Friday, May 31, 2013

submit your blog stats here

Please click this link to submit your blog stats. Mucho mahalo.

cal poly senior project

Below are links to Cassidy's surveys.  If you complete the surveys and you'd like to read her paper, please include an email address where she can send a copy.

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/ZZTBMD6

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/5L5WDZ5

osl showcase 12 june

I've been invited to present Open Source Learning at the SMJUHSD Board of Education meeting on June 12.  The meetings are open to the public and you're invited to attend.

May 31

JOURNAL TOPIC:
This is your last journal topic for the year.  What do you want to say?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Early Presentations
3. MGOTM

HW:
projectsprojectsprojectsprojects

Thursday, May 30, 2013

congratulations erica!

Among her other talents it seems that Erica is also a talented director. Congratulations on winning the RHS Film Fest's "Best Director" award!

May 30

JOURNAL TOPIC:
As you stand at the edge, after nearly a year of thinking together, does this poem mean anything different than the first time we talked about it last summer?



AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Yearbook
3. Logistics/tomorrow's program
 
HW:
projectsetc.

Wednesday, May 29, 2013

"how to get a job"

In his most recent article, columnist Thomas Friedman opens by writing:

Underneath the huge drop in demand that drove unemployment up to 9 percent during the recession, there’s been an important shift in the education-to-work model in America. Anyone who’s been looking for a job knows what I mean. It is best summed up by the mantra from the Harvard education expert Tony Wagner that the world doesn’t care anymore what you know; all it cares “is what you can do with what you know.” And since jobs are evolving so quickly, with so many new tools, a bachelor’s degree is no longer considered an adequate proxy by employers for your ability to do a particular job — and, therefore, be hired. So, more employers are designing their own tests to measure applicants’ skills. And they increasingly don’t care how those skills were acquired: home schooling, an online university, a massive open online course, or Yale. They just want to know one thing: Can you add value? 

project help request

This just in:


May 29

JOURNAL TOPIC:
Think of a recent book or movie you read/saw.  What other previously read/viewed books/movies did it bring to mind?  Why?  Was the connection the product of an intentional reference (allusion, parody, satire) or your own associative thinking?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. [OPTION]: help the juniors in Eng 3 (AP) set up blogs and prepare for the course
3. Sign up for project presentations and [logistics]
4. MGOTM

HW:
projectsprojectsprojectsprojects
(* post to your blog!)

Tuesday, May 28, 2013

608 as portal

Love this description of our thinking space on campus.

May 28

JOURNAL TOPIC:
What have you learned writing in your journal-- and not writing in your journal -- this year?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. We have work to do

HW:
1. projectsprojectsprojectsprojectsprojects
2. Post something about your project and your progress on it to your course blog and submit to the P2P showcase

Monday, May 27, 2013

dfw commencement speech

Although I hope you're able to focus and feel the moment when Sam and others speak at graduation, the high winds and high spirits can be a challenge, and it's easy to get distracted by inflatables, "woo hoos!" and your life passing before your eyes. 

So here is a speech to consider in a quiet moment between now and then.  David Foster Wallace, one of the most insightful, prescient voices of our time, gave this speech at Kenyon College in 2005. [*Too bad the jerks at the DFW Literary Trust have forced the video off YouTube, Vimeo, and everywhere else I looked for it.  Hard to imagine that a guy who shared such profound ideas with the public in life would want them silenced posthumously.  If you find it please share a link in the comments.] 

One highlight among many:
Twenty years after my own graduation, I have come gradually to understand that the liberal arts cliché about teaching you how to think is actually shorthand for a much deeper, more serious idea: learning how to think really means learning how to exercise some control over how and what you think. It means being conscious and aware enough to choose what you pay attention to and to choose how you construct meaning from experience. Because if you cannot exercise this kind of choice in adult life, you will be totally hosed. Think of the old cliché about "the mind being an excellent servant but a terrible master".

Read.  Contemplate.  Enjoy.  Repeat.  :)

rhs graduation speakers & singers

Here's the talent lined up for this year's graduation (all of whom are so determined that no matter how I rotate the image it refuses to render right side up)-- congratulations!





Friday, May 24, 2013

May 24

JOURNAL TOPIC: [today's tunes: "Short People" by Randy Newman; "Eggplant" by Michael Franks; "Dixie Chicken" by Little Feat]

Today's topic was customized for each person in class.  If you weren't here, and your journal wasn't turned in, you lose.

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. MGOTM

HW:
projectsprojectsprojectsprojectsprojects

*Please make sure to submit your project to the showcase.
** Please be ready to talk grades, presentations, and endgame Tuesday.
*** Long weekend my &*!  You're about to get months off.  Run through the base and leave the "when is this gonna be over" chatter to the burnt-out and disenfranchised.

Thursday, May 23, 2013

richard branson's advice to the class of 2013

Click here to read Richard Branson's "You'll Never Again Be So Unburdened; Do Something Bold"

Apparently the link is a challenge, so I've pasted the text after the jump:

call for showcase submissions

"I want everyone to send their work to the showcase-- so I can beat them." -Alex

my three best posts

I don't know what they are yet, and I wasn't even invited to play, but the 2012 [erp, 2013-- thanks Matt!] P2P assessment is so awesome that I'm going to post links here anyway :)

[UPDATE: Er, according to the P2P powers-that-be, no I'm not. :( ]


May 23

JOURNUL TOPIC:
Why do people make spelling errors on words they already know?  It's been famously observed that, "To err is human."  Why?  What is the connection between imperfection and humanity?  Is imperfection a flaw, or a glorious, romantic state of being, well... us?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. MGOTM

HW:
projectsprojectsprojectsprojectsprojectsprojects

Wednesday, May 22, 2013

p2p showcase

Thanks to Justin, Josh, and Gus for today's presentations!

Here is the link to the peer-to-peer showcase:

[UPDATE: NEW LINK]

http://2013peerassessment.blogspot.com/p/showcase.html

saturday night: live at RHS

Announcing (on J'Quelin's et al's behalf)...

Saturday Night Live Dinner Theater!

This Saturday, May 25 @ 6 PM in Room 403 (RHS Drama Room)

Menu is spaghetti, salad, and dessert

Admission is free, suggested donation is $5 (and the amount you contribute will mark you as a patron of the arts or a cheapskate :)

may 22

JOURNAL TOPIC:
Full Montaigne: What are you wondering about right now?  Write down your thoughts as they occur and see where they take you for half a page.

AGENDA:
1. Journal full of wonder
2. P2P brief
3. MGOTM
4. Grade conferences

HW:
projectsprojectsprojectsprojects

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

kudos: may

Congratulations to the following students on their college admissions and scholarship wins!

Will Boerger (Santa Barbara Foundation Scholarship [SBFS]: $3k)
Vinnie Cruz (SBFS: $2k)
John Han (SBFS: $2.8k)
Elizabeth Pereyra (SBFS: $3.5k; Cal Soap $3k)
Will Veroski (SBFS: $5k)
Samantha Garrison (SBFS: $4k)
Ryan Nguyen (SBFS: $2.6k)
Michelle Arriaga (SBFS: $2.7k; Santa Maria Rotary: $500)
Rocio Reyes (SBFS: $1.5k; Santa Maria Rotary: $500)
Socorro Ramirez (SBFS: $2k; Cal Soap $1k)
Laura Trenev (UC Santa Cruz, San Diego State University)
Amanda Arnold (Los Padres Artists Guild Award: $1k; SBFS $3k)
Alicia Hernandez (SBFS: $3k)
Kristina Hendrick (SBFS: $2.7k)
Dani Galindo (SBFS: $2.7k)
Kaitlyn Furst (Altrusa: $1k)
Mackenzie Greeley (Altrusa)
Erica Snell (SBFS: $3.1k)
Tanner Tuttle (Cattle Women's Scholarship: $1k; SBFS: $2.8k)
Felicitas Ruiz (SBFS: $4k; Santa Maria Rotary $500)

If I missed anyone, or if you've done something amazing since I posted this, please let me/us know in class or comment below.

college tips 101

Valerie and Socorro have been working on this, check it out!

peer assessment naming rights

It'll cost you millions to put your name (legally/officially) on a university building or a sports arena, but if you have a good idea you can name this year's P2P assessment blog--which will be introduced by Friday-- for free! Last year's was called Project Infinity. Please submit your suggestions in comments to this post.

help for santa maria's homeless

E'Ana is collaborating with a friend to provide products and services that help the homeless in our community. If you have ideas, money, or small items such as: shampoo, toothpaste, feminine products, band-aids, etc. please see E'Ana to find out how you can help. Thanks!

mommy n' media

Check out Michelle's project (she calls it her "new baby") in process!

May 21

JOURNAL TOPIC:
Think of a favorite object in your room that you've had for more than 8 years.  That object is the narrator of today's journal-- what story will it tell about you?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Grade conferences
3. MGOTM

HW:
projectsprojectsprojectsprojectsprojects

Sunday, May 19, 2013

thank you to mrs. k and the proud, the avid

Thank you to Mrs. K and the graduating seniors in her AVID classes for inviting me to the party today.  What an event!  Everyone brought their families--everyone really WAS family.  There were smiles and hugs all around.  You could feel the love in the air and taste it in the food.    Students stood with Mrs. K and said a few words about their experiences, their support systems and relationships, and their perspectives on the future and What it All Means.

I was so glad to be there.  There was so much well-deserved pride and caring and optimism that it just made you believe in magic.  In that group nothing is impossible.

But there was one moment that stood out.  Sam Garrison previewed her graduation speech.  In a high eucalyptus wind and just feet away from the wildly flapping "Congratulations" banner, Sam delivered.  Swaying back and forth and nearly throwing hooks, she got taller as she spoke and she took us on a trip through adversity, hope, anguish, and ultimately triumph.  Sam is a living example of what Maslow, Rogers, Goldstein, and others meant when they described self-actualization.  And she's just getting warmed up. If you weren't there I feel as sorry for you as I still do about that time I blew off meeting friends at a local club to see some Irish band that turned out to be U2.  Thank God I got to see Sam at a house party before she starts playing football stadiums next month.  If anyone has video please post (if it's ok with Sam) and comment here with a link.

(Also: she apparently wrote the whole thing on her phone in, like, an hour.  Probably while she was playing Angry Birds.  How is writing just that easy for some people?  Little jerk. -Ed.)



May 20

JOURNAL TOPIC:

[If you went to Grad Nite]: Did you have a good time?  What did you like about the way the event was run and what would you have done differently?  Describe your single happiest memory from the trip.

[If you didn't go to Grad Nite]: A hundred bucks and no food?  Rip-off.  How did you spend the day?  What was your favorite thing about class sizes of 6 or less?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Grade conferences
3. MGOTM

HW:
1. projectsprojectsprojectsprojectsprojectsprojectsprojects

Friday, May 17, 2013

happy grad nite day

Since the vast majority of you agreed to Disneyland's rules of engagement (thanks, Jason!) and we won't be seeing each other today, there's no real point in posting a journal topic or agenda.  Have a great time tonight, enjoy that special school bus smell for 7 hours, and plan to have a one-on-one grade conference with me early next week.  (To that end, you should: a) make sure your blog represents you well; b) bring your completed journal/s to class; and c) be prepared to give a status report for your project.)

Thursday, May 16, 2013

quote of the day

I don't think I'm going to threaten Josh's post total, but I just heard an original from Brady that made me want to post a Quote of the Day.  Brady, this one might just get you into Bartlett's!

"Revolutions begin when ethics fail."

May 16

JOURNAL TOPIC:

Talk to your inner 8th grader.  If you knew then what you know now, what would you have done differently in high school?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. MGOTM

HW: projectprojectprojectproject

Wednesday, May 15, 2013

projects

Here's the list.  Please comment with any additions/corrections.

Click on the person's name to learn more, exchange ideas, and collaborate.  (If they don't have a post for their project yet, comment to whatever post you find and ask them why not.)

[Period 0]
Sara: health dummies video, mom's retrospective on 30 years of CA state parks
E'Ana: health dummies video
Kayla: online transmedia scrapbook
Paul: coaching juniors
Owen: grandfather's biography
Ubi: dead writers' society
Laura: coaching juniors, online transmedia scrapbook
Beka, J'Quelin: SNL dinner theater
Dylan: SNL dinner theater, online music lessons (with virtual beginner band?)
Sarah: dead writers' society, music for SNL, YouTube channel build
Kasie: SNL dinner theater, animation [**NEED VOICE ACTORS**]
Katelyn: exploring the use of social media in criminal investigation
Socorro: NGOs in Latin America that focus on women's rights; college blog (with Valerie)
Ruth, Rocio, Pablo, Lizbeth, & Rosa: transmedia diary of HS years
Will: global issues timeline & meograph
Ryan: remote-controlled hovercraft
Kathryn: $10k for college
Kelli: transmedia art portfolio
Michelle: Mommy N' Me[dia]
Josh: musical
Jenna: LP/album/8-track tape's worth of music about senior year
Justice, Ryland: coaching juniors 
Hayden: Project Sonata: A Novel


[Period 3]
Abby: evolution of art
Erica: Brave New World interpretative dance choreography/performance
Karianne: dream house architecture/ transmedia online scrapbook
Chanel, Megan & Ashley: bakery with family recipes--> blog
Austyn: video addressing stigma of mental disability
Conner: ukelele; research thesis on memory
Colleen: advertising/student responses to messages & images
Sebastian, Carly, Troy, and Elizabeth: literate t-shirt design company
Haleigh: senior survival guide
Alicia & Dani: 50 years of RHS
Isiah, Dulce, Ming, Matt, Sam, Ashlie, Feli: senior year retrospective
Sam: the ultimate performative utterance
Matt: learning Mandarin
Dulce & Ming: world culture blog
RyunHee, Travis, Reed, Nathan, Devon: music video about HS
Travis: surf forecast & buoy reading
Justin, Gus, Jason, Josh, Will, Kris: 4-year HS video
Justin: nature blog
Brady: kindergarten chronicle teaching portfolio & children's book (and something about flowing stories on a bus?)
Alex, Josh, Conor: musical
Alex: board game
Cassidy: reflection on life in video
Ashlie: documentary on becoming a teacher
Brittany: online transmedia scrapbook, [?], SNL catering
Bailey: online transmedia "scrapbook-thing" using personal photos as narrative of a life
Tanner: a welded "sculpture/sign/thing-y" of a learning life

[Period 4]
Mackenzie & Michelle: stream-of-consciousness (scrapbook-->college/business-->clothing)
Alex: book of poetry and letters
Jose: hard copy book with snapshots of thoughts/interests
Bernardo: coaching juniors
Eddie: civil engineering project
Taelor: poetry slam & art show
Pablo, Rosa, Ruth, Rocio: human collage
Iliana & Elizabeth: learning German
Kaitlyn, Amanda, & Rheanna: OSL presentation at Lakeview
Torre: Jung
Christa: AP Art--> AP English / interdisciplinary application of elements of design & visual learning
Vince, Jesse, & Christa: self-directed learning/info exchange (and automobile mechanics)
Eddie: scholarship scouting report & resources



hacker research

A Hacker Broke Into 420,000 Computers To Bring You This Stunning GIF Of The Entire Internet At Work

microdonations when you like, favorite, or star

Flattr calls itself "the easiest way to support creators."  What do you think of the idea?  Are there any other platforms that do this, or related alternatives you like better?

teenage heroes

Read this and show it to an adult who doesn't know how awesome teenagers can be.

May 15

JOURNAL TOPIC:

What's your earliest memory of what you wanted to be when you "grew up"?  How has your vision evolved over time?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Project status fill-ins
3. P2P Assessment

HW: projectprojectprojectprojectprojectproject

Tuesday, May 14, 2013

May 14

JOURNAL TOPIC:

How do you know you've done a good job learning something?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Project status
3. P2P assessment criteria & process

HW:
Rock.

Monday, May 13, 2013

two articles from my high school

I was in LA this weekend and caught up with some friends from the neighborhood.  They told me about a recent incident at my old high school.  I found the articles on the Los Angeles Times site; feel free to share the next time someone tells you students shouldn't have access to social media on campus.



May 13

JOURNAL TOPIC:
Does your life (in this course) seem easier now that you're in charge? Why/why not?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Projects
3. P2P Assessment

HW:
1. Prepare your thoughts on your project/s and P2P assessment for tomorrow's conversation so we can make decisions and plans

Saturday, May 11, 2013

WE ARE SUPERMAN

Since this weekend is the first in a long time with no academic/AP prep work, it's a good time to remind ourselves and each other of what's possible.  Yesterday I read short stories and book proposals, played a game that's in beta and being developed for publication (thanks for dealing me in, Alex!), connected a student with a professional adviser to plan a business for moms, and got updates on projects ranging from dinner theater to hovercraft.  At a time when so many people spend their days idly wishing they were somewhere else, we will be celebrating the most exciting, innovative thinking of the year!  In that spirit, here's a video I never get tired of watching (produced by Nick Lycan, Cody Kiniry, and Ryan McGinley, RHS/OSL '12):


Friday, May 10, 2013

ap scores online

In case you didn't see earlier posts or get info elsewhere, click here.

May 10

JOURNAL TOPIC:

What do you want to think about today?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Attribution Theory
2. MGOTM

HW:
1. Epic

Thursday, May 9, 2013

May 9

Happy AP Day.  Please write on the journal topic while it's fresh and take the rest of the day off.

JOURNAL TOPIC:
Reflect on today's AP exam.  How did you do?  To what do you attribute your success (however much you had)?

perfect attendance

Today's the day of the AP exam, and this is exactly what class should look like. Good luck everyone!

Wednesday, May 8, 2013

who do you want to be tomorrow?

Be this guy.

Not this guy.

May 8

JOURNAL TOPIC:
Describe your level of confidence heading into the AP exam.  Are you ready?  Will you rock it?  Predict your score and explain why you will receive it.

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. MC practice
3. Writer's conference

Tuesday, May 7, 2013

is anyone interested in doing something like this?

http://blog.dwolla.com/hack-to-school/

1999 ap exam

IN255168 99 EngLit RE for Web

May 7

JOURNAL TOPIC:
[Choose your own.]

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. MC practice
3. Writer's conferences

HW:
1. Get >6 hours sleep
2. Put down that coffee cup!
3. Eat balanced meals of clean protein, healthy fats, and complex carbs
4. Reflect on how well-prepared you are (and if you don't feel that way, do some light practice from any of the resources here or elsewhere)

Friday, May 3, 2013

May 3

JOURNAL TOPIC:
You've written a lot this week; is there anything left for you to practice/improve over the weekend?  Do you need to practice more multiple choice?  Take inventory-- one last time-- and describe how you will address any areas where you feel less than 100% confident.

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. in-class essay: please answer the second of the two prompts you selected/printed/brought with you

HW:
1. Post a version of today's journal topic to your blog.
2. Treat your journal/blog post as a performative utterance and do those things you need to do.
3. Be ready to discuss your study process, your writing, and your expected outcome in 1-to-1 conference with Dr. Preston Monday.

Thursday, May 2, 2013

May 2

JOURNAL TOPIC:
Why did you pick the prompt you're writing on today? What do you hope/expect to improve as a result of writing this essay and giving/getting feedback on it?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. in-class essay

HW:
1. Review/proofread your essay & publish a (lightly) polished copy to your blog.
2. Read the AP rubric & sample papers/commentary after the jump below (all three are there).
3. Review and critique at least 5 of your colleagues' essays (use the AP rubric in the .pdf to frame your comments).


Wednesday, May 1, 2013

important: print & bring to class on thursday and friday

I won't be in class Thursday or Friday, so you're going to have to show the sub how an Open Source Learning community works. Both days are in-class essays in exactly the same form as Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. (I will post journal topics and agendas for each day.) Since you've already had multiple practice opportunities in the poetry, prose, and open prompts, and presumably you know what you need to work on most (if you don't, please consult with me today), you can choose which two essays you'll write to end the week. (Hint: Pick the ones that make you most nervous.) Please print the two prompts you'll need from the 2008 exam (below) and bring them to class with you. This way you'll have what you need even if the content filter acts up, the sub freaks out over phones, the projector doesn't work, or some idiot pulls a fire alarm. Mucho mahalo.

Ap08 Eng Lit Frq

May 1

JOURNAL: Compare writing yesterday's poetry essay with last week's "poetry boot camp" work-- did you feel more confident in applying the elements from the Vendler/TP-CASTT frameworks? Which elements came most naturally, and which did you have to reach for (or remember after you were finished)? What do you need to review/practice for the exam?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Debrief yesterday's essay
3. in-class essay

HW:
1. Review/proofread your essay & publish a (lightly) polished copy to your blog.
2. Read the AP rubric & sample papers/commentary after the jump below.
3. Review and critique at least 5 of your colleagues' essays (use the AP rubric in the .pdf to frame your comments).