From TEDTalks:

Ben Dunlap shares the story of Sandor Teszler, a Hungarian man he met at Wofford College. Listen as he weaves the tale of Mr. Teszler’s life, arcing from the Holocaust to the South in the 50’s…it is a wonderful tale of passion, and justice, and living your life.

About Mr. Dunlap:

Ben Dunlap was a dancer for four years with the Columbia City Ballet, kicking off a life of artistic and cultural exploration. A Rhodes Scholar, he did his PhD in English literature at Harvard, and is now the president of Wofford College, a small liberal arts school in South Carolina. He has taught classes on a wide variety of subjects, from Asian history to creative writing.

He’s also a writer-producer for television, and his 19-part series The Renaissance has been adopted for use by more than 100 colleges. He has been a Senior Fulbright Lecturer in Thailand and a moderator at the Aspen Institute.

Happy learning!

According to an article in Time, students in a rural New Mexico school have been equipped with mp3 players in an effort to incorporate a new tool into the classroom. The mp3 players will allow the students to watch videos and listen to lectures recommended by the teachers and other students. The students are encouraged to link up during class hours, on their bus rides to and from school, and while they are on school trips.

We all know this as podcasting, and this experiment is an agreement between the school and Microsoft. The teachers get a bonus for lessons that identify 20 downloadable lectures that support what they are teaching in class and for developing 5 of their own. Microsoft is collecting data on how the study works, and also gets to showcase their brand to the schools. 

Of course, with an mp3 player comes responsibility. The students had to agree to not download anything that would be offensive and adhere to the “grandma rule”: don’t download anything that their grandmothers would find inappropriate. The teachers have designated certain areas, “no mp3 player” zones, and students must turn off their players when asked.

Bravo to this community for incorporating another tool into the learning process!

Happy learning!

Summertime is sometimes equated with picking up a good book and losing yourself in another world; a bit of escape perhaps from the day-to-day rat race that is life. You may wish to delve into a classic, or you may be more interested in the newest thriller or romance novel. Whatever your fancy, the choices are endless!

Classics

A book is considered a classic if it is written over fifty years ago and many people enjoyed it. The book has stood the test of time regarding relevance, and can be enjoyed by people of all ages. Mark Twain said that “a classic is a book which everyone praises but no one reads.” Whatever the case, the choices are many…here are some to choose from:

• The Good Earth - Pearl Buck
• Don Quixote - Miquel de Cervantes
• Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen
• Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte
• Anna Karenina - Leo Tolstoy
• To Kill A Mockingbird - Harper Lee
• Song of Solomon - Toni Morrison

Modern Classics

There is such a thing as a modern classic, which basically means that the book is not as old as a classic, but it’s significance is just as celebrated. 

• Another Country - James Baldwin
• Cry The Beloved Country - Alan Paton
• Catcher In The Rye - J. D. Salinger
• The Color Purple - Alice Walker
• One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez

source: http://www.wcl.govt.nz/popular/fiction-classics.html

New Releases

But maybe you are not up for going back in time…that’s alright. You have your choices of new books that are released weekly…too many to name here. From the latest James Patterson thriller to Randy Pausch’s motivational self-help book, you are sure to find something that will hold your interest. Check out your favorite bookstore and pick up a book (or a couple of books!) that you can lose yourself in. Give into the joy of reading a good book, and maybe learn something new in the process!

Happy learning!

From TedTalks:

Alisa Miller, head of Public Radio International, talks about why—though we want to know more about the world than ever—the US media is actually showing less. Eye-opening stats and graphs.

Take a look at this video and be amazed at what we are not told…

Happy learning!

From TED Talks:

Brazilian-born, Brooklyn-based fine artist Vik Muniz has exhibited his work all over the world. Using unexpected materials to create portraits, landscapes and still lifes — which he then photographs — he delights in subverting a viewer’s expectations.

Watch as Mr. Muniz shares his art with us, and observe how he takes every day items and turns them into beautiful displays of artwork.

Happy learning!

The life of a college student is defined by freedom and the chance to discover, finally, who you are as a person and come into your own. This is a vital time in a young adult’s life and it is critical that they be allowed to make mistakes and learn from them, sometimes on their own.

The phenomenon known as helicopter parents may block this growth. According to Wikipedia, the definition of a helicopter parent is “…a person who pays extremely close attention to his or her child or children, particularly at educational institutions. They rush to prevent any harm or failure from befalling them or letting them learn from their own mistakes, sometimes even contrary to the children’s wishes. They are so named because, like a helicopter, they hover closely overhead, rarely out of reach whether their children need them or not.”

There are pros and cons of having a helicopter parent. The pros are:

• Students who are in constant contact with a parent or guardian are most likely more satisfied in their school life.
• Students report deeper learning experiences.
• Students report greater gains with learning on their own and learning to work with people from different backgrounds.

The other side of the coin:

• Students with highly involved parents tend to have lower grades.

source: http://www.usatoday.com/news/education/2007-11-04-nsse-helicopter-parents_N.htm

Helicoptering, as the term is used, is not relegated to middle- and upper-class students and parents. The phenomenon crosses all class and race barriers, and can be defined by five different categories.

They are:

• The “Consumer Advocate” parent—views each phase of the college experience as a business transaction and wants the biggest bang for their buck.
• The “Only Want What’s Best for My Child” parent—requires that their child have access to the best classes, professors, dorms, internships, and majors.
• The “Helopat” parent—fights for fairness and think that universities aren’t offering equitable resources to all students.
• The “Entitlement Advocate” parent—believes that no child should be left behind and keeps up with the latest state and federal requirements for education.
• The “Vicarious College Student” parent—tries to live out their missed college years through their child.

source: http://www.utexas.edu/features/2007/helicopter/

Whatever the case may be, being supportive of a college student is necessary. To prevent helicoptering, start early by assigning responsibility to the student during high school. Resist the temptation to step in and take over (except for those situations that need parental resolution). Begin letting go in increments and by the time the student is in college, they will come to you when they need support and won’t feel like you are smothering them.

Happy learning!

Michael Bitz, an adjunct assistant professor at Columbia University, recently won a national competition with his idea of helping students learn academic subjects while creating their own record labels. Mr. Bitz will now attempt to bring his ideas to schools across the country as the first recipient of the fellowship awarded by Mind Trust, an Indianapolis non-profit organization. His story is featured in an article in USA Today.

The basis of Mr. Bitz’s idea is simple: allow the children to write songs, create digital tracks, design their own cover art, and market their CDs. The article states that elementary students have recorded tracks about civil rights heroes and favorite holidays, while middle school students have delved into edgier subjects such as crime and love.

How does this fit into a school’s core curriculum? It does teach the students math skills by getting them involved in marketing and business plans. And, according to one student, by writing songs, it focused on English skills, helping to focus on similes, metaphors, and personification.

There were over 150 applicants in the Mind Trust competition, all with ideas on how to encourage hands-on student engagement at school. Mr. Bitz believes that bringing music-making into schools is a sure way to get kids involved:

“There’s just something about music that helps kids connect to themselves and the world at large,” he said. “I’m trying to capitalize on that in some way.”

Happy learning!

 

If you love Alfred Hitchcock movies, then you will find the interview with David Sterritt, new on the Simply Charly Interviews site, absolutely fascinating. David Sterritt is currently Chair of the National Society of Film Critics, as well as an Adjunct Professor at the School of the Arts at Columbia University. He has written many books and penned many film reviews and his knowledge of Hitchcock and what drove him to do the things that he does is well-researched and thought-provoking.

During the interview, David Sterritt points out many interesting facts about Hitchcock and his movies. In response to the question of why Hitchcock always appeared in his own movies, David had this to say:

“Hitchcock was a first-rate promoter and marketer, and one of his best tools was to make himself a celebrity by showing up in all sorts of ways…”

David also intimates why Hitchcock movies were different from others of the same genre:

“He took crime and violence out of the shadows and into the light of day, showing that mayhem doesn’t break out only in dark alleys and dens of iniquity…”

In the interview, David also lists contemporary directors who have been influenced by Hitchcock’s vision and techniques:

“The world champion of Hitchcock imitators is Brian De Palma…David Lynch was obviously influenced by Hitch in pictures like Mulholland Dr. and Blue Velvet, and Gus Van Sant paid Psycho a compliment by directing a faithful (and pointless) shot-for-shot remake.”

Click on the link above to read more of this insightful interview with David Sterritt…you will definitely feel the love and admiration he has for Hitchcock films, and may even be prompted to go out and rent one to see what the chatter is all about!

Happy learning!

Mr. Philip M. Parker, a chaired professor of management science, has developed a unique way of writing books. An article in the New York Times examines his unconventional method of compiling the “meat” of a book by using his developed algorithms to collect publicly available information on a subject. Mr. Parker then, with the assistance of 60-70 computers (!) and six or seven computer programmers, compiles the results into books, producing a product that runs the gamut of genres and usually is about 150 pages long. Some of the titles he has written include “The Official Patient’s Sourcebook on Acne Rosacea,” “Stickler Syndrome: A Bibliography and Dictionary for Physician’s, Patients and Genome Researchers,” and “The 2007–2012 Outlook for Tufted Washable Scatter Rugs, Bathmats and Sets That Measure 6-Feet by 9-Feet or Smaller in India.”

Mr. Parker has generated over 200,000 books, and each book is only printed when a customer places an order. Although the above books may sound like generic topics, Mr. Parker has applied his theory to crossword puzzles and even scripts for animated game shows. Most of his books are full of graphics, and there have been complaints at the level of generic information given in the content. But Mr. Parker takes on an attitude that if you are not Internet savvy and need a guide to read, his books provide a basic understanding of the topics that he covers and can be useful.

Many authors would call what Mr. Parker does as cheating, but he doesn’t think so. He compares his methods to a traditional publisher, only with his computers doing the scut work.

“Using a little bit of artificial intelligence, a computer program has been created that mimics the thought process of someone who would be responsible for doing such a study,” Mr. Parker says. “But rather than taking many months to do the study, the computer accomplishes this in about 13 minutes.”

Mr. Parker is now venturing into other avenues, including acrostic poetry. He has a love for words and dictionaries in all languages, and a foray into romance novels is in the works also.

It is quite amazing what technology can do!

Happy learning!

An article published recently in the Wall Street Journal uncovers a mystery: Finnish students score “extraordinarily high” on an international test and are among the smartest in the world. This mystery has American educators taking note, and attempting to figure out what Finnish educators are doing and how to adapt.

The international tests, known as the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), are sponsored by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, and are given every three years to 15-year-old students in 57 different countries. In the most recent test, Finland students place first in science (the test’s focus), and near the top in math and reading.

So what makes Finnish students so smart? The answer is a simple one: Finland’s educators are well-trained and the children are responsible. Finland has a system of “comprehensive” schooling—free public education for all children from 1^st to 9^th grade. All of these students, no matter their academic abilities and socioeconomic backgrounds, sit in the same rooms. According to an article in U. S. News & World Report, this environment “focuses on equity for all.”

Students in Finland begin primary school the year they turn 7, in a small classroom (usually 20-25 students). There are not the usual concerns during the school day in Finland; lunches are free, schools have flexibility in choosing textbooks, designing curricula, and allocating funds, and healthcare and transportation are taken care of. All of these offer students support in their learning process.

But the most critical element in this equation may the teachers. Since 1970, Finland has mandated that teachers for all grades obtain at least a master’s degree. Teachers enjoy high prestige in Finland, the teacher-education programs at Finnish universities are highly competitive, and according to Jouni Valijarvi, director of the Institute for Educational Research at the University of Jyvaskyla, “The status of teachers is comparable to doctors and lawyers.”

Focusing on students, designing a curriculum that challenges students, eliminating distractions, requiring teachers to succeed, and rewarding them for doing so? Sounds like a foundation for success…

Happy learning!