You'll Never Learn PLN10

           "You'll Never Learn by Annie Murphy Paul disproves that students can multitask in school and learn the lesson at the same time because multitasking distracts students and impairs their learning.
Paul shows many studies that show how most students multitask in school whether it's texting, social networking or surfing the web. In tremendous amount of studies that have been taken on this topic show that students who do multitask have worse grades, take longer to do the homework and learn more spotty. When multitasking what they learn is like Swiss cheese where there are spot and wholes of things they missed in the lesson because they were distracted. Annie Paul is a popular writer with many books about classrooms and students. She has studied learning a lot and has become an expert in students. She proves that you can never. Multitask because you can't focus on more than one thing at a time.
           The statements in "You'll Never Learn" by Annie Murphy Paul are correct because students cannot multitask and learn. Sitting in the back if the class room looking forward almost always there are people texting secretly, play games and quickly closing them when the teacher walks by or kids who have their heads on their desks. This is so common in class rooms that it  is obviously hurting students grades and the reason teachers are upset when they have answered the same question seven gazillion times. Students today often get bored of what they are doing in class and seek entertainment in other sources. Without realizing or caring that their learning is being damaged by distractions. This article connects in so many ways to
Michael Wesch's article "A Vision of Students Today" which shows how so many students are doing other things while supposed to be working. The marshmallow test of self discipline mentioned my Paul shows shows the temptation to click in that inbox with new mail or check your phone that just vibrated. The willing to not give in to these distractions is tested by the marshmallow test. Sitting in class you feel the vibration of your phone in your pocket. You know the teachers is writing today's lesson plan on the board and he could never catch you. So you pull it out to check it because you want to know who it was from and or if it was important. This situation effects so many students learning and attention during class. There are not many things that can stop students because they have such a short attention span and need something more interesting to them. Students believe they can multitask when they can't and it handicaps their learning just with the click of a button.

Schools Would Be If It Weren't For The Students PLN9

          "Schools Would Be Great If it Weren't for The Kids" by Alfie Kohn(Valerie Strauss) denies the idea that teachers are what is wrong with school and says that it is students faults because of their lack of motivation and willingness to learn. Kohn writes that students have lost a lot of motivation to learn from what kids have when they are very young. He questions why they have lost this and if it is traced to achievement of students. He believes that students should not be judged by the overall improvement on the standardized tests. Alfie Kohn is an expert on students in education who has written twelve books about education and behavior. He has a lot of experience to back up his claim that students are what's wrong with education. Although teachers are often blamed for the lack of success in schools Kohn believes that students are the problem.
          The ideas stated in "Schools Would Be Great If it Weren't for The Kids" by Alfie Kohn(Valerie Strauss) are correct because students motivations has vanished and without it they have no intent to do well in school. Bribing or threatening may cause students to try but the motivation is not good. These weights over students heads often make them less interested in learning and lead to them despising school. Students are motivated by many things like getting into college, curiosity,   respect or impressing but when these fail to effect a student they tend to fall behind which is seen more often today than ever. Many students can relate to this because students  do get lazy and take short cuts. Whether it is putting that project off until the night before of waiting to do your homework before class. Laziness often shows on students who do good on tests and quizzes but are falling behind because they have not done a single homework assignment for that class. Students often will say " It's not due for awhile so I won't do until tomorrow!" but tomorrow never comes. This relationship between laziness and motivation is direct because student that are not motivated will be more lazy. Relating back to "a What Teachers Really Want to Tell Parents" by Ron Clark who talks about how teachers should not be blamed for a students downfalls because the grade given to a student is shown by how hard they worked on that. Teachers can only do so much for students but it takes the students motivation to work and succeed for them to reach their student achievements.

What Teachers Really Want to Tell Parents

"What Teachers Really Want to Tell Parents" by Ron Clark identifies why teachers are having much shorter careers because the negativity of the parents. Clark shows parents need to  trust the teachers, respect the teachers and work with the system. Parents need to remember that they should have a relationship with parents that purely business and always professional. They need to trust that the teachers decision or actions are usually the best for the child. Parents also need to strive to believe what the teacher says because they are more trust worthy. Ron Clark knows these fears of teachers from his many years of teaching and he knows what it is like when a parent does not agree with a grade or decision made. Parents need to realize that teachers are there to help their children and are professional educators who know about teaching and what's right.
The ideas unveiled by Ron Clark in "What Teachers Really Want to Tell Parents" are true because many times parents get too involved in teachers and take things personally because they think that the teachers strategies or ideas are wrong. Teachers want parents to know that the grade that they got on a test is what they deserved and if the grade is not satisfactory they should not judge the teacher but examine their kid and his habits. Clark shows how even though the parents think that he should have gotten a better grade it does not matter because a grade is an educated reasoning of how well the students on an assignment. Taking advice from the teachers is the best way to go instead of getting personally offended. When he tells you that your child is not doing well in a subject then maybe get him a tutor or extra help. Don't blame the teacher for his faults because many teachers give as much to the students as they can, like allowing them  to come get help on off periods or ask question. Work with the teachers to help your child succeed in the class don't accuse them of hurting your child's grade because it's not their fault. Don't take anything that the teacher does personally. If your boss at work said you did not do good on your last assessment or quarter you would not blame them, so don't blame the teachers. If your child tells you something that a teacher did that you do not approve meet with the teacher but do not cut to conclusions and use them or try to get them fired. These things cause many worries upon teachers heads. They don't go to school to deal with parents but they are having to more. Parents need to take a step back and observe from the teachers perspective, don't cut to conclusions or become personally offended by them and try to ruin their career.

            The video Web 2.0 ... The Web is Us/ing Us by Dr. Michael Wesch captures how connected the internet has become that it can link you to other pages but even people. Originally the internet could link you to other pages or websites but as the "machine learned" we have become able to combine websites, connect people and has become able to learn from us. Michael Wesch shows how digital text is better and more linear because it is more organized and has many more resources to connect to. In the video Wesch goes on an adventure through his computer showing all the new things and ways that the machine is learning from us. The web is us and is constantly improving itself through us and with us.

           The points made by Michael Wesch in the Web 2.0 ... The Machine is Us/ing Us are correct because today the internet is constantly connecting people but though that is learning from us. One great example of this is Siri a social and web navigator that allows you to do many things to help with your day such as asking a question, finding directions or setting an alarm. Siri is a system that learns from everything she is told which  is stored to make "the machine" more intelligent. This shows that is us and using us because it helps us but to gain more knowledge from us that it uses. Now that we can talk to this machine it is able to learn from us and reach out to us in many more ways. Now computers can even detect things though camera like emotions to see how you are or open you phone. Even on the new iPhone your finger print is held on the device which can be used by the machine in many ways when learned. With the new connection in the Web 2.0 makes getting distracted by the internet, like stated in  Michael Wesch's article A Vision of Students Today, with new Facebook posts, blogs and YouTube videos always being made the machine has more control over people especially students. The new Web 2.0 is made by us and learning by us but can be used to control us and distract us without thinking about reevaluating our lives, security and identity.

The Case Against High School Sports

In the article The Case Against High School Sports by Amanda Ripley illustrates how high school sports have more of a focus in high schools which is bad because it is taking a lot of focus away from education which should be a students first priority. Ripley shows how much more the United States focuses on sports than any other country which could be the reason for our low education ranking.In the article Ripley shows Premont High School where school sports are little to nonexistant. Singleton, the superintendent, believes that without sports schools would have more success in education.

Everything that Ripley states in The Case Against High School Sports is true because the article shows the great success that Premont has shown since shutting down sports. Singleton saw how much more calm the school was, “It was calm. There was a level of energy devoted to planning and lessons, to after-school tutoring. I saw such a difference.” a huge boost in grades also came with the closing of sports when 80 percent of students passed their classes nearly 30 percent higher than the previous fall. singleton saw such a change in focus at the school and much more success, “Learning is going on in 99 percent of the classrooms now,” Coach Russell told me, “compared to 2 percent before.” Another amazing thing about shutting down the sports was how much money the school saved to stop from being shut down. Singleton noticed how much money he could save the school to put into education when he did not have to get new bleachers or helmets. When schools spend $1,348 per cheerleader but are only $328 for math instructions they are spending a lot of money on less important areas than they should. Education should be the number one priority of students not sports because this can really affect their grades and attitude.

"Footprints in the Digital Age"

            "Footprints in the Digital Age"  an article by Will Richardson  illustrates how important it is to have a  good profile online because you can be "googled" which can show good or bad things about you.  In this day and age it is easy for you to be tracked online and for people all over the world to see things you are doing whether they are good or bad. This new age of technological knowledge can be helpful for students future by showing their blog, twitter or Facebook which can be great resources when used correctly. Will Richardson talks about the fear of his daughters being searched and nothing monumental coming up or that noting shows up at all.
           The ideas that Will Richardson states in "Footprints in the The Digital Age" are true because as our world is becoming more technological it is important to have a good online presence. When a future employer is researching your background to find if you would be the right person for the job it is very impressive when you can have a blog of things you have done in school or about the vacation you went on. Like wise when they find your Facebook or Twitter they can see that you are very social  and even have a look at what is going on in your life. An online portfolio is another great way to reach out to people. When they can see a video of you catching the football or a video of your debate from debate team they are much more likely to be impressed than when someone gives them a stack of papers. It has become even more important to be online but you must also have a diverse and interesting. If you post about the book that have just read or about special places you may have been that shows that you have deeper background and are more literate online and with people. We also need to be smart with our online profiles because one mistake like, posting a picture drinking underage can hurt your job potential in the future. Today all the time we are leaving digital footprints online for people to follow so we should make them good.

PLN4 What Could You Do With $20,000

           In the video What Could You Do With $20,000 Blake Boles proposes how going to college is becoming less important and self directed learning is much more important because the college degree is getting more devalued. Boles shows how you could take the money you would spend on college and use it in ways to make your future better. He shows how to use $20,000 help you train in self direct learning instead of going to college where you may be over qualified or face underemployement. Can you really not go to college and still be educated for the rest of your life?
          Blake Boles idea on skipping college and using your money progressively propane yourself for the future is true. If you are not planning on becoming a lawyer, doctor, engineer or scientist you may be more ahead to rely on self directed learning. Spending $4,500 dollars is a great part of the idea because it gets you out of the bubble of safety you have at  home mentioned in "Whats Wrong With the Teenage Mind". By doing this you experience how others live their lives and how to be independent. Other ideas of the speaker like tutoring, mentors and reading books are a great way to learn about a more broad spectrum. Traveling all over the world will let you get to know people, have great self learning experiences, see friends and see how other cultures live. Start up small business' that are services not aimed to get paid but provide things for people. A portfolio is another great part of setting yourself up for getting a job later by showing people what you are doing and your process. All of these experiences have given you a vast knowledge of the world and what you may like to do later life. You can also do many things for free that will help you learn like internships, interviewing people and community projects. Through Boles plan you even end your  four years of experience with money in the bank. If you have $5,000 and invest it at four percent over four years you will end this learning experience with $27,000 dollars in your saving account nearly what college students have in debt when they graduate. You may not have a label saying you graduated from college but you have experiences that you could never get in college.

Bully by Lee Hirsh

The documentary “Bully” by Lee Hirsh identifies that bullying has become an epidemic because kids are taking their own lives. Bully follows the lives of Alex, Kelby and Jameya who are bullied constantly and shows how bad bullying has gotten for them. The video also shows the aftermath of a family who had their son take his own life. Hirsh makes it aware that schools aren't doing enough to stop bullying. The author shows how upset parents are that their kids are being hurt physically and mentally. Bullying has gone to far and we must do something about it.
            What Hirsh illustrates in "Bully" is very true and is a concern that we should focus on more in our school system. The author shows the struggle of a family whose son had taken his own life because he was bullied. His dad talks about how he grew up as a loner separate from all the other kids and no one wanted to be with him. Tyler had his head shoved a locker and was told to kill himself by bullies. His parents are outraged because the school system did nothing about it. They believed that kids should be protected at school. Next is Alex who is 12 and is called fish face and constantly threatened and called bad names. One of Alex's main problems is how he is treated on the bus by a high schooler. His parents confront the school administrator who says that many children have problems on the bus but later on says that the bus is good as gold. Alex's parents had gone to the administrator many times but they never did enough to stop him from being bullied. The film also showed Kelby who is a 16 year old girl who has also been the victim of bullying. She has attempted suicide three times because of the pressure of being bullied. On the first day of school she is hit by a car and everyone avoided sitting by her. Kelby says " anyone who is different is put down". She is scared to tell anyone that she is gay even though she was raised taught that it was wrong to be. She is constantly bullied but again the school does nothing about it. Lastly is Jameya who was also constantly bullied and called names. Her bullying was so bad that she took her mothers gun and assaulted a bus full of her peers who had been bullying her. This shows how badly of effect bullying can have on some children. Bullying can make children seriously harm themselves or each other. Jameya was sent to prison with 45 charges, later she got out of jail after two months. Bullying is a horrible thing that happens to students today that causes mental and physical pain that no one should endure but together bullying can be stopped.

PLN2: Whats Wrong With the Teenage Mind?

         In the article What's Wrong With the Teenage Mind? Alison Gopnik states that teens aren't growing up the way they use to. The author shows their concerns on how kids are hitting puberty earlier than ever. That kids are becoming adults even later in life and staying in the "safe bubble" of home for a greater time. Gopnik shows how kids have less responsibilities today than ever before. She shows that kids have many troubles growing up. She also shows that kids are more likely to make bad decisions when they are kids.
        The statements that Alison Gopnik makes in Whats Wrong With the Teenage Mind are true because kids today are growing up very differently then kids before have. Kids are hitting puberty very early now. Some theories say that it is because children today are eating more and are less active. The author states that kids are staying in the "safe bubble" even longer which is true because kids today are given more time to learn things before they have to apply them to their adult life. Today kids are given such a protected and safe childhood. Humans depends upon adults much longer than any other species. The author describes becoming an adult as leaving the world of your parents and starting your own future. This start of a new future can be hard for contemporary kids because they have little experience with tasks they will have to tackle as adults. The final point of Gopnik is that kids today especially teenagers are reckless and not smart about making decisions. She explains how a teenager who can easily explain why to never drink and drive can end up in a drunken crash. Kids find themselves in dangerous position and all the time face the reality of power, respect, the drive for sex and if these decisions are not chosen wisely they can find themselves in dangerous or unwanted positions.

          Michael Wesch’s video, “A Vision of Students Today” captures that schools teachings today may not be relevant to some students and not prepare them for the rest of their lives. Many college students get out and have been prepared for jobs that don’t even exist yet. Students determine their future by how hard they work but when they don’t care about what they are learning they fall behind. Wesch showed how many students do not even show up to their classes and if they do show up they get distracted by technology. This shows that Wesch believes that today there are too many distractions for students. 

         Wesch's ideas in "A Vision of Students Today" on how education may not effect some students is false because most students do learn from school. If students apply themselves to their work then they will be successful. Even though one students may not show up for class that does not mean that does not mean that all students do not care about the class. Some students may already know the course and not have to show up for that class. Yes, students may get distracted and go to websites when they should be learning or taking notes. If a teacher can make a class fun but also focus on education students are more likely to show up and participate in the class. Wesch states that students have 26.5 hours of stuff to do a day and are overloaded with work. This may be true but some people learn or work faster than others. Those who work faster have much more time during their day. The people who do not learn quickly should get help from others on things they don't understand. Students need to prioritize and put their learning before their free time. Even though he said technology can be dangerous, technology improves learning. If they miss a class they can go on and see what they did that day. Instead of the student having a big folder full of crumpled paper they can have all their documents stored in one place that if ever lost can be downloaded again. The teachers can use the Internet to make an easy place for students to go and find all of their assignments or even communicate with the teacher. When students can connect with their teachers and reach out they are much more likely to succeed. Education is important to all students.

What do I read/write/think?

What do I read/write/think?

        To me reading is deciphering symbols that when put together correctly form words or even sentences. The reasons why people read are very diverse. Some people read because they want to learn or the book acts a portal to other worlds and adventures. Others read because they have to for a school assignment or their job. When you read you gather knowledge from the book that effect you in many ways you can become smarter from what you have read or you can even feel emotion of what is going on in the story. When I get confused with reading I go back and read it over and over again under until I understand what I did not get. When it comes to reading it is hard for me to read for a very long time straight or to read something above my understanding. I know I am successful at reading when I have understood what I have read and the main points and plots are very clear to me. My role as reader is to undstand what I have read and strive to learn from it.
   
         To me writing is knowing the symbols and being able to put them into physical form to make words letters, words, or sentences. We write so that we can express our opinions in physical form or make contact with a person without having to talk to them. When you write you remember symbols that you have learned from reading and you use a utensil to put them into a textual form. When I get confused with a writing I usually look at it closer. For me writing is hard when I am tired or have to write a lot. You know when you are successful at writing when others can process what you have wrote and understand it. My goal as a writer is to make something others can take part in or read.

       Thinking is the way that we make sense of the world around us. We are alone in our minds but we can process everything's around us and make opinions about it.  We think because without thinking we would have no opinions. With no thinking we could not know the world around us or be able to decide to not do something bad. When you get confused thinking you probably do not have enough information on what you are thinking about or cannot remember something important.thinking about more than one thing at once is impossible and doing long multiple step math equations is very hard. The only way to know if you thought successfully is to get feed back such as a good grade on a test or notice that you did the right thing. Our role as a thinker is to have opinions and be able know our world.