I am proud to report that at 1:08 PM this afternoon, I was finally able to untangle every last knot from the ball of yarn. Let it never be said that I don't have patience. :-)
Welcome to another class recap!
I was so excited about how the timing went today in class! We actually got to everything I had planned, and even had a good amount left to try and peer review the pen pal letters. Thanks for a really fun, good, class everyone.
Essential Questions: How do different structures of power impact the people over whom they govern? Why do some countries thrive while others fail? - I especially wanted to think about these in terms of the U.S. today as well.
Soundtrack: "Let it Snow! Let it Snow! Let it Snow!" by Dean Martin. Lyrics AND video AND song here: YouTube: Dean Martin - "Let it Snow!" Wow, let me tell you - when I started playing this song before class, looked outside, and it was snowing... one of the real highlights of my short time as a teacher. It's the small things in life. I really love snow, and to be teaching while it is snowing out was a joy. A fantastic way to start the day, because I didn't even have trouble getting out of my neighborhood!
AGENDA 2/26/09: News Brief Debrief Last Class America and Globalization Class Unity Activity Pen Pal Letters
Homework: Final copy of Nigerian pen pal letter. Check blog! Have a fantastic weekend!
Basically, what I am going to be looking over these letters for is spelling/grammar, some relation to what we have been talking about in class (culture, geography, conflict, structures of power, etc), and overall effort. Most of what I saw today in class looked excellent, but hopefully having a little time to have another pair of eyes look at your letter helped. Please re-write the letter (remember, do not type this!) and bring to turn in on Monday.
News Brief: After going over the essential questions, agenda, and soundtrack, Gerold told us about yesterday's crash of an Turkish Airlines (TK) Boeing 737-800, outside Amsterdam Schiphol (AMS) Airport. At least 4 Americans died in the crash, but most of the passengers survived. Here's a recap: Reuters: "Dutch say Turks, Americans among Schiphol crash dead"
Very timely article, thank you Gerold! Jillian, you are up for next Monday. A current article about anything going on outside the United States.
Somehow, our discussion turned into talking about Guantanamo Bay, the U.S. prison camp on Cuba. I talked a little about why the international community tends to think that the prison is a really bad thing, and a little about waterboarding, which most people would probably conclude is torture. President Obama announced that he plans to close Guantanamo within the next year, though there is a debate about what to do with the prisoners.
Abe mentioned one released prisoner in particular. A little research shows that he was probably talking about Binyam Mohamed, who is mentioned in this article: BBC News.com: "Call to relax Guantanamo regime" Very interesting. Again, you can begin to see why many people in the international community believe that Guantanamo is an outrage (though remember that there is always another side to the debate). Many of the prisoners held there may have committed terrible crimes, but they have not been charged with anything. President Bush kept them as "enemy combatants," which is a term that he used to say that no crime needed to be charged in order for them to be kept.
Debrief Last Class: I pulled out the playing cards to ask the class what you thought of the Africa Fair. Someone mentioned again that it went a little too fast. Yep. Message received there. I have to get better at the timing. But overall, I thought it was a useful exercise and fun to see all the great work that you did.
Russel ended up winning the "Local Super Hero" T-Shirt, because he had the best comment (as judged by me) on his sheet. It was interesting to hear some of the other comments - especially because I asked you to read the best one! Maybe we should work on giving thoughtful responses?
America and Globalization: First off, we talked a little about what "globalization" means. I described it as the increasing interdependence of people across the world. The Wikipedia entry says pretty much the same thing. So, I asked the class to bring up some interesting highlights of the President's speech on Tuesday. I was pretty disappointed with the lack of participation on that one. As I said in class, perhaps I need to make stuff like that, and checking the blog, mandatory. I mean, it was on like 15 different stations, and available to view online whenever! Anyway, I read some of the quotes that I thought were interesting, including one about never quitting when it comes to education and the importance of the world. Here's the first one that I read (the transcript of the entire speech can be found here):
We are a nation that has seen promise amid peril, and claimed opportunity from ordeal. Now we must be that nation again. That is why, even as it cuts back on the programs we don't need, the budget I submit will invest in the three areas that are absolutely critical to our economic future: energy, health care, and education. It begins with energy.
We know the country that harnesses the power of clean, renewable energy will lead the 21st century. And yet, it is China that has launched the largest effort in history to make their economy energy efficient. We invented solar technology, but we've fallen behind countries like Germany and Japan in producing it. New plug-in hybrids roll off our assembly lines, but they will run on batteries made in Korea. Well I do not accept a future where the jobs and industries of tomorrow take root beyond our borders - and I know you don't either. It is time for America to lead again.
Really pretty interesting stuff. How do you think the rest of the world responds to something like that - especially if you are in one of those countries that is mentioned above as beating us?
Class Unity Activity: Finally! This was really interesting and fun. I have to give credit for the idea and the yarn to my friend Alexis, who is currently in the same program as I am at Lewis and Clark. Good times. Thanks for your participation, and remember that we are all interconnected! When someone stumbles, it is up to the rest of us to help them back up! :-)
Totally worth the 3 hours of untying knots in the yarn too...
Pen Pals: I had Mrs. DeFrance come in to explain a little more about the program and why it is important. Hopefully she cleared up any lingering questions for you. After that informative session, I had you get a partner to review and peer edit your letters, so that when you hand them in on Monday, they will be perfect! Remember, what I am really looking for is that you have good spelling and grammar (we don't want to trip up our Nigerian friends with our bad English!), some sort of tie in to what we have been talking about in class, and a good effort. Other than that, please have fun with this assignment!
---
No new Office episode tonight, but it should be back on next week. Blazers (who have been playing mostly terribly for about a month now) play Friday at 5 against Minnesota (CSN), as well as back here in Portland against San Antonio on Sunday at 5 (KGW - Ch. 8). Please enjoy your weekend, and as always, let me know if you have any questions or thoughts about class (or really, anything). I will be unable to post and respond to comments from about 3:15 to 7:45, because I will be in class, but I definitely love seeing what everyone has to say, so fire away!
Outside the school of our Nigerian pen pals - ECWA Staff School, Jos, Nigeria.
Good afternoon class,
First off, if you were not present in class (or came and didn't turn it in), I need your travel guide e-mailed to me ASAP, so you do not lose more credit than you have to.
Okay, with that out of the way, let's talk a little bit about class. I LOVED what everyone brought to the table during the Africa Fair (which I realized was rushed, but still ended up taking most of the class). I have to think of better ways for everyone to get involved in the different countries, but I think the main thing we got out of this was that when you repeat something about your country 15 times in a row, you are probably going to remember it for a while. Please hang on to those peer comment sheets - we will use them next class!
Essential Questions: How do different structures of power impact the people over whom they govern? Why do some countries thrive while others fail?
Soundtrack: "Come Rain or Come Shine" by Billie Holiday. Selected because it is rainy outside and there was a fairly big assignment due. Zack asked what year the song was from. I'm still not sure, but a little research says that the original song was published in 1946. Billie was one of many to sing it after that. Lyrics here.
AGENDA 2/20/09: News Brief Africa Fair Class Unity Activity Pen Pals
Homework: Pen pal letter to Nigerian student (if you were absent, write a draft of a letter that you think a student in Nigeria would be interested in). Watch President's speech tonight (6 PM, all local TV stations) and write out notes on what is said about countries outside the U.S.
Let me explain the homework a little better, because it was extremely difficult to get everyone to focus at the end of class there. What I want you to do is to write (not type!) out a letter in response to your Nigerian pen pal. What do they want to know about? What do you want to know about? Try to focus on some key things we have talked in class about, like culture, geography, government, and structures of power. By that, I mean a question like: what role does a teacher have in a Nigerian classroom? That would be a good "structure of power" question. Again, I want you to have fun with this, because it loses the fun if I ask you to say all sorts of bland things like "tell me about the role of geography in shaping your experience," because that's simply not something you would normally say. I just want some acknowledgement of what we have been talking about in class.
And if that still isn't clear, please comment, e-mail, or ask Mrs. DeFrance at school tomorrow (I will not be there). I want you to come in with a draft letter, which we will be using in class.
News Brief: We began class by talking a little about the weekend and what was going on around the world. I told you about my eye getting scratched, meeting Senator Merkley, the Blazer game, and the Oscars. Yesterday, I went to see Slumdog Millionaire, which won, like, every Oscar it was nominated for, including Best Picture. Great movie. Interesting reaction from India about it though! I found this article online that I thought some of you might enjoy: FT.com - 'Slumdog' success divides India. The section I thought was most interesting (emphasis mine):
India is not Somalia. We are one of the foremost nuclear powers in the world, our satellites are roaming the universe. Our police commissioners' offices don't look like shacks and there are no blind children begging in the streets of Mumbai.
Randi talked a little bit about an article she found on the Charles de Gualle (CDG) Airport in Paris cutting back on routes. I can't find the article after a basic search, but I think it was probably talking a lot about the effect the economy has had on international traveling. Thanks Randi! Up for next class is Gerold.
Africa Fair: Like I said above, this was great. A little bit hard for me to structure, because even though it ended up taking most of class, I know many of you were probably frustrated with the lack of time at each desk. I think from now on I will try to really work on getting small group work back in play. It's nice that you had such a lot of exposure to so many cool countries, but in the end, I'm wondering how much you actually learned from a 1 minute talk. Maybe a smaller group, less countries, but longer session would work better in the future?
Anyway, a small note about the turn in rate: Thank You. I realize this may have been partially inflated because five people were out sick (by the way, incredible timing on this - a day that a nice big project is due I get the worst attendance of the year so far - hmm), but the vast majority of those that were in class came ready to present and turn in something. Just by the general impressions and looking around, there were some absolutely excellent guides. So thank you. If you are not happy with how your guide turned out, remember that you can always revise for more credit.
Thank you for your participation in that activity. It was a lot of fun! As the class stated afterwards, my due date for getting these all graded and back to you is next Wednesday, March 4. Thanks for that! Boy, if I don't get them back to you by then, I'm an enormous hypocrite.
Class Unity Activity: Is anyone aware of the long running "my apologies to Matt Damon, we ran out of time" bit on the Jimmy Kimmel show? This activity is like Matt Damon. I am pretty sure that we will get to it next class though, so be excited for that.
Pen Pals: Again, look above to the homework section for a recap of what I am asking you to do for this. There were a ton of questions in class about the letters being addressed to someone else, who wanted a picture, e-mail address, phone number, etc... I know it's difficult to get past, but really, those are not important questions. What's important is that you read the letter and get an understanding about where the student is coming from. You don't have to give out any personal information yourself. Just follow what I wrote above and come in with a written draft.
I showed a few things in class. First is the Google Maps satellite imagery of Jos, Nigeria, where our pen pals are from. I did a search for the specific school and found that the "B" option on the side of this link is probably right around where the school is - Google Maps: Jos, Nigeria.
We also talked a little bit about education in Nigeria (32% of males attend school, 27% females), even though it is theoretically open and optional for everyone and government funded. For more information about Jos, check out this handy Wikipedia article - Wikipedia - Jos. As I always stress, it is difficult to entirely trust Wikipedia, but one particular statement is cited so I think it is okay to say that Jos is the 10th biggest city (most populated) in Nigeria. What is the tenth biggest city in the U.S.? San Jose, California. Portland is 30th. Yay for knowledge.
---
Barring any further thoughts or questions, I think that should just about do it. Remember to watch President Obama's speech (and the Republican response by Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal) tonight and note what they have to say about the global community! Have a fantastic evening, see you on Thursday!
LATE ADD: You can read President Obama's entire speech here. If you just read that last sentence, you are required to bring at least one thing in to share with the class that you found was interesting about how he is relating to the global community.
Wow, I am excited that it is Friday. This week was definitely tiring, even though it was only four days long! Today was one of those days where I woke up, and the alarm clock had been going off for a full minute. So not cool. But as always, it was great to get to come to class and see everyone - and I do think we had a very productive day. Chances are, if you are reading this, you have most of the travel guide researched and done with, because you are a good student. :-)
Essential Questions: How do different structures of power impact the people over whom they govern? Why do some countries thrive while others fail?
Soundtrack: "Edge of the Ocean" by Ivy. Lyrics here. I chose this song because a) it's one of my favorites, and just plain good, and b) Nigeria is on the edge of the Atlantic Ocean. Heck yes, I found a way to make a connection! I talked a little in class about the movie trailer I first heard the song in. That movie is Before Sunset (2004), which is the sequel to Before Sunrise (1995). Both of those movies are absolutely fantastic. You would never think that watching two people talk for so long would be interesting, but it is, trust me. The content is sometimes a little adult (just language), but I would highly recommend them both (start with the Before Sunrise, obviously, but Before Sunset is one of my favorite movies ever) if you want some fantastic entertainment. Here's the trailer I talked about: Before Sunset Trailer.
AGENDA 2/20/09: News Brief Class Unity Activity? Questions Computer Lab/In-Class Work
Homework: FINISH travel guide for Tuesday! Check blog!
Again, do not leave this until the last minute! Be working on it over the weekend, and asking questions should you have any! I will be here to help, as always. Please either comment or e-mail me if needed.
News Brief: We began class by talking a little about what people were excited for in the upcoming weekend and any news items. I remember that Russel changed a diaper, Jazmyne is playing basketball in a fundraiser this weekend, and Carson is thrilled about baseball tryouts next week starting at 6 AM. We also talked about the Blazers, the Oscars, and how badly the class could hear us through the wall playing Jeopardy yesterday (which, by the way, it's never fun to apologize to Mr. Hardin - which happens way too often). However, as you pointed out, your class isn't nearly as bad, for which I am very thankful. Just another reason why you guys rock! Except that now I'm paranoid to have a time for class interactions, like the upcoming Africa Fair we are doing on Tuesday. We will see how that goes!
C.J. recapped an article about Rwanda, which basically consisted of him saying "Hutu's are killing Tutsi's again." Thus, I have really don't know what his exact article was, but here's another recent one on Rwanda: Rwandan Army to start Congo withdrawal. Randi, you are up for next class, on Tuesday. One current article, about anywhere outside the United States.
Class Unity Activity: I had this as an option if the class was tired of working on the travel guide, or feeling like there was too much friction or something. However, it was voted down, so we will probably attempt to do it after the travel guide presentations/Africa Fair on Tuesday. No big deal - but it should be pretty interesting!
Questions: I didn't really hear too many questions, though as I circled around the room, I did get many individual questions about the travel guide. I need the travel guides in on time, so please feel free to ask away in the comments, should you have any problems or concerns. Or ask someone else in the class - I'm sure they'd love to help, because all in all, you guys are rock stars.
Computer Lab/In-Class Work: Yes, so you voted to go to the computer lab to work for the rest of the period, which should have given you a ton of time to work. Again, if you need a pink pass from me, please let me know on Monday! I really liked how on task we were for the most part - though it did seem like people were maybe a little preoccupied with finding the right itinerary through flying. Don't worry if you can't get it exactly down, and let me know if you need help. Thank you for working so hard - I am very excited to see the results!
--- Also, I thought this article on the current economic climate in comparison to past "Great Depressions" was extremely interesting, so maybe you will too: CNN.com: So, just how bad is the economy?
That should just about do it. Please do not feel stressed! Communicate with me if you are having issues. Also, Blazers vs. Hawks tonight (7 PM, CSN) - though I will unfortunately be missing it, in order to possibly meet some U.S. Senators. I think that's a fair trade. Watch the Oscars on Sunday if you get the time, and please relax for a good long while, but be working hard as well! You will be rewarded and feel much better about not having to worry about it. Have a wonderful weekend, amazing students!
The current advertisement for Portland International Airport's non-stop, direct flights to NRT, AMS, and FRA. More information can be found here:Be a Local Super Hero.
Hello and welcome to another class recap!
I was very excited about class today - I think we are getting our mojo back after such a nice long weekend. Thank you for all your good hard work during the time I gave you. We SHOULD have more time next class, if we can use that computer lab that actually works again. If not, book hunting it is.
Since there really isn't too much else to say up front here, on to the recap it is!
Essential Questions: How do different structures of power impact the people over whom they govern? Why do some countries thrive while others fail?
Soundtrack: "Fly" by TQ. As I stated in class, TQ is one of my all-time favorite music artists, if not the favorite. Here are the lyrics to Fly. If interested, I would also say that "Until" (which has to be in the discussion as my favorite song ever), "Gone But Not Forgotten," "Internationally Yours," "Hard Life," and "Paradise" by TQ are probably all in my top 50 favorite songs of all time list. And that isn't even including his one big hit, "Westside" - which is an okay song, but not even close to these. His lyrics for some of his songs are a little suspect (and explicit), but every once in the while, he comes up with absolutely amazing stuff. And almost nobody has heard of him, go figure. "Fly" was chosen today because of our continued effort to "fly" to Africa and create a travel guide, as well as the lyric about "five students for every teacher, now we gonna get some education that's real." Yes.
AGENDA 2/18/09 Hand Back Work News Brief Questions Computer Lab/In-Class Work
Homework: Continue to work on travel guide. Check blog.
Hand Back Work: I handed back everything I have from the class so far. I think that there are 7 students that still have not turned in the Five Points on Somalia homework, meaning we are only at a 78% turn in rate, STILL. Frustrating, to say the least. Anyway, here's how I graded those: if you followed directions and found five points that you thought could be used to repair Somalia, and typed a little bit about why you chose each one, that was a 10/10. If you were missing any of that (either no 5 points, or not typed, or I needed more from you), you did not receive full credit (though you absolutely have the opportunity to revise and resubmit). If if was late, you were docked accordingly. Please e-mail me if you have any questions or concerns about this.
We also talked a little bit about your weekends - I remember Russel's new baby brother, Lauren's sushi outing, and Scout cooking up some delicious Mac and Cheese - and the importance of spell checking and proof reading before turning things in. The example I gave was of the school newspaper article on Abe, which spelled his last name wrong in three different ways (which is pretty incredible). We also talked about the article on Ben, as well as the absolutely insane article on sexuality at school, that has Mrs. DeFrance and I totally paranoid now. I won't recount my other thoughts, but I'm glad the class wanted to hear what I had to say about it all.
Finally, I talked about spelling "definitely" right, as well as introducing the "Be A Local Super Hero" T-Shirt as being the prize for the best travel guide, as decided by the class. By the way, I LOVED the lack of enthusiasm for this idea. No seriously, it is making me crack up as I type this right now! Because really, what a silly ad campaign - why on Earth would people be excited about it? Anyway, t-shirt is the prize - it's a white elephant bribe! I know you are all pumped to go out and win it. ;-)
News Brief: Nolan very nicely summed up this article: BBC News.com: "Athens hit by wave of firebombs". I talked a little about how injustice can spark riots and used the example of Rodney King in class, which sparked the LA Riots in 1992. Here is the infamous video of the incident that got broadcast around the world (Warning: Violent and Disturbing): Rodney King beating.
Thanks for that really interesting article Nolan! C.J., you are up for Friday. A current article about anything outside the United States.
Questions: I really like this whole "mandatory" questions time, as uncomfortable as it may seem if there are no questions. The way that I see it, there always should be questions. If I have a little time set aside to welcome questions, people are more willing to actually ask, to fill time. Hopefully, anyway. Let me know if this is a bad idea.
Computer Lab Time/In-Class Work: Wow, so the computer lab situation, not so good. I'm glad that Mrs. DeFrance bailed me out on that one. It's probable that the people in class working from the books got a whole lot more out of this time. Generally, however, we did very well once everyone got all settled down. Thanks again for this. Some good links for you again:
The CIA World FactBook - Go here and choose your country for a fantastic start for those basic facts. Remember to cite all the information that you use!
Kayak.com - Again, this is a FANTASTIC website for finding fares and routes to those African countries. My advice: find the biggest city in your country, and then start typing it in as a destination. Does Kayak come up with something for you? Search that. If it doesn't, or you search and can't find anything, just try the nearest country to you, and offer a car to pick up travelers at the airport in the guide you are creating. Sound good?
Please feel free to post any other links that you find!
---
Okay, as usual, I will not be able to answer or post comments (or e-mails) from 3:30 to 7:30 tonight, because I will be in a ridiculously long class at Lewis and Clark. I always look forward to coming back home and seeing if anyone is posting though, so go ahead if you so desire! Also, it's about dang time the Blazers are playing again. Tonight vs. Memphis at 7:00 on Comcast Sports Net. Or, you could Pack the Pit (I think I missed that today) if you want. Lots of options - just keep working on that travel guide please!
Have a wonderful evening!
Late Addition: First trade for the Blazers! Ike Diogu to the Kings for Michael Ruffin from the Bulls. Blockbuster! ;-) Source: Blazers Edge.
I know it may be hard to tell, but this is a picture my dad took of me, just about to enter into a UPS MD-11.
First off, this post has almost nothing to do with class. It is about airplanes, airlines, flying, and traveling, which is definitely connected to class (and could possibly be helpful for your travel guide), but really, this is an excuse for me to be a huge nerd about airplanes. If you are looking for the class recap from last class, please scroll down to the next post.
Okay. So as you have probably figured out, I am really into airplanes and airlines. I showed you my FlightMemory page during class, and I wanted to tell you a little more about how to make it, what you can do with it, and some other great links of interest if you are into this whole thing.
Story time: I first got really into planes when my dad would take me and my siblings to the airport to watch them when we were growing up. There are a few great places out at the airport - we used to park and watch them come in, then run through the parking lot, trying to outrace the planes. Pizza was also usually involved, which definitely helped too. Basically, it was a good excuse to get out of the house and hang out.
I lost that excitement about planes for a long time after we gradually stopped going, due to general life activities. I did however, need a summer job during college, and so when I saw a clipping from the Oregonian about a job at Evergreen EAGLE, I applied and went to work, in the summer of 2006. Ever since then, I've worked on and off (mostly in the summers and during the winter breaks). It's an amazing job that lets me be outside, work out, and also get to be up close and personal with some of the biggest pieces of machinery in the world. Evergreen was contracted for the last couple of years to service the Lufthansa flight from Portland to Frankfurt, Germany, which I spoke about in class today. In the course of my work on that, I did just about everything you could imagine. I worked in the bag room. I loaded bags. I cleaned bathrooms. I vacuumed floors. I cleaned seats (and trust me, that is a dirty job). I put down pillows and blankets. I drove cargo. I marshaled planes in and out.
At UPS, where I still work every so often (it's down to about once a month, usually on a Friday, because I am so busy most other days), my specialty is "topside," where the big cargo containers are loaded in, and I am part of the crew that pushes and locks them into place. Here's a picture of what that looks like (the inside of a UPS Airbus A300):
I also marshall planes in and out (marshallers are the people outside that have the light up wands that direct traffic - which I think is just about the coolest job ever, besides being a teacher).
So now you know a little bit about what I do in my free time. Now let's get on to the links.
You know about FlightMemory.com. This is one of my favorite sites out there. You do have to sign up to create an account (it's free). Then you have to enter your flight information for each flight in on the "FlightData" page. Here is what my FlightData page looks like for the most recent flights I've taken:
Now, you can see that I have a whole lot of information on there. Not only do I have the origin and destination airports, but I have the airlines, flight number, aircraft type, tail number (which means that actual, particular aircraft I flew), seat, duration of flight, and a whole lot more. So the question is, how?
To begin this investigation into your own flights, try to find any old boarding passes you may have laying around. They will be incredibly helpful, because they say the airline, the date, and the flight number. I try to save all of my old boarding passes - they are in a binder that I will bring in again next class.
Okay, so say you know where you went, when you went, and the flight number (or maybe you are missing some of that too). Here is an EXCELLENT site to fill in the gaps:
Airline On-Time Statistics - This is a US government run site (which, unfortunately, means that it is only useful for flights within the US), because the FAA requires major airlines to report on what they do each day. To find what you need, go down to "detailed statistics" and either click on Arrivals (if you know the city that you were flying to) or Departures (if you know where you left from). Let's use my case of the Alaska Airlines Flight 483, which my brother and I took from San Diego to Seattle, coming back from the Holiday Bowl during Winter Break.
I will click Departures (because there are not that many Alaska flights departing San Diego). I will then choose "All Statistics" on the next screen. I enter in the origin airport of San Diego (SAN), and the airline (Alaska - AS). Then I select my date that I flew, which was December 31st, 2008 (be careful to get all of those dates right!). By clicking submit, I am greeted with a list of Alaska flights that left San Diego on the 31st of December. Look! There is flight 483! The tail number is N583AS, which can be viewed online here: Airliners.net - Alaska Airlines Boeing 737-800 N583AS.
Pretty cool, right? There are several other sites that are fantastic:
The Great Circle Mapper - this will let you calculate the distance flying from one place to another, anywhere in the world. Here's what this would look like if there were to be a non-stop flight from Portland to Lagos, Nigeria: Great Circle Mapper: PDX-LOS. That is a long plane ride - 7540 miles!
I talked a little bit in class about Kayak.com, which is by far my favorite place to actually buy tickets, because there are so many options (and because the cheapest is easy to search for).
Also, check out FlightAware.com - Portland International (PDX) to see a great representation of all the flights that are in the air around Portland at any given time! This is definitely my favorite site to track planes, like if I need to pick up someone at the airport, or I want to know immediately how long I was in the air for. Here's the most current flight from that San Diego-Seattle route that I took in December: FlightAware: Alaska Airlines Flight 483.
Finally, using all these resources, make your FlightMemory page and also, an Airliners.net photo album! Just search for the tail number in the search box - they have just about every major carrier's aircraft from everywhere around the world. Seriously, that site is insane. Here's what my photo album of aircraft that I have actually flown on is: Airliners.net - Aircraft I've Flown On.
I also have an album of actual aircraft that I've worked on (which I just updated tonight, because I just worked on a new bird - N134UP): Airliners.net - Aircraft I've Worked On.
Let me know if you need any help with this! You definitely discover some pretty amazing things. For instance: I once flew on United Airlines N591UA (from Portland to Chicago in 1996), the exact same plane that was later hijacked on September 11th, 2001 and eventually driven into the ground in Pennsylvania - the flight that the movie "United 93" is about. Absolutely crazy, huh?
---
Some very basics about airlines:
All American airline tail numbers start with N. All airports in the world have a three letter code. These can sometimes be very confusing. For instance: Zack, in your FlightMemory, you have a flight from PDX to STP - which is Saint Paul, Minnesota. It would be very hard for you to know that you almost definitely actually flew into Minneapolis-Saint Paul, which has the code of MSP.
A few other big airports: In the Los Angeles area alone, there is LAX (the main, huge one), SNA (Orange County), LGB (Long Beach), ONT (Ontario - where a lot of our UPS jets fly to from Portland), and BUR (Burbank). I've been to every LA airport except ONT, which is the reason why that area is so cluttered on my FlightMemory map. In the New York City area, there is John F. Kennedy International (JFK), LaGuardia (LGA), and Newark-New Jersey (EWR). I've only ever flown into EWR, though I really want to go to JFK someday!
Seattle is SEA (easy). Most are fairly common sense. Here are some that are not: Chicago's main airport is O'Hare, which is ORD. New Orleans is MSY (and I have no idea why). Detriot is DTW. Houston is IAH. Kansas City is MCI. Orlando is MCO. Washington DC is either IAD (the big one, in Virginia) or DCA (Reagan National, in the capital).
All airlines have a two letter (or a letter and a number) code. I won't go over too many, but here are some main ones:
AS - Alaska Airlines QX - Horizon Air (which is owned by Alaska, but operates by itself) WN - Southwest B6 - JetBlue F9 - Frontier UA - United AA - American DL - Delta NW - Northwest (merging right now with Delta) US - US Airways
All of this information can be easily found on Wikipedia, if you are interested. Let me know if you can't find something, I would love to help out!
Finally, a few essentials about aircraft in general. Basically, there are two main builders of aircraft in the world. Boeing, which is based in the United States and has an enormous base and building plant in the Seattle area, and Airbus, which is owned by a group of European nations, which is based in Toulouse, France.
Boeing makes airplanes that start with 7 and end with 7. Like, the 737, 747, 757 (my all time favorite, by the way)... you get the point. Around Portland, the 737 is by far the most common. Both Alaska and Southwest own entirely Boeing 737 fleets now. Boeing's new aircraft (that keeps getting delayed, but hopefully should be out this year) is the 787 Dreamliner.
Airbus makes airplanes that start with "A3..." For instance, the equivalent of a Boeing 737 for an Airbus is an A320 - the kind of plane that just landed in the Hudson River a couple of weeks ago. Lufthansa flies an Airbus A330 into Portland currently - a downgrade from the A340 that I used to work on. You may have heard about the big new Airbus aircraft - the A380, which is an ENORMOUS double decker.
Okay, I think that is enough. I would be surprised if anyone actually read all that. But hey, I get into it! Have a fantastic weekend everyone! :-)
Click above for my FlightMemory page - make your own and post a link in the comments! :-)
Good afternoon students,
Okay, now that was an interesting class, right? I really liked what everyone had to say during our seminar (I'll go over it more below), but I do want to make sure that we are keeping that core value of respect for each other alive. You can completely disagree with each other's views (and I think that there was definitely a lot of disagreement), but please do not disrespect individuals or people as a whole. That being said, the class excellent breakdown of the article, and there was some really good participation (I would guess about 75% of the class had at least one thing to say). I'm excited to get to see it on video (thanks Brandon)! :-)
I am going to post the recap, and then come back later and post another blog about flight stuff (because as you probably saw, I'm a huge geek about it). So look forward to that later.
Essential Questions: How do different structures of power impact the people over whom they govern? How does a developing country become developed? - As an aside, I think we did some pretty good work today with that second question, thank you!
Soundtrack: "International Airport" by Carbon Leaf. This is an excellent song about flying all over the place. Carbon Leaf is one of my favorite bands - their album Indian Summer is an all-time classic. Lyrics for International Airport here.
AGENDA 2/13/09: News Brief Socratic Seminar Redux Leaving on a Jet Plane Computer Lab Time
Homework: Work on travel guide. Check blog!
Here is the list of who signed up for what country: Algeria - Andrew H. Benin - Alondra Botswana - Zack T. Cameroon - Kurtis Chad - C.J. Democratic Republic of the Congo - John Cote d'Ivorie (The Ivory Coast) - Scout Djibouti - Russel Egypt - Jazmyne Ethiopia - Abe Gabon - Gerold Ghana - Mustafe Guinea - Jordan Guinea-Bissau - Carson Kenya - Zach N. Liberia - Nolan Libya - Aaron Madagascar - Nicole Mali - Brandon Mauritius - Archana Morocco - Andrew K. Mozambique - McKenzie Namibia - Nathan Niger - Tanya Sierra Leone - Robert South Africa - Lauren Sudan - Thuy Swaziland - Randi Tanzania - Brooke Togo - Morgan Uganda - Kierra Zambia - Jillian Zimbabwe - Ben
Whew, now that's some good effort. For those that need to see the assignment again or lost a copy, here it is to download:
Remember that we set the due date in class of Tuesday, February 24th. Please be working on it during your long weekend - I am really excited to see what you can do with this! :-)
News Brief: Nathan brought in an article about the continuing violence in Afghanistan. Again, an incredibly important place in the world, and very interesting to study! We will be doing just that after this unit. Nolan, you are up for next Wednesday - any current news article about something outside the United States.
Socratic Seminar Redux: At the beginning of the class, I apologized for the lack of time that we were able to devote in the previous class to the seminar, and for me talking too much. It really is difficult, especially when what is being said is so interesting! :-)
We started up again in a giant circle, and went over the seminar ground rules again. I was really glad to hear your thoughts, even though it did (as we noted) get a little heated. That is sort of the point of discussing a controversial text - I want people to have different interpretations. I think overall, we did a good job of not making it personal, though there were definitely was some moments when I was like: "Oh wow, okay, I need to say something..." I think it comes with the process. We are going to continue to develop this skill of going into texts and seeing what they have to say.
There were TONS of things brought up that had me blown away. I always love it when you make connections to things outside the class, like genocide against Native Americans and the "animalistic" nature (like in Lord of the Flies). I also thought that it was interesting to hear your thoughts on if the positions had been switched, and white people were in Africa - that black people would colonize them, because humans are inherently greedy. If this is the case, how can we get past stuff like that, to work towards the common good? If we admit that greed and selfishness is a part of human nature, what do we need to do to move beyond it?
I liked the feedback from right after too - it is good to see that people were into the conversation (though Ben, you were absolutely right about me still butting in a little too much - sorry)! Let's make our goal for next time to really invite participation from everyone else. Make it a priority! Also, please contact me if you have any questions or concerns about the environment in the class - especially during debates like the one we had today.
All in all, the seminar was well done, and I'm glad that we really got to devote a lot of time to it. Thank you to everyone for being involved.
Leaving on a Jet Plane: This is where I passed out the travel guide assignment, and asked: "Why did we start this whole unit on studying Africa?" As I pointed out, part of it was that we saw the differences in conceptions between Africa and Europe, with Africa having overwhelmingly negative impressions. The travel guide is hopefully going to present you with some great opportunities to get past that notion - because there really is just an incredible amount of culture in Africa.
I also did a little show and tell with my airport badge, passport, and model plane of the Lufthansa Airbus A340-300. By the way, for those students that had actually flown that flight - if any of you flew during the last three summers, it is entirely possible that I loaded your bags or cleaned your seat. Small world! :-)
I will bring all that stuff in again for next class, which may or may not be in the computer lab (we might just use books from the library to research). I also introduced some helpful links (though the next post that I will write on airlines will have a lot as well), which are below:
Kayak.com - A great place to start, when you know where you want to go. Enter PDX as the origin airport, and find the three letter code of biggest airport in your country using the Wikipedia article below - that is just one way to find how to get there.
Computer Lab Time: Obviously, we did not have time for this. Which, surprisingly, I am okay with. I wanted the seminar to control how much time we devoted to the lab, and since it was just a good conversation for so long, there really wasn't enough time to go up there. Next class we will devote almost the entire time to working on your guides, but don't assume that we will be able to go to a computer lab - bring any materials you think you may need!
---
That should be just about it for this post! Look forward to another one later tonight about airline stuff. Please feel free to comment or e-mail me if you need! I should be out tonight from around 4:30 to about 10:00, so don't worry if it doesn't post immediately, or you don't hear from me right away.
Also, funny story - after class, when I was checking my e-mail, I got a message in my Spam folder that was a Nigerian scam! Complete with the President's name and coming from the city of Abuja! It made me laugh.
Watch the All-Star Weekend - and have a wonderful long weekend! You guys are all amazing, do you know that? See you next week! :-)
Because I am currently waiting to talk to another Westview teacher for a homework assignment from Lewis and Clark (yes, I have them too!), I figured I might as well get the recap done early today, while everyone is forecasting!
First off, I want to apologize for the rushed feeling of the seminar today. I did not know that class would be ending so soon until right before. I also think I was probably a little too directly involved in the discussion. I should have let everyone get their thoughts in on their own. It's very difficult for me as a teacher, because my main goal for this particular seminar was participation. What happened was good - I loved some of the ideas that were brought up. What I did not feel particularly proud of was my trying to force people to talk, at the expense of those who really did want to. It is a difficult problem for me. When I have a few people who are really into the conversation, I love it, but I also am really interested in what everyone else has to say.
I think the opposite of my goal happened today. I was so concerned with getting everyone to participate that I was the person taking up much of the time with my own thoughts, trying to get everyone involved! I just think it backfired. For everyone that was really excited to bring tons of ideas to the table, I am sorry for that lack of time. Obviously, we are going to do the seminar for the outside group next class - which is even more difficult because that is the group that did not volunteer to talk in the first place.
Anyway, I hope that we got something out of it. I'll try different things in the future with the seminar! Please let me know if the comments or by e-mail what you thought of things.
Essential Questions: How do different structures of power impact the people over whom they govern? How does a developing country become developed?
Soundtrack: "Refuge (When It's Cold Outside)" by John Legend. Selected because it is cold outside and the classroom should be a place of refuge and excitement. Lyrics are here.
AGENDA 2/11/09 Hand Back Work News Brief Chapter Presentations Socratic Seminar Visiting Africa
Homework: Find out basic information about your country - bring to class on Friday. Check blog!
If you do not remember which country you signed up for (which would be understandable, given the rush), please either comment or e-mail me. I just want you to begin investigating on your own - we will do more in class on Friday.
Hand Back Work: You should have your Somalia article handed back to you. I know that some people did not. Are you sure that you turned it in to me? Remember, I went around and checked it off, but I did not collect it until the end of class that day. I did look in my folder, and I did not find any other work. Please let me know if you think I may have misplaced it - or you could just send me another copy and I will be fine.
News Brief: McKenzie brought in an article about crazy weather in Europe - BBC.com - High winds hit north-west France. Again, an interesting look at some the extreme weather that has been happening! I talked a little about climate change/global warming, and the impact that melting ice caps have, due to the loss of ability to reflect light. This is called a "feedback loop" and here is an excellent recap of what I was talking about: ABC News.com: What is a "Feedback Loop?" Nathan, you are up for Friday - any news article that talks about something outside the United States.
Chapter Presentations: These were a lot better today, I thought. I especially liked how it seemed like almost the entire class was paying pretty close attention to what the groups were talking about. I don't know if that is a function of the new seating chart or not, but it was definitely appreciated. Again, the reason that we did this activity was to learn a little more about how different places around the world have dealt with development. We then crafted a small list of what we had learned about developing countries - off the top of my head, I think it was something like: struggling, time consuming, conflicts, government building. Good! I was actually a little surprised we got that much out of the exercise. Sorry if it was boring!
Socratic Seminar: Hopefully you have read some of my thoughts above about this. Basically, I think that I didn't allow everyone enough time to really go through and talk about it - and I know that there were definitely times when people had to restrain themselves from bringing excellent ideas to the table. This was my bad - but again, it's difficult. What do I value more: participation of everyone, even if it isn't that deep, OR about a third of the class really getting into the discussion and going very deep into it? For this seminar, I wanted participation, and I think I let everyone down by trying to force it too much. Live and learn!
As for the thoughts that WERE raised: EXCELLENT. It is obvious to me when people are doing the reading, making connections, and excited about asking questions. I loved what we had to say about the article. I especially liked how it seemed like nobody just completely rejected what the author had to say, even if the way he made his argument was pretty controversial. I seemed like everyone really considered the root causes of the answers to the original question of: how does a developing country become developed?
Again, please post any other thoughts, questions, or comments about the seminar - by all means, if you felt like you didn't really get to say what you wanted today, let it out on here! Let's start a discussion again! :-)
Visiting Africa: Thanks for staying behind for a minute or two to pick out your countries. Please e-mail me if you need to know which one you picked or have any questions.
----
That should just about do it! Please have a wonderful afternoon. Don't forget to watch the World Cup qualifier between the USA and Mexico (4 PM, ESPN2) and/or the Blazer game vs. the ex-Sonics tonight (7 PM, CSN). Also, watch The Office tomorrow night, because it is pretty much guaranteed to make you laugh. And we could all use some more of that! I will not be at Westview tomorrow, as it is my day to do some homework, planning, and sleep a little. So, see you Friday!
Did you know that this week is only the second since I took over as your full time teacher in early December that we have had a week with three A days? At least, I'm pretty sure. It definitely feels like I do not get to see you guys enough - the breaks, days off, and quirks of the schedule have had some interesting effects on class time so far!
Today was another good day, though I must say that I was a little disappointed with the quality of the presentations (I'm not sure if we actually got anything at all from that exercise, which may be partly on me) and how it seemed like some of you STILL neglected to do the easiest homework assignment of all time. I'm not even sure what to say about that.
However, as always, I loved your questions and our interactions during the PowerPoint. Things like that make me excited to be a teacher - making a (hopefully) interesting lecture and diving right into new content that we get to break down in the upcoming classes. Woo hoo!
Essential Questions: How do different structures of power impact the people over whom they govern? What is a developed nation?
Soundtrack: "Man in the Mirror" by Michael Jackson. A great song about starting with yourself, instead of blaming others for not doing anything. "If you want to make the world a better place, take a look at yourself and make a change." Lyrics here.
AGENDA 2/9/09 News Brief Finish Worksheets Present Chapters Developed vs. Developing Debrief Homework PowerPoint
Homework: Read article and write at LEAST two questions that arise from it. Be prepared to discuss Wednesday! Check blog!
--> The article that you are supposed to read can be downloaded here if you lost it or were not in class to pick a copy up:
Again, this is supposed to be controversial, and I want everyone to bring your thoughts, reactions, and most importantly, questions that it raises. I am anticipating an extremely interesting discussion - don't let me down! Also, I want you to really think hard about this. There is an obvious, easy reaction to much of what the author is writing, but does he make any points that need to be answered?
News Brief: I started off class by asking about everyone's weekends. I didn't really say much about mine, but on Saturday, I took a four hour long test - one of the many that we have to take in order to become licenced teachers. It was ridiculous! I also talked a little bit about Honors this year - please go see or write to Mr. Hardin ASAP if you are interested! Time is rapidly running out, and many of you are more than capable of taking on the extra load.
It is interesting to consider the types of weather we are seeing all over the world. As Keirra put it very well, it is just weird. We have a whole lot of extremes. Frankly, it's a little scary, because part of climate change is extreme weather. Something to be thinking about. I hope that we get to talk about this a little bit later in the year! McKenzie, you are up for next class. Please bring in a current article about something outside the United States.
Finish Worksheets: I'm not sure how many of you actually used this time to work on your textbook worksheets for presentation, but it probably should have been a little more than you did. Part of that was due to people missing from class who had the paper, and part of that is that many of you just plain lost the worksheet, which I don't know what to tell you.
Present Chapters: As I said above, I think we could have done a little more with these. It didn't really seem like everyone really knew things about their chapter today. Some good basic facts, but that was about it. Hopefully the groups that are going next class can pick up the slack. It was definitely good to have a little reflection on what is going on around the world though - I wanted you to be thinking of how each of the areas were developing. The notes that you took will be useful in the future as you think about the question of: what is a developed nation?
Developed vs. Developing: I cut this for time, it was an activity that we will come back to at a later date.
Debrief Homework: I was very interested to hear what your family members had to say and the general impressions given! It was great to listen to the reasons given to why we are studying Nigeria. My question to you after today's presentation: why ARE we studying Nigeria? I'd be interested to hear your thoughts!
PowerPoint: This took up the last half of class. Like I said, I love these things - especially when I can make it interesting. I stated repeatedly that I did not want you to write out everything on every slide, but rather to get the most interesting or relevant information. For those that want to see it again (or did not see it at all, due to not being in class), here it is (remember, click "Save As" instead of "Open" - it is way faster):
A few things here. Someone asked (I think it was Scout) what the lowest Infant Mortality Rate in the world is. The answer can be found here: Wikipedia: Infant Mortality Rates. It looks like either Singapore or Iceland. Look at all those countries that have better IMRs than the US! Also, can you imagine living in Angola, where your child has about an 16-18% chance of dying before their first birthday? Just crazy. The IMR is really a key statistic for looking at the overall health of a country - it says a lot about the conditions and the health care available.
For those interested, I get my statistics for these presentations from The CIA World FactBook - which are far from perfect (and sometimes blatantly incorrect), but I always find it interesting to see what the U.S. Government says its data is.
In regards to colonialism, I said I would link to the Daily Show clip of John Oliver interviewing Kenya's ambassador to the UN. Really quite funny, but you can really see how seriously the ambassador takes the questions about colonialism. Generalizing, I think that most Africans would agree with him - an absolutely terrible era in world history that should never be revisited:
I also pointed out that the news coverage of Nigeria is overwhelmingly negative right now. Why? Is that a legitimate thing? Search "United States" on Google News - what do you get?
---
That should do it for now. Please be reading that article (multiple times) and bring in your thoughts and questions for next class! Remember that it is linked above should you need to download it. As always, please comment below or e-mail me if you have any questions, comments, or concerns. Have a wonderful evening!
Late addition: It is SNOWING at my house right now! Not sticking, but still, nice! :-)
The "Whose Line is it Anyway?" Newsflash we watched in class.
Good afternoon, amazing students!
Thank you for a very productive morning. I realized after the fact that I was supposed to let you go a few minutes early to watch the PRIDE video in your next class, so I apologize for not getting the memo on that (it seemed like most the teachers did not, so I feel better). Overall, I liked what everyone had to say during all aspects of the period, but especially our talk at the beginning on what we can be doing and thinking about as far as homework in on time and language used in the classroom. It was nice to have a sense of renewed focus.
Essential Questions: How do different structures of power impact the people over whom they govern? What is a developed nation?
Soundtrack: "No Such Thing" by John Mayer. Picked because of "no such thing as the real world" and the connections to high school (it's basically all about the student experience). Video can be viewed here.
AGENDA 2/5/09 Pressing the "Reset" Button News Brief Newsflash Developing Countries Worksheet Going Home
Homework: Family member quiz. Check blog!
Pressing the "Reset" Button: This was perhaps long overdue, but yes, I made a seating chart. I am hopeful that it will cut down on the noise. I also, if you noticed, repositioned the desks so that everyone should be able to easily see the board and projection (if you've noticed, I like to show and write things up there a lot).
We also talked about late work and what we can do to get better about it. As I wrote last class blog, a 63% is totally unacceptable. I liked hearing your thoughts about this - either to provide incentives for 100% turn in rate, or more disincentives. I will seriously consider this input and get back to you. Being a more upbeat guy, the 100% turn in rate little reward is something that intrigues me, but it would have to be something in-class related. I am not going to bribe you every time I want something done in time. It should be an expectation. That being said, I will see what I can think up of.
After the late work talk, I related to you the feedback I got from Mrs. DeFrance from the last class about some of the language that was being used, without me hearing. Wow. This one is totally on you guys. Important to know why calling something "gay" as a form of putting it down is a really terrible thing to do. I'm fine with criticism, just put it in ways that do not put down things. Instead of "this is stupid," how about: "this is really difficult and I don't understand why we are doing this." See how easy that was? Just put some effort into being aware of what you say. It's a good habit to be in.
News Brief: Brandon shared an article (that he had previously sent me, so it was semi-okay that he didn't bring it out) he found online about North Korea developing a missile that can hit the West Coast of the United States. That article can be found here: BBC.news: N Korea 'preparing missile test'
I asked "Does North Korea scare you?" It seemed like the general consensus was no, but why? I said I am not particularly scared of North Korea either, but aren't they part of the "Axis of Evil"? Interesting to think about. Also interesting: why is North Korea spending billions of dollars on these missiles and developing nuclear power when many of the people in North Korea are so poor and hungry they have to eat twigs? (last section).
I also showed the class this article from the Oregonian on Western Oregon University accepting Portland seniors: Oregonian: 14 Portland high schoolers get on-the-spot WOU admissions. Going to college is definitely a goal that I have for all of you - and it is attainable if you work hard and overcome adversity (because everyone will face adversity during the next few years). Let me know if you ever need any support!
Scout will be presenting an article on Monday (I was able to catch her in the hall on Friday).
Newsflash: This is where we watched the "Whose Line is it Anyway?" clip (at the top of the post) and I asked you to fill out a "pre-assessment" for the Nigeria unit, so I can see what you know going in to the new Nigeria unit. I looked over a few of these and I LOVE them! "So and so, reporting for Action 4 News in hot Nigeria in Africa..." Good times. I have to thank Mrs. DeFrance for this idea - I think it worked very well. Thanks again for getting into it and writing down what you know.
Developing Countries Worksheet: This was geared so that we could start answering the question: What is a developed nation? The worksheet asked you to go through the textbook and research a little bit about what it says for the particular area that you chose to write about. I will give you a little more time to get this done at the beginning of class on Monday, then I will ask each group to come up and explain a little about it. Sound good? The class seemed to be doing great with this - thanks for working hard in your new areas. I trust that the seating arrangements aren't too bad - let me know if it is please.
Going Home: At the end of class, I went over exactly what you need to do for your homework, but here it is again: Ask a family member to fill out the little Nigeria quiz - without any sort of help! If you happen to lose the question sheet, here are the questions again to write out:
Where is Nigeria? What impact has colonialism had on Nigeria? What kind of government does Nigeria have? What do you know about Nigerian culture? What is a developing country? Why do you think we are studying Nigeria in the class your family member is in?
This had got to be one of the easiest homework assignments of all time (besides checking the blog). Please come with the completed sheet on Monday, thanks!
----
Finally, I found a really interesting article on the new President of Somalia and the renewed sense of purpose for the country that I think everyone would be interested in: CNN.com: Hopes high for Somalia's new Islamist president. This was on the front page of CNN.com - it made me smile because again, what we are studying is relevant! Good times.
Have a wonderful evening, and if the Blazers do not beat the ex-Sonics in Oklahoma on Friday, something seriously wrong happened. Remember to watch The Office tonight at 9 if you want to - my favorite TV show ever! I will be in class from 3:30 to 7:30, so that would explain if your comment or e-mail is not answered immediately. See you Monday!
The Arch of Umberto in downtown Mogadishu - built in the mid-1930s to celebrate a visit to the city by the King of Italy. Fascinating website - based on Google Earth, I think. Check out the aerial view of Mogadishu by zooming out!
Dear class,
Tons and tons of energy today. Maybe a little too much. You are definitely a hard group to try and guide when we get off track. I'll have to try and think of ways to remedy this - it's obvious that the status quo isn't really working. All in all, a good day, but next class, expect a seating chart. I'm sorry, but it's time, and you know it. I will try to make it bearable for everyone - please let me know by e-mail if you have any requests for one person you really think you would work well sitting next to and/or people that you probably would not work well with. Other than that, I was interested to hear your thoughts on repairing Somalia once again, and to develop that final class list of recommendations (more on that below). Recap time!
Essential Questions: How does conflict arise and in what ways have various people responded? Is Somalia repairable?
Soundtrack: "We Can Work it Out" by The Beatles. Lyrics here. Picked because of the optimism that we so desperately need in order to have hope that things in the world can be fixed. You are in school because your generation will rule the world someday! We HAVE to work it out! Relevant to our ideas on repairing Somalia as well.
AGENDA 2/3/09 News Brief Mustafe's Pictures Debrief Last Class Five Points Compilation Game Time (Whoop!)
Homework: Finish and turn in any late work. Read class recap blog!
As for your homework, I am not kidding around. If you do not have one of the two items that I have asked you to do so far turned in, please e-mail them to me ASAP. This is getting pretty ridiculous. Just counting up the number of five point plans today after class got me frustrated. We had 21 students out of 33 turn in the plan - which you had almost all the main points of done after you left the class on Friday.
Folks, that is a 63% turn in rate, which is BARELY a D. Granted, we had three students absent today and four students absent last Friday when the paper was assigned - still no excuse for not e-mailing me and checking the blog at the very least. We will definitely be talking about ways to go about solving this problem on Thursday. Even for those that DID get the assignments in (thank you), you still need to be talking to your classmates about it. This is a team effort.
News Brief: I asked the class about the weekend and (as always) got some interesting stories. I mentioned my weekend that consisted of Pack the Pit, the Blazer game on Saturday night, the Australian Open until 5 AM on Sunday morning, sleep until the Super Bowl, watching The Office, and finally, the HUGE come from behind win against New Orleans last night and the 24 episode on right after. No "exaggerating," it was a crazy weekend!
Robert then presented this article: British soldier was killed in Afghanistan by 'friendly fire'. As I mentioned in class, "friendly" fire has happened in Afghanistan many times before - most memorably in the case of Pat Tillman. I don't toss around the word "hero" a lot, but to me, Pat Tillman was pretty much everything you could possibly want from someone. He followed his convictions, even at the cost of enormous sums of money if he had continued to play professional football.
We also talked a little bit about Afghanistan itself - an extremely volatile place that nobody has tamed completely in recent history. Here's the Newsweek article I referenced in class: Newsweek.com: Could Afghanistan Be Obama's Vietnam?. A place that will continue to be directly relevant to the United States. I know people I graduated with from High School that are currently involved in the fighting over there. It is entirely possible that you will too. Something to think about - thanks for bringing it in Robert! Brandon, you are up next for Thursday.
Mustafe's Pictures: I thought these were really interesting, but there was so many of them that I had to go pretty fast through them all. Please ask Mustafe or me if you'd like to see them again. Many of them can be found just be searching around the pages of Wikipedia. Always interesting to see the real home perspective, thank you so much for bringing them in Mustafe!
Debrief Last Class: I was hoping to have a little discussion on how the seminar went last Friday (which I have received great feedback so far about). However, as Mrs. DeFrance point out to me later, this lasted about 3 people before we moved on. I need to be better about calling on people that don't usually talk, especially with feedback on that particular class, because that's who I need to hear from. The deck of cards will be coming out again very soon, I assure you. Please let me know if you have any additional thoughts about how last class went - I would love to hear them.
Five Points Compilation: This is where I asked you to turn to a partner and discuss your homework, while listening for the best points you heard. We then came together and organized a class list:
First off, I'm glad that everyone gets to enjoy my handwriting again. That's always good times. Secondly, it should be pretty clear that the most votes were obtained by: 1) Organize Government (27) 2) Remove Warlords (24) 3) Take Ownership of Law Enforcement (21) 4) Develop a Legitimate Education System (19) 5) Get a Military (17)
Initial thoughts on this? To me, it looks like the authoritarians, the "Somalia needs drastic outside intervention" people in the class won out. Especially #2 - even when I mentioned the Black Hawk Down incident, many students were still insistent that the warlords be removed. I'm definitely glad to see the Education system make it in. I must say that I wholeheartedly agree with that one. Now, who's in to go teach in Somalia?
Game Time (Whoop!): As you probably guessed, this is what we didn't have time to do last class (although I'm glad, because I would have simply just written the numbers and categories down on the board instead of the amazing little PowerPoint. I found the template to use on this website (should you ever want to use it for a class presentation or if/when you become a teacher - in Somalia): http://teach.fcps.net/trt10/PowerPoint.htm
I just downloaded and used the "30 Question Jeopardy Template." Here is the one I created to use in class - this might be helpful in the future for quizzes and tests:
Here are the answers: Geography – 1: The "Horn of Africa." 2: Mogadishu. 3: Kenya, Ethiopia, Djibouti. 4: Gulf of Aden and Indian Ocean. 5: Jubba and Shabele.
Culture – 1: Sunni Muslim. 2: Somali, Arabic, English, Italian. 3: Somali, Bantu and other non-Somali Arabs. 4: 6300. 5: Islam and poetry.
Colonialism – 1: 2,500 years. 2: 1880s. 3: England, France, Italy. 4: British, French, Italian Somaliland. 5: England and Italy grant independence in 1960 – France from Djibouti in 1977.
Black Hawk Down – 1: 1993. 2: Civil War and famine. 3: Running the Mogadishu Mile. 4: 1995. 5: Mohamed Farrah Adid.
Somalia Today – 1: A Failed State. 2: A base for al Qaeda. 3: 1,000. 4: 700,000. 5: Sharif Ahmed.
Congratulations to everyone, because you're all winners in my book. This was a lot of fun, but got really chaotic very quickly. If I use this next time, I am going to have to think of a new system to run it. Hopefully it was a lot of fun for everyone though. :-)
----
Okay, that should just about do it! I will not be in the building tomorrow, because Lewis and Clark was getting a little upset at how much time I spend on site each week (in theory, it is supposed to be 15 hours - I've been putting in about 20 for the whole year), so I am now not coming in for the second B day of each week - that is, until the schedule changes again and I am a full-time teacher! Woo hoo!
Other than that, get any late work in, let me know about seating preferences, and as always, post comments or e-mail me if you have any questions, concerns, or comments. Go Blazers tomorrow night at Dallas (5:30 - CSN and NBATV)! Have a wonderful afternoon!
