Post one: International high school - Islay High, Scotland.

There is an island in Scotland that is the home of 3,000 People. You may not think that the local high school which only has a role of 250 kids could be one of the most high tech schools in the country. It is true. At Islay High school in Scotland, Every student has been issued their own laptop. We are not talking about the cheapest laptops, but actual high tech, top of the line laptops. All students are connected to thier class, and instructors. They do their homework, get help for studying, and help for projects with the computers. The administrators are saying that productivity and grades are up, and that the benefits clearly outweigh the cost of the laptops. you can go here to read the whole story. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/glasgow_and_west/6997269.stm

Death of the printed page.

I agree to a certain extent to the author about the death of print. Sure we have technology, we have audio books, and pod casts, but I find it hard to believe that I won't have a newspaper thrown at my door in 50 years. I happen to love reading, I love the fact that my imagination takes over when I read. The way I picture a place or a character of a book is original and can't be reproduced. A book is portable. You can take one with you anywhere you go. I am saddened to know that there is a significant decline in reading in the younger generations. How could we scratch the printed page. After all didn't "civilized civilization" begin with print. Are we to give up writting too? How does a child learn how to read when there are no books to read? Are parents not reading bedtime stories anymore. Is the next generation expected to pull out an Iphone with an e book? I don't think so. Where is the magic of a golden book when it is on a mini computer?

I know the ALEX and ACCESS posts are late.

My cpu is crashed at home. Buying a new one today after class.... ouch on the pocket. Just wanted to give you a heads up.

Alex- part deux

I just wanted to comment that I like the fact that ALEX has web links for teachers, student and administrators. This is a great site, and I wish we had something like this in Mississippi.

Access

Access is a very cool program that allows teachers, students, and administrators stay in touch with one another. Students can also take online classes from their home. I think this is great, especially for home school students who would not have access to subjects such as foreign languages, or higher sciences.

Adding Links and Pictures

First we will review the methods for creating a link. We create a link either by HTML code or by using the icon that looks like a link of a chain. The link will be to the fisch bowl , a blog for technology training used at Arapahoe High School in Littleton CO. Here is a picture from Littleton High School

Ok.... I just watched the video, and I really hope we get broadband in our area soon... It took me 45 minutes to download. The video gave me chills and pretty much scared the begollies out of me. When it said that the top 25% of China's IQ maxed out the number of children in our country, my mouth dropped. After watching the video, I don't know if I will be prepared for the future, but I do know that this is what I want to do. To do that will require constant upkeep on things. While I know it is not possible to stay abreast of all new information, I will try to do the best one can. I will say that the video is a little one sided. It does not tell you any per-capita statistics. I wonder what percentage of the Chinese population has High IQ's compared to the percentage of the United States. And if they are so smart, why are we the leaders in producing and researching life saving drugs, and medical technologies. I understand that change happenes but I can't help but think that we still are the best country to live in. I believe we have the most opportunity, and that there is room for improvement. There will always be.

ALEX

ALEX is a free website for educators and administrators. I could not believe how many projects and how much information was available, not to mention all of the lesson plans. I like the fact that you can share lesson plans. I also like the way that the disciplines are broken up. Science for example is broken up into about 20 sub-categories from elementary science to anatomy and physiology. This site is like gold to a teacher!

Sitting in class right now.

So here is my obligatory post for the week. I think we are working on our power point presentation, But, by the grace of myself, I have forgotten my work at home. So as for now it is currently still plugged into my computer..... Oh the shame!

To start.... An introduction

Hi, I am Danielle Herrman, and I am an alcoholic.....LOL Just kidding. I am 27, married, and I have 3 wonderful children; Samantha (3) Mattison ( 10 months) and Christopher. Christopher would have been 5. He passed away at the age of 3. Due to my experience with losing a child, I council many parents who have to go through this painful journey. I find that helping others helps me through my grief. I am currently studying at USA with a double major in Biology and Secondary Education. I am an optimist. I try to see a light at the end of every tunnel. I have 3 pets; Mipsy the cat, Mrs. Doetie the fish, and Tuga the hermit crab... and my little girl named them all. So I guess that will be all for today.