PLN entry # 6

Today I chose to read Is Payment For Good Grades Legimate Motivation in this Day and Age? It talks about how they don't think that parents should have to bribe kids to do well in school with money. On the show Colbert Report it had an agrument about this. Joel Klien thinks that kids aren't pushed hard enough today and that they should not have to be paid to get good grades

What matters: In this article it argues about the conflict whether kids should be paid for good grades. In this day and age kids are different than when people actually wanted to learn and go to school. That was a few centuries ago and now kids are lazy and don't like going to school. They like the social part of it but the learning part... not so much. For some parents it feels like money is the only thing that can make their kids actually try. There are also alot more distractions for kids in this century. Our parents didn't have TVs, computers, the phone, ipods, ect. It seems a little harder these days to stay on task.

How it matters to me: Since I am a teenager I know how it is for kids to not want to work for their grades in school. I am torn on who to agree with. I agree that it doesn't seem right that kids have to be bribed with money to get good grades, but on the other hand. there are just some kids who are lazy and no matter what you tell them they will not do any of their work unless forced or bribed. I get $20 at the end of each semester for having A's and B's so I really have no room to talk, but the money isn't what makes me get good grades. Now that I am in high school I am realizing that college is in only a couple of years. In middle school I got good grades but slacked sometimes. I can't afford to do that now. Besides, education wasn't made to torture you, it was meant to educate you so that you could find a good job when you get older and have a good life.

How it matters to the world: As I have said in previous blogs, i think education is really important. There are so many homeless people who never got the proper education and are now liveing on the streets. A life no one wishes to live. But also I think that the kids of America are extremely spoiled and lazy. The kids in Europe work much harder than American children do. Now I wouldn't know this from experience but my mom lived in Italy for a couple of years when she was in high school and she says that the kids here don't work half as hard as the kids in Italy do. This had a huge effect on me because my family is extremely Italian. The kids of America need to step it up a notch and try actually getting good grades without being paid to.

PLN entry #5

I just read an article by Will Richardson called Back in the U.S.S.A! It was about how there is still alot of poverty in China and he saw much of that when he went there.

What matters: He saw that it is still poverty stricken in Shanghai. There was also a typhoon in China that materialized from the downpours on Tuesday. He had a picture of an old woman with a chair in her hands. She was about to go sit outside when they were passing by and was glad to take a picture. What Will Richardson was interested in was the fact that she was wearing a traditional Communist uniform. Also Sheryl and her son Noah who he went to China with noticed that here were many babies on the plane that were being brought to America for adoption. Then Richardson started thinking about how he didn't see any babies while he was there which is probably because of the law that restricts parents from keeping more than one child. Then he noticed that there were hardly any gas stations. How do the people fill their cars up with gas? People think that China is very advanced and powerful but from Richardsons point of veiw, Chinas people still arent living the life they wish to live.

How it relates to me: I seem to live a great life and yet I still complain. The people where Richardson visited live in poverty and yet they still manage to keep a smile on their faces. I am so blessed to live in America because if I lived in China then one of my triplets sisters and I would probably be sent to America to be put up for a adoption. I would probably live my life without even knowing that I am a triplet. I mean sometimes it can be hard being a triplet but just thinking about being taken away from my family and sisters just makes me want to cry. I am able to live a life of luxury compared to some of the people Richardson saw.

How it relates to the world: There are some many places in this world that live in poverty and sadness. But there are also many places that don't like America, Italy, France, Britain and so many more places. Everyone thinks that China is all advanced and is rising to be one of the most powerful countries but yet there are still many things about China that need fixing. There aren't as many homeless people as there are in the U.S. is what Richardson noticed. I hope that one day china can work out all its problems and help the people to live happy lives.

PLN entry #4

I just read a blog by David Warlick titled The World is a 'Twitter. It discusses the new way of future eduation chat through Twitter. David Warlick is at a conferance called Classrooms for the Future when he is blogging to us.

What matters:
This new program called Twitter is a new way of chatting through blogger. Dave Warlick seems to think that this program is very effective because it can help him during presentations because all he has to do is put it up on a screen and then teachers could ask questions for other teachers to see and then the people in the audience could chat with each other about what they think. It matters because this is just another step forward to improving our schools and creating better schools for the furture.

How it matters to me:
It matters to me because I like to know that the teachers actually care about their students. They actually want to find new ways to make learning better for us. Normally when I think about the conferances that teacher have to go to I picture just someone boring standing in the front of the room talking about something that no one really cares about. Also in middle school I was a student assistant for my math teacher and 2 days a week I had to go into a different room while all the 8th grade teachers had meetings about the kids or about the curiculum . Then the teacher that I was student assisting for would come out of the meeting as if he was being tortured. I dont want to think that they are having meetings about how horrible their students are or talking about something boring that they have to teach us. I like to hear that they are actually trying to improve how we learn.

How it matters to the world:
If they are starting to advance into the future in America now then I think that there is a good chance that soon they will start in Europe. Twitter seems to be helping in conferances and actually keeping the audeince awake. They actually have a chance to interact with the other people there without even interupting the speecher. The internet is constantly changing the world by improving and developing new programs. The world in finally advancing into the future!

PLN entry #3

I read an article by David Warlick called Could it happen here? and agreed with him that the U.S . needs to create conferances about developing tools for the future for educators, and students to attend.

What Matters:
What matters is that it is a really idea for the people of America to start thinking about the future of schools. I dont think that just certain poeple should have the opportunity to go to those kind of meetings. If every school had the chance to go they could change the way education is taught forever. I dont understand why David Warlick used to think that there was no hope of this every happening in America. America has a really good education system and schools are constantly looking for better ways to teach thier students so I am guess that many other schools know about this meeting and want it to come to America also.


How does it relate to me:
It relates to me because I always want a better education. I want the schools of the future to open many opportunities for their students when they graduate because today there are many people who aren't educated and dont have the opportunity to get a good education and a good job. What I see in the future is no books only computers. I want my school to have a chance to experience the future.


How it relates to the world around us:
If they had that conferance around the world and let anyone go to it then some many more schools would have the opportunity to advance into the future. Then the rate of homeless and uneducated people would decrease. Also more people would be able to have better jobs and make better money and clearly there would would be less suffering in the world if everyone had the opportunity to get educated and have a better life.

"Come join the search as we together build the future of schools."

2 cents worth

I was very interested when I read 2 cents worth http://davidwarlick.com/2cents/. The fact that we will probably find out more information about planets outside of your univere thatn in our own just amazed me. The fact that we have that kind of technology. the brains it would take to build that kind of machine is beyond me. You would think that since we are closer to the planets in our own universe we would be able to figure them out fast but no. that not what Paul Glister thought. He is the other of Digital Literacy, which includes Internet Navigator and Mosaic Navigator. He thinks that anywhere there is oxygen there is a possibility of life. There is also evidence already that there is life on other planets outside of our univere. In about 20 years we will have the advanced technology to even maybe go to oneof the planets outside of our universe. But lets not get to far ahead of ourselves. Dave and Paul are neighbors and they had this dicussion over coffee. What amazes me is that they have casual talks about this just over coffee. This is something that never seems worthy of just coffee. Who knows we may not be alone in the universe or we are. Both are overwhelming