What Do I Do Next?

Admit it.  You've procrastinated.  We've all done it.  The problem is that with the internet, students now have options.  The internet has come up with a whole new brand of cheating.  Students can now copy and paste entire essays and claim them as their own.  However, is it worth it to plagiarize.  Check out the essay at this website.  Lets assume that the teacher doesn't automatically zing you as a cheater and a plagiarist.  The teacher sits down and actually grades this...well, lets call it an essay.  There is no works cited page, poor sentence structure, lack of pertinent information, and no flow to the essay.  Honestly, if I were grading this paper I would give it a D+ tops.  True students take pride in what they write.  More importantly, they are eager for a chance to learn.  Clearly plagiarism is not the answer.  Now we have to continue to encourage the next generation to take credit for their own work, and give others credit for theirs.

Google Tracking

I got this really cool assignment to keep track of everything I google'd for a week.  Admittedly, my mom's surgery has completely destroyed all my computer time, so this last week I didn't google anything.  However, previous I have google'd addresses, news topics, celebrity rumors, definitions, subjects for classes, sales for clothes, sales for food, halloween costumes, etc etc.  It's amazing to think about the role Google has in our life! I am going to keep special track of everything I google for this next week, and I'd like to implore you to do the same.

UPDATE!!!
I recently had the time to track my google searches for a week.  For privacy reasons, certain phrases have been excluded, but below are my google searches.
Social Network
Kiss and Makeup
Kiss and Makeup Trunk Show
Political Cartoons
Political Cartoons in Education
Bathroom Board
Black Friday Sales
Address
Address
Address
Laptop Reviews
Toshiba Reviews
Consumer Reports
Name
BWI Airport
Southwest
Renee Zellwigger

Convergence

How AMAZING is technology?  I love it! Recently a video came into my hands that shows the impact of technology in our lives.  Who would have ever thought there were 2 million television in bathrooms, or that our cell phones will soon be the major way to connect to the internet?  I would like to encourage you to watch the video on your own, but suffice it to say, this video shows the true dramatic changes we as Americans have made with technology.  Some examples include changing from print to computers, using cell phones, televisions, and the internet network.

In the past I may have come off as anti-technology, but I'm not.  I actually believe technology could be one of the best things for the human race.  This article reflects my views fairly accurately.  Technology can be great for visualization and understanding and making connections in education.  However, there can be overdraw too, and we have to find that delicate balance that helps work with the convergence of technology in the classroom.

Technology is not just in the classroom, but also in our lives, making life easier and helping to not waste time.  However, technology is not all great and all problem fixing.  This next video is done by CBS and talks about some of the less positive parts of technology.  If you don't watch all of it, fast forward to 3.22 and 3.30.  This looks at technology problems in the workplace and with children.  Employers are having problems with misuse of technology in the workplace and children are having more problems with connecting to people.

Now I'm not saying kill technology, lets go back to the spear and fire pits.  All I'm saying is everything is fine as long as its in moderation.  If anything is done in excess, its bad.  Technology can be great, but we have to use it in smaller amounts.  We also have to begin to urge our children and next generation to get a little more away from technology.  Furthermore, factoring in the convergence of technology, we have to look at the ethical problems we are now faced with.  For instance, is it really good for kids to only be able to do math on a calculator for instance?  On one hand, doing the math on a calculator gets it done, most of the time very efficiently.  However, is math a skill that should be memorized for the sake of memorization?