So, What About Halloween?

Click here to read on of the best articles we've ever read on the Halloween dilemma that many parents struggle with. Margi McCombs, educator, mother, and friend of ours, provides a not-so-standard response to the issue. Here's a blurb:

Halloween, for many of us, holds fond memories of childhood fun—costumes, twinkling candles, crisp fall twilight, holding Daddy’s hand as we stroll the neighborhood, and mountains of candy by the end of the evening. So what’s the problem? [But] for others, Halloween represents all that we fear and hate the most....a relentless focus on death, dismemberment, evil spirits, satanic themes and fear itself.

Tough Learning

A meaty but very helpful presentation on Tough Learning. How to be be effective at learning and developing oneself over the long-haul. My favorite is the author's 3rd point (about 4/5 of the way down the page)... it's a great technique for transformational teaching/learning.

They ARE Smart, We Just Bore Them

Faculty nationwide are bewildered and frustrated with the students they see in their classrooms today (see this article, to feel their angst). Many believe there has been a fundamental change in the way contemporary students view knowledge and derive meaning... and it is vastly different from that of their instructors.

Annette and I think kids are as sharp as ever and probably more creative. It's not their problem that they are growing up in a world full of dynamic colors, sounds, video, and interactivity but when they go to school they are told to sit down, shut up, and listen. Sure, if you tell most kids to write a 500 word essay on a book and you'll probably be disapointed. But give a 5th-grader a camcorder or an iPod and they'll read parts of the book out loud and tell you why they like it, they'll make a short video to show you what they got out of the book, or they'll do interviews. Then you'll see the lights go on.

They're not dumb... they're bored.

See Jane sit and listen.
See Dick take notes in a book.
See Spot poop.

Um, let's try again... can Jane surf, take classes online and help save the coral reefs at the same time? Can Dick travel the world, maintaining a blog about the different cultures and the wild variety of ways they've adapted to media-based urbanization? Can Spot sit by Jane's beach towel and guard her laptop while she surfs?

All this was inspired by the following article at the Washington Post: The New Teacher's Pet.

Corruption Index 2005

.............(click map for more detail)

Like children anxiously waiting for Christmas morning, or like a cat waiting for that fat mouse to come out of it's hole... that's how Annette and I are waiting every year for Transparency International to publish the latest Corruption Perceptions Index.

Not Going to Hell in a Handbasket

So there!...for all of you who think the world is going to hell in a handbasket, read this article: BBC News: Wars Less Frequent, Less Deadly. Here's an excerpt:

[The study] found the number of armed conflicts had fallen by more than 40% in the past 13 years, while the number of very deadly wars had fallen by 80%.

Firefox: using it smart-like

Click this link=>The power user's guide to Firefox to learn some great tips for how to take advantage of FIREFOX (every savvy geek's favorite Internet browser).