An archived stack of papers: June 2005
I Hate Registration
In a stack of papers called Technology.
- Jun
- 30
- 2005
I receive NCTE’s INBOX, a weekly email regularly filled with links to sites that require registration to access articles. In the past, I’ve angrily closed the browser window to that site, refusing to give my private information away. I hate registering with Web sites so much that I’m willing to miss out on good content in order to keep... read more
Transferring Files? Two Web Sites
In a stack of papers called Technology.
- Jun
- 30
- 2005
Classrooms are often filled with several kinds of computers, Mac vs. PC being the typical breakdown. But there’s also the slow vs. fast, the old vs. new, the bad vs. good. Some computers are better for certain tasks than others. Some Macs are better at reading PC-formatted disks than others, so the kid with the PC at home can still access his latest draft of a research paper in my room, even if... read more
Education Spending
In a stack of papers called Legislation.
- Jun
- 23
- 2005
Per pupil spending is an unfortunate straw man that education and government alike enjoy dragging out in front of the public. This straw man helps either side make their case about education spending and the statistics support both sides. Meanwhile, the real villains are left unaddressed and our children are stuck in a damaged system that needs to... read more
An AP Summer
In a stack of papers called Instruction.
- Jun
- 21
- 2005
Right now, I am taking a week-long course called “Establishing the AP Course, English Language Grades 9-12” through SJAWP. It’s only been one day, but several things have jumped out at me as good ideas for improving education in general and my classroom specifically, mostly dealing with what, how, and why we teach.
Jeff... read more
The Great Computer Raid of 2005
In a stack of papers called Technology.
- Jun
- 18
- 2005
At school because I need to help out with some department goal setting, yesterday I came upon 3 pallets of computers to be thrown away. They awaited the arrival of the district van to take them to a recycling center. Mind you, I spied this after recent email interaction with the technology coordinator for the district and the vice principal in which I related to both of them that technology is being... read more
Comments: A Natural Part
In a stack of papers called Unorganized.
- Jun
- 18
- 2005
Reading around a bit after my last post, I started thinking about how I’ll be grading blog entries next year. This part year, I graded them on completion. If the entry was done, it got full credit, regardless of the quality. That’s a shame because one student wrote a poem as a response from Romeo about the... read more
Edu-Blogging
In a stack of papers called Connections.
- Jun
- 18
- 2005
I’m headed down to RAFT this morning, so this will be quick (“quick” turned into 2 hours, by the way).
I was reading Bud the Teacher’s Blogspot blog and he has a few entries that are interesting to me. Often, it’s easier to write the more you write. And it’s easier to write the... read more
Special Election Coverage
In a stack of papers called Legislation.
- Jun
- 15
- 2005
The South Orange County Regional Chambers of Commerce has put together a list of the 65 petitions currently in circulation in California. Only about 8 of them are to be voted on in November, 2005.
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has decided that a... read more
Quicker Ways to Grade Writing
In a stack of papers called Writing.
- Jun
- 02
- 2005
During lunch today, I rattled off a few suggestions to a student teacher who is facing having to read 4 batches of essays this weekend to get caught up. And I thought they might be kind of useful suggestions to remember, so here they are.
Here are what I see as some good alternatives to the thorough reading and commenting that so often prevents teachers from evaluating writing (by no means is... read more
TTOT: An Introduction
In a stack of papers called Podcasts.
- Jun
- 02
- 2005
Two Teachers On Teaching: Episode One
“So, sit back, wait a little while for me to get a couple of these done, and I hope you enjoy the results.”
I spend about 3 minutes explaining my idea for this podcast as a way to provide a short introduction.