personal interview and talked about what level your course was on the four level scale. This year I am one year older and do not wish to take up your time with the personal interview. I am going to do a virtual tour of your course, but to do this I need each of you to complete the following questions:
Journalism Grade Eleven Answers
This course offers a wide variety of concepts considering Journalism. It allows the student to study the many different modern ways of how media covers news through print journalism as well as electronic journalism. The final project allows the student to master an element of journalism that most appeals to themselves.
Student Comment:
I had a couple of students who were really quite interested in Journalism and appreciated the amount of learning material was offered.
Which of the following are used in the course?
Daily Journal ................................No a journal but not daily
Dropbox........................................No
Chatroom.....................................Yes
Discussion Board..........................Yes
Fax machine.................................No
Computer marked assignments.......No I don't have any
Flexible deadlines.......................... Yes The students have guidelines but are expected to be finished the course on time. The actual assignments don’t have due dates, but I watch that they keep a good pace. If they are not finished what needs to be done by midterm, they can still submit those after the midterm report.
RSS Feeds....................................I have no clue what that means
Blog.............................................No
Read TADO..................................sometimes.
Marks for communicating...............No... never thought of that though
Cyber Tracker saves time...............Yes
Brown Bag useful..........................I have not been able to attend as I start at EDF at 1:00pm
How many times a day do you check your...
Phone messages.........................When I get to work and when I leave.
Check your email.........................At least 5
How many times a week do you...
log into cyber tracker...................Almost everyday
get to the cyber pod....................I have only made it a few times
How many...
students in your course............... 4
course email do you get...............130
discussion board entries..............166
Most useful site(s) linked to the course.
This site is used to help the students realize that ethnocentrism happens everywhere, even in our own city.
Saskatoon
List one different element in your course.
This course allows the students to take a good look at the media and what is reliable media vs. media that is simply for people’s entertainment.
Comments
Quote of the Day
Intellectuals are people who believe that ideas are of more importance than values. That is to say their own ideas and other people's values.
Gerald Brenan
Thoughts in a Dry Season
February 27, 2007
I am sure I would be worth 2 bottles at least.
Sally was driving home from one of her business trips in Northern Arizona when she saw an elderly Navajo woman walking on the side of the road. As the trip was a long and quiet one, she stopped the car and asked the Navajo woman if she would like a ride. With a silent nod of thanks, the woman got into the car.
Resuming the journey, Sally tried in vain to make a bit of small talk with the Navajo woman. The old woman just sat silently, looking intently at everything she saw, studying every little detail, until she noticed a brown bag on the seat next to Sally.
"What in bag?" asked the old woman.
Sally looked down at the brown bag and said, "It's a bottle of wine. I got it for my husband." The Navajo woman was silent for another moment or two. Then speaking with the quiet wisdom of an elder, she said:
"Good trade."
More students across US logging on to online classrooms
Online learning "is going to reinvent high school in the United States," said Ken Ellwein, executive director of the Lutheran high school, which created its online school last year.
"To keep technology away from kids while they're going to school, when they have it in every other part of their lives -- it just doesn't make sense."
More students across US logging on to online classrooms - The Boston Globe
Online College Rankings 2007
Online higher education is growing, but a lack of transparency is preventing it from reaching its full potential. Even though online colleges are now receiving increased respect from top employers, diploma mills and the like limit the prestige of a legitimate online degree. We think more transparency is a good thing; a set of objective, quantitative rankings — however imperfect — should help shed some light on the relative attractiveness of the most popular accredited online colleges.
OEDb's Online College Rankings 2007 | OEDb
I got the following email to let me know about this rating.
eLearning Workshops
Based on the needs of the students you have recently taught or will be teaching in the future, identify an area for professional growth. For example, if your students have scored below target in reading comprehension, you may be looking for some new instructional strategies to assist students to better understand what they read. In this case, you might choose the course, Looking at Vocabulary.
Top Teaching Resources
Top Teaching Resources provides a one-stop information source designed to help educators to identify high-quality curriculum based supplemental electronic teaching resources.
Email spam report
It was brought to our attention that some rather obvious spam got through to our staff over the weekend. We have sent the offending email to our vendor for resolution.
Here is the latest stats about the mail received which is deemed good vs the junk. If you compare it to the last report in October of 2006, we are now topping 3,000,000 emails per month received with only 6% deemed good - over 100,000 per day.
We are sorry that some garbage does get through, but as you can see the task is daunting. Please communicate to your staff that we are still applying our best efforts to remove the junk, but keep all of the good email - a delicate balance to be sure.
Through Children's Eyes
Sometimes children say it the best...Or so my three year says. Here is a comment made by a child, don't you love the way they think.
Administrator Virtual Course Tour
Each year in the second semester I spend some time reviewing your courses with each of you. Last year we had a personal interview and talked about what level your course was on the four level scale. This year I am one year older and do not wish to take up your time with the personal interview. I am going to do a virtual tour of your course, but to do this I need each of you to complete the following questions:
Media Studies Grade Eleven Answers
1. Self-directed learning: you choose an area of interest for in-depth study!
2. Explore issues related to mass media while learning other important skills, such as project planning, time management, communication, evaluation and analysis.
3. “The medium is the message” An opportunity to engage in multiple media forms. (Motivated, ambitious, challenge-seeking applicants only, please.)
Student Comment:
Generally speaking, I am always thrilled when they post responses to individual lessons, obviously excited or outraged or blown away by discovering some aspect of media they hadn’t before considered. The most reactions come from the “deconstructing” unit, which covers digital manipulation, Canadian representation in the media, the language of advertising (and an essay on parity which seems to be popular). I should “save” some of the responses for future reference.
Which of the following are used in the course?
Daily Journal ................................Yes
Dropbox........................................Yes
Chatroom.....................................No
Discussion Board..........................Yes
Fax machine.................................No
Computer marked assignments.......Yes
Flexible deadlines.......................... No
RSS Feeds....................................No.
Blog.............................................No - working on one
Read TADO..................................No.
Marks for communicating...............Yes
Cyber Tracker saves time...............Yes very much actually
Brown Bag useful..........................Yes, when they happen
How many times a day do you check your...
Phone messages.........................25
Check your email.........................2
How many times a week do you...
log into cyber tracker...................5
get to the cyber pod....................1
How many...
students in your course............... 10
course email do you get...............There have been 249 email exchanges, so approx 125
discussion board entries..............We have 608 entries this semester, so far
Most useful site(s) linked to the course.
List one different element in your course.
The course is entirely project-based. This may change.
Comments
I still have years to go to have the course I envision
Quote of the Day
And that's the world in a nutshell, an appropriate receptacle.
Stan Dunn
February 24, 2007
Online Community Toolkit
Thinking about building or hosting an online community? Looking for specific tips, tools and ideas? Start here. The following is a collection of articles that may help inform your work.
Reena Virk: A real-life Lord of the Flies?
Teaching English Language Arts: ReenaLOTF
My first wiki.
This wiki is a follow up to a discussion that I had at Northern Voice.
It is an attempt to place interactivity of web stuff. Please go anedit this wiki to build this list.
"Wiki wiki" is Hawaiian for "quick". In the words of Wiki's creator, Ward Cunningham: "I chose wiki-wiki as an alliterative substitute for quick and thereby avoided naming this stuff quick-web."
Trying to build a list based on interactivity.
This list will be from the least interactive to the most interactive.
1. Web Pages
2. Website guest book
3. Blogs
4. General message boards
5. Wikis
6. Personal message boards
7. Email
8. I.M.
9. Telephone
10. Video Conference
11. Face to face meeting
What is Disruptive Innovation?
Disruptive Innovation (Christensen)
Administrators Virtual Course Tour
Each year in the second semester I spend some time reviewing your courses with each of you. Last year we had a personal interview and talked about what level your course was on the four level scale. This year I am one year older and do not wish to take up your time with the personal interview. I am going to do a virtual tour of your course, but to do this I need each of you to complete the following questions:
English A Grade Twelve Answers
This course offers great flexibility, independence and quick feedback to the serious learner. Students are able to work on their own time, and pretty much at their own pace. Teacher feedback and assignment return is prompt, usually within 12 hours, and rarely longer than 24 hours.
Student Comment:
I liked how all of the assignments were done on the computer. I also liked how fast I would recieve my marks back. This allowed me to know what my mark was throughout the course. It was not hard communicating or asking questions and they were all very well answered. I really liked how I could work on my own time. If I was really busy I could do it at a different time.
Fast help when needed. Teacher patience, and flexbility period for writing exams.
Which of the following are used in the course?
Daily Journal ................................Yes
Dropbox........................................No
Chatroom.....................................No
Discussion Board..........................Yes
Fax machine.................................No
Computer marked assignments.......Yes
Flexible deadlines.......................... I accept assignments after the stated cut off time.
RSS Feeds....................................No.
Blog.............................................No
Read TADO..................................Yes.
Marks for communicating...............Yes
Cyber Tracker saves time...............No not yet
Brown Bag useful..........................Yes
How many times a day do you check your...
Phone messages.........................once
Check your email.........................2 to 3 times
How many times a week do you...
log into cyber tracker...................7 or more
get to the cyber pod....................2
How many...
students in your course............... 9
course email do you get...............don'tknow I have not kept track
discussion board entries..............Somewhere over 900- the private discussion boards are the main avenue I and the students use to communicate and for them to submit assignments and for me to return them.
Most useful site(s) linked to the course.
I have no links
List one different element in your course.
Letter of Introduction
Comments
There are a number of changes that I am looking at as I work on the ELA 20 course. I want to explore more closely the pros and cons of using the drop box rather than the discussion board that I am using now for submission of assignments. I will look at using blogs for the student journals. If I see them working well for ELA 20 (or better than what I am using for ELA A30) then I foresee changing the process in ELA A30.
Quote of the day
People who say they sleep like a baby usually don't have one.
Leo J. Burke
February 21, 2007
YouNiversity
That “wherever they can find it” part is what I find really intriguing. How interesting would it be to teach and encourage our students to go and find the best available information out there? I mean, isn’t not doing that really doing a disservice at this point? It’s still such a difficult concept for a lot of teachers to embrace, this idea that there might be better information, better learning outside of the traditional structures.
Through Children's Eyes
Sometimes children say it the best...Or so my three year says. Here is a comment made by a child, don't you love the way they think.
Administrator Virtual Course Tour
Each year in the second semester I spend some time reviewing your courses with each of you. Last year we had a personal interview and talked about what level your course was on the four level scale. This year I am one year older and do not wish to take up your time with the personal interview. I am going to do a virtual tour of your course, but to do this I need each of you to complete the following questions:
English B Grade Twelve Answers
This is a course that provides you the opportunity to expand your learning styles. You will learn independently and become responsible. You also get one on one time whenever you need it.
Student Comment:
(Paraphrased) “This is the most challenging English course I’ve ever had, and I learned the most”
Which of the following are used in the course?
Daily Journal ................................Yes
Dropbox........................................No
Chatroom.....................................Rarely
Discussion Board..........................Yes
Fax machine.................................No
Computer marked assignments.......No
Flexible deadlines..........................As a rule, No
RSS Feeds....................................No. not yet
Blog.............................................Yes, but not operating yet
Read TADO..................................Yes.
Marks for communicating...............No.
Cyber Tracker saves time...............Yes and No
Brown Bag useful..........................Yes
How many times a day do you check your...
Phone messages.........................5
Check your email.........................Constantly (50)
How many times a week do you...
log into cyber tracker...................Everyday at school
get to the cyber pod....................5
How many...
students in your course............... 9
course email do you get...............83
discussion board entries..............50
Most useful site(s) linked to the course.
I have no links
List one different element in your course.
Not really sure
Comments
None
Quote of the Day
The genius of a good leader is to leave behind him a situation which common sense, without the trace of genius, can deal with successfully.
Walter Lippmann
February 20, 2007
Cyber School Promo 2006
The following is a cyber school promo for 2007 to be used at grade 8 parent nights and 9-11 parent nights at our feeder schools.
2007 Cyber School Promotional html
2007 Cyber School Promotional PowerPoint
Bated Breath
I Love the internet...here is the answer to my own question.
"Bated breath" has been around a long time. Here's the first cite in the Oxford English Dictionary: "1596 Shakespeare, Merchant of Venice i. iii. 125 'With bated breath, and whispring humblenesse.'"
Bated-- "To moderate or restrain (a variation of "abate"): to bate one's enthusiasm, and, "to lessen or diminish," and "with bated breath - in a state of suspenseful anticipation."
I myself like the "baited" ...you know holding a worm in your mouth trying to lure the fish in...
OK...OK it might not be as good.
Northern Voice Blog Conference
I am officially a blogger, on thursday I will be flying to Vancouver to participate in my first bloggin conference. I am a veteran conferencer but a virgin blog conferencer. I will blog my experience and I hope you wait with baited breath for those postings.
(by the way anyone know where the expression "baited breath" came from?)
Teaching and Learning Resources from Federal Agencies
Very neat website with a large amount of resources
FREE -- Federal Resources for Educational Excellence
Latest Drug in Middle School - Dusting
First, I'm going to tell you a little about me and my family. My name is Jeff. I am a Police Officer for a city which is known nationwide for it's Crime rate. We have a lot of gangs and drugs. At one point we were # 2 in The nation in homicides per capita. I also have a police K-9 named Thor. He was certified in drugs and general duty. He retired at 3 years old because he was shot in the line of duty. He lives with us now and I still train with him because he likes it. I always liked the fact that there was no way to bring drugs into my house. Thor wouldn't allow it. He would tell on you. The reason I say this is so you understand that I know about drugs.
I have taught in schools about drugs. My wife asks all our kids at least once a week if they used any drugs. Makes them promise they won't.
I like building computers occasionally and started building a new one in
February 2005. I also was working on some of my older computers. They were
full of dust so on one of my trips to the computer store I bought a 3 pack of DUST OFF. Dust Off is a can of compressed air to blow dust off a computer. A few weeks later when I went to use one of them they were all used. I talked to my kids and my two sons both said they had used them on their computer and messing around with them. I yelled at them for wasting the 10 dollars I paid for them.
On February 28, I went back to the computer store. They didn't have the 3 Pack which I had bought on sale so I bought a single jumbo can of Dust Off.
I went home and set it down beside my computer. On March 1st, I left for work at 10 PM. Just before midnight my wife went down and kissed Kyle goodnight. At 5:30 am the next morning Kathy went downstairs to wake Kyle up for school, before she left for work. He was propped up in bed with his legs crossed and his head leaning over. She called to him a few times to get up. He didn't move. He would sometimes tease her like this and pretend he
fell back asleep. He was never easy to get up. She went in and shook his
arm. He fell over. He was pale white and had the straw from the Dust Off can coming out of his mouth. He had the new can of Dust Off in his hands. Kyle was dead.
Through Children's Eyes
Sometimes children say it the best...Or so my three year says. Here is a comment made by a child, don't you love the way they think.
Jobs, Dell appraise technology, schools
In a joint appearance in front of executives and educational technology advocates at a statewide summit in Texas Feb. 16, Apple CEO Steve Jobs and Dell CEO Michael Dell shared their views on the role of educational technology in preparing students for the challenges of the 21st century. Jobs, who says schools should operate more like businesses, criticized teacher unions for exerting too much control over the personnel process. Dell talked about the importance of 21st century skills and highlighted a new web site where Dell customers, including educators, can make suggestions for improving the company's products and services.
eSchool News online - Jobs, Dell appraise technology, schools
21st Century Information Fluency Project
IMSA's 21 st Century Information Fluency Project (21CIF) provides free online resources to all educators and learners so that they may locate, evaluate and use digital information resources more effectively, efficiently and ethically. 21CIF addresses the information needs experienced by today's teachers and students through IMSA's "Full Circle Resource Kit", online courses and webinars, face-to-face workshops and interactive tutorials. All curricular resources are informed by the latest research and supplemented with interactive Wizard Tools.
IMSA 21st Century Information Fluency Project - Resources
Administrator Course Virtual Tour
Each year in the second semester I spend some time reviewing your courses with each of you. Last year we had a personal interview and talked about what level your course was on the four level scale. This year I am one year older and do not wish to take up your time with the personal interview. I am going to do a virtual tour of your course, but to do this I need each of you to complete the following questions:
Chemistry Grade Eleven and Twelve Answers
CyberSchool Chemistry provides students with an opportunity to learn in a unique way. It uses the resources of the Internet to illustrate chemical principles in ways not possible in most classrooms. Successful students come away with a broader knowledge base and more independence to make them life-long learners.
Student Comment: What did you enjoy about Cyber School ?
- how helpful the teachers are. When you have a question they can answer it and explain what it is you are wondering about.
- the flexible hours you are required to work.
- that you can set your own schedule
Which of the following are used in the course?
Daily Journal ................................No
Dropbox........................................No
Chatroom.....................................No
Discussion Board..........................Yes
Fax machine.................................Yes It is listed as an option for submitting assignments.
Computer marked assignments.......Yes. Of the 70-odd assignments in each course, most are computer marked. Because they are short answer/numerical answers for the most part I still have to go over every assignment to make sure the students are getting all the credit they deserve.
Flexible deadlines..........................Yes 150 days is my only deadline
RSS Feeds....................................No. I have enough trouble getting students to read beyond what is written in the course (they treat it like a textbook) RSS would just give them more material not to read.
Blog.............................................Yes Only for my "in body" sessions at Holy Cross
Read TADO..................................Yes. I browse it and read the bits I think may be useful
Marks for communicating...............Yes. It is based on specific items to be placed on the bulletin board, not email conversations with me or with each other.
Cyber Tracker saves time...............No. All the information I need is on WebCT and an Excel spread sheet. Inactivity can be determined using Track Students in WebCT. I record midterm and final due dates as a matter of course when a student registers. The record of emails is fine, but my problem is lack of progress, not lack of logging on so I wind up writing my own emails anyway.
One thing that has added to my work is that we no longer get notice when a student is added to a class. It is usually only when a student I don’t recognize starts sending emails or when I go into the manage students section of WebCT that I notice I have a new student.
It would be great if Tracker could send an email automatically when a student is added or deleted.
Brown Bag useful..........................No. Attendance is usually so low that everything gets repeated by email anyway. We need to get a formal staff meeting time allocated like is done in the schools.
How many times a day do you check your...
Phone messages.........................A couple
Check your email.........................six times a day
How many times a week do you...
log into cyber tracker...................A couple. I check it when I grade the course to make sure I am not missing anything.
get to the pod.............................Every Day
How many...
students in your course............... 25
course email do you get...............On average about 6 a day
discussion board entries..............On average about 2 a day
Most useful site(s) linked to the course.
List one different element in your course.
At this time I can’t think of any elements which are unique. As I renew the courses over the next couple of years I want to make it less wordy and more interactive. Easily said, but I realize I have a huge job ahead of me.
Comments
Now that we are established as a school I think our biggest challenge is to stay on the radar of teachers and students. We must continue to sell ourselves and our product to the students and the community at large. Only that way will our enrollment remain viable.
That said, we have to make sure our “product” stays current. More time and resources must be allocated not only to course additions, but renewal.
Quote of the Day
Behold the turtle. He makes progress only when he sticks his neck out.
James Bryant Conant
February 12, 2007
Administrator Course Virtual Tour
Each year in the second semester I spend some time reviewing your courses with each of you. Last year we had a personal interview and talked about what level your course was on the four level scale. This year I am one year older and do not wish to take up your time with the personal interview. I am going to do a virtual tour of your course, but to do this I need each of you to complete the following questions:
Information Processing Grade Eleven Answers
This is a very practical course. The lessons are easy to follow. The assignments reinforce the lessons.
Student Comment: I really liked this course, is there an IP30?
Which of the following are used in the course?
Daily Journal ................................Yes
Dropbox........................................Yes
Chatroom.....................................No
Discussion Board..........................Yes
Fax machine.................................No
Computer marked assignments.......Yes
Flexible deadlines..........................Yes 150 days is my only deadline
RSS Feeds....................................No
Blog.............................................No
Read TADO..................................Yes
Marks for communicating...............Yes
Cyber Tracker saves time...............Yes
Brown Bag useful..........................Sometimes, Email is usually enough, when email is not….. YES
How many times a day do you check your...
Phone messages.........................Constantly
Check your email.........................Constantly
How many times a week do you...
log into cyber tracker...................3
get to the pod.............................1
How many...
students in your course............... 14
course email do you get...............Approximately 400/15 = 27 per student
discussion board entries..............131 or about 9 per student
Most useful site(s) linked to the course.
The University of Toronto Engineering Communication Centre
List one different element in your course.
I have an assignment / quiz on every page… lots of immediate feedback.
Comments
None
Quote of the Day
The danger from computers is not that they will eventually get as smart as men, but that we will meanwhile agree to meet them halfway.
Bernard Avishai
February 9, 2007
Too many links it drives me mad.
The following is the start of an executive summary of a proposal we have put together and I will just use it for this example
Our initial concept involved developing a program to track students enrolled in Saskatoon Catholic Cyber School. Web CT, the learning management system this program was designed to accompany, does have student tracking capabilities however, it is designed to work primarily with semester based courses.
Doesn't a blog entry with so many links make you mad. I end up away from the original entry and off surfing somewhere else. So in my blog entries I try to make my point and then place a single link to the point of interest.
Virtual school a victim of its own success
An Oregon state law threatens to curtail the growth of a popular online charter school. Since it launched less than two years ago, enrollment in the Oregon Connections Academy has swelled to more than 1,200 students from across the state; problem is, a state law passed after the school's inception requires at least half of a school's student population to live in the district where it is based. State officials say when the school's contract is up, they will require it to comply with the law--setting up a legal showdown if the statute isn't changed.
eSchool News online - Virtual school a victim of its own success
Administrator Virtual Course Tour
Each year in the second semester I spend some time reviewing your courses with each of you. Last year we had a personal interview and talked about what level your course was on the four level scale. This year I am one year older and do not wish to take up your time with the personal interview. I am going to do a virtual tour of your course, but to do this I need each of you to complete the following questions:
Ukrainian Grade Ten Answers
I would want my own kid taking the course!
Student Comment: Have not received any (yet – all the good ones are coming soon)
Which of the following are used in the course?
Daily Journal ................................No
Dropbox........................................No
Chatroom.....................................No
Discussion Board..........................Yes
Fax machine.................................Yes
Computer marked assignments.......No
Flexible deadlines..........................Yes
RSS Feeds....................................No
Blog.............................................No
Read TADO..................................No
Marks for communicating...............Yes
Cyber Tracker saves time...............No
Brown Bag useful..........................Have attended one - File Maker discussion, it was useful.
How many times a day do you check your...
Phone messages.........................Once
Check your email.........................At least twice
How many times a week do you...
log into cyber tracker...................once
get to the pod.............................four
How many...
students in your course............... 2
course email do you get...............39
discussion board entries..............1
Most useful site(s) linked to the course.
List one different element in your course.
It’s all in Ukrainian! And, I use an ancient technology – faxes!!
Comments
None
Error Messages That I Can Understand
If one never tries, one never fails, one never learns. This message might be a good thing.
Quote of the Day
Don't worry about people stealing your ideas. If your ideas are any good, you'll have to ram them down people's throats.
Howard Aiken
February 8, 2007
GM and Computers
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):
1. For no reason whatsoever, your car would crash twice a day.
2. Every time they repainted the lines in the road, you would have to buy a new car.
3. Occasionally your car would die on the freeway for no reason. You would have to pull to the side of the road, close all of the windows, shut off the car, restart it, and reopen the windows before you could continue. For some reason you would simply accept this.
4. Occasionally, executing a maneuver such as a left turn would cause your car to shut down and refuse to restart, in which case you would have to reinstall the engine.
5. Macintosh! would make a car that was powered by the sun, was reliable, five times as fast and twice as easy to drive -- but would run on only five percent of the roads.
6. The oil, water temperature, and alternator warning lights would all be replaced by a single "This Car Has Performed An Illegal Operation"
warning light.
7. The airbag system would ask "Are you sure?" before deploying.
8. Occasionally, for no reason whatsoever, your car would lock you out and refuse to let you in until you simultaneously lifted the door handle, turned the key and grabbed hold of the radio antenna.
9. Every time a new car was introduced car buyers would have to learn how to drive all over again because none of the controls would operate in the same manner as the old car.
10. You'd have to press the "Start" button to turn the engine off.
Please share this with your friends who love - but sometimes hate - their computer
Administrators Virtual Course Tour
Each year in the second semester I spend some time reviewing your courses with each of you. Last year we had a personal interview and talked about what level your course was on the four level scale. This year I am one year older and do not wish to take up your time with the personal interview. I am going to do a virtual tour of your course, but to do this I need each of you to complete the following questions:
Christian Ethics Grade Twelve Answers
Know God. Love God. Serve God, all with the help of my online Christian Ethics class.
Student Comment: I have not had any yet.
Which of the following are used in the course?
Daily Journal ................................Yes
Dropbox........................................Yes
Chatroom.....................................No
Discussion Board..........................Yes
Fax machine.................................Yes
Computer marked assignments.......Yes
Flexible deadlines..........................Yes
RSS Feeds....................................No
Blog.............................................No
Read TADO..................................No
Marks for communicating...............Yes
Cyber Tracker saves time...............No
Brown Bag useful..........................Yes
How many times a day do you check your...
Phone messages.........................Twice
Check your email.........................3 times a day
How many times a week do you...
log into cyber tracker...................3-5
get to the pod.............................3 times
How many...
students in your course............... 17
course email do you get...............130
discussion board entries..............970
Most useful site(s) linked to the course.
Your Guide to the Religions of the World
List one different element in your course.
Other than being about religion I haven’t had time to explore other courses yet.
Comments
None
Error Messages that I can understand!
Since I started the cyber school I have watched less and less TV...I get all the entertainment and news I can handle via the internet.
Quote of the Day
How do you know so much about everything? was asked of a very wise and intelligent man; and the answer was 'By never being afraid or ashamed to ask questions as to anything of which I was ignorant.'
John Abbott (1821-1893) Canadian Prime Minister
February 7, 2007
Alice a good friend of mine.
K12Wiki
This is a great group of wikis.
Ten habits of bloggers that win!
Cool Cat Teacher Blog: Ten habits of bloggers that win!
11 Steps to Online Parental Supervision of your Children
"She knew he spent a lot of time on the computer in his bedroom but had no idea he was filling an online journal with hate-filled rants and violent fantasies. "We found there was a little change because he was a little quieter, but he still was normal at home, living with us upstairs, [sleeping] in his bedroom. It's not that he was alone in the basement or anything," she said."
Cool Cat Teacher Blog: 11 Steps to Online Parental Supervision of your Children
11 Steps to Online Parental Supervision of your Children
Looking for a Grant?
Give the grantgivers a good picture of your school and your needs. Present a compelling argument by providing research that supports your proposal.
EduBlog Insights ? Blog Archive ? Looking for a grant?
Administrator Virtual Course Tour
Each year in the second semester I spend some time reviewing your courses with each of you. Last year we had a personal interview and talked about what level your course was on the four level scale. This year I am one year older and do not wish to take up your time with the personal interview. I am going to do a virtual tour of your course, but to do this I need each of you to complete the following questions:
Physics Grade Eleven and Twelve Answers
A detailed high school physics course which meets all of the objectives of the prescribed curriculum established by Saskatchewan Learning. The course provides students with the opportunity to become informed about key concepts in physics and become independent learners as they learn at their own pace. The illustrations and links to websites provides students with a visual representation of many of the key concepts that are studied and the detailed solutions to questions that are provided allow students to develop their problem solving skills along with their critical thinking.
Student Comment: Flexible, caring, and accommodating instructor.
Which of the following are used in the course?
Daily Journal ................................No
Dropbox........................................Yes
Chatroom.....................................No
Discussion Board..........................Yes
Fax machine.................................Yes
Computer marked assignments.......Yes
Flexible deadlines..........................Yes
RSS Feeds....................................No
Blog.............................................No
Read TADO..................................Yes
Marks for communicating...............Yes
Cyber Tracker saves time...............No
Brown Bag useful..........................Yes
How many times a day do you check your...
Phone messages.........................Once
Check your email.........................2-3 times a day
How many times a week do you...
log into cyber tracker...................1 - 2 times when it is working
get to the pod.............................5 times
How many...
students in your course............... Physics 20 - 14 Physics 30 - 8
course email do you get...............Countless
discussion board entries..............Many
Most useful site(s) linked to the course.
List one different element in your course.
A very detailed and structured "Student Calendar" which allows students the opportunity to always be on task.
Comments
Tracking of students in the course is important as are referrals. However I have found that the process that we are presently working on to be a rather cumbersome one and also stressful whereby a lot of time is devoted to this process as opposed to focusing our attention on those students that are actually willing to do the work. The attempt to streamline and standardize everything may be of benefit to some but flexibility and efficiency must be built into the process. I guess what I am trying to say and as I have already indicated, I am rather frustrated right now with the tracking system that we are presently pursuing as it has created additional work for me. Having said that I also understand and appreciate the amount of time and effort that has gone into formalizing this process and from an administrative perspective it may have made things simpler.
Error Messages that I Understand
Interesting approach to making one feel powerless.
Quote of the Day
A psychiatrist is a fellow who asks you a lot of expensive questions your wife asks for nothing.
Joey Adams
February 6, 2007
Email from my wife
Subject: FW: To my darling husband.
Before you return from your overseas trip I just want to let you know about the small accident I had with the pick up truck when I turned into the driveway. Fortunately not too bad and I really didn't get hurt, so please don't worry too much about me.
I was coming home from Wal-Mart, and when I turned into the driveway accidentally pushed down on the accelerator instead of the brake. The garage door is slightly bent but the pick up fortunately came to a halt when it bumped into your car.
I am really sorry, but I know with your kind-hearted personality you will forgive me. You know how much I love you and care for you my sweetheart.
I am attaching a picture for you.
I cannot wait to hold you in my arms again.
Your loving wife.
P.S. Your girlfriend called.
Your eyes will fall out of your head.
Now this game will drive you wacky
Learning Tools
Welcome to Learning Tools, from UBC Arts ISIT. The e-learning tools listed here are publicly available for academic use, within and outside the University of British Columbia. Periodically, Arts IS releases new tools to this site, so please check back in the future to see what's new. You are invited to explore these exciting new learning tools, and make free use of the learning objects they generate for educational or research purposes.
Internet for Classrooms
Lesson Plan sites for K-12 Teachers
Free English Test for ESL
Free English Tests for ESL/EFL, TOEFL, TOEIC, SAT, GRE, GMAT
Universal Teacher.org
Andrew Moore's resource site home page - index
Open Learning Initiative
Welcome to Carnegie Mellon's Open Learning Initiative (OLI):
A collection of "cognitively informed," openly available and free online courses and course materials that enact instruction for an entire course in an online format.
Open Learning Initiative at Carnegie Mellon University
Free Online Photography Course
Welcome to Jodies Coston's Free Online Photography Course sponsored by the morguefile.com and its contributors. This course is free and open to the public.
Massive Resource List for All Autodidacts
A very cool list of sites
Podcast Number three
TADO Crew: Norm Lepage, Darren Cannell, Todd Paslawski
TADO Table of Contents
TADO Net Buzz
Darren: Dynamic use of computational readouts
Todd: use of an online calendar
Norm: iTunes podcast directory
TADO Feature Topic
1. Can Technology overwhelm content?
2. Do we design online learning based on the user or based on the technology?
Check it out by clicking the button below
Podcast Three
Administrator Virtual Course Tour
Each year in the second semester I spend some time reviewing your courses with each of you. Last year we had a personal interview and talked about what level your course was on the four level scale. This year I am one year older and do not wish to take up your time with the personal interview. I am going to do a virtual tour of your course, but to do this I need each of you to complete the following questions:
English Language Arts Grade Ten (under development) Answers
The ELA A10 course is designed to help further develop students’ skills in Language Arts. The areas that we focus on are reading and writing from poetry, short stories, essays, plays, and novel studies. Freedom and flexibility is built in to this interactive course.
Student Comment: None
Which of the following are used in the course?
Daily Journal ................................No
Dropbox........................................Yes
Chatroom.....................................Yes
Discussion Board..........................Yes
Fax machine.................................No
Computer marked assignments.......Yes
Flexible deadlines..........................Yes
RSS Feeds....................................No
Blog.............................................No
Read TADO..................................Yes
Marks for communicating...............No
Cyber Tracker saves time...............Yes
Brown Bag useful..........................Yes
How many times a day do you check your...
Phone messages.........................Once
Check your email.........................at least three
How many times a week do you...
log into cyber tracker...................N/A
get to the pod.............................2
How many...
students in your course............... N/A
course email do you get...............N/A
discussion board entries..............N/A
Most useful site(s) linked to the course.
I don’t have an internet site, I have downloaded and inserted links to interactive movies and music to support the lessons.
List one different element in your course.
It is ELA A10 – nobody else can say that!
Comments
I know a lot of this didn’t apply to me, yet, but it made me think about my course design. I know if I did it again, there might be some things I would have done a bit differently but I am pretty pleased with how it came out overall. Once I have some students in there I’ll have a better idea of where I screwed things up, and have to change things. I got a lot of great advice from the people in the pod. It made it soooo much easier. I talked to many teachers and got them to tell me about what works and what doesn’t, and what they prefer and why. It was awesome.
Quote of the Day
Begin at the beginning and go on till you come to the end; then stop.
Lewis Carroll, from Alice in Wonderland
February 5, 2007
Administrator Virtual Course Tour
Each year in the second semester I spend some time reviewing your courses with each of you. Last year we had a personal interview and talked about what level your course was on the four level scale. This year I am one year older and do not wish to take up your time with the personal interview. I am going to do a virtual tour of your course, but to do this I need each of you to complete the following questions:
Information Processing Grade Ten Answers
This is one of the first completely online courses developed in the province. It provides students with the opportunity to pursue a credit in Information Processing in a non-linear, learn at your own pace, online environment which allows them to gain a true knowledge and understanding of the principles of technology use in their lives and the world around them.
Student Comment: “This course was a lot of fun and interesting. Instead of sitting through a teacher lecturing about things I know already, I learned some valuable computer skills and acomplished things I didn't think were possible before.”
Which of the following are used in the course?
Daily Journal ................................No
Dropbox........................................Yes
Chatroom.....................................Yes
Discussion Board..........................Yes
Fax machine.................................Yes, sometimes
Computer marked assignments.......Yes
Flexible deadlines..........................Yes
RSS Feeds....................................Not yet…. But on my way
Blog.............................................Yes
Read TADO..................................Yes
Marks for communicating...............Yes
Cyber Tracker saves time...............Yes
Brown Bag useful..........................Yes (but a pain to get to)
How many times a day do you check your...
Phone messages.........................I am tracking them from when I log in on Cyber to when I log off.
Check your email.........................Too many to count
How many times a week do you...
log into cyber tracker...................Twice I think
get to the pod.............................3+
How many...
students in your course............... IT’S full from day one to final day.., 30 at all times
course email do you get...............Current course year 991, I have sent 1718
discussion board entries..............2108 (multi years though, not sure about this year.
Most useful site(s) linked to the course.
Quite honestly this course was set up to run independently of other sites and therefore does not suffer link rot, or outdated links, it was meade to run itself, although the best third party javascript linked on the site is to the typing tutor program from The Typing Tutor
List one different element in your course.
The integration of html programmed hard links in the course itself presents an ease of use other courses are not able to match.
Comments
None
Error Messages that I Understand
I think I could program a machine to have this pop up once a day or so....hmmmmm
Quote of the Day
If at first you don't succeed, then you're doing about average
If, at first, you do succeed, try to hide your astonishment.
If at first you don't succeed, then failure is a real possibility
If at first you don't succeed, call it Version 1.0
If at first you don't succeed, change the rules
If at first you don't succeed, give up. No use being a damn fool.
If at first you don't succeed, lower your standards.
If at first you don't succeed, redefine success.
If at first you don't succeed, destroy all evidence that you tried.
If at first you don't succeed, then parachuting is definitely not for you.
Parachuting can be great fun, if the parachute opens
For Sale: Parachute. Only used once, never opened, small stain.
February 2, 2007
Moving Schools Forward–A School 2.0 Project
So here is one of the burning questions in my brain these days: How do you take a fairly “typical” school that is currently steeped in a 20th Century model of teaching and successfully move it forward in a systemic way toward a more relevant 21st Century, or, if you will, School 2.0 model that fully takes advantage of a more connected, collaborative, creative world?
Weblogg-ed ? Moving Schools Forward–A School 2.0 Project
ASCD Idea Exchange
Here you have an opportunity for ongoing conversations with educators across the country focused on improving the quality of professional development. Many of us are stumped when asked pointedly by a policymaker or school funding representative "How have our students benefited from the latest professional development initiative?" We still have a great deal to learn about designing, implementing, and then documenting the results of professional development efforts.
Blackboard Patent Pledge
Welcome to the Blackboard Patent Information Page. Below is a collection of resources we hope the community will find useful in better understanding the recently announced Blackboard Patent Pledge.
Where Dell went wrong
The resignation of Kevin Rollins as CEO of Dell highlights one of the oldest and most important adages of the PC industry: you can stay on top for only so long.
Where Dell went wrong | Perspectives | CNET News.com
Bill Gates' to-do list
It's still a year before Bill Gates shifts from a full-time Microsoft worker to a part-timer. Which is good, because there's plenty he still wants to achieve.
Bill Gates' to-do list | Newsmakers | CNET News.com
Turnaround time for Michael Dell
We try to buy nothing but Dell computers for the SCCS Pod, mainly because of the support...it stops working and they will do what is necessary to make it work again.
Turnaround time for Michael Dell | CNET News.com
Error Messages That I Understand
On some days I would be willing to accept this message. Sleep, I need sleep.
Administrators Virtual Course Tour
Each year in the second semester I spend some time reviewing your courses with each of you. Last year we had a personal interview and talked about what level your course was on the four level scale. This year I am one year older and do not wish to take up your time with the personal interview. I am going to do a virtual tour of your course, but to do this I need each of you to complete the following questions:
History Grade Twelve Answers
First, I don’t consider myself much of a salesman, I couldn’t sell water in the desert. Here goes:
Understand how our country was created, populated and governed so that you can determine if the plans developed by the "Fathers of Confederation" have been followed or rejected. What is Canada, and what does it mean to be Canadian?
Student Comment: "I felt smarter because I didn't have a whole class of other students to compare myself to ... and I could do the work whenever I wanted, and I could do as much as I wanted to..."
Which of the following are used in the course?
Daily Journal ................................No
Dropbox........................................Yes
Chatroom.....................................No
Discussion Board..........................Yes
Fax machine.................................No
Computer marked assignments.......Yes
Flexible deadlines..........................No
RSS Feeds....................................Yes
Blog.............................................Yes (but not for the course ... yet )
Read TADO..................................Yes
Marks for communicating...............Yes
Cyber Tracker saves time...............Yes
Brown Bag useful..........................Yes (when I get there)
How many times a day do you check your...
Phone messages.........................Not as often as I'd like ... I'm based in email
Check your email.........................Everyday, multiple times ... it's my primary link of communication
How many times a week do you...
log into cyber tracker...................It ranges from 2-4 times a week.
get to the pod.............................I try to get to the pod as much as I can ... between 1-3 times a week.
How many...
students in your course...............31
course email do you get...............I get about three emails a day from my students.
discussion board entries..............Each student will submit a min. of 14 discussion board entries. I've created a article critique discussion and a current events discussion forum.
Most useful site(s) linked to the course.
They are all fantastic, take your pick. The reason I say this is because, I've created a lesson template that all of my lessons follow. Research has shown that interface continuity has a tremendous impact on the online user ... it establishes students self-efficacy in the course, and creates a feeling of comfort because they are familiar with their "screen real-estate" ... they know where everything is, and where everything is suppose to be. (I know, long answer)
List one different element in your course.
I use audio files on my main page to deliver class notices. I will be using an application to enhance the audio communication between myself and my students. I think that my course has strong online design methodology, and implements as many online "internet" technologies. (the use of the new online technologies are always tested and accessed by me before I implement them in my online class.
Comments
I love teaching cyberschool. I love the challenge of using current technology to communicate historic events. Bottom line, I will use the highest and lowest forms of technology to motivate my students to learn and keep learning. Oh yeah, Macs rule!!!!
Quote of the Day
You know you've achieved perfection in design,
Not when you have nothing more to add,
But when you have nothing more to take away.
Antoine de Saint-Exupery
February 1, 2007
New Monthly Poll
The people who check Never are not telling the truth,
Error Messages that I Understand
I will have to use this PEBKAC with a few Users that I know.
Administrator Virtual Course Tour
Each year in the second semester I spend some time reviewing your courses with each of you. Last year we had a personal interview and talked about what level your course was on the four level scale. This year I am one year older and do not wish to take up your time with the personal interview. I am going to do a virtual tour of your course, but to do this I need each of you to complete the following questions:
Mathematics B Grade Twelve Answers
First, I don’t consider myself much of a salesman, I couldn’t sell water in the desert. Here goes:
Are you looking for a course to teach you Math B30. All lessons go step by step, all assignments must be completed to ensure understanding, and all solutions are worked out to see where you may have made a mistake
Student Comment: “I like the way lessons are set up.”
Which of the following are used in the course?
Daily Journal ................................No
Dropbox........................................No
Chatroom.....................................No
Discussion Board..........................No
Fax machine.................................No, but students have scanned their work and emailed it to me for partial marks.
Computer marked assignments.......Yes they all are
Flexible deadlines..........................I make exceptions for people who are close to being finished but need a little more time
RSS Feeds....................................I am not sure
Blog.............................................No
Read TADO..................................No
Marks for communicating...............No
Cyber Tracker saves time...............yes, and it will save more over time
Brown Bag useful..........................some.
How many times a day do you check your...
Phone messages.........................at most onece
Check your email.........................weekdays -3 weekends - 1
How many times a week do you...
log into cyber tracker...................couple
get to the pod.............................1
How many...
students in your course...............14
course email do you get...............392, but I have deleted some
discussion board entries..............0
Most useful site(s) linked to the course.
Haven't got there yet.
List one different element in your course.
Not Sure
Comments
None
Quote of the Day
The dog's kennel is not the place to keep a sausage.
Danish Proverb
