Current Event 2/2/12

GROUNDHOG DAY

The article I chose was about groundhog day. Every groundhog day Punxsutawney Phil predicts if we start spring or have six more weeks of winter. This year Phil said he saw his shadow so we have six more weeks of winter. Last year, spring started at this time, and in 2010 winter became longer. Many of the bystanders thought spring would be near because of our warm winter but they were wrong.

I chose this article because today is Groundhog Day and I wanted know what Punxsutawney Phil said. I am glad we have six more weeks of winter because I never really got to enjoy the snow. It makes me wonder why we even have this tradition and why we let a groundhog decide for us. What will happen next year? We have to wait and find out.

Digital Citizenship and Creative Commons

Digital citizenship is basically your own personal online footprint. It shows what you've posted or what others have posted about you. More people should be aware of their digital footprint because they arent the only ones who look at it. Many colleges or job employers look at people's Facebook and Twitter to get a deeper understanding of that person. If there are negative comments or posts, then that person will be less likely to be hired or accepted. Without these skills, I would be unaware of the dangers of digital footprints.
I'm glad I have these skills because it allows me to put the best work forward. Creative Commons is a website that allows people to share their work with personalized copyrights. It makes sharing and using work much easier and hassle-free. It is simple to use work on their website for projects or blogs. You just need to remember to site the source from Creative Commons. Some people are using this in a bad way by using other people's work for profit. That's why their are certain licenses that ensure that from not happening. It is a very useful tool if you are a person who shares data and want credit for your work.

Denying Technology in Schools?

The Waldorf school in Los Altos, California refuses to use technology in their school system. Computers are frowned up in and out of school. Their teaching tools are anything but modern: pens and paper, knitting needles, and occasionally mud. Some of the teachers believe this is a great way to learn by using creative ways to teach. One class used cake and quesadillas to count fractions and another memorized language skills by passing around a bean bag. You wouldn't mind that they aren't using technology, but what really surprised me was that three-quarters of the students have a parent with high-tech connections. Some of the parents even work at Google, Yahoo and Apple. It is very shocking that this costs so much to be a student at this school. The annual tuition for kindergarten through eighth grade is $17,750, while the tuition for high school is $24,400! If they can get by on not using technology then I think it's good for them, but eventually they will be at a disadvantage when technology becomes even more modern and a more useful in everyday life.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/23/technology/at-waldorf-school-in-silicon-valley-technology-can-wait.html?pagewanted=2&_r=2&sq=waldorf&st=cse&scp=1

Digital Citizenship

For some people, they post things on Youtube and Facebook that can get them in a lot of trouble. They need to be more aware of their digital citizenship. After reading the link below, I was torn. The teacher was fired for posting negative comments about the people in her town. I don't think she should have put her thoughts out publicly on Facebook because she should have known that people would see it. Being a professional, she should have been more careful and smarter before posting things like that. Most people believe she should not have been fired but I think that she will learn from her actions and won't make the same mistake again.

http://www.thebostonchannel.com/news/24670937/detail.html

The Independent Project

Earlier this week we watched a video on students who wanted to teach themselves, instead of them being taught by teachers. They called this "The Independent Project." The students got an approval from their school and school board to do this. They grouped together and taught themselves by doing labs, asking each other questions, and researching. The kids also focused some of their time on what they liked to do such as writing a novel, writing a song, etc. I thought that this was a great idea. When you are taught by a teacher, there is always that period of time when you re-learn material over and over again. But when you teach yourself, you can more on to bigger topics that you are unsure of. After high school, you don't get a job by taking a multiple choice test, you get a job by actually knowing the information instead of just memorizing it to get a good grade like in school. I realized that some of the students who participated in this project were more successful than the students who were in the "outdated", normal classrooms. The idea of this project is very useful and should be considered in every school.

Personal Filter

Recently, sites such as Facebook and Google have been "tailoring" their results. They have narrowed down the information on the web search based on where you are, what links you click on, and other tools on your computer. Eric Schmidt from Google believes that it is hard for people to consume something that has not been tailored for them but i believe the opposite. In the video we watched in class (TED Talks), they showed an example of this. They had two people type in the same word on Google but there were many different links that did not match up. Using this filter is a huge problem. It limits the amount of information that was receive, and we don't even get to pick it ourselves. It also keeps us in a "comfort zone". Maybe some people want to explore information and find different points of view. The filter keeps vital information out of our reach. Many people may think this filter is a great idea, but they probably don't realize that it is actually hurting us. The web is a place for us to find new information, but with this new system it can be harder than you think.

Other High Schools Using iPads

We aren't the only school using iPads. This device is modernizing schools all over the country. In this article below, a town called Zeeland, Michigan has adopted iPads into their entire school system, not just high school. Over 1,800 iPads will be distributed to all students in grade three to grade twelve. Middle schoolers receive theirs in the winter but grades three to five get it next fall and they must keep it in the classroom. Some teachers there have recorded their entire lesson on video so their students have access to it even when they are home. They have filters just like us. It limits websites and blocks Facebook. It does not block Skype or Twitter. I am concerned that the younger students are not responsible enough to handle an iPad, but the district ensured them all. Using iPads for educational purposes is a great idea, so why aren't all cities doing it?

http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/story/2011-09-20/schools-education-ipad-students/50480836/1