Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Vacation is over...
The lovely winter vacation is over... and today I go back to work. Sigh.............
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Ben Yagoda's The Elements of Clunk
This little column by Ben Yagoda (professor of English at the University of Delaware), The Elements of Clunk, really rings true for me. Although Prof. Yagoda is more meticulous in his worries than I am (the difference between the spelling "gray" and "grey," for example, is not something I worry about), he identifies the basic problems that I find in my students' writing also. Consider this observation about punctuation:
By working with students on revising their writing, I can usually make sure that the final version of their writing for my classes is in decent shape, but with many (most?) students, I cannot really say that they are able to proofread their own writing effectively, even after 15 weeks of regular practice in my class. For quite a few of the students, the motivation to learn how to proofread their writing is zero; they just don't see it as important, except insofar as they are willing to make an effort in order to secure a good grade.
This is a question that I ponder semester after semester, and it is still something that really confuses and frustrates me as a teacher. In the next week, I'll be brainstorming some ideas to see what new strategies I might try this semester. Maybe I can come up with some good new ideas! :-)
Punctuation is a train wreck among my students. I have no doubt as to the root of the problem: Students haven't spent much time reading. Punctuation, including the use of apostrophes and hyphens, is governed by a fairly complicated series of rules and conventions, learned for the most part not in the classroom but by encountering and subliminally absorbing them again and again. Students have a lot of conversations and texting sessions, but that's no help. You need to read a lot of edited and published prose.Here is the question I keep asking myself, and which Prof. Yagoda does not really deal with in his essay. Given this "train wreck" (great metaphor), what can we really expect to do about this? If students have not learned about punctuation by doing lots of reading in the past, and if they are probably not going to be doing lots of reading in the future, then what can we expect to accomplish by teaching the rules of writing directly, without the reinforcement of reading...? I worry that the answer to that question is: we cannot accomplish much.
By working with students on revising their writing, I can usually make sure that the final version of their writing for my classes is in decent shape, but with many (most?) students, I cannot really say that they are able to proofread their own writing effectively, even after 15 weeks of regular practice in my class. For quite a few of the students, the motivation to learn how to proofread their writing is zero; they just don't see it as important, except insofar as they are willing to make an effort in order to secure a good grade.
This is a question that I ponder semester after semester, and it is still something that really confuses and frustrates me as a teacher. In the next week, I'll be brainstorming some ideas to see what new strategies I might try this semester. Maybe I can come up with some good new ideas! :-)
Monday, January 3, 2011
New Year's Resolution: Reading Roman History
I am so excited about Dennis's proposal to read through Roman history in 2011! Here's his blog post setting out the idea. He figured that it would be possible to get through all of Mommsen AND Merivale AND Gibbon over the course of a year by reading 30 pages a day. Sure enough, it's right... on the one hand it sounds so daunting, but very do-able, too!
So, I started up a blog to keep track of my own reading notes and progress, along with a Google Calendar to help me keep track of what to read. I'm curious if we will end up with a group discussion space, too, but I really like the idea of having a blog for my own reading notes. And who knows what kind of reading log that might turn into next year and the year after, too! I sure have a hankering to read all of Augustine's City of God, and I bet I will feel even more strongly about that after immersing myself in Roman history over the coming year.
Here's the blog: Reading Roman History. Plus, I already had a fun Roman Emperors widget... now I will have a lot more personal knowledge to go along with that widget! :-)
So, I started up a blog to keep track of my own reading notes and progress, along with a Google Calendar to help me keep track of what to read. I'm curious if we will end up with a group discussion space, too, but I really like the idea of having a blog for my own reading notes. And who knows what kind of reading log that might turn into next year and the year after, too! I sure have a hankering to read all of Augustine's City of God, and I bet I will feel even more strongly about that after immersing myself in Roman history over the coming year.
Here's the blog: Reading Roman History. Plus, I already had a fun Roman Emperors widget... now I will have a lot more personal knowledge to go along with that widget! :-)
Sunday, January 2, 2011
I Need My Teachers to Learn
Fantastic video from the Fireside!
Here are the lyrics:
I Need My Teachers To Learn 2.1
In the 27th row of her college class
she was working real hard and tryin' to pass.
She studied all night for the test she took
but she couldn’t use the notes on her own Macbook.
He told 'em that notecards was all they needed
and he wouldn’t change his mind even though she pleaded.
The dark red F was no surprise
as the tears formed in her eyes.
She said kids are changing any fool can tell
and the way that ya teach 'em has to change as well.
You might not like it cuz we grow up fast
but prepare us for the future and not your past.
There’s not one minute to burn,
I need my teachers to learn.
In detention hall there’s a quiet young man,
head hung low, with a phone in hand,
time to tell his parents 'bout the school’s outrage
cuz he tried to post the essay on his Facebook page.
He was hoping more people could have read those words
cuz an audience of one, well it’s so absurd.
What ever happened to compromise
he said the school should realize.
Aww those kids are changin' any fool can tell
and the ways that you’re teachin' have to change as well.
You might not like it cuz we grow up fast
but prepare us for the future and not your past.
There’s not one minute to burn,
I need my teachers to learn.
In a third grade room in a tiny town
a little blue-eyed girl is feelin' down.
She tried to bring her daddy to her show and tell.
He was gonna Skype in just to wish them well.
She showed 'em the camera on her mom’s netbook
but they wouldn’t let her do it on a school network.
That man in camo never called,
they got him blocked by a firewall.
I said things are changin' any fool can tell
and the way that you’re teachin' has to change as well.
You might not like it cuz we grow up fast
prepare us for the future and not your past.
There’s not one minute to burn,
I need my teachers to learn.
The world is changin' like it’s always been
and you gotta update software every now and then.
If you want to keep your version, well that’s OK
but there’s too many kids who need the tools of today.
It’s not a problem, you can start real small
and a baby doesn’t walk until he learns to crawl.
If a teacher’s not a learner till the day they die
well then man I’m askin' this: why should students try?
They need their teachers to learn,
We want those teachers to learn,
So come on teachers and learn!
Here are the lyrics:
I Need My Teachers To Learn 2.1
In the 27th row of her college class
she was working real hard and tryin' to pass.
She studied all night for the test she took
but she couldn’t use the notes on her own Macbook.
He told 'em that notecards was all they needed
and he wouldn’t change his mind even though she pleaded.
The dark red F was no surprise
as the tears formed in her eyes.
She said kids are changing any fool can tell
and the way that ya teach 'em has to change as well.
You might not like it cuz we grow up fast
but prepare us for the future and not your past.
There’s not one minute to burn,
I need my teachers to learn.
In detention hall there’s a quiet young man,
head hung low, with a phone in hand,
time to tell his parents 'bout the school’s outrage
cuz he tried to post the essay on his Facebook page.
He was hoping more people could have read those words
cuz an audience of one, well it’s so absurd.
What ever happened to compromise
he said the school should realize.
Aww those kids are changin' any fool can tell
and the ways that you’re teachin' have to change as well.
You might not like it cuz we grow up fast
but prepare us for the future and not your past.
There’s not one minute to burn,
I need my teachers to learn.
In a third grade room in a tiny town
a little blue-eyed girl is feelin' down.
She tried to bring her daddy to her show and tell.
He was gonna Skype in just to wish them well.
She showed 'em the camera on her mom’s netbook
but they wouldn’t let her do it on a school network.
That man in camo never called,
they got him blocked by a firewall.
I said things are changin' any fool can tell
and the way that you’re teachin' has to change as well.
You might not like it cuz we grow up fast
prepare us for the future and not your past.
There’s not one minute to burn,
I need my teachers to learn.
The world is changin' like it’s always been
and you gotta update software every now and then.
If you want to keep your version, well that’s OK
but there’s too many kids who need the tools of today.
It’s not a problem, you can start real small
and a baby doesn’t walk until he learns to crawl.
If a teacher’s not a learner till the day they die
well then man I’m askin' this: why should students try?
They need their teachers to learn,
We want those teachers to learn,
So come on teachers and learn!
Saturday, January 1, 2011
New Year's Resolution... really!
I love New Year's Resolutions, and I always make sure to pick at least one really easy one... just to keep my confidence up, ha ha. So, my easy resolution for this year is to finally do something with this blog. A New Year's Resolution of a few years ago led to my Latin blogging life taking shape (and it's still going strong)... so let's see if I can get my "online course lady" blogging life into shape, too!
In fact, I would guess this year it would be a really good idea to have this blog to tug me AWAY from Latin every once in a while... I am having so much fun with my latest Latin projects that I probably need to really remind myself to think about the other things I do, which are definitely deserving of attention.
One BIG task for sure this year is developing the E-Storybook Central website which I got up and running at the end of last semester, when it was rumored that Delicious would cease to exist. Now it is sounding more like Delicious will live on in some way, but I'm glad that the rumors of its demise prodded me to rethink the way I was using Delicious and to find a better way to do that. Here's the solution I came up with in a quick but intensive two-day project back in December:
E-Storybook Central
It now contains all the materials from my Delicious links library (both to online books and also to previous Storybook projects). Here are the other things I would like to do for this project:
Happy New Year!
In fact, I would guess this year it would be a really good idea to have this blog to tug me AWAY from Latin every once in a while... I am having so much fun with my latest Latin projects that I probably need to really remind myself to think about the other things I do, which are definitely deserving of attention.
One BIG task for sure this year is developing the E-Storybook Central website which I got up and running at the end of last semester, when it was rumored that Delicious would cease to exist. Now it is sounding more like Delicious will live on in some way, but I'm glad that the rumors of its demise prodded me to rethink the way I was using Delicious and to find a better way to do that. Here's the solution I came up with in a quick but intensive two-day project back in December:
E-Storybook Central
It now contains all the materials from my Delicious links library (both to online books and also to previous Storybook projects). Here are the other things I would like to do for this project:
- keep adding more e-books, along with some good annotations about existing books
- expand the links to include not just e-books, but also really good websites and other online resources
- develop a new section of the site with writing tips and storytelling styles
Happy New Year!
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
Twitter and teaching
Good article abstract here; I need to come back and look at this more carefully:
The effect of Twitter on college student engagement and grades
The effect of Twitter on college student engagement and grades
Facebook and Gmail: my separate lives
There's been a ton of press coverage about Facebook's new messaging service v. Google's Gmail and the idea of email in general. One article by Rob Reynolds (once a colleague of mine at OU years and years ago!) predicts that Facebook will become the new platform for education and business communication... to which I say: EEEK. Even though I might be the high priestess of online education at my school, proselytizing about teaching online to anyone who will listen, this raises an issue about which I feel strongly and which, perhaps, might separate from other folks who are passionate about online education, to wit: I believe in keeping professional and personal lives SEPARATE. Very separate.
Yes, I believe that education should be very relevant and personal and student-driven... but at the same time, I think education and business and other professional activities should be kept separate from our personal lives - for our own sanity! That is simply what has worked for me: when my professional life is in the dumps, my personal life is a very welcome refuge. If I am having personal woes, I can take refuge in my professional live. The few times in my life when they have been coextensive: recipe for disaster. From my life's experience, I know I need to keep that separation clear.
I would guess, in fact, that is why I have so gladly embraced the opportunity to conduct my professional life exclusively online. I teach online, and I am not even living in the state (Oklahoma) where I teach. My entire professional life is conducted online and in print, and I am very happy about that: I far prefer teaching online, blogging, and publishing books (print books and ebooks) to being in a physical classroom, going to department meetings, and attending conferences. That's a purely personal preference; I know others feel differently about their professional activities, of course.
So: my professional life is online, but my personal life is definitely offline. I don't use Facebook. My husband and I don't need online communication tools. I don't post pictures of my cat online (well, occasionally - but that was just to test the camera in my iPod, I swear!). My parents are barely able to manage their email; we talk on the phone and I go visit. That suits me just fine.
Now, admittedly, if I were really keen on keeping in touch with people in farflung places, I would not be averse to using online tools to do that - but I would certainly not be using the same tools to communicate personal matters as I do to conduct my professional life!
That's why I don't like Facebook - it practically invites you to blur those boundaries to the point of the boundaries becoming unrecognizable. We use a social network (Salesforce Chatter) where I work, and I think that is fantastic - exactly because it is about work, and it is how I can interact with colleagues at work. If we were using Facebook instead, I would not participate; I'm really not interested in straying over the boundaries into my colleagues' personal lives.
So too with my students. I am someone who gets to know my students well in an academic sense, but I am wary of getting caught up in their personal lives. In fact, I think one of the great tasks I face with them is trying to pry them free from their active social lives and personal identities to see themselves as future professionals, to see themselves as people having something to contribute to society and to culture beyond their circle of friends, real or virtual. If I were trying to conduct my class inside Facebook, I don't think I would ever manage to distract them enough from their friends in order to achieve that goal. By using a dedicated Ning as the social network for our class, I can at least hope that it is possible!
So the idea of having my personal and professional lives merged in Facebook doesn't appeal to me in any way shape or form - and that is totally aside from my personal distaste for Facebook as a corporate entity. When Google, a company I greatly admire, tried something similar with Buzz, I opted out within a minute: Google, thinking it was being helpful, wanted to automatically share my "Buzz" stream with the people I most emailed - which happened to be my very worst students, the ones to whom I had to send endless emails perhaps because of chronically late or incomplete assignments, plagiarism, whatever (ugh). So much for social metrics.
I will definitely watch the advent of this new Facebook attempt at hegemony with great caution and concern. There's nothing there that dampens my passion for online education, but if Facebook becomes the new Blackboard, as Rob Reynolds predicts, then that just means we are going from bad to worse, in my opinion.
Yes, I believe that education should be very relevant and personal and student-driven... but at the same time, I think education and business and other professional activities should be kept separate from our personal lives - for our own sanity! That is simply what has worked for me: when my professional life is in the dumps, my personal life is a very welcome refuge. If I am having personal woes, I can take refuge in my professional live. The few times in my life when they have been coextensive: recipe for disaster. From my life's experience, I know I need to keep that separation clear.
I would guess, in fact, that is why I have so gladly embraced the opportunity to conduct my professional life exclusively online. I teach online, and I am not even living in the state (Oklahoma) where I teach. My entire professional life is conducted online and in print, and I am very happy about that: I far prefer teaching online, blogging, and publishing books (print books and ebooks) to being in a physical classroom, going to department meetings, and attending conferences. That's a purely personal preference; I know others feel differently about their professional activities, of course.
So: my professional life is online, but my personal life is definitely offline. I don't use Facebook. My husband and I don't need online communication tools. I don't post pictures of my cat online (well, occasionally - but that was just to test the camera in my iPod, I swear!). My parents are barely able to manage their email; we talk on the phone and I go visit. That suits me just fine.
Now, admittedly, if I were really keen on keeping in touch with people in farflung places, I would not be averse to using online tools to do that - but I would certainly not be using the same tools to communicate personal matters as I do to conduct my professional life!
That's why I don't like Facebook - it practically invites you to blur those boundaries to the point of the boundaries becoming unrecognizable. We use a social network (Salesforce Chatter) where I work, and I think that is fantastic - exactly because it is about work, and it is how I can interact with colleagues at work. If we were using Facebook instead, I would not participate; I'm really not interested in straying over the boundaries into my colleagues' personal lives.
So too with my students. I am someone who gets to know my students well in an academic sense, but I am wary of getting caught up in their personal lives. In fact, I think one of the great tasks I face with them is trying to pry them free from their active social lives and personal identities to see themselves as future professionals, to see themselves as people having something to contribute to society and to culture beyond their circle of friends, real or virtual. If I were trying to conduct my class inside Facebook, I don't think I would ever manage to distract them enough from their friends in order to achieve that goal. By using a dedicated Ning as the social network for our class, I can at least hope that it is possible!
So the idea of having my personal and professional lives merged in Facebook doesn't appeal to me in any way shape or form - and that is totally aside from my personal distaste for Facebook as a corporate entity. When Google, a company I greatly admire, tried something similar with Buzz, I opted out within a minute: Google, thinking it was being helpful, wanted to automatically share my "Buzz" stream with the people I most emailed - which happened to be my very worst students, the ones to whom I had to send endless emails perhaps because of chronically late or incomplete assignments, plagiarism, whatever (ugh). So much for social metrics.
I will definitely watch the advent of this new Facebook attempt at hegemony with great caution and concern. There's nothing there that dampens my passion for online education, but if Facebook becomes the new Blackboard, as Rob Reynolds predicts, then that just means we are going from bad to worse, in my opinion.
Monday, November 15, 2010
Why we should teach tech skills - nice video!
Short and to the point - and even if the interaction between parents and kids consists of the kids sometimes teaching the parents rather than the other way around, getting some good parent wisdom into the mix is a good thing, no matter how it happens! :-)
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