In this post, please tell me the following:
1. Write seven things that you have learned this semester. Elaborate. Tell me in detail what these things are (I know this may be hard for some of you!)
2. Tell me what grade you deserve and why.
This is due on Monday, January 26, 2009 at 10:00 AM. YOU ALL MUST DO THIS ONE!!! Good luck!
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Just for fun….(and extra credit!!!!!!!)
Embed a music video from youtube (or any other websites) and explain why you like not only the song, but the artist and the video. Just embedding the video will not yield any extra credit. You have to put thought into it and TEACH me why I should like or respect your taste in music and videos. Your music need not be in English but both the video and the song have to be G-RATED.
HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!
Now here are my two videos (Hey, I am the teacher, so I get to post two. You should only post one video!)
The first video is from a band called Rilo Kiley (the lead singer is Jenny Lewis). Rilo Kiley is an “alternative” band out of California that makes really interesting music. This song and video, “It’s A Hit”, is one of my favorites. First, I love the song. It is a great melody, easy to listen to and has a very profound meaning. The lyrics basically deal with the hypocrisy of the music world, the art world and every day life. Also, it rips how so many politicians are hypocrites. They will start wars, but send others to fight.
I love the video. It is fun to watch, sad, empathetic, uses lite-brite (a 1970′s toy) and kind of goes along well with the song. So here is the video; let me know what you think of it:
I will post another video later….but just wanted to get this up so that you can get a head start on this.
This is due on Wednesday, January 7, 2009. Happy New Year and Happy Blogging!
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When I was young and there was no internet (no, it had not yet been invented. I grew up without a cellphone, too!) and copying and pasting made no sense (since pasting meant using Elmer’s glue), it was a lot more difficult to plagiarize (copy someone else’s writing). Of course, people did plagiarize, but at least it took a trip to the library and some research. Nowadays, people (especially young people) just google a subject and copy and paste at will. Many people don’t even realize that copying and pasting is not only immoral, illegal and detrimental to one’s future, but also that it could cause failure if caught by a teacher.
A recent poll by the Josephson Institute was shocking. From an article from Yahoo (see the complete article by clicking here.
NEW YORK – In the past year, 30 percent of U.S. high school students have stolen from a store and 64 percent have cheated on a test, according to a new, large-scale survey suggesting that Americans are too apathetic about ethical standards.
Educators reacting to the findings questioned any suggestion that today’s young people are less honest than previous generations, but several agreed that intensified pressures are prompting many students to cut corners.
“The competition is greater, the pressures on kids have increased dramatically,” said Mel Riddle of the National Association of Secondary School Principals. “They have opportunities their predecessors didn’t have (to cheat). The temptation is greater.”
The Josephson Institute, a Los Angeles-based ethics institute, surveyed 29,760 students at 100 randomly selected high schools nationwide, both public and private. All students in the selected schools were given the survey in class; their anonymity was assured.
Michael Josephson, the institute’s founder and president, said he was most dismayed by the findings about theft. The survey found that 35 percent of boys and 26 percent of girls — 30 percent overall — acknowledged stealing from a store within the past year. One-fifth said they stole something from a friend; 23 percent said they stole something from a parent or other relative.
“What is the social cost of that — not to mention the implication for the next generation of mortgage brokers?” Josephson remarked in an interview. “In a society drenched with cynicism, young people can look at it and say ‘Why shouldn’t we? Everyone else does it.’”
Other findings from the survey:
_Cheating in school is rampant and getting worse. Sixty-four percent of students cheated on a test in the past year and 38 percent did so two or more times, up from 60 percent and 35 percent in a 2006 survey.
_Thirty-six percent said they used the Internet to plagiarize an assignment, up from 33 percent in 2004.
_Forty-two percent said they sometimes lie to save money — 49 percent of the boys and 36 percent of the girls.
Despite such responses, 93 percent of the students said they were satisfied with their personal ethics and character, and 77 percent affirmed that “when it comes to doing what is right, I am better than most people I know.”
So–here are my questions to you:
1. Is your generation less honest than previous generations?
2. Is there now more pressure to cheat on tests or plagiarize projects and reports from the internet?
3. Do you personally think it is wrong to copy and paste (even a little) from the internet and have you ever done so?
4. What are the consequences of copy and paste generation … or are there any consequences? Are you scared for your generation? Do you think that your generation is learning less (ie. learning fewer facts or memorizing less) because of the internet?
5. What is the solution to all this cheating?
Write several well organized paragraphs with your opinions on cheating.
This is due on Tuesday, December 23, 2008.
Filed under: Education, internet | Tagged: cheating, internet | 36 Comments »
Read the following article from Wisconsin. Young people (and some older people, as well–but not yours truly!!!) are illegally downloading music, movies and other copyrighted materials from the internet without understanding the consequences, both financial and possibly criminal. After you read the article below (and please read it), there are instructions on what I want you to comment on….and I want thoughtful, lengthy commentary (talk like web and computer professionals).
It has been a harsh reality check for many students at UW-Eau Claire. Dozens have been forced to pay the recording industry back for songs they once thought were free.
“It’s like a game that never ends… and it always has bad consequences for the students,” says Chip Eckardt, UW-Eau Claire’s chief information officer.
In the past couple of years Eckardt has received dozens of take down notices from the Recording Industry Association of America.
Notices telling specific students to stop illegally downloading music or else.
“People think that they are anonymous on the Internet and they really aren’t,” adds Eckardt.
In the spring of 2007, 26 UW-Eau Claire students did not listen to the warning and received federal subpoenas.
Since then, each and every one of them has settled to the tune of at least $3,000 a piece.
“It’s devastating for some of them. A couple of students actually had to leave school because they couldn’t afford to be here and pay their legal fees… it’s been really hard,” says Jodi Thesing-Ritter.
Thesing-Ritter is the associate dean of student development at UW-Eau Claire and has had the task of delivering the news to students.
“I think the students both feel singled out and they also feel like this could never have happened to them, they have probably been downloading music since they were 10, so they don’t feel like it’s something that’s wrong,” adds Thesing-Ritter.
But, some have heard the message loud and clear.
This process can bring viruses and spyware to your computer!
“When the whole thing came out, I was like oh wow I probably shouldn’t be doing this…. so I kind of stopped my illegal downloading because I didn’t want to get caught. I mean that’s a lot of money especially for a college student,” says one UW student who wanted to remain anonymous.
School officials are being pro-active by stepping up education programs and promoting legal options like Napster or Ruckus.
“It’s not worth it and it’s dumb and it’s not right. I mean it’s copyrighted material and you don’t steal copyrighted material,” adds eckardt.
Says Thesing-Ritter, “And that’s the message we’re trying to get out to students, that no song is worth $3,000.”
In the past few years the RIAA has sent out 30,000 letters nationwide demanding payment for illegal downloads.
Most people pay the money. Those who choose to take the matter to court rarely win.
As mentioned, 26 students were subpoened at UW-Eau Claire last year. There’s been no word of any other subpoenas through the school since then but that doesn’t mean the recording industry is letting up.
Write why it is illegal and what your opinion is of:
a. the fines levied by the RIAA
b. why people still download knowing that it is illegal and that there is a potential for a big, big fine
c. how illegal downloads affect musicians, actors, and all workers in the recording industry and in the film industry
This is due on Monday, December 8, 2008 and there is NO opportunity to complete this assignment beyond that date. Late entries will not be entered. Happy writing and I look forward to your responses.
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This is a bonus, extra credit blog (you don’t have to do it, but if you want to earn EXTRA CREDIT, hey….why not?)
The US presidential election takes place on November 4, 2008. Explain in at least four paragraphs who you would vote for and why. At the end of the Election Day, I will tell you who I voted for and why….if you care, that is.
In the meantime, here are two videos that I find funny…you can ALSO comment on these, but that is for even more extra credit…..
This is due by 11:00 PM on Wednesday, November 5, 2008. Oh, and I think that both videos are pretty funny…and the Obama video features one of my favorite songs by the band CAKE–”Comfort Eagle”
The McCain Video
The Obama Video
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Watch the following video:
Do you think that sites like facebook and myspace are encouraging people to reveal too much about themselves and lose too much of their privacy? What should the guidelines of privacy be on the web? Should there be things that are left private?
Write a couple of paragraphs and respone to the video and to my questions. This is due on Monday, November 3, 2008 at 6:00 PM
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Watch the videos below and then in a couple of paragraphs (not a couple of sentences), discuss how you think Photoshop is changing the world, changing the truth and changing design.
In the first video, you will see a makeover of a homely woman into a more attractive, younger woman. The second video you will see a series of images, some real and some not.
Here is what the real scoop is: can we believe what we see anymore? Has photoshop created a culture in which photographs are worthless as they cannot be believed or has photoshop just helped enhance photography? Discuss both videos and also what effect you believe that photoshop has on society and on the news. This is due on Friday, October 17, 2008 at 6:00 PM.
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Read the following article by Joe Schmidt which compares life before the internet with life today. After you read it, write a couple of paragraphs discussing how the internet (which became popular in the late 1990′s) has changed life. DIscuss in particular one great improvement brought on by the internet and one negative aspect brought on by the internet. This is due on Friday, October 10, 2008 (the last day of the marking period). Write to impress!
After: Family time is spent in separate corners of the house, each on their own computer instant messaging one another.
After: Now thx 2 IM and SMS, they spel lik dis. LOL!!!!!!
After: Now we just forward joke e-mails and Internet hoaxes to loved ones and friends while not even bothering to remove the hundreds of forwarded addresses contained within the message. By the way, what’s a Pen Pal?
After: Wikipedia donations.
After: Recording industry execs making fat profits all-the-while complaining about illegal downloading via p2p networks.
After: Google
After: Search engines
After: Cell phones, IM, SMS, email, Skype, etc…
After: Immediately bouncing checks (or maybe you’re asking yourself what is a Check?)
Before: Kids would hang out at Video Arcades, Malls, Roller Rinks, and pizza places.
After: Kids hang out at MySpace.com
After: Everyone has a friend named Tom and no one realizes they can easily get rid of him.
Before: People went on blind dates or met people at the bar to find romance.
After: Now we sit at home alone and surf Match.com to find romance.
After: eBay and Craigslist.
After: Tivo and DVR’s
After: Viral videos and forehead advertising.
After: We google people to get dirt on them.
After: Planning your Black Friday assault in October thanks to web sites like BlackFridayAds.com.
After: Social news sites, bit torrents, Podcasts, and YouTube.
After: Telecommuting to work in your pajamas.
After: We get our news from the likes of Stewart, Colbert, and Drudge.
After: Children send email to Santa Claus at northpole.com and track his progress Christmas Eve via satellites on NoradSanta.org
After: Don’t you read my blog?
Filed under: Education | Tagged: internet | 52 Comments »
Watch the following video and then discuss how YouTube is changing both the world at large and also how you see the world, how you use the internet and how you understand the world. Also, talk about the various scams, frauds and rumors that have come about on YouTube (Discuss what is in this video). Which of the videos that the narrator discusses do you find most interesting (my favorite is MadV).
This is due on Thursday, October 2, 2008.
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