PLN 20

Sadly this is my last PLN of the year but I'm sure you will be hearing from me again because I want to get into the tenth grade computer based english class. Well this post was very very interesting, creative, cool to me.

The band get out clause was London didn't have enough money to hire a camera crew to film thier music video so they performed in 80 different locations in from of a surveillence camera and then protested until they got enough footage to make a music video. I thought that was soo creative when I read this post. This will for sure help them get into show business just by doing such a different and new way to make a music video. Dave Warlick is right when he says that this was very resourceful. I watched the music video and even though you couldn't see the band very well at times, it still was really really cool. Also when I looked at its veiws it showed that it had already gotten 102,767.

I don't think that if a band tried doing that here it would have worked as well because there aren't as many survellience cameras, the people who did have some footage probably wouldn't give it to you, and the people would get really annoyed with you if you were in their way, like in the music video they performed on an escalator, and in the street. People would probably get really mad, and you might even get arrested for disturbing the peace.

You can find my comment on Resourcefulness as a basic skill on 2 cents worth by David warlick.

PLN 19

I really liked reading this blog because it showed that Myspace really does protect its users. Because my parents and many many other people think that even though Myspace says that it’s going to protect its users. This blog many not prove that it protects users from online predators.

To answer your question I think that a lot of kids do know what spam is, but the problem is that they do not know how to protect themselves from it. Also, I do not think they understand how people make money off of it. I mean I do not even know how Sanford Wallace and his partner Walter Rines made $500,000 dollars from it. Another question I have is how come Los Angeles awarded Myspace $230 million dollars. Why would they be awarded money for winning a court case against these two men? There is no way that the two men can play all this. Also, how come they charged the large amount of $100 for each message?


Now what is being done to the men? How were these two men discovered? I also wonder what Myspace is going to do with all this money because they also already have A LOT of money from their users. I’m also wondering how does Myspace make money from its users. I do not really know how these online sites work so I have many questions about it.



Website my comment is found on the post titled This Does My Heart Good By David Warlick

PLN 18

The first thing that popped into my head when i read this was "What the heck?" I think that is just ridiculous that these schools are being so strict about electronics, but then they are contradicting themselves by giving their students cell phones. They say that they are giving their students cell phones so that their teachers can txt them to tell them their homework assignments and when the students are good or have good grades they are rewarded with more minutes, but why are they wasting money on cell phones when they can just get all their students cell phone numbers, house numbers, and emails.


Now I can see why they think this is helpful because students and teachers will be able to get in contact easier. However, there is something I would like to ask these schools something. What are their schools in need of? Do they need more text books? Do they want to have laptops for their classes? Then why are they wasting money on stupid cell phones when teachers and students can get in contact in so many other ways. Also, why are they so strict about their students having their own cell phones when their students could need them for an emergency with their family or something like that?

If our school did this, then it wouldn’t make sense. I mean that our school is pretty strict about kids having cell phones and other electronic devices, but we have laptops in some of our classes, and also in our English a new common topic is whether or not cell phones would be helpful in class. But I don’t think that our school would ever waste money on cell phones for its students when it has infinite campus where students can email their teachers.

Now I do not know the details of this cell phone they are giving their students because they could be giving them cell phones that only allow them to txt and call their teachers। In that case then I think that it is a little bit better, but I still feel that it is a huge waste of money.

My comment can be found on This stood out

PLN 17

Dave,
I think this is a great post because it really expresses what everone is talking about in education. The new topic I've been noticing is that in the near future we are not going to need text books because text books will be replaced by online texts. I think that only thing holding us back is the fact that schools do not have enough money to buy all the students in their classes laptops.

This post talks about a new product found by Dave Warlick called iCue. Now this product is very close to replacing text because of all its features. It is for 13 year olds and up and it has "an assortment of searchable and organizable video clips from the NBC News Archives regarding the current and past campaigns." And from these video clips you can discussion, note-taking, personal tagging, video transcript, and background information, including description, source, and keywords. Also snagged card videos can be stored in your personal archives and you can share them with friends. Now this is supposed to have a format very similar to FaceBook. Only much safer. You can social network with this device only in a much much safer way.

I think that this is not going to replace text books entirly yet because as I said before, schools do not have enough money to get every student one. But also in my opinion, some things just can not replace the old. But you never know with this new and rapidly changing world. In todays world you have to say "out with the old, and in with the new" constantly. So who knows, 30 years from now my kids could be using an iCue and telling me I'm weird for having to use a heavy text book. But who knows.

Another Model for Textbooks of the Future? found in 2 cents worth by Dave Warlick.

PLN 16

Will,

I thought that this was a very good post because I had not idea there were so many students dropping out. I think that I am not really exposed to that because in the area where i live most of the kids graduate and go to college. But the fact remains that there are still many high school students who drop out. As you said over a million a year.

I think that something more needs to be done about this issue. Because in order to even get a middle class job you have to go to college and complete high school. Some of the kids in my school are sometimes talking about how much they hate high school and just want to be done. Sometimes I wonder why they hate it so much. I guess there are some people who just do not have the will to learn and be successful. But sometimes students drop out because thier family needs them because a parent died or something else. And most of the time those are the students who want to learn and grow the most.

I do not understand it when some students are just lazy and drop out of high school because they dont feel like working any more. Well they need to wake up and realize that nothing is easy in life and if they dont finish high school and go to college, then life is going to be even harder. There are kids in third world countries who would kill to go to school and learn. To be able to learn is something very special and rare in their country. So the clueless kids of America need to start taking advantage to everything we have and stop talking everything for grantite.

The post this is on is called "Clueless America" and is found on the hyperlink. You can also find it in Weblogg-ed by Will Richardson.

PLN 15

I thought this was a very interesting because I have never heard of Web 2.0. This is something alot of people probably do not know about. The most likly reason why is because it is a social network like Myspace and Facebook. The only difference is that Web 2.0 is more educational and not based on pictures and friends as much as facebook and Myspace.
Now do not get me wrong, this socail network still has many of the same features as those other websites do. It includes

-Identity

-Presence

-Relationships

-Conversations

-Groups

-Reputation

-Sharing
But what I think is really great about this new website is that it is alot more safe. Because it is more educational and not as many people are on it many people can join it and still feel safe. But can I have just a little more information in it because this sounds very interesting. This is a great social network for teachers mostly right?


I think that my parents would love this because it is not as unprotected as those other social networks. I know my parents would be happy about this because they grounded me for a month for haveing a Myspace because they think it is dangerous. But what are some more of the uses of this website? Could this be a way for students to comunicate with their teachers while they are at home? Then students would be able to get help with homework at home and many other things. Wow this could be a a huge step in social networking and in students education!

This is the link to the post by Dave Warlick in 2 scents worth titled Implementing Social Networks

PLN 14

Mr. Fisch,
I like that this post talks about all the things that teachers can do to improve. All the things yuo listed seemed very helpful to becoming a teacher, but I know that most teachers do not do it. Like visiting and observing other teachers as they teach and many other things.I think this is a great post because it really shows how much teachers can improve. Most of the teachers I have at AHS are really good and do most of these things, but not all of them. Like the example I said before and things like going to workshops or seminars and other schools to see how they can improve the way they teach.

Last year I had a teacher that had no control over my class and you could tell that she taught the same thing every year. You could tell that she was tired of her job and was just there becuase she needed to money. She had no passion for her job anymore. All the things you listed for becoming a better teacher involve having a passion for teaching. Ms. Smith obviously has a passion for her job because she is always going to different states or conferences to leanr how to become a better teacher. I know that she does not teach the same thing every year, she grades in her own way, and she always is having people come in to our class to observe the new and different way we are learing.

I think more teachers need to do this and if they do not want to, then they obviously do not truly want to become a teacher. Because they job of a teacher is very important. They are preparing the future. The students are the future and if they aren't taught properly, then the world is in alot of trouble in the years to come. So even though some people do not think that being a teacher is very important but it really is.

PLN Reflection

I think that I did pretty well for this presentation because I was very comfortable when I was up there unlike last semester when I used to talk fast and was really nervous and played with my hair alot. I did move around alot which probably was not good. But I think that I made alot of eye contact, alot more than usual. This is also my last PLN presentation for the year. There were some parts where I sounded like I did not know what my PLN was about but what actually happened was I lost my place and I was trying to find it. I know that I could have done alot better on my question. But overall I think I did a pretty good job for my last PLN presentation.

PLN 13

Mr. Richardson,

I don’t really think that googling people to find out more things about them is such a good thing. To me it seems like an invasion of privacy. Some people like to put things on their MySpace that don’t really represent who they are. So when an employer is about to hire someone for a really good job, but then they decide not to because there is a cuss word or strange comments on that persons MySpace it just doesn’t seem fair.

When I read this article I thought it would be interesting to Google myself and see what came up. But mostly what came up was my time for the races I ran in Cross country and the things that are on Ms. Smith’s blog. But what I did find was a project that I didn’t do very well on posted by Ms. Smith. I just think that employers should give people a break and see how they are going to do working with you, not based off of what is on a not very reliable social network.

I know some friends who have MySpaces and put things on there that aren’t who they are at all. They tend to post not very appropriate pictures, comments, blogs, and many other things. But my friends are all very good people and aren’t who they say they are on the internet. They all have really good grades, respect themselves, don’t do drugs or alcohol, don’t cuss, and many other good things. So you see the internet isn’t reliable at all.

http://weblogg-ed.com/2008/making-kids-googlable/#comment-52352 Link to website I commented on.

PLN 12

I think the post What Do We Know About Our Kids’ Futures? Really. it talks about something that most parents don't really care about. They may say they do, but they are more concerned with thier own lives like work. They don't understand that they need to help their kids with school so that they will have a bright future. The future is so unpredictable, but there are ways for parents to still prepare them for it like by making them eat healthier and be more active so that they can learn how to eat well and be fit when they are older. Here are some more of the tips Will Richardson offered in his blog.

• Networked–They’ll need an “outboard brain.”
  
• More collaborative–They are going to need to work closely with people to co-create information.
  
• More globally aware–Those collaborators may be anywhere in the world.
  
• Less dependent on paper–Right now, we are still paper training our kids.
  
• More active–In just about every sense of the word. Physically. Socially. Politically.
  
• Fluent in creating and consuming hypertext–Basic reading and writing skills will not suffice.
  
• More connected–To their communities, to their environments, to the world.
  
• Editors of information–Something we should have been teaching them all along but is even more important now.

What matters to me:

I think these are all great tips that could help improve the adults of the future. It helps with so many aspects that could be different in the future like the enviornment, health, jobs, people. The world is constantly changing with the development of new technologies and new jobs. With this is new people. People change along with the world so I want to be prepared for the new changes in the future. What will happen if I don't help the enviorment and in 60 years we are all out of our energy resources and the earth is trashed and everyone is really really fat and not smart, then what will we do?

PLN 11

Now I know that everyone is doing this PLN and that its unoriginal for me to do write about it too, but it relates to me so much that I just feel like I have to read it. If you haven't figured out which article I'm talking about already, I've been talking about the article 7 Simple Ways to Burst Out of Bed Each Morning. This article contains so many helpful tips that could help teens get much more sleep which will just make their day so much better and easier.

What Matters:
Some of the tips that were given in this article that I found very helpful was
1. Find a waking hour that will work best for you each day of the week, you should stick to it. This will allow your body to want to support you in your endeavor of waking up, and rise you out of bed.
2. Eat small, light meals in the evening, but alot in the morning (which is normally the opposite for me.
3. Take extra steps in creating fun, life changing goals, and scheduling specific ways of how we'll get a step closer to these goals during this coming day. What we all need is not necessary a cause we're willing to die for, but at least a cause we're willing to LIVE for. (This is my favorite and seems like a really clever and good idea!)
4. Planning is one of the fundamental ways to maximize your mind to achieve your goals, and as such it plays a critical role in allowing us to have an awesome day, everyday. (I don't think I would use this very much because that is what I do pretty much already and it still doesn't work.)
5. A bit of water before bed and half a liter as soon as you get up. The water before bed will serve in the rejuvenation process we mentioned above. While you sleep all your cells will fill up with this fresh water and create an over all well being within your body. ( I think I should start doing this because I need to start drinking more water for track anyways, so this would be good for me.)
6. Excercise in the morning because it gets your blood flowing and gives you energy. ( I don't have time to do this at all. But I do excercise in the afternoon. Would that help?)
7. Have "ME" time in the morning. Just some small way to pamper yourself to make your morning just a little brighter. ( I don't have time for this either! I never have time for that, even after school.)

What Matters To Me:
I think this was a great article to read, but it also has alot of ideas that most people do not have time for in the morning so we can't use them. But also alot of these ideas were really helpful and i think that I will start using them, because it would just help me get up in the morning way easier. All these things would help with track also. I also already do some of these tips like planning out my day, which I have to because of school, friends, sports, homework, drivers ed, ect. But that tip doesn't seem to work very well because it just makes me not excited about the bad parts of me day. I still think this is a great article and could help me sleep better and could improve my day, attidude and physical activity so much.

PLN 10

TodayI found a very shocking article in the Denver Post by Tom McGee. The title of the article is TB found at Sterling prison. This article talks about a Sterling Correctional Facility prisoner has been diagnosed with tuberculosis. I picked this article because it was very unsettling to know that TB is out there. It is the cause of many peoples deaths in the 1900s. But now that it is back I am kind of afraid.

What matters:
I know that there is a vaccine for TB. But we thought that it did not exist in our world. But how did this man even get TB? What makes me angery is that the man had been diagnosed for it two years ago. But since he did not have any symptoms they did not think that he was a danger to the other prisoners. The TB victum is serving time for menacing and drug-related charges since 2001. The man was sent to a Denver hospital, along with other prisoners with him and guards who had come in contact with him. He just started showing symptoms so now he is a huge danger to everyone around him. All the people who might have been infected by him are not allowed to have visitors until they are done being tested for the disease and do not have it. It could be very bad if the disease got out.

What matters to me:
This is something that is pretty scary to me because they may have found a vaccine for TB but not a cure. The only thing we can do is take to the vaccine before we even have a chance of getting it. It also makes me very angery that he knew that he had it and still went around and he could have gotten everyone that he ever came in conact with TB. He could cause several people to die from it. One of my biggest fears in getting a deadly disease like cancer or the plague. The plague is the most scary to me because it was so horrible and was the cause of thousands of lost lives. I just hope that the other prisoners and guards do not have TB now.

PLN Relfection

I think this is the best I have done on my PLN presentations so far. I explained my points but didn't take took long and also wasn't to short. I also wasn't as nervous as I normally am for my PLN presentations. I was alot more confortable explaining my veiws. The PLNs I picked to present were the most interesting for the class. Also my question was pretty controversial so alot of my class mates had answers for my question. I think the only thing I need to work on is not talking so far and not rushing through my presentation. I also really really need to work on looking at the audience more because I always seem to rely on my notes and that is what nearly everyone said when the commented my presentation.

PLN 9

This is a very controversail subject that i discovered in the Denver Post. The article was titled Boy, 8, suspended after sniffing Sharpie marker . What really caught my eye when I saw this article was the fact that a third grader was supsended for "huffing" a sharpie. This just sounds rediculous.

What matters:
Ok so if it had been a middle schooler who was suspended for this action then I would think it was a reasonable punishment because that student needs to learn that they should never sniff a sharpie to get high. But the fact that it was a little third grader who got suspended for three days at Harris Park Elementary School because of this just seems ridiculous. I don't think 8 year old Eathan Harris even knew the severeness of his actions. I don't think he even knew what huffing, or getting high is. Principal Chris Benisch says that the boy was punished so severly because the markers present a serious safety risk if misused. I don't think that elementary schools should be spending so muc time worrying that an 8 year old is trying to get high off of a sharpie. I think schools should be focusing more on other things like preventing middle and high schools students from getting pregnant, doing drugs, and getting drunk.

What matters to me:
There are serveral techniques to getting high without using weed and other drugs. It used to be only high school students got drugs and did things like get high off of sharpies or white out. But as the years go by more and more younger students are getting into that kind of stuff. Like Powell Middle school or example. Now I went to that school for all three years and my grade was only a little like that. The younger grades are even worse than most of the high schoolers at AHS. So I can see why the younger schools are cracking down on drugs and getting high off of school supplies. But can you seriously think that a third grader would try to get high off of sharpie. He probably sniffed it cause he was curious and he liked the smell. He is only a little kid. Especially since he drew on his shirt with the sharpie after he smelled it. That shows that he was just being a little kid.

PLN 8

When Laren presented on Friday I though the article by Associated Press titled Teacher OK'd beating of tardy student, police say. I thougt that this article was very important to discuss because this is a very serious matter. In my PLN today I'm going to be talking about my views on this matter.

What matters:
His name is Brian Havel. He is just 22 years old. He was an English teacher at Delta High School. Now he was not big on tardies, so whenever a student was tardy he would make them do a certain amount of sit ups or push ups in a certain amount of time. Now this may seem like just a joke to you, but this was not a joke for Mr. Havel. This was a serious matter and if you didn't do the push ups or sit ups in the time that he told you then he allowed his students to beat the student. The student that this happened to was around 15 or 16 years of age. But when he was told to do all this he refused. So then one of the students asked to beat the student for not doing the punishment and the teacher told him he could so 10 to 15 students participated in hitting the student. Thankfully the student wasn't injured. Its unknown if Mr. Havel still works at Delta high school.

What matters to me:
If this ever happened in our school I know that the teacher would be fired immediately and the student would be taken care of. But this case is a very hard one to argue because it all depends on whether the teacher and students were just kidding a took a joke just a little too far. Because I had a teacher like that year but he was only kidding. It doesn't seem like the students were hitting him very hard either because he has not injuries. I don't think that teacher made the right desicion by telling the students they could hurt their fellow class mate. Thar just seems sketchy to me and not right. I think that his punishment should be that he is fired from working at Delta high school but nothing more because it's not that big of a deal in the first place.

PLN 7

Today I came across another interesting article called Another Shift by Karl Fisch. This article is way different from what Karl Fisch normally writes about but it was very interesting and has to do a little bit with what I'm learning in ERE. It talks about the possibility of a wind powered car which would help the enviornment alot and conserve alot of energy.

What matters:
This may sound like a silly idea and it is merely an idea. But don't be so sure. Israel and Denmark are already working on this new enviornment friendly car. The science behind this is that the strongest winds come at night and night time is when cars are just sitting. So if they developed a wind powered car then it would create alot of energy like a windmills. This will conserve gas and energy and money. Alot of money is already being put into this in Israel and Denmark to make this possible. It isn't clear how long it will take before it is actually working and
efficient. The world is polluted everyday and so much energy is being wasted with every second. Cars also use alot of energy and gas. Gas is also very very expensive. But if these wind powered cars are actually built and sold, then we won't have to pay high prices for gas anymore and not only will our money be saved, but so will our natural resources.

What matters to me:
In ERE we have been learning about global warming and the envornment. I have noticed that ever since we started learning about it I have been more concious of the enviorment and have been trying to be conservative of the enviornment by turning off the lights and picking up trash so when I heard about this I was very happy about it cause this would help alot. But what surprised me is that Denmark and Israel are trying to build it. If they did it that would mean they were ahead in technology. That was surprising because the US is normally always ahead in those types of things.

PLN 6

Today I came across a different type of blog by Will Richardson called Dispatches From the Front Lines #324. Instead of several long paragraphs about the subject it was a conversation between Richardson and a principal of a school that has grades K-12. They talk about how the school doesn't have alot of technoloy for its school because of the cost of laptops and they small amout of money they are given to spend of laptops.

What matters:
The government is the supplier of the money for schools. But even though the government gives most school a large amount of money, it is still never enough to by to all the necessities for a proper education in todays world of technology. The princepal tells Richardson in thier conversation that they only recieve $100,000 from our local council for technology. That may seem like a large amount but that amount of money is only enough to buy 50 laptops. The cheapest for a good laptop is $2,000. The need for technology is schools is increasing and schools can't go on much longer without them. Most jobs involve even a little bit of technology at the very least and in order to get a good education you must have a little bit of knowledge of the subject. The government needs to figure out some way to provide schools with enough money to get them good laptops.

What matters to me:
Arapahoe high school is very fortunate to even have enough money to buy some laptops for my english class. But they don't have enough for every English class so only a couple lucky students get to use the laptops. Maybe some day AHS will get enough money to let every class have laptops. But the government doesn't realize how important and useful these laptops are. They can improve education so much. I don't know how much money the school gets for technology and other things and I don't know how much other schools get either so I'm not sure how the littleton school district distributes money for essential things. But I know that AHS gets more than most schools do.

PLN 5

Something that related to me alot was the article titled Student Information Online from the Thinking Stick. It talks about how students need to protect themselves on the internet because even though the internet is becoming less and less dangerous, there are still creepy people out there who can hurt you and there is still a need for students to protect themselves. It also talks about how schools want to protect its students even though it doesn't have any rules about pictures and other things on the internet about their students.

What matters:
There are several things on the internet that are good and bad. But the school is the last place that you would think would put its students in danger over the internet by posting pictures, names, and other personal information. In Student Information Online talks about how there are unspoken rules for putting things on the internet. Well some of the rules are
1.Do not post personal information
2.Do not use last names
3. Use pictures with permission
These are pretty good rules because those are the main ways people are found on the internet and if they don't put those things on websites about students, then they are safe from any online preditors. Also the school is safe from getting sued. If a student was hurt by an online preditor because of the information the school put online then the school would get sued alot for putting that child in danger.

What Matters to Me:
My parents feel that the internet is a very unsafe place. That is why they won't let me have a Myspace. They always read about children getting stalked by strange people on the internet, most commonly men. I don't entirly agree with them on this subject but I do agree that the internet can be unsafe sometimes. But if you follow all the safety tips listed above then you are pretty safe. But my school posts things about me and other students all the time. When I did Cross Country the school posted my PR online. They also have a picture of the Cross Country team. so my school doesnt follow these rules.

PLN 4

Today I read an article by Will Richardson. The title of this article is Students Pay A Price (Literally) For Cell Phone Use and in this article it talks about at some schools students aren't aloud to have their cell phones because the school thinks that it is a disruption. If the students are caught with their phones in school, then their phone is taken away until Friday, when a parent can come pick it up. But the students can't leave home without their cell phones because they need it for saftey and several other things. The only way they can keep their phone at school is to check it in and pay $3 for the school to hold it, and then get it after school.

What matters:
Richardson talks in his article that students shouldn't have to pay for them to take their phones to school because the cell phone can actually be very helpful. Students can use it for educational purposes also. He thinks that they should be able to bring it to school and actually use them in class. Now alot of schools won't agree with this because they think that it is a big distraction and is only used for social networking. That is also why Myspace is banned from schools even though Myspace isn't only used for social networking. But the fact that they are making teens pay $3 per day just to take their cell phone to school is just not right. Teens don't have alot of money and so whenever they do get money they try to spend it on entertainment. The rule about cell phones probably won't change anytime soon, because sometimes cell phone are used only for txting people during class.

What matters to me:
I half agree with Richardson. I think that it is ridiculous that teens have to pay so much for them to bring their cell phones to school, but I don't agree with him when he says that cell phones could be used in school. Sometimes when adults try to figure out ways to use all types of technology in school it doesn't really work out because if students were aloud to have cell phones in class, then they probably would be texting people the whole time. The same with Myspace. Nearly all my friends have Myspaces and they use it only to talk to friends. Not for anything educational. I think that the rules that our school has about cell phone use is good. They don't mind if you use your cell phone as long as your not in class, but when your texting in class then you will get your phone taken away and then your punishment is up to the teacher. I know that if AHS let us use our phones in class I would be texting all my friends. That is the only thing I use my cell phone for. That might change in the future but for now I don't think that the rules will change.

PLN 3

Today I decided to read an article from Karl Fisch. The title of the article was The Future of the Newspaper. In this article it talks about how the future of the the newspaper and many other things like the music business are not looking so good. The article talks about Karl listening to John Temple. The conference was interactive with the kids which I think is good because kids are the future and know more about this stuff than adults do.

What Matters:
The future is a sometimes very unpredictable. But still people seem to think that they can make accurate predictions about the future, especially in technology. Some of the things Temple talked about in his conference was that music isn't going out, but the music business of selling albums is. Most teens don't even buy CDs anymore because they can just get it off the internet. Another imortant topic that was brought up was the future of the newspaper. Do you think it will still be around in the future. Temple thinks that it will not because people can just use the internet to get the news or the weather, and serveral other things that the newspaper provide for us.

What matters to me:
In some ways I do agree with Temple. But there are also many other things that I do not think will fade away. Such as the newspaper. The internet can not replace the comfort of sitting at the breakfast table quietly reading the newspaper while you sit with the rest of your family. Sure the internet does provide all the news and weather but it is not as easy as reading the newspaper. You can just flip to the comics on a sunday morning and eat at the same time. The newspaper has been around for so long and even though technology is taking over several aspects of life, I do not believe it will take away the traditional newspaper. But I agreed with Temple when he talked about the music business going out because people can just buy music online. They can access it off Itunes, Limewire, and many many other websites that you can buy music off of. I have not bought a CD in a very long time and I see no point in it. It is just so much easier when I can just walk into my own basement and go on the computer and buy any song I want, without needing to buy the whole CD.

PLN 2

The Denver Post reports many horrible incidents, but when I was looking from an intersting article I saw a particulary upsetting report. The title of the article was I-25 "Samaritan" turns sexual attacker by Joey Bunch. It talks about a man sexually assulting women when they had car trouble and were stuck. He would act like he was going to help him and then he would attack them by raping them. The scariest part is that the man is still out there.

What Matters:
It seems like no one can be trusted anymore. When you are in a hard situation and all you need is just a little bit of kindness, you probably wont get it and will get the total opposite. That is what happened in this situation. On interstate 25 a women was sexually assulted when her car broke down. She thought the man was going to help her, when he actually had other plans in mind. The attack lasted for 30 minutes. The attack took place in the early morning around 1:30. The 30 year old attacker is still out there somewhere and anyone could be his next victum.

What matters to me:
When I hear things like this it makes me sad because no one is trust worthy anymore. You can't ever be alone in certain places because you could be putting your life in danger. I wonder what went wrong in the human brain. Why are there so many killers out there. Why are there so many messed up people. A couple of months ago I was walking home from Arapahoe high school and was followed by an older man I didn't know. I was close to my house so I just ran home. But it is things like these that worry me and wish that our society was a little more safe. What surprised me was that my neighborhood is very safe and you would never expect something like this to happen. But it doesn't matter now since it was such a long time ago. But I just want the world to become a safer place some day where we won't be afraid of our own species.

PLN 1

In the article The distributed university by Will Richardson talks about how kids dont even need to go to college anymore because they can just go online and take classes for free. This is much cheaper that actually going to college. Paying for the books, the dorm room, and the actualy college adds up quickly so thats why people think that these courses will make eduaction more excessable.

What matters:
The internet seems to be taking over the world. It has changed education so much but never did I imagine it would replace college all together. There are some people who only see the money issue and when they hear about the internet providing a free college course they think it is great. But in my opinion there is nothing that can replace college. The whole experience is an important aspect to growing up. College is the real test to whether you know right from wrong. It also teaches you about time management and money managment. Most college kids have to get a job in order to have enough money for their survival. This gives them a little taste of the real world. College is also the first time you get to live out on your own. That is the most important because this teaches you how to take care of yourself. Most people in college find lifelong friends or their future spouse.
What matters to me:
When it is my time to go to college I know it will be very expensive for my parents since they have to pay for me and my 2 other triplet sisters at the same time. I sometimes feel bad that they have to pay so much for my education. But when I think about how amazing college will be I realize that it is all worth it. That is why my parents are happy to pay. They want me to have to a real college experience. They want me to discover myself, to establish who I really am to the world. That is why I dont want college to be taken over the computer. Sure my parents will be saving money, but they will be robbing me of the best 4 years of my life.

goals for second semester

This semester I would really like to get an A in this class. Last semester I was so close to getting an A last semester and if I work just a little bit harder I will have an A. What I will do to get an A in this class is work really hard on my homework assignments. Normally when I get home I dont get to work right away like I should. I like to eat, watch tv, text, go on the computer, listen to music and usually I dont get to work until two hours after I got home from school. Also I am going to put my homwork before my social life because if I dont focus on my work and care only about the drama with my friends then I won't get anything done. When I present I will practice alot before I have to present so that I will have most of it memorized so that I can make eye contact with the class. For the big paper that we are doing this semester I will work very hard on it by having good grammar, correct spelling, and everything in the paper will make sense.