Semester 2 - Post 20

Reading this post really made me realize all the things we take for granted here in America. Hearing about the fact that they are just now getting a youth center and athletic fields in the Nata Village is so shocking to me because I grew up with things like that and I just sort of expected them to be there. I have been playing competitive soccer since I was eleven and soccer in general since I was around four or five so not having fields to play on is so strange to think about. Today we just sort of expect things to be there, things that we’re used to. Like school for instance, we have all been raised with education, whether we like it or not, but we all just expect to go through school. In less fortunate places like the Nata Village, they do not have as many opportunities as we do. I take this as a lesson to learn, we need to stop being so selfish and settling with what we have or always wanting more. We need to branch out and help people in places like Nata Village, give them the things that we are used to so they can enjoy them just as much as we do. This post really gave me a reality check and made me see that I truly do take simple, little things like beautiful soccer fields for granted. Great post!

Link to the article here: Nata Village

Semester 2 - Post 19

Mr. Richardson,
This post is great. I found your dream very interesting and the ideas behind it were great. I totally agree with you that the avatar will soon become very useful to help people better understand each other and possibly answer “un-answer-able” questions, if you will, like that of your mother. If the avatar can be put to use in this way, I think it would be very useful. I know that I personally have questions about my history that I might be able to get answered by my relatives who are still alive, but I would much rather get the first hand account from those who went through certain events. This idea was great and it really puts meaning behind the things that we blog about daily. It would be great to be able to advance the use of the avatar to add the voice of the person to go along with their personality. With the way technology is advancing in this day and age the reality of this happening are looking pretty good. This post was a great one to make me think about the future, which somehow made me think about my past. Thank you!
~Sam H.

Link to original article here: My Blogging Legacy

Semester 2 - Post 18

Mr. Fisch,
This post struck me as interesting for many reasons. The first reason being that it is weird to think that textbooks would, or even could, be used as protection in the event of a tornado. It is odd that schools have come up with an alternate use for textbooks because many times you look at them and ask the very well known question that students ask daily, “when am I ever going to use this?” Well kids, you will actually use textbooks, that is, if there ever was a tornado and you had no other form of protection. This does not mean; however, that it answers the question of using the contents within the book :). Another reason that I found this post interesting is because it made me think, “I wonder if our textbooks will soon be all online, is this when the old text books will really come in handy?” The future of our textbooks came to mind. With the incredible advancement of technology that has been rapidly increasing over the years, it would not surprise me one bit if all of our textbooks were put online and students would carry laptops around, instead of books. Then what would we use for protection if a tornado struck? This post was great! Thank you for making me think! :)
~Sam H.

Link to article here: The Need for Textbooks

Semester 2 - Post 17

Dear Nata Village,
I was reading this post when I realized just how much we, here in America, take for granted. This post really brought me back to reality. There are so many blessings that I have that I look at as “not good enough” or “pointless.” Something like education is just expected in our culture, which makes it easy to take it for granted. Seeing the look on those children’s faces as they were sitting there coloring with their new school supplies really made me realize that education is a gift. People in many other countries are not expected to go to school, and some are not even allowed to go, but in America kids all over the country look at school as a downer or something that is a waste of time. Here I am sitting at my computer doing a simple homework assignment dreading school tomorrow when I see these children mentioned in this post. It really made me realize that I am lucky to have a computer to do homework on and I am lucky to have an amazing education. It was very refreshing to see children excited to learn, and so happy with the simple gift of new school supplies. I hope more people come across this post so they can see how blessed we truly are to have little things like pencils and paper. Hopefully this will act with a “snowball effect” so that more and more people realize how special education is and how lucky we really are. Thank you for hitting me with a touch of reality!

Link to the artical here: Nata Village

Semester 2 - Post 16

I read a post by Mr. Karl Fisch titled "Imagine." In this post Mr. Fisch talks about the idea of Pangea Day, which will take place on May 10th. This day is a day when countries around the world sing the national anthem of another country in their language, in an effort to sort of "unite" the world. This is what I said to Mr. Fisch:

Mr. Fisch,
Wow this post is great. Reading about what you said in this post was really interesting to think about. I found the idea of Pangea Day very interesting. It would be great to have a day where people could look beyond the outer layers of people from other countries and see what they go through and what their customs are. Being able to come together as a unit and as a world would be very cool to me. It would allow us to sort of get the feeling of "how the other half live" in a way. To be able to use film is such an inventive way to allow our world to come together is a very moving thing. I feel like this is a strong thing to focus on in our world today, we need to stop focusing on the bad and, in turn, take a step back and realize that we all have problems, but we can all help each other. Great post!

Link to the article here: Imagine

Semester 2 - Post 15

Wow, this post sure does make you step back and think. It is so great to see that in this small village, people have such high respect for their elders. In today's world elders are not respected nearly as much as they should be. Children disobey their parents, their teachers, their grandparents, or any other person in authority and we look at it and say it's bad, but do nothing about it. Sure some kids may get a spanking now and then for not doing what they're told, but that does not seem to be working. We need to stand up for our elders and show them the respect they deserve. I feel like people in our day and age do not even give elders the time of day. They do what they can to help them, but they do not necessarily respect them. Looking at Botswana and seeing that those people realize that their elders are special, and that they are much more experienced and much wiser than they will ever be, is so great. It is interesting to me that people in our “advanced world” cannot see the respect we need to show, but the people in a world of poverty and strife see it and act on it. I think this is because they realize what they have is a gift, but we take so much for granted, including our elders.

Link to article here: Nata Village

Semester 2 - Post 14

Mr. Baker,
I found this post very interesting! It is so true that teens today do not think about the things they are putting online. They think that if they can hit a button that says "Private" then all of their information is safe. This is not true at all. As you brought up, it is very easy for online hackers to read your so-called "private" information. Not only can hackers see this information, but other people can too if the hacker makes the information public. I enjoyed reading your post because online safety has become such an issue in our day and age, especially with the incredible advances in technology that our world has recently become accustomed to. Thanks for sharing this post!
Link to the article here: (http://www.utechtips.com/?p=678)

Semester 2 - Post 13

I found this post very interesting because no one really thinks about the future when they are putting things about themselves online. It is crucial to one’s future to be aware and cautious of the things you are putting online. Looking at the idea of future employers possible doing a Google search on me is interesting because I never really thought that they would do something like this. It makes sense to see if you can find anything, positive or negative, about the applicant; however it is very important for the applicant to know this is possible and to watch what they are putting online for the world to see. In my opinion, it is very important to begin teaching kids how Google works and begin a steady foundation of online information. Kids need to be educated on what is appropriate to put online. Very interesting post!
(Weblogg-ed >> Making Kids "Googleable")

Semester 2 - Post 12

I read a recent article titled "Columbine Shootings Remembered" written by Kevin Simpson of the Denver Post. In this post Kevin talks about how people are remembering the tragedy of the Columbine Shootings today and everyday with the new Columbine Memorial. He tells a story of two students of Columbine visiting the memorial and getting to see what people went through as a result of the tragedy and getting to read the quotes of the students who were lost in the tragedy.

This post caught my eye because today is the 9th anniversary of the Columbine shootings and it is a day that is and will be remembered forever across the world. This post was very interesting to me because I can still remember the day of the shootings. When I found out about the shootings, I initially did not understand what was going on, that is until my parents informed me of the horrible tragedy. I remember trying to understand why anyone would do this and continually asking "why?" Though this tragedy affected me and my family so severely, it affected many other people even worse than us.

Looking back today on what had happened, we still do not understand why someone would do something like this; however we all are healing. Trying to imagine what parents thought as they found out their child was in danger is incomprehensible. Though this day left such a scar on all of our hearts, people are healing and they are doing this through the help of the new columbine memorial.

Semester 2 - Presentation 2

In my second PLN Presentation I feel like I did a pretty good job. I think that my eye contact was better this time than it was in my last presentation which was good. I also think I continued doing a good job relating my PLN's to myself and the world. One thing that I noticed most of my classmates commented on was to speak a little bit slower so next time I will try having a bit more composure and speaking slowly. Overall I feel like I did a good job and I feel confident in front of the class.

Semester 2 - Post 11

I read a recent post titled "37 DU Students get Mysterious Illness" written by Kieran Nicholsonof the Denver Post. In this post Kieran writes about how dozens of students at DU had gotten sick over the weekend, and students remain hospitalized today. The article said that the Denver Health Department is investigating the illness but they still have not come up with a cause. Symptoms of the mysterious illness include vomiting, diarrhea, stomach cramps, nausea, dizziness and dehydration. According to the university spokesman 42 students reported being ill since Sunday and at least 13 students were treated at the university's health and counseling center, and at least 24 were taken to Porter Adventist Hospital, where seven remain today.

This article caught my eye because it seemed weird to me that this many people could be struck by an illness and they still do not know what it is or where it came from. To me it does not seem like that big of a mystery (though I'm defiantly not a doctor)... From the symptoms listed it sound like these students have just gotten a bad case of the flu. I think by now they should know what is wrong so that these students can be treated and no one else will catch this awful sickness.

This relates to me because our student teacher for our History class attends DU and seeing as he has been at work all week I do not think he has been affected by the illness, but he may know people who were affected.

Semester 2 - Post 10

I read a recent article titled "Making Kids 'Googlable'" written by Will Richardson. In this post Will talks about how he has been asking principals and administrators at schools if, when they have an applicant lined up for a possible teaching position, they "Google" them? Many of them admit to this and say yes, they do do a standard Google search to see what things, good or bad, may come up about the potential hire. Some of them even admit doing a Myspace search of the applicant. Usually, they say, the intent is to simply see if anything negative, or even positive, surfaces about the applicant. So then Will proceeds to ask what these principals and administrators are doing to insure that their students will be able to be "Googled well" when they go into interviews in the future. Not just educating the students not to post certain things online, but how to shape a positive portfolio so that in the future, when the employers may run a search, they will find a lack of negatives, but also plenty of positives.

I found this article very interesting because no one really thinks about the future when they are putting things about themselves online, whether it's on Myspace, Facebook, or whatever site. It is important to be careful what you are putting online so that it doesn't make you look bad if future possible employers were to do a search on you. I also found it interesting that these principals had done Google searches on their applicants, it makes sense, I just don't think I would have thought to do something like that.

This article relates to me in that I am a student and I need to take into consideration the things that may be going online about me, even though I don't have a Myspace or a Facebook. It really just brings to reality how easy it is for someone to look you up online and find things they might not want you to find.

Semester 2 - Presentation 1

In my PLN presentation, I thought I did a pretty good job, especially for my first presentation in a while. I think I spoke clearly and related my PLN's to myself and the world well. One thing that I am going to work on for my next presentation is better eye contact. I have taken into consideration what my classmates have given me to work on and I will defiantly work on them for my next presentation. I feel like I have improved from first semester and that I am more confident standing in front of the class.

Semester 2 - Post 9

I read a recent post titled "Ex-teacher Accused of Lying to Authority, Judge, Probation Officer" written by The Associated Press. In this post it talks about how a former Grand Junction elementary schoolteacher is on trial this week for allegedly lying to her attorney, a judge and her probation officer. The woman on trial is also accused of violating bail-bond conditions. Last June, the same woman was put on four years of probation and 21 months of work release for the possession of methamphetamine.

I found this post interesting be cause it goes to show that teachers are not perfect and they do make mistakes and get in trouble. It was awful to read that a woman who was supposed to be leading children and teaching them skills for life, is being put on trial for lying to her attorney and also has been in trouble for the possession of drugs. Some role model huh? I think someone who is going to do something like this should absolutely lose their job. What parent wants their child being taught by someone who would do this. Luckily she is no longer a teacher, but just try to imagine the kinds of things the parents of her former students are thinking.

This post in a way relates to me as a student myself. I have not had a former teacher do anything like this, but I still can try to imagine myself in that position and think of what I might think about it. If I found out that one of my old teachers did something like this, I would definatly question the "truth" behind what they taught me.

Semester 2 - Post 8

I read a recent post titled "Koudourakis Scores Twice to Lead Arapahoe" written by Brad Byler. In this post it talks about the Arapahoe vs. Mountain Vista varsity girl's soccer game that took place this past Tuesday April 1st. In the 59th second Freshman Shannon Koundourakis scores the opening goal of the match that will lead Arapahoe in their 3-1 win against the Golden Eagles. Further into the match Koundo scores again in the 13th minute which really put our team ahead.

This post caught my eye because I am on Arapahoe's varsity girl's soccer team and Shannon is my teammate. Looking through the posts, then seeing my teammates name in the headline was such an exciting thing to see. That game was a big game for us in order to put us in a good position to win league, so when Shannon scored in the 59th second of our game, it was such a huge tone setter for the rest of the game. Because of that first goal, we were able to keep our momentum up and carry on to win against Vista.

This post absolutely relates to me seeing as I too am a player on this team, and I was there to see Shannon's goals. It was so awesome to see this story in the newspaper because it really makes me realize how big of a deal our team is and just how many people support what we do and how we play.

Semester 2 - Post 7

I read a recent post titled "Teenagers as 'Teamagers'...What do you think?" written by Will Richardson. In this post Will talks about how a man by the name of Tom Austin had made some interesting points about the value that businesses can find by using social tools in the workplace. Tom thinks that a great social tool to use would be work collaboration. Working in a group is very efficient and helpful way to fulfill one's duties. The quote that Will found the most interesting from Tom was:

"Look at teenagers today. They’re 'teamagers'. They work on projects as a group and think nothing of doing it that way. I expect to see that kind of thing percolate through the enterprise as an unstoppable force over the next two decades."

I found this very interesting because as a teenager, or "teamager", myself, I have become accustomed to working in group. I work in groups on projects for school, and also in sports...my team is a group and in order for us to be successful, we must work as a group. I feel that if companies were to become more focused on working in groups, they may be more successful. I have found it very helpful throughout my years and if a teenager can be successful using "the group method", shouldn't companies be successful also?

Semester 2 - Post 6

I read a recent post titled "Have a Laugh from the Little Rascals - "Bored of Education'" written by Victoria A. Davis. In this post Victoria talks about how in schools today they are being faced with a lack of attention whether it is rebellion, boredom, absences, or whatever the case may be, students are not finding interest in the things they are learning. She brings up the point that when things change in society, it takes a while for schools to play catch up.

I found this post interesting because, as a student myself, I deal with these issues daily. I find it so hard to try to apply what I learn to my real life. I always ask the usual question, "When will I ever use this?!" School just seems so boring sometimes, but there are a few teachers and a few subjects that I actually find interesting. Not only is it hard to find interest in my schoolwork, but it's also hard when you miss a class because of a trip, illness, or whatever. It seems that it is nearly impossible to catch up after missing school.

How can these things be changed? How can schools help their students find interest in what they are learning? Well, I can not give an answer to this seeing as my solution would be to simply allow more off time and teach students what they want to learn, not what they need to learn :). This may be something to think about in the future. What can the average person do to help schools teach students intersting, and necessary facts? It's up to you to decide.

Semester 2 - Post 5

I read a recent article titled "This is Your Brain on PSA's" written by Anne S. In this article Ms. Smith talks about the use of PSA's in the classroom, and how helpful that can be. It was interesting to me to read this because I am indeed in Ms. Smith's English class so I created my PSA.

In this article Ms. Smith talks about how she got the idea for her students to create PSA's of their own after she watched Kathy Schrock deliver an address on the use of PSA's in the classroom. At the beginning of the second semester, we (one of Smith's English classes) wrote position papers on certain issues that affect our world today. After completing these papers, Ms. Smith thought it would be a good idea for us to create PSA's that tie to a topic of one of your partner's position papers. It was very cool to sort of take our papers and make them into an actual announcement that will draw in people's attention to that topic, not to mention it was nice to learn how to create a film.

This article was great to look at from an outsiders perspective because I was a part of creating the PSA's. Overall, this was a great article, and an even better learning lesson.

Semester 2 - Post 4

I read a recent article titled "Student Information Online" written by Jeff Utecht. In this article, Jeff talks about how to protect students online and where to draw the line with what information, if any, to put online about the students.

In reading this article it was interesting to me to see that Jeff said there has been so much research done that says that the Internet is NOT unsafe, but they are still worried about protecting their students. Where would you draw the line? Many people feel that it is entirely unsafe to put a student's, or anyone's, name with a picture on the Internet. If the safety of students is an issue, what can they do to protect the students? Some of the ideas listed on the website were do not post personal information, do not use last names and finally, only post pictures if given permission. I personally think these are great ideas to keep individuals safe online, but these things are not taken into consideration by the people who use sites such as MySpace, Facebook, or any other personal website.

The thing that was most important that I took away from this article was be safe online! Do not make stupid decisions online that will put your safety in jeopardy. Be safe and be smart!

Semester 2 - Post 3

I read a recent post titled "The Future of the Newspaper" written by Karl Fisch. In this post Mr. Fisch talks about and interview that he had the privilege of listening to between John Temple and the Journalistic Writing students here at Arapahoe. John Temple is the editor, publisher, and president of the Rocky Mountain News and he came in to talk to the Journalistic Writing student about his views on the future of newspapers.

I found this article very interesting because it just so happens that I am taking journalistic writing this semester so I was apart of this interview myself. From what I know about this article, and from what I recall from the interview, John Temple thinks that because of the advances in technolgy the future of newspapers is not very bright at this point. Mr. Temple can almost guarantee that there will still be a printed newspaper, but it will be printed in smaller quantities. This is because readers of different ages have different wants and needs when reading the newspaper. For example older readers prefer reading the printed newspaper because they are not as technology savvy so it would take them longer to find what they are looking for on the internet. On the other hand younger readers enjoy the convenience of the internet because it is fast, easy, and updated frequently. Not only does Temple think that the newspapers will soon be all online, but he also brought up the idea of the Avatar. The Avatar is an online version of your personality that knows what you enjoy and surfs the internet for topics that fall under your category of interest. This works much like Google Reader.

It was interesting to see the views that someone else had on something that I witnessed first hand. Also it was cool to see what he took out of the interview with John Temple, because it allows me to look back and see the things I may have over looked in our time with Mr. Temple.

Semester 2 - Post 2

I read a recent post titled "Soaring Snowpack Raises Flooding Concerns". This post was written by a journalist from the Denver Post named Kieran Nicholson. In this post it talks about how this season in Denver we have had near-record amounts of snow and now that March, Colorado's snowiest month, has began people are worried that flooding may pose as a concern. Dam Safety officials are saying that we need to monitor the amount of melting seen for snow banks to try to eliminate flooding.

This was an interesting story to do a PLN post on, but I found it intriguing because I love snow and winter so I figured, "why not?" What I pulled out of this post that seemed to matter most was the fact that with the rapid melting of snow, and the rapid snowfall, we need to find a way to eliminate the possibility of flooding. This is incredibly crucial for Coloradans because our homes, families, and lives could potentially be in danger if this was to happen so it is necessary to take all the needed precautions to prevent flooding accidents.

Semester 2 - Post 1

I read a recent post written by Will Richardson titled "The Distributed University." In this post Will talks about how students who graduate from high school and choose a college to attend should not be limited to the classes and professors that their school of choice may offer. But how could these options be widened? Is it possible to allow students to take online courses? Yes, but what are the benefits to that? Taking their college courses online would not allow the student "the full college experience."

This story relates to me as I soon will be making decisions on colleges and what I want to study, so it is important to look at all of the possibilities so that I , as a student, am not limited. It was interesting bringing up the idea of online courses because, though they are quicker than campus life, you still do not get to experience the full, fun, exciting life that comes with being in college. When attending college you learn so much, not only academically, but also so much about yourself and if you were to go through college online you would not learn those things.

All in all, going to college is much better on the campus than taking online courses. You need that freedom and independence to give yourself a chance to take a step into the real world and prepare yourself for the future.

Goals for Second Semester

The Goals I have for Second Semester:

1. Keep an "A" throughout the entire semester.
2. Participate more than I did during the first semester.
3. Continue finishing and turning in assignments on time.
4. Stay well prepared and focused.
5. Continue working hard and creating well thought out and written work.

How will I achieve these goals?

Throughout this semester, in order to achieve these goals I will have to make sure that I keep a good work ethic and continue to work hard so I can perform to the best of my ability. Also Miss Smith makes it very easy for us to perform well and to learn what we need to so I need to take advantage of the tools she gives us. I think that of my list of goals they all go back to keeping an "A" the entire semester. In order to achieve this goal I need to participate, continue turning in homework on time, stay well prepared and focused, and continue working hard and creating well thought out and written work. I feel that it should be fairly easy to achieve these goals if I stay focused and work hard.