Using Blogging in the Class

             Not once, did I ever think that I would be blogging as part of a class. Blogging, an online tool that enables a writer to write about any subject and post/publish that work to the online world. Giving blog posts was an awesome way to encourage students to write often, and making a "one post a day" rule was rather ingenious on Dr. Hamon's part. Though the "one post a day" rule made meeting the weekly quota a little difficult to remember to do among all of life's distractions, it has definitely allowed me to become more comfortable with my own writing and has even boosted my confidence as a writer. Use of visual aids and adequate written material in my blog made it easy to see that I put forth above average effort, which might or might not be said for all of my classmates of whom I had the pleasure of reading subsequent blog posts. As a teaching tool, blogging was a great way to see how each individual student writes as well as getting to know what's important to them. I will note that at first I only used our class wiki for choosing topics to write about, and did so until I could no longer stand to write about those subjects. Once clarified that we could pick our own subjects, as long as there was a regard to the readers (our classmates), I thoroughly enjoyed choosing subject matter that I felt all could chime in on and would induce thought. I hope  all of my readers also felt the same and I wish all my classmates luck in their future endeavors.
 

Using Google Drive In The Class

              In my English Composition I class with Dr. Hamon, I got the opprotunity to take part in a flipped classroom. This implies that we used several technological resources most commonly accessed through the Internet. Google drive was among these tools we now had access to after creating a Gmail account. Google Drive and Google Docs quickly demonstrated their usefulness in a classroom. We, as scholars, were able to share documents  with the teacher as well as other students for assessments and revisements in real time. This of course also enables the instructor to see when who did what, not to mention eliminates the overuse of paper for assignments. I was very impressed with these online tools and expect to continue using them because I can't afford not to.

 

 

Parting is Such Sweet Sorrow

              As another quarter at South University comes to an end, I find myself reflecting. I learned a lot about the importance of having an "Online Identity" and how to maintain that online persona so that it may help in my professional and personal development  Right away in my English I class, with Dr. Hamon, we started a Gmail account and began our online journey. Many of the things I learned I find to continue to be very useful. Information about the flipped classroom was intriguing, as well as tons of information on the writers triangle and the APA citation format. It was a good class... I recommend it to anyone... : )

The Cost of Living

               It's kind of amazing that from the moment you're born, you are having to pay to live. Well, at first it's your parents paying, but don't worry... 18 years and you'll owe the government. Now I understand "in theory" why we must pay taxes, but hasn't the cost of living gotten a little out of hand? It seems that the majority of problems stem from money and the desire to have it. What happened to the good 'ol days where people used to barter services, skills, and excess products? I scratch your back, you scratch mine; right?...
               You're telling me that money, a paper representation of an amount of gold, means so much to the purpose of life? Just because it is rare, we must base our lives around it and it's pursuit. If we all were concerned with having the best we can have, then working together is the best way. If our goal was to help everyone achieve an acceptable standard of living and beyond that working to provide and use specialized skills for the benefit of all instead ones-self, that would be the end of war, countries, hate, and most importantly money.  

Images & Stereotypes

             In our world of technology and mass exposure, a trend of what people (especially women) should look like has been poisoning our minds. Unrealistic expectations of self image are not only helping to control what consumers are demanding, but also causing severe emotional and physcological damage. Generalized assumtions and stereotypes are commonplace giving rise to eating disorders, self loathing tendencies, bullying, and even deaths/suicides related to and direct results of the images that advertising companies want us to see. Why spend so much time and effort creating a desire to be something that is not attainable. Look at the video below and see the "magic" of photoshop and then the next time you're looking at a magazine remember that it isn't real.

The Current Situation Concerning Police in America

              A very hot subject for many people is the police shooting of a young man in Ferguson, Mo. Over the years there have been many suspects that were shot and killed by police officers. The question/topic on everyone's mind seems to be, "Did the police really have to KILL that person?"
              My respect and understanding for what police officers do is unquestionable. Having someone in my family work as an undercover policeman definitely put things into perspective. Police officers have families that they want to go home to, and many times even a routine traffic violation can turn into a life threatening situation. So I get it, police officers risk their lives to help keep our streets safer... but aren't there rules on what they are allowed and not allowed to do? Is it really necessary to shoot a suspect in the head when an officer is fully trained and capable to shoot them in the leg and properly subdue the antagonist?
              Granted, if a suspect makes a move for an officers gun the said officer has only a quick moment to react and protect him/herself. It's so hard to draw the lines sometimes. What do you think?

Guns, War, & Honor

           In the beginning of civilization, disputes often came to an unavoidable conclusion. Originally the two opposing forces would gather their best warriors, post up on a field and fight until the last man was standing. As upsetting that the two sides could not come to some sort of diplomatic solution was, the loss of human life was overwhelmingly more tragic. But this system of testing a collectives ideals and battling until defeat had it's positives. Warriors had to have the conviction to carry out his duty for the cause of his/her ideals, country, and countrymen. It is in this that I feel that modern weapons and warfare are inferior.
            Any coward with enough fear and malice in their heart can pull a trigger. There aren't any warriors but only assassins, trained to kill and follow orders. Why not then settle current problems and tensions between countries fairly and ethically. If there is going to be a war, select 500 of each countries best warriors and without weapons assemble at a battleground. Last person standing wins... It would sure beat the current system involving, thousands, even hundreds of thousands of lives lost. I understand it is within everyones rights to "bare arms", but at what cost? I dunno, I might just be rambling...