An Educational Voyage!

Flashcards: The world's largest library of printable flash cards

2007-04-12T22:44:00.000-04:00

What a great study resource. There are two membership levels. Yes, a free membership will not let you download or print your custom cards. But, just practicing is valuable. You decide:

Flashcards: The world's largest library of printable flash cards

FYI:

The Service

Flashcards are study tools. Think of a small 3×5 index card with a question on one side and an answer on the other side. This web site is an internet application where you can create, study, print and download flashcards. See the introduction for more details.

The Company

Flashcard Exchange founded in January 2001 by Culley Harrelson. Since that time the web site has grown into a thriving community of educators, students and all types of enthusiastic learners. Culley still owns and maintains the web site. He does all of the development, answers all the emails and pays all the bills. He lives in northern California with his family. In January 2005 Culley formed Tuolumne Technology Group, Inc. to encompass Flashcard Exchange and his consulting business.

~JRY

Visit: The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet UFT Instruction

BBC - Science & Nature - Human Body and Mind - TV Programmes - Human Senses

2007-04-01T02:33:00.000-04:00

The BBC, well known for it's great educational television, has a terrific TV program in it's Science & Nature section.

BBC - Science & Nature - Human Body and Mind -
TV Programmes - Human Senses

Are you a supertaster?
Does everything on the menu sound unappealing or delicious? Take our test to find out if you're a supertaster.
Supertaster | Science of Supertasters

Sniffing the decades
See if we can predict which decade you were born in from the smells that remind you of your childhood.
Sniffing the Decades | Nostalgic smells

Nervous system game
Wire up the body parts to the correct nerves in our nervous system game.
Nervous System Game

Brain map
Use our brain map to navigate your way to the part of your brain you use to see.
Brain Map

The above is just a sample of what they have to offer. Enjoy!

~JRY

Visit: The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet Instruction

200+ Titles in Memorization Software, Reviewed

2007-04-01T01:34:00.000-04:00

This is a nice site that reviews software, free and for pay, to help you memorize information. Most are in flash card format. However, this site gives a pretty fair description of the formats offered by each program. Some of the links are dead, but this site is still very worth look!

200+ Titles in Memorization Software, Reviewed

~JRY

Visit: The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet UFT Instruction

Illegal Immigration

2007-04-01T01:03:00.000-04:00

The Median Sib has a very interesting article on Illegal Immigration. It would be nice to be able to let anyone, from anywhere hop over the fence and grab a little piece of the American Dream for themselves, but it is just not that simple. So hop over to The Median Sib and broaden your horizons.

~JRY

Visit: The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet UFT Instruction New York City

Check out the 60th Carnival of Homeschooling!

2007-02-20T20:55:00.000-05:00

The 60th Carnival of Homeschooling is up here: http://homeschoolhacks.com/2007/02/20/carnival-of-homeschooling-60-presidential-trivia. Make sure to check it out. There are loads of great posts this week.

Enjoy!

~JRY

Visit: The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet UFT Instruction New York City

The 106th Carnival of Education is up!

2007-02-14T21:34:00.000-05:00

The 106th Carnival of Education is up and running for all to review: http://educationwonk.blogspot.com/2007/02/carnival-of-education-week-106.html A Valentine must read!

Enjoy!

~JRY

Visit: The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet Instruction

Guidance Counselors- Not Just For Struggling Students Anymore!

2007-02-13T17:27:00.000-05:00

Bobby Pham of www.jobprofiles.org referred me to the following article (snippet below,) which I find rather interesting.

Back in my day, the only students who went to the Guidance Counselor were those who needed program changes, were "referred" by teachers or Deans, or who needed college admissions help. The rich kids had their own private shrinks, the ones with really big problems had their juvi parole officers.

Today, the modern health conscious high school student (yes, there are some,) has another reason to go to the guidance counselor- for guidance! Peer pressure, being worse (if possible) than in my day, leaves teens in quandries where parents and friends are not necessarily the student's preferred sources of information. Stress causes various physical and emotional problems, and so the wise student seeks to remove stress wherever possible.

Enter the Guidance Counselor. For more on this topic read on:

44 Reasons to Listen to Your High School Guidance Counselor

44 Reasons to Listen to Your High School Guidance Counselor

Published on Friday January 5th , 2007

"Whether you realize it or not, you local high school guidance counselor plays a very important role in your life. Not just as a counselor, but as a life guide. They instill stability within the high school student's path of life, and also provide a much-needed light for their path. High school guidance counselors are truly the eyes and ears for students for every preparatory educational institution."

www.jobprofiles.org is a good starting point for information on careers, and job seeking, maintaining and advancement.

When you are ready for more information, try these links:

School Counselor Resources
Counselor Companion
School counselor - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
School Guidance Counselors
The American Counseling Association

Enjoy!

~JRY

Visit: The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet guidance, guidance counselor, peer pressure, high school

NUMB3RS-We All Use Math Every Day!

2007-02-05T15:34:00.000-05:00

I clearly remember sitting in geometry class bemoaning my fate, having to spend 40 minutes a day learning Pythagorean theory. When would any one ever have to use this stuff? I had better things to so with my time, like, um, anything else! No doubt there are many such musings going on in high schools across the USA this very day. How do we reach these students and bring math to life? Yes, you guessed it, TELEVISION!

Humbug you say? Relax. The ole boob tube has another winner for us. The TV show NUMB3RS rises to the occasion, paired with Texas Instruments. Read on...

***** We All Use Math Every Day - Home

I've loved the CBS TV show NUMB3RS from it's first episode. I'm hooked to the point that I replay it during the week to glean as much from it as my weak math mind can get. I even mused on how cool it would be to have a web site that spun off it to help students understand how We All Use Math Every Day.

Well, Texas Instruments read my mind and stole my idea through cosmic telepathy. On the up side, they probably did a better job of it than I would have :)

"Texas Instruments is proud to be again partnering with CBS, in association with the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM), to bring you educational resources based on the hit series "NUMB3RS." You'll find great classroom activities based on the mathematics from each episode, as well as the inside scoop on the program and the people behind it.
You can begin by viewing any of this week's activities, or using the tabs to find more resources. And, make sure to come back for new information and activities each week."

Teachers can use a special link on the site to download the current week's episode to show in class, and then use activities provided on the site. This is great for classrooms and homeschooling alike.

Bill Nye, The Science Guy demonstrates how math and science work together when he guest stars on the television show NUMB3RS. Nye portrays a professor at Cal Sci who helps Charlie and Dr. Larry Fleinhart recreate a backdraft in order to help the FBI determine who has been starting a series of deadly fires in LA.

The theme music is an arrangement of an excerpt from the song "Once In A Lifetime" by the '80s band Talking Heads.

Check out Wikipedia's NUMB3RS Entries!

Oh, just in case you are looking to get really obsessed with the show, you'll be pleased to know that it has a HUGE following, with web sites and forums that dissect each show, parody them, an in addition to the CBS show pages, also offer replays. Hooked? Do a Google!

Here are a few of my picks for How We All Use Math Every Day!

* Apples4theteacher.com

This web site includes interactive learning games, quizzes, and worksheet generator tools by subject (creative arts, foreign languages, language arts, math, science, social studies), articles, literacy coloring pages and more.

* Math help from Math Goodies

They have provided free interactive lessons, worksheets and puzzles since 1998. Math Goodies was a pioneer of free math homework help.

* Math in Daily Life

This site explores how math can help us in our daily lives. In this exhibit, you'll look at the language of numbers through common situations, such as playing games or cooking. Put your decision-making skills to the test by deciding whether buying or leasing a new car is right for you, and predict how much money you can save for your retirement by using an interest calculator.

*Everyday Math Resources

The Center School District has adopted the Everyday Math Series for grades K-5. Interactive Resources (these are demos, but worth checking out!)

*LESD VTC:Using the Internet in Mathematics Instruction

National Library of Virtual Manipulatives for Interactive Math An ... Everyday Math Resources — This site has resources for grades K-5 organized by strand.

* Math-Net Links: Collection math.edu

Goodies is a From elementary and everyday math to algebra and beyond, Math.com offers ...free educational site featuring free interactive math lessons.

* MathRoom Freebies

Learning math from MathRoom Lessons will be easier and more fun than you ever imagined it could be. Every lesson comes with clear user instructions called "The MathRoom Method". Follow the instructions carefully and you can't help but succeed! It may sound like madness at first, but if you try it -- you'll see it works!

Please leave your comments links to web sites you think bring math to life!

~JRY

Visit: The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet NUMB3RS, math, mathematics, education tv instruction, learning interactive web site

The 104th Carnival of Education is Up!

2007-02-01T20:18:00.000-05:00

The 104th Carnival of Education

The Median Sib did beautiful work on this carnival! They've been Blogrolled!

Enjoy the great articles everyone. I'm looking forward to next weeks offerings :)

~JRY

Visit: The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet Instruction Carnival of Education

Battle Over School Bus Service in New York - New York Times

2007-02-01T01:28:00.000-05:00

Way to Go Bloomberg!

Children first? According to Bloomberg?

Does = ?

Put the tiniest, most helpless children on public transportation- and in the freezing cold. I guess this is why Mayor Bloomberg felt he was the best person in NYC to be in "complete charge" of the NYC Dept of Education. He has done such a great job, that it the DOE) needs to be completely revamped again, or should I say reinvented (as in the wheel) again. The money this city has dished out to reinventing, and reinventing, and reinventing, instead of taking what works and building on it is disgraceful. The company that was selected by Mayor B, with tax payer money, did some bamboozle of a job on our children. I hope they get letters in their files!

Yes, you guessed it, the children are, as usual, not first.

Oy...

Battle Over School Bus Service in New York - New York Times

By DAVID M. HERSZENHORN and ELISSA GOOTMAN

Published: February 1, 2007

"It seemed like an easy way to save millions of dollars: consolidate yellow school bus routes so New York City was no longer paying for buses for hundreds, if not thousands, of children who never actually rode them.

But when the plan — engineered by private consultants hired to rethink the city Education Department’s finances — went into effect this week, halfway through the school year and in the bitter cold, it left parents raging at Schools Chancellor Joel I. Klein and Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg.
“I think they’re in their own little bubble-world,” said Jennifer M. Larrea, a substitute teacher from Flushing, Queens, whose son, Kevin, 11, is being denied yellow bus service because he lives too far from a school bus stop. “It’s not just that you can catch the 1, the 9, the 2, the 3,” she said, referring to Manhattan subway lines. “In Queens that’s not an option.”

Let's compound the insult by not even sending notification home in the parent's native language, and you have cold, indifferent treatment of students and their parents. Kind hearted Mayor Mike. Please fix this travesty.

~JRY

Visit: The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers UFT Instruction New York City

Bloomberg vs UFT- Again...The Saga Continues!

2007-02-01T01:18:00.000-05:00

The Bloomberg battle colors are flying against the UFT again.

Did anyone see this coming? Those on Mars may not be up to speed on this one, but the rest of NYC knows the upcoming drill. See my post: Proposed Contract- Death Knoll for UFT- Ms. Weingarten RESIGN now! Monday, October 03, 2005

Given Weingarten's proven track record of contract negotiating skills this blogger has barely a glimmer of hope for fair play.

What will the future hold?

Will Randii improve on her past performance?
Will the teachers wake up and smell the rot?
Will the teachers teach all of July or all of August?
Will the teachers be signed up for 24 hour school?
Will they be changing diapers in addition to potty duty?
Will they be cooking and serving breakfast, lunch, dinner and midnight snack in addition to lunchroom duty?
Will our teachers be required to learn how to drive school busses?
When it is all over, will Randii land a kiss on Bloomberg again?

Well, let's just sit back a watch this one fly...

~JRY

Visit: The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers UFT Instruction New York City

FREE -- Federal Resources for Educational Excellence

2007-02-01T00:51:00.000-05:00

FREE -- Federal Resources for Educational Excellence
http://www.free.ed.gov/

This site is chock full of terrific interactive resources for students. Their description is:

"FREE makes it easier to find teaching and learning resources from the federal government.

More than 1,500 federally supported teaching and learning resources are included from dozens of federal agencies. New sites are added regularly.

You are invited to link to FREE. (Use a FREE logo, if you'd like).

Get new resources delivered to you several times a week: sign up for the FREE RSS.

Federal agencies, if you're looking to involve teachers in developing teaching resources, see our lessons learned.

FREE was originally conceived in 1997 by a federal working group and launched a year later. It was redesigned and relaunched for the first time in November 2006.

The 2006 redesign was made possible by many, including Jerry Alexandratos, Rob Barthle, Sally Budd, Rob Duckwall, Andrew Miller, Simone Miranda Olson, Cory Lebson, Jennifer Reeves, Chhavi Sharma, Keith Stubbs, Joe Wang, David Zwack, and teachers who reviewed the site.

FREE is maintained by Peter Kickbush and Kirk Winters, Office of Communications and Outreach, with support from the Development Services Team in the Office of the Chief Information Officer, U.S. Department of Education.

Please send any comments or questions to us at FREE@ed.gov.

FREE is among the most popular K-12 websites maintained by the U.S. Department of Education because of the many great resources being offered by participating federal agencies."

~JRY

Visit: The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine
Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet Instruction

57th Carnival of Homeschooling is Up!

2007-01-31T10:01:00.000-05:00

Thanks to Ann at PalmTree Pundit, the 57th Carnival of Homeschooling is up! It has terrific articles. Enjoy!

~JRY

Visit: The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet Instruction Carnival of Homeschooling

MERLOT - Multimedia Educational Resource for Learning and Online Teaching

2007-01-30T14:50:00.000-05:00

MERLOT - Multimedia Educational Resource for Learning and Online Teaching
http://www.merlot.org/

"MERLOT is a leading edge, user-centered, searchable collection of peer reviewed, higher education, online learning materials created by registered members, and a set of faculty development support services. MERLOT's vision is to be a premiere online community where faculty, staff, and students from around the world share their learning materials and pedagogy.

MERLOT's strategic goal is to improve the effectiveness of teaching and learning by increasing the quantity and quality of peer reviewed online learning materials that can be easily incorporated into faculty designed courses.

MERLOT’s activities are based on the creative participation and support of:

• Individual Members

• Institutional Partners

• Corporate Partners

• Editorial Boards

Integral to MERLOT’s continuing development of faculty development support services are its:

• Building and sustaining online academic communities.

• Online learning initiatives and policies

• Building, organizing, reviewing, and developing applications of online teaching-learning materials

MERLOT maintains its currency through ongoing and continuing communication with its worldwide supporters in a variety of ways, including the annual MERLOT International Conference, the Journal of Online Learning and Teaching (JOLT), member publications, news, and its award winning website."

~JRY

Visit: The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine
Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet Instruction

102nd Carnival of Education..Woo-Hoo!

2007-01-18T01:32:00.000-05:00

Dr Homeslice made his debut this week, hosting the Carnival of Education. Very interesting post were submitted which kept me up til the wee hours. Great job. Check it out!

102nd Carnival of Education..Woo-Hoo!

~JRY

Visit: The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet Instruction Carnival of Education

Woodlands Homework Help for Primary Kids

2007-01-17T16:30:00.000-05:00

Woodlands Homework Help for Primary Kids
http://www.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/Homework/index.html

The Woodlands Junior School, Hunt Road Tonbridge Kent UK, offers this site with engaging help for students. This is definitely worth checking out!

Enjoy!

~JRY

Visit: The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine
Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet Instruction

7 Red Math Problem of the Day

2007-01-14T12:55:00.000-05:00

7 Red Math Problem of the Day
http://www.highland.madison.k12.il.us/jbasden/pods/

Dozens of daily math puzzles from 1998-1999. Fortunately, math is still the same so an old page is still a great page. :)

Enjoy!

~JRY

Visit: The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine
Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet Instruction

Substitute teacher convicted in school computer porn case - Boston.com

2007-01-11T21:50:00.000-05:00

Substitute teacher convicted in school computer porn case - Boston.com

"Substitute teacher convicted in school computer porn case January 9, 2007 NORWICH, Conn. --A substitute teacher in the Norwich school system is facing up to 40 years in prison after being convicted of exposing students to pornography on a computer at the school.
Julie Amero, 40, of Windham, was convicted Friday on four counts of risk of injury to a minor in connection to pornography the students saw on her computer screen.
Prosecutors said sexually graphic computer images she accessed were seen by several of her Kelly Middle School students in October 2004.
During the trial, Amero said any inappropriate images on her computer screen were from adware, which can generate pop-up ads and not from sites specifically keyed.
Prosecutor David Smith contended Amero physically clicked onto the graphic Web sites, which included meetlovers.com and femalesexual.com.
Sentencing has been set for March 2 in Superior Court.

The Education Wonks has a nice discussion on this. Check it out.

My thoughts are:

The issue is an issue because some folks are dazed with their EYES WIDE OPEN GLIMMERING WITH $$$$$$$$$!

As one who has taught technology in the school system, I can tell you first hand, that there are MANY teachers who are computer-phobic. Some do not even know how to turn it on or off. There should be staff development for teachers who are not versed in educational computer technology, not finger pointing. Staff development given last year does not help a new teacher or a substitute this year.

These pron sites are very clever and just visiting whitehouse.com can get you in a mess. No one in that school had to do anything wrong for this to have happened. The system servers should have been active with constantly updated strong filters. That will help, but if someone brings in a data disk that is already infected, it can do it's damage before any one knows there is a problem.

This is in my opinion, parents looking for an easy class action buck, and/or administrators willing to sell out the teacher for their own protection and/or prosecutors looking to get their name in print. jurys are not always given the full information they need to make a fair decision, and some jurys are just not too sharp. Jury's like lotto tickets, you just can't count on divine intervention. It's the luck of the draw. Future teachers beware- sadly, it is not going to get any better.

Bottom line, I think this should be a learning experience for all involved, and move on

Those are my thoughts, what are yours?

~JRY

Visit: The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Instruction

The 101st Edition of the Carnival of Education!

2007-01-11T18:31:00.000-05:00

Read: The 101st Edition of the Carnival of Education!

I Thought a Think 's Ryan, did a terrific job this week. I particularly enjoyed, and I quote Ryan:

"Right Wing Prof pops up at Kitchen Table Math talking about his experience tutoring in math. If you care about the math wars or have an opinion about math curriculum, this is a critical post."

What is your fav?

~JRY

Visit: The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet Instruction Carnival of Education

100th Edition of the Carnival of Education is Up!

2007-01-04T23:12:00.000-05:00

100th Edition of the Carnival of Education

This is the first Carnival of Education for 2007, and it is a great kick off for the new year! This High School teacher in Southwestern Arizona (Teaching in the Twenty-First Century ) did an outstanding job.

Kudos all around for the wonderful submissions!

Read it and learn something new this year!

~JRY

Visit: The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet Instruction Carnival of Education

The 99th Carnival of Education is Up!

2006-12-30T23:27:00.000-05:00

The 99th Carnival of Education is a very interesting read this week, and I might add, a nice way to end the Carnival for 2006. It is hard to believe it was put together so well considering the hectic time of year it is. Thanks for a terrific read.

This week's host is a blog you definitely should check out regularly:

Right on the Left Coast: Views From a Conservative Teacher

~JRY

Visit: The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet Instruction Carnival of Education

Host a Charlotte’s Web World Reading Record Attempt Event!

2006-12-05T00:22:00.000-05:00

Courtesy of Karen Northon of Creative Response Concepts:

Break a World Reading Record

with

Charlotte’s Web

Love Charlotte’s Web?

Love to read?

Help break a world record!

Celebrate one of the most beloved children’s books of all time

by hosting a Charlotte’s Web World Reading Record Attempt Event!

On Wednesday, Dec. 13 starting at 12pm EST join longtime and
new fans of Charlotte’s Web to read aloud the passage in which

Charlotte and Wilbur meet for the first time.

Sign up at www.walden.com and download detailed instructions,

an event guide, reproducible activity sheets and registration forms

with information and tips to join the national attempt.

~JRY

Visit: The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet Instruction

The Open Video Project

2006-12-03T02:51:00.000-05:00

The Open Video Project is a wonderful resource for researches on a vast spectrum of digital libraries:

Anticipating a future with widespread access to large digital libraries of video, a great deal of research is currently focused on many areas related to digital video. Research in these areas requires that each investigator acquire and digitize video for their studies since the multimedia information retrieval community does not yet have a standard collection of video to be used for research purposes.

The purpose of the Open Video Project is to collect and make available a repository of digitized video content for the digital video, multimedia retrieval, digital library, and other research communities. Researchers can use the video to study a wide range of problems, such as tests of algorithms for automatic segmentation, summarization, and creation of surrogates that describe video content; the development of face recognition algorithms; or creating and evaluating interfaces that display result sets from multimedia queries. Because researchers attempting to solve similar problems will have access to the same video content, the repository is also intended to be used as a test collection that will enable systems to be compared, similar to the way the TREC conferences are used for text retrieval.

This repository is hosted as one of the first channels of the Internet 2 Distributed Storage Infrastructure Initiative, a project that supports distributed repository hosting for research and education in the Internet 2 community.

~JRY
The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet

The Annenberg Channel

2006-11-19T09:48:00.000-05:00

Annenberg Media: The Annenberg Channel

The Annenberg Channel is a gift from heaven for schools. Pass it on!

The Annenberg Channel is a free satellite channel for schools, colleges, libraries, public broadcasting stations, public access channels, and other non-commercial community agencies. It runs 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and airs the video programs funded by Annenberg Media. It is available free to any agency with a Ku-band satellite dish and a DigiCipher II satellite receiver.

~JRY
The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet

UFT Salary Deal is Buzzing on the Blogs!

2006-11-14T22:55:00.000-05:00

If you want to read some of the buzz, check out these blogs:

Ice-UFT
NYC Educator
Take Back the UFT
Edwise
The UTP Blog

If you have blog post on the new contract proposal, not listed above, please add it with your comment!

~JRY

Visit: The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet UFT Instruction New York City

Do You Know How To.... Video Jug Does!

2006-11-12T03:12:00.000-05:00

The coolest how to video site to date is Video Jug! It is made up of videos posted by viewers of all interests with how to's! This ia a delightfully addictive site, and, educational to boot!

Among the oodles of things to learn, try these for starters:

How to turn water into ice

How to perform the rolling cigarette trick

How to perform the coin flip trick

How to do a maths magic trick

How to perform the cup and balls trick

Ain't learnin' fun? Let me know what you think!

~JRY

Visit: The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet UFT Instruction New York City

New UFT Contract Bamboozle! THINK before you vote! REALLY THINK!

2006-11-08T23:42:00.000-05:00

We now have the newest of Randi's twisted contract goodies. Remember the pathetic, not even a cost of living contract you are living under now? Well ask yourself:

Can history repeat itself?

You MUST read this post from ICEUFT's Blog:

Tentative UFT/DOE 2007-2009 Contract at a Glance
Duration
Oct 13, 2007 to Oct 31, 2009 (2 years 18 days) 4 months 13 days longer than DC 37 Settlement

Givebacks from Last Contract Remain in Full Force
No improvements in teaching or learning conditions.
Hall and Cafeteria duty remains.
No ability to grieve unfair/inaccurate material in personnel files.
No ability to grieve unfair/inaccurate observation reports.
37.5 minute small group instruction period continues four days a week.
Longest school year in the region with 190 days continues that includes school in Aug.
Transfers for teachers subject to whims of principals.
Excessed teachers have no right for placement in a vacancy.
Teachers from schools that are closed or redesigned have no rights to be placed in a vacancy.
Members accused of certain acts are still guilty until proven innocent & can be suspended without pay.

Wages and Benefits
$750 one-time lump sum payment on Jan 2, 2007
2% effective Oct. 13, 2007
5% effective May 19, 2008
0% final seventeen months and twelve days of the Agreement
New five year longevity: $1,000 for teachers with 5-9 years experience and $500 for paras starts May 19, 2007
Direct Deposit for all new employees.
With this agreement UFT member salaries have increased at roughly the same rate as every other city employee over the last thirty years except we are working ten percent more time for 10% extra..
Increase in city contribution to our Welfare Fund to allow a $1,000 per family annual drug co-pay cap.
Per session activity maximums increase by twelve sessions.
Secretaries and Lab specialists hired after July 1, 1985 are eligible for restoration of health sabbatical leaves.
Transit-Chek program extended to include LIRR, LI MTA buses and Metro-North.

Healthcare & Pension Negotiations Incomplete
According to the November 7, 2006 NY Times, Bloomberg wants “separate talks aimed at achieving crucial savings on health care and pension costs, which have climbed in recent years.”
Contract assigns to the Municipal Labor Committee a “blank check” to negotiate cost containment initiatives and program modifications to City Health Benefits Program that are not subject to our approval.
If MLC agrees with Mayor, UFT members will not vote on any potential mandatory health care contributions. (Transit workers were able to vote on whether or not to contribute 1.5% of their salary for health benefits.)

They’re Giving us Sand in the Desert Provisions
If charges of corporal punishment or verbal abuse are not substantiated, UFT members won’t get a letter for the file. Currently, members should not get a file letter if charges are not substantiated.
New paperwork reduction committee on top of the two that already exist in Article 8I.
New Peer Intervention program (we already have one); new PIP is not confidential and can be used in 3020A.

Voluntary Buy-outs for Excessed Staff
The DOE may offer a voluntary severance package (the amount of which still must be decided) to all excessed personnel who have not secured regular assignments after a year. Excessed staff who accept the package must resign or retire “irrevocably”.

Read the original post with comments here: http://iceuftblog.blogspot.com/2006/11/tentative-uftdoe-2007-2009-contract-at.html

~JRY

Visit: The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet UFT Instruction New York City

FREE Teacher Digital Workshops

2006-09-15T22:47:00.000-04:00

Calling all teachers!

Brush up, learn something new, and get it for FREE!

FREE Teacher Digital Workshops

FREE Teacher Digital Workshops from The U.S. Department of Education's Teacher-to-Teacher Initiative: Supporting Success is an effort to assist our nation's teachers through digital workshops, roundtables, regional in-person workshops, a national Research-to-Practice Summit, and electronic teacher updates. The Department is providing an unprecedented $5.1 billion in federal funding to support the teaching profession and is committed to listening to and learning from teachers.

Participating in the Teacher-to-Teacher online video courses is free. It is just another way the U.S. Department of Education is supporting teachers to achieve the goals of the No Child Left Behind Act.

The Teacher-to-Teacher workshops are geared toward K-12 teachers and their principals. While the emphasis is on reading, writing, mathematics, and the use of data, there are also offerings in art, history, science, and behavior management. It is expected that additional courses will be added at regular intervals.

While the emphasis on reading, writing, and mathematics will continue, there will be an expanded focus on other areas of need such as school leadership and foreign language.

~JRY
The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet UFT Instruction New York City

~JRY

Visit: The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet NCLB Instruction New York City

Teaching Carnival #11

2006-09-15T00:08:00.000-04:00

WorkBook has done a fine job on this current offering from the Teaching Carnival!

There is a huge eclectic assortment of educational topics covered by very interesting bloggers. You can read it here: WorkBook: teaching carnival #11

~JRY
The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet Instruction Teaching-Carnival

The 84th Carnival of Education is Hot off the Press!

2006-09-14T22:00:00.000-04:00

The 84th Carnival of Education is delightful this week. The Current Events in Education did it newspaper style. There are great posts from some new folks and it definitely worth the read! Enjoy The 84th Carnival of Education!

~JRY

Visit: The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet Instruction Carnival of Education

Teacher, Teach Thy Self!- A New Blogger

2006-09-14T21:34:00.000-04:00

A warm welcome to: Teacher, Teach Thy Self! She has a great blog set up and intriguing posts.

Her recent post: Teacher, Teach Thy Self!: Digital Narratives For College Entrance?, envisions wonderful applications for student potcasts.

Check it out!

~JRY
The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine
Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet Instruction

September 11, 2001: What We Saw - A Video

2006-09-13T03:49:00.000-04:00

A documentarian video taped the World Trade Center attack from her living room- with the TV audio in the background as she was taping. It is sad to watch this, but we all must remember the event and work hard to see that nothing like this happens again- ever!

You can watch it here:

Revver

~JRY
The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet UFT Instruction New York City

Are You Prepared?

2006-09-12T01:49:00.000-04:00

Are you prepared?

This web site was created by the

http://www.72hours.org/

obviously for the residents of San Francisco. However the simple gui interface, makes it a great tool for teachers and individuals to learn how to prepare for a myriad of emergencies. Click on the links below to:

PRINT ENTIRE SITE (PDF)

KEEP ME INFORMED

EMAIL THIS SITE TO A FRIEND

ASK A QUESTION

CITY EMERGENCY PLAN
"In a major disaster, it might be several days before vital services are restored.
San Francisco is exposed to a wide variety of hazards, both natural and man-made. Earthquakes, fires, severe storms, power outages, and acts of terrorism are just some of the potential emergencies we may encounter.

Imagine that you have no electricity, no gas, no water and no telephone service. Imagine that all the businesses are closed and you are without any kind of emergency services. What will you do until help arrives?
Click on the buttons to the right to find out how you can prepare yourself and your family for an emergency. You can also learn what to do in response to a specific disaster, like a tsunami, just in case."

~JRY
The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet Emergency Preparedness Instruction San Francisco

THEWEBLIST.net | what people are clicking on today

2006-09-12T01:47:00.000-04:00

What sites are active right now? What is going on at digg.com, del.icio.us or news.google.com, newsvine, reddit, furl.net, shoulwire.com, wired.com, fark.com, theregister.com, metafilter.com, news.com, and dzone.com? Find out right now. Click here:

THEWEBLIST.net | what people are clicking on today

"What is THEWEBLIST.NET all about? Well it gives you a digest of the latest links other web users are visiting right now! The site pulls RSS feeds from some of the best web 2.0 sites to create a webpage full of interesting info! Where did I get the idea? Well this site is based on the extremely popular popurls.com, basically all the credit for the idea should go to the guy who designed this site (Thomas Marban) because its amazing. However I do want to try and improve the site, and overtime I will be adding new features to the website taking in your comments and suggestions. I just love the idea of having loads of up-to-date information right at your fingertips, its great!"
...The Developer of
THEWEBLIST.net

~JRY

Visit: The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet

Ask Yahoo! Why? Yahoo Answers!

2006-09-12T01:45:00.000-04:00

Do you have a queston to ask, on anything? Do you have a homework problem? Well the answer is only a few keystrokes away!

Just...

Do you lie awake at night wondering how much money the Pope makes or the name of the first dog in space? Sleep easy -- ask Yahoo!. To submit a question, just fill in a form.

On the page the image-link above opens, in 110 letters or less (spaces count) ask your question. You will get an answer from a real person. You can also ask by email or with a special toolbar. You can even subscribe to a news feed!

And the answer is.....

~JRY
The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine
Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet Instruction

September 11, 2001 Remembered

2006-09-11T16:19:00.000-04:00

May you know no more sorrow.

~JRY
The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! New York City

City’s Lawyers Say Mayor Can’t Control Class Sizes???

2006-09-11T10:22:00.000-04:00

Wow! Who would have thought that Mayor Bloomberg couldn't control the DOE? I was fooled...

City’s Lawyers Say Mayor Can’t Control Class Sizes - New York Times

By ANEMONA HARTOCOLLIS
Published: September 7, 2006

Lawyers for Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg told an appeals court yesterday that the mayor did not have the authority to force the school system to reduce class sizes.

The claim came during a hearing in a case in which parents and teachers are trying to put a referendum on the ballot to force the mayor to hire more teachers and reduce the class sizes in city schools. They argue that smaller classes, in line with those in much of the rest of the state, are the best way to improve education for city students.

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers UFT Instruction New York City Mayor Bloomberg

Day 1 and Really Almost All is Well...

2006-09-05T20:23:00.000-04:00

Well the phone calls, instant messages, and emails have been flooding in and mostly everyone is overwhelmed, again, by the demands and tomes of beyond belief non-negotiables of administration, in addition to just trying to get students settled in and classes running smoothly. This means, that you are not alone!

Do what you can do for now and the rest will fall into place. Remember that unfortunately, cosmetics rule. Supervisors who walk into neat classroom with the required bulletin board stuff, etc. are more likely to move on quickly, and go harass someone else. So make sure you put some solid effort on your room presentation.

Above all, take deep breaths, smile as often as you can (it is good for your mood) and make time for your own brand of R&R. Keep up your energy and take time to smell the roses, enjoy family and friends, read a book....

~JRY
The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet Instruction New York City

A Healthy, Safe and Successful School Year to All!

2006-09-04T23:38:00.000-04:00

I want to take this post to give ever teacher stepping back into the classroom a great year!

Your task is daunting, and as usual, you will teach your hearts off. Teachers are:

caring
parents in absentia
psychologists
mediators
planners
expediters
referees
cheer leaders
consolers
way over worked
underpaid
Dedicated -Worthy - and Deserve Respect...

We salute you!

As you enter the teaching arena, keep your eyes open, and at meetings, keep your mouth shut- unless you really know that your opinion is sought. Usually no one in administration cares about anyone's opinion unless it mirrors theirs. Remember that most of the petty little memos are not really from your supervisor- it is all trickle down stuff from Tweed and your Region (in that order.) Go with the flow. Just close your door and do your job.

Remember: The Know Nothings are great at pointing fingers and compaining about how teachers are not good enough, fast enough, smart enough, and professional enough. So next time some fool points a finger your way, think about who they really are and where they are really coming from before you go home and lose a dearly needed night's sleep!

Teachers are special and the smart folks know it. So take your vitamins, read great books, enjoy your weekends and holidays, get enough sleep, and have a great smooth school year. You deserve it!

~JRY
The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Instruction

A Teacher’s Year, a C.E.O.’s Day: The Pay’s Similar

2006-09-04T23:10:00.000-04:00

Amen. The UFT leadership should read this. It would help them understand how badly they betrayed membership. Then again, we need to remember that leadership does not have much time served in the classroom, so it is understandable why it is hard for them to relate to the frontline soldiers real jobs. If leadership does not respect teachers, it is easy to see how lack of respect for teachers and what they do gets transferred to the general public. Kudos to Mr. Herring for seeing past it all!

A Teacher’s Year, a C.E.O.’s Day: The Pay’s Similar

By HUBERT B. HERRING
Published: September 3, 2006

"Enough already on how many millions this or that chief executive earns, how many stock options are tossed around to keep the Champagne flowing, the McMansion dusted, the Bentley polished.
As a little back-to-school thought, let’s shift gears to a group of workers who earn pennies in comparison but who, it could be argued, play at least as vital a role in society. It is teachers, after all, who try to make sure that those captains of industry have educated workers.
According to the American Federation of Teachers, the state with the highest average pay for teachers in 2003-04 was Connecticut, at $56,516; the lowest was South Dakota, at $33,236.
Or look at it this way: Pick a corporate chieftain — say, Jeffrey R. Immelt of General Electric. He earns $15.4 million a year. Every single day — including Thanksgiving and Christmas — he makes almost what the average teacher does for a year of taming wild children, staying up nights planning lessons, and, really, helping to shape a generation."
UFT MEMBERS- remember this next time you vote!

~JRY
The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers UFT Instruction New York City Excessed UFT Teachers

UFT Web Site Ignores Excessed Teacher's Woes

2006-09-04T03:45:00.000-04:00

Hello? UFT? Hello? You hoo...

Is anyone home?????????

Is anyone working for membership? Take a look at the UFT homepage. They are WAITING for the language of the contract to be explained to them. Gee, a SMART negotiator would have had the words stated clearly BEFORE telling membership to trust her and vote for the contract!

The United Federation of Teachers - A Union of Professionals

The link on the bottom of the UFT web site...

goes to this useless page:

Note that in the description it says:
"Cannot have worked as a full-time teacher
in New York City public schools at
any time since September 2002"

Randi, you could at least pretend to care. Come on, throw out a token of effort to help them. Is your deafening silence because you simply consider them expendable?

These folks voted you in! You owe them! Fight for them! Communicate with them. Now! They pay your salary remember? Please.

Well, you still have your job, huh...

~JRY
The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers UFT Instruction New York City Excessed UFT Teachers

Thanks Randi: ONLINE EXCESSED STAFF SELECTION SYSTEM

2006-09-02T18:37:00.000-04:00

BETRAYED by Randi Weingarten and UNITY! This was totally unnecessary until Randi sold everyone out:

ONLINE EXCESSED STAFF SELECTION SYSTEM:
This site is for use by current UFT EXCESSED STAFF ONLY

Note that you gave up your job security for a few cents by voting in the contract Randi pushed. Remember this photo of Randi kissing Bloomberg? Touching isn't it?

Sites for those seeking teaching positions now:

Teachers Support Network

Craigslist for Teaching Jobs

NYTimes Job Listing for Teaching

Note this tactful "paid double" ad by the NYCDOE for NEW teachers- ("NO TEACHING EXPERIENCE REQUIRED") after excessing experienced teachers.

ALERT: There seems to be a new crop of web sites that want you pay and join in order to view job openings. Be cautious- caveat emptor!

Closing thoughts: Randi Weingarten, you are really something. What? I leave that to those whose lives you ruined to say...

~JRY
The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Randi Weingarten Computers and Internet UFT Instruction New York City

Welcome to Tammy's MATH ROOM

2006-08-21T17:54:00.000-04:00

It was my great fortune, many years ago (no I won't say how many) to connect with a brilliant and talented gal from Quebec named Tammy the Tutor. She recently found my contact info on the Internet and called me to catch up on life. Talk about a blast from the past!

Long story short, Tammy the Tutor (aka "Piglet", the "Mathster") used to write articles for my newsletter at (The Education Companion) on Mathematics. This multi-talented woman has not been spinning her wheels. She has created an awesome web site with provides online tutoring in math, with her special approach of having her students teach themselves- by learning math as a language. Yep, remember, I said she is brilliant! All content of the MathRoom Lessons are the products of her awesome gray matter.

So now please...

Enter

Tammy's MATH ROOM

Meet the Mathster

The MathRoom Mathster, also known as Tammy the Tutor, Porkchop, Tammy Bee and other names unmentionable on this site, knew at age 9 that her mission for this incarnation was to teach -- not only math -- but subjects as varied as Sinostrology (Chinese Astrology), Star Gazing, Taoism, Mushroom Picking, Catalpa Tree Appreciation, Guitar, Piano, Voice, Song Writing and Comedy. Yes, comedy! She was actually paid good money one summer to teach young women how to make fools of themselves. What a gig!
She studied teaching methods at MacDonald College of McGill University, then went on to a Bachelor of Arts at McGill and finally a Masters in the Teaching of Mathematics at Concordia University in Montreal. (Tammys CV)

Since the 60's, Tammy has taught math to High School and Cégep students in the Montreal region and Sept-Iles on the North Shore of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence. Amongst other things, during the 60's and 70's she played an integral part in the Montreal folk music scene as a performer, concert organizer, and record producer. She worked closely with the management teams for both the Yellow Door (longest running Coffee House in Canada) and Back Door (now defunct) Coffee Houses.
In the late 90's and again in December 2005, Tammy edited, wrote and recorded dozens of math modules for The Academy of Maths and Science -- a franchised tutoring service based in Toronto. She wrote a book entitled "Mathways Volume I: Pre-Calculus Math" covering Algebra, Euclidean Geometry and Analytic Geometry which has been transformed into the MathRoom Lessons. She is now intent on sharing her knowledge of math with the masses -- not on paper in book form -- but through the Internet -- in electron form. "Let's share the math and save the trees" is her current motto.
She has run an "in-person" tutoring service from her home since 1998, churning out math students who no longer need her because they know how to do math on their own.
Amongst the personalized services she offers her students are Cheat-Sheet Info Lists and Course Tool-Boxes -- like Readers' Digest condensed versions of math courses.
Read the MathRoom Mission, and her articles if you want to know more.

PLEASE check out her work. You will be hearing a lot more about this dynamic woman!

~JRY
The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet Tammy Bailis Online InstructionInstruction Math Mathematics

Come to the The Carnivals!

2006-06-26T23:49:00.000-04:00

My favorite "Carnivals" are in town! Come visit the carnivals and read and share!

~JRY
The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet UFT Instruction Carnival Of Educatio

Schools May Be 'Liable' for Bullies

2006-06-20T13:49:00.000-04:00

It is customary and even required for politicians to blame the school system for all the ills of students. Parents are in larger numbers than teachers in the voting arena... So, in a politically incorrect post, I am jumping in and asking: So- what is wrong with this?

"Schools May Be 'Liable' for Bullies - June 18, 2006 - 9:59AM
Schools may be 'liable' for bullies - Breaking News - National - Breaking News
Schools which fail to protect students from bullying could be forced to pay thousands of dollars in legal damages, an academic has warned. Brisbane-based Professor Des Butler, from Queensland University of Technology's (QUT) Faculty of Law, said there were many Australian examples of bullied students taking civil court action against their schools and winning "sizeable" financial compensation."

Now the above is an article about Australia. Sadly, the same is true in the good old US of A. To wit:

Teachers can not touch a student for any reason without the very strong possibility of losing their licenses and being sued for permanently emotionally ruining the child- for life.
Regardless of what sounds good- "Oh yes, teachers can break up fights,"etc, in the REAL world it doesn't pass muster.
Schools are required to report all incidents but are targeted as ineffective if they do. Ask any principal and they will probably not voice it, but just look at their faces...
Students KNOW that there are very few consequences for negative behavior. Bullying, which usually takes place away from the eye and ears of teachers is hard to prove, barring physical evidence of violence. Then it is often word against word.

Bullying is a disgraceful, degrading, demoralizing, often very violent act, that is repeated with predictable frequency. Gang activity certainly encourages this behavior and fosters it.

There is a very definite need to remove these students from the system. If they are out of the system, where do they go? On the streets to create more havoc?

It all often becomes a legal battle. Simply put, aren't parents responsible for the acts of their minor children? Bullying does not usually start over night. It is a gradual personality development.

Where are the parents as this is developing?

Denial is a natural, but only to a point. What is being done, and where, to help make parents more aware of their child's negative personality development?

How do we implement it across the board- if at all?

How do we make victim students confident enough to seek help.

Is there are really safe haven for them?

I pose all of the above for your thoughts and comments...

~JRY
The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Bullying Bullies HomeSchooling Parenting

Home Schooling is All the Rage Now-A-Days!

2006-06-20T11:33:00.000-04:00

An interesting article in the New York Times explores the lure of home schooling. Not only are parents who are unhappy with public education turning to home schooling, but the wealthy are having their cake and eating it too:

"The Gilded Age of Home Schooling - New York Times
By SUSAN SAULNY
Published: June 5, 2006 (New York Times)

In what is an elite tweak on home schooling — and a throwback to the gilded days of education by governess or tutor — growing numbers of families are choosing the ultimate in private school: hiring teachers to educate their children in their own homes.

Unlike the more familiar home-schoolers of recent years, these families are not trying to get more religion into their children's lives, or escape what some consider the tyranny of the government's hand in schools. In fact, many say they have no argument with ordinary education — it just does not fit their lifestyles. More..."

~JRY
The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Home Schooling HomeSchooling Software

Post to this year's closing Carnival of Education!

2006-06-19T17:32:00.000-04:00

Please take a snippet of your time to submit an education article to the Carnival of Education's last issue for this school year!

Special announcement from The Education Wonks:

"Next week's carnival midway will be hosted by the Science Goddess over at What It's Like on the Inside. Please send contributions to: the_science_goddess [at] yahoo [dot] com . They should be received no later than 7:00 PM (Pacific) 10:00 (Eastern) Tuesday, June 13th. Include the title of your post, and its URL, if possible. Barring unforeseen circumstances, the midway of should open over at What It's Like on the Inside next Wednesday morning."

Visit last week's 69th edition midway, guest hosted by Education In Texas here, the Carnival's archives here and our latest education-related posts over there.

Read the current issue here:
The Education Wonks: The Carnival Of Education: Week 70 - Thoughts And Ideas Freely Exchanged

Technorati Tags: Carnival of Education, JRY, A, Educational Voyage, Education. Teaching

Random Name Selection Software Teacher Bias

2006-06-03T02:13:00.000-04:00

"Bias-busting tech keeps kids focused

Researcher uses handheld computer and name-generation software to keep kids engaged From eSchool News staff and wire service reports

A handheld computer with software that randomly selects students' names is an effective tool for making sure students pay attention and do their homework, an education researcher has found. Originally intended to increase class participation and eliminate any bias in how teachers call on students for discussion, the solution also was found to increase students' attentiveness and boost their chances of success."

This does seem to be a sweet program to have. I think though, that teachers who are aware of the need to reach all students really try hard to make sure they call on everyone. It will help teachers from falling into the subjective trap of calling on the students they know will have the answer so they can move on. Perhaps the target group that may be most improved are the lecture class sizes that by`definition allow students to get lost in the crowd.

~JRY
The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet Instruction Software

TEACHER UNIONS VS. . . . TEACHERS

2006-05-04T17:48:00.000-04:00

TEACHER UNIONS VS. . . . TEACHERS By RYAN SAGER - New York Post Online Edition: postopinion

Hummm.....

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet Instruction Software Teacher Unions, UFT, NYSUT

Laptop Grab and Runs are becoming TOO common...

2006-04-27T02:00:00.000-04:00

Laptop thieves descend upon wireless cafes / Grab-and-run robbers find pricey computers easy to resell

Life is hard enough as is. It seems that a person can't even work while on a java break.

Technorati Tags: An Educational Voyage!, Mission District, San Francisco. Laptop, Thieves, Western Addition, Mission Creek Cafe

The Carnival Of Education: Week 63

2006-04-21T03:36:00.000-04:00

"The Carnival Of Education: Week 63" is up in all it's glory! You've just got to check it out. There is something for everyone! Enjoy!

Technorati Tags: Carnival Of Education. An Educational Voyage, JRY

General Motors GMability Education Site

2006-04-20T03:39:00.000-04:00

General Motors GMability Education Site

Thought I'd share this email with you:

"Hi,

We're contacting homeschool/teacher/education bloggers to let them know about General Motors' GMAbility web site. GM has a section devoted to education, here:

http://www.gm.com/company/gmability/edu_k-12/

The site has news on science, technology and the environment, fun, educational games, and lesson plans developed in conjunction with Weekly Reader. We hoped you might take a look at the site and share it with your readers. The lesson plans can be found here:

http://www.gm.com/company/gmability/edu_k-12/teachers/index.html

Here, for example, is a lesson plan Weekly Reader created for grades K-1 for Earth Day:

http://www.gm.com/company/gmability/edu_k-12/teachers/pdfs/wr_earthday_k-1.pdf

Other Earth Day lessons can be found here:

http://www.gm.com/company/gmability/edu_k-12/teachers/earthday_way.html#dl

And we'd be happy to answer any other questions you might have and get feedback from you on the site or the lesson plans. Is this of interest to you? Thanks for your time!

Regards,

Nichole

Nichole Asher
Assistant Account Executive
Hass MS&L
115 W. Liberty, Suite 200
Ann Arbor, MI 48104-1377
P: 734.214.1550
F: 734.214.1551
E: Nichole.Asher@hassmsl.com"

Student Holocaust Activities

2006-04-19T10:59:00.000-04:00

Holocaust Activities

These activities have been developed for teachers to use as a guide.
Our intent is to give teachers a framework to follow for use in a
Holocaust unit of study. The philosophy behind these activities is
based on constructivist pedagogy, brain-based learning and the
awareness of the theory of multiple intelligences. We hope teachers
will use them and build on them to fit the needs of students, taking
into account their age, maturity, and ability levels. We strongly urge
teachers to read and reread the Guidelines for Teaching the Holocaust
published by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum before
designing activities or using the ones we offer in A Teacher's Guide to the Holocaust.
The suggestions and cautions the Holocaust Museum offers are important
and invaluable in delivering Holocaust instruction. The sensitivity of
the subject matter requires careful consideration when designing
curriculum and guiding students in presentations and research.

Simon Wiesenthal Center Multimedia Learning Center

2006-04-19T10:57:00.000-04:00

Home - Simon Wiesenthal Center Multimedia Learning Center

The Museum of Tolerance Online has
several resources that address some of the most frequently asked
questions. Please review these resources before submitting a question
via e-mail. This helps everyone by facilitating a faster response by
our research staff. Learn about the activities
and programs of the Simon Wiesenthal Center, a leading international
Jewish human rights agency and its renowned Museum of Tolerance. A comprehensive resource on the Holocaust and World War II, with over 3,000 text files, and tens of thousands of photos.

Technorati Tags: Tolerance, Holocaust, Multimedia, Simon Wiesenthal

Get Human

2006-04-18T09:06:00.000-04:00

gethuman - advocacy for high quality customer service for consumers

This site has information for many types of
consumer companies including
credit
cards,
finance
companies (banks and mortgages),
insurance
companies,
cell phone
providers and many others.

The most popular part of the gethuman website is the
gethuman database of secret phone
numbers and codes to get to a human when calling
a company for customer service. (See also our
general tips.)

LessonPlanz.com from HP- Sweet!

2006-04-17T11:19:00.000-04:00

LessonPlanZ.com - Lesson Plans & Lesson Plan Resources for Teaching Math, Science, Social Studies, Language Arts, Reading, Writing, Thematic Units, Themes, Classroom Activities - preschool, kindergarten, elementary, middle school, high school

LessonPlanz.com is searchable
directory of free online lesson plans and lesson plan resources for
all grades and subjects.

Technorati Tags: lesson plans

What’s the 411? This one’s free

2006-04-16T10:24:00.000-04:00

Consumer Action, a Boston advertising company is trying to make it big by giving
away a service that the phone companies make a fortune providing.
1-800-FREE411 offers free directory assistance, paying for the service
by running a 10-second advertisement before giving the phone number the
caller requested.

The service is a product of Jingle Networks, a startup formed by a group of advertising industry veterans.

National Environmental Education Week April 16 - 22, 2006

2006-03-10T23:44:00.000-05:00

National Environmental Education Week

Technorati Tags: An Educational Voyage, JRY, National Environmental Education Week

BlackBerry Service to Continue- YES!

2006-03-03T22:40:00.000-05:00

BlackBerry Service to Continue

BlackBerry Service to Continue - New York Times

By IAN AUSTEN

Published: March 4, 2006

OTTAWA, March 3 — The thumbs of nearly 3.2 million BlackBerry users in the United States can continue tapping out those wireless e-mails without fear of interruption.

Can't you just imagine all those suits in Starbuck's on Monday morning, sipping their Lattes and having mass prayers to thank G-d for saving the ole BB! Yep!

Boloomberg Plan to Cut City School Projects Is Approved - Bloomies Blame Plan

2006-03-03T22:35:00.000-05:00

Talk about flip flopping flim-flam-men! Bloomberg really, truely, honestly cares about NYC's school children. Just not that much...

Read: Plan to Cut City School Projects Is Approved - New York Times

I wonder just how forgetful NYC voters will be. One would think that street savvy New Yorkers would recognize a flim-flam bamboozle if they saw one. However, money talks, and Bloomberg has a proven track record for shamelessly spending kazoodles of his own money to pay for target ads- WAY beyond the means of other candidates using the latest psychologucal warfare known to science. Hopefully voters will remember this from the article above:

The presence of the Council members at last night's meeting, held at Edward R. Murrow High School, hinted at the political tightrope Mr. Bloomberg is walking, as he knowingly provokes parents while betting that they will direct their displeasure not at him but at Gov. George E. Pataki and the Legislature. But the Council members are also in a bind, caught between the mayor's strategy of pressuring Albany and the demands of their constituents for much-needed new school buildings.

Chutzbah: bold and brazen. Is it fun to watch the little people squirm? It's good to be the king, right Mr. Mayor?

School Union Will Let Locals Join Federation - New York Times

2006-02-24T02:32:00.000-05:00

School Union Will Let Locals Join Federation - New York Times

The nation's largest labor union, the National Education Association, has decided to let its local chapters join the A.F.L.-C.I.O., labor officials said yesterday. The decision by the association, which represents 2.7 million teachers and administrators and other school employees, will buoy the A.F.L.-C.I.O., which has been reeling because unions...

The A.F.L.-C.I.O. definitly needs stronger membership numbers. This is a step in the right direction.

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet Instruction Software Teacher Unions, UFT, NYSUT

The Misinderstood Tones of Emails- a Big Problem

2006-02-13T19:46:00.000-05:00

Years ago people sat in solitude, with special paper and their favorite pen, and carefully crafted letters. Letter writing was a art. Perfecting you handwriting was an expected skill. No more. The art of letter writing has gone the way of the horse and carriage. In a hurry to send a message ands move on to other things, while multitasking, we tend to whip up an email it and not give it another thought. That is, until someone tells you that you were rude in your hastily sent email. Uh oh!

Cyberspace is swamped with email. I believe that most of it is written win no insults intended. However, I often wonder if my sense of humor is perceived the way I intended on the other side of the digital super-mailway.

Personally, I enjoy face to face conversations. I feel I get a better grip on where the person I am talking with is coming from (so to speak.) Facial expressions, body language, inflections in the voice, speech pace, pauses, etc. are all queues we use to interpret meaning in face to face oral communications. Pure voice communication (telephone, walkie talkie, etc., work with less- missing all the visual elements. However, when we move on to written communication, we are really stumbling in the dark. We have to guess what all of the physical and aural queues were. We tend to bring our own emotions into play, which can lead to some serious misunderstandings.

If we add to my above elements the problems of people from different cultures, with different primary languages, we really leave ourselves open for miscommunication.

eMail writer beware!

Read this article:

Wired News (http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,70179-0.html):: "By Stephen Leahy | Also by this reporter
02:00 AM Feb, 13, 2006 EST

'Don't work too hard,' wrote a colleague in an e-mail today. Was she sincere or sarcastic? I think I know (sarcastic), but I'm probably wrong.

According to recent research published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, I've only a 50-50 chance of ascertaining the tone of any e-mail message. The study also shows that people think they've correctly interpreted the tone of e-mails they receive 90 percent of the time.

'That's how flame wars get started,' says psychologist Nicholas Epley of the University of Chicago, who conducted the research with Justin Kruger of New York University. 'People in our study were convinced they've accurately understood the tone of an e-mail message when in fact their odds are no better than chance,' says Epley."

~JRY
The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers English Foreign Language eMail language ESL

So You Think English is Easy?

2006-02-13T18:09:00.000-05:00

I got this in an email and it makes a good point. My hat's off to those who have conquered English as a second language. My heart goes out to those struggling to learn it! Power to the dedicated teachers who "Teach English as a Second Language!"

"Can you read these right the first time?

1) The bandage was wound around the wound.

2) The farm was used to produce produce.

3) The dump was so full that it had to refuse more refuse.

4) We must polishthe Polish? furniture.

5) He could lead if he would get the lead out.

6) The soldier decided to desert his dessert in the desert.

7) Since there is no time like the present, he thought it was time to present the present .

8) A bass was painted on the head of the bass drum.

9) When shot at, the dove dove into the bushes.

10) I did not object to the object.

11) The insurance was invalid for the invalid.

12) There was a row among the oarsmen about how to row .

13) They were too close to the door to close it.

14) The buck does funny things when the does are present.

15) A seamstress and a sewer fell down into a sewer line.

16) To help with planting, the farmer taught his sow to sow.

17) The wind was too strong to wind the sail.

18) Upon seeing the tear in the painting I shed a tear.

19) I had to subjectthe subject to a series of tests.

20) How can I intimate this to my most intimate friend?

Let's face it - English is a crazy language. There is no egg in eggplant, nor ham in hamburger; neither apple nor pine in pineapple. English muffins weren't invented in England or French fries in France. Sweetmeats are candies while sweetbreads, which aren't sweet, are meat. We take English for granted. But if we explore its paradoxes, we find that quicksand can work slowly, boxing rings are square and a guinea pig is neither from Guinea nor is it a pig.

And why is it that writers write but fingers don't fing, grocers don't groce and hammers don't ham? If the plural of tooth is teeth, why isn't the plural of booth, beeth? One goose, 2 geese. So one moose, 2 meese? One index, 2 indices? Doesn't it seem crazy that you can make amends but not one amend? If you have a bunch of odds and ends and get rid of all but one of them, what do you call it?

If teachers taught, why didn't preachers praught? If a vegetarian eats vegetables, what does a humanitarian eat? Sometimes I think all the English speakers should be committed to an asylum for the verbally insane. In what language do people recite at a play and play at a recital? Ship by truck and send cargo by ship? Have noses that run and feet that smell?

How can a slim chance and a fat chance be the same, while a wise man and a wise guy are opposites? You have to marvel at the unique lunacy of a language in which your house can burn up as it burns down, in which you fill in a form by filling it out and in which, an alarm goes off by going on.

English was invented by people, not computers, and it reflects the creativity of the human race, which, of course, is not a race at all That is why, when the stars are out, they are visib le, but when the lights are out, they are invisible.

PS. - Why doesn't "Buick" rhyme with "quick"

~JRY
The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers English Foreign Language UFT language ESL

Dump Google on Valentine's Day?

2006-02-13T17:04:00.000-05:00

Taking on the Big Kahunah:

"Google to be Dumped on Valentine's Day
The Sydney Morning Herald reports on another protest site named No Luv 4 Google where they ask you to "Break up with Google this Valentine's Day." As you know, Google recently began censoring Google China, which caused protests all over including at Stanford, Berkeley."

So who has a better replacement?

~JRY
The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Technology Computers and Internet Search Engines

NYPD Rookies are N.Y.C.'s Poorest!

2006-02-12T13:45:00.000-05:00

It is disgraceful that a city like New York so under values those who pledge to give their lives for the public. How does Bloomberg sleep at night?

New York Daily News - City News - Rookies are N.Y.'s poorest: "Rookies are N.Y.'s poorest

Cops try to get by on 25G

BY JONATHAN LEMIRE
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

The 1,211 recruits sworn into the NYPD's latest academy class pledged to put their lives on the line to protect and serve the city.

But during the six months they are training, these brave men and women will earn less than city bus drivers, sanitation workers and gardeners - pocketing roughly $370.17 after taxes each week.

'These cops - these heroes in training - can barely make ends meet when they are in Police Academy,' said Patrick Lynch, president of the Patrolmen's Benevolent Association. 'It is disgraceful.'

The $25,100 annual salary is down significantly from the $38,000 earned by NYPD recruits sworn in last July before a new contract between the police union and City Hall lowered the academy pay.

By comparison, the city Sanitation Department pays new hires about $26,000 a year and the starting salary for Parks Department gardeners is $30,630. New bus drivers earn about $35,000 a year.

Almost every penny of the NYPD recruits' $370.17 weekly take-home pay must be devoted toward academy expenses, union officials argued."

It is awe inspiring to me that these brave souls actually sign up!

~JRY

Tags: An Educatonal Voyage! New York City

Fired for Having Soliraire on the Screen! or Off with His Head- It's Good to be the King!

2006-02-11T19:36:00.000-05:00

To wit:

New York mayor fires worker with solitaire on computer screen -- Newsday.com: "Office assistant Edward Greenwood IX was going over some papers at his desk as Bloomberg made the rounds with his photographer, greeting workers and posing for pictures. When the mayor reached him, Greenwood stood, they shook hands and the photographer snapped a photo.

But the eagle-eyed mayor _ a billionaire former businessman with a certain idea of how offices should be run _ noticed Greenwood's game of solitaire glowing on his screen. He said nothing about it to Greenwood but later told an aide to give him the ax.

The story was reported by the New York Post on Thursday, and Bloomberg defended his no-tolerance decision.

'The workplace is not an appropriate place for games,' Bloomberg said. 'It's a place where you've got to do the job that you're getting paid for.' "

It is so refreshing to see that Mayor Bloomberg does not act implusively. It is with pride that I see our great mayor using only the latest in sweat-shop employee management techniques. There's none of that wimpy employee counseling for Bloomie. Off with their heads I say! Fire at will! Pay no attention to an employees work record. Yes, we should go back to the sweat-shop methods of employee management. The boss man gets the shop kiss-up to do the stupid firing for him. Gutsy? No. Gutsy would have been to speak personally to the employee and require more staff development. After all, you can't let the press know you are PMS-ish today... But power has its perks. Oh, the joys of running non-union shops. You can destroy anyone, for any little whim, and get someone else to do your dirty work for you. I personally hope his girlfriend never gets off task...Sweet! As Mel Brooks said: "It's good to be the king!"

My personal recommendations to increase employee productivity

Fire immediately anyone who is caught in any of the following states:

Using a stress ball.
Writing a not immediatley usable list.
Drinking water on company time.
Wasting time in the bathroom- confirmed by bathroom stall cams linked to supervisor computers.

My personal recommendations to avoid employee reduced productivity

Remove the following from all work places:

Bathrooms
Water Coolers
Writing instruments
Paper of any kind
Any computer program that is not directly realted to the task at hand. Programs can be served up on a need to use basis. (This further guarantees job security for the IT department- my favorite.)

The above suggestions should show immediate results. For help implementing the above the UFT leadership provides positive role models.

For those employers who are just so worried about not getting their monies worth out of their employees, put up or shut up- there is software that will put you in control over which web sites they can go to, and which (if any) games they can play! It's called, uh- PARENTAL CONTROLS. Any average network admin can get it up and running easily. Yes, employees should be able to monitor themselves, nut they are human. Humans occassionally make little mistakes. THis gut was not surfing for pornography, doing Internet shopping on company time. He took a short break when there was no work at the moment. Should he have pretended to look at some old work, to appear busy? Perhaps, but let's get real. If you need to get rid of an employee, document several infractions, then give due process. Keeping this man from getting unemployment is p[lain unnecessary Making power postures is just infantile and makes you look insecure. Stop ruining peoples lives over such foolishness.

Then again... "It's good to be the king!"

Any more suggestions are most welcome!

~JRY

Tags: An Educatonal Voyage! New York City

NCLB Show and Sing-A-Long

2006-02-09T02:38:00.000-05:00

The NCLB Show and Sing-A-Long put online by the AFT (American Federation of Teachers) is a great conversation starter.

http://www.letsgetitright.org/cartoon/

I like it. It addresses the issue in an non-confrontational way. Naturally it is not a replacement for serious dialogue. I for one, remember when students had the wonderful experiences of putting on school plays, explored their creativity in areas other than reading, math and test sophistication. Students do not have a well rounded education any more. Big money rules and kids lose. It's all about the money and who get it. Certainly not the children. NCLB is good in it's intentions, but falls short in too many areas. It needs solid revamping.

Good cartoon. Good work!

Check it out!

~JRY

Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! AFT American Federation of Teachers NCLB No Child Left Behind

The Education Wonks: The Carnival Of Education: Week 53 - Thoughts And Ideas Freely Exchanged

2006-02-09T00:35:00.000-05:00

The Education Wonks: The Carnival Of Education: Week 53 - Thoughts And Ideas Freely Exchanged

It's up and ready for action. Oh, it's also great as usual. Check it out!

~JRY
The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet Carnival of Education Instruction

Paper or Tech- Which to use?

2006-02-04T01:02:00.000-05:00

I just read an interstice article on how folks feel about pen and paper versus technology: Getting To Done: Long Live Paper! - Lifehacker. It made me think about my evolution from scratch pad to word processor and the memories came flooding back...

I had always been a pen and pad person. You know, the little spiral pad that fit so nicely just about anywhere. My first true nibble on the digital cookie was the Commodore Vic 20! We bought it for the games for our children, but I found that by using Basic, I could make math spelling quizzes for the children, and make documents for my class. After a while, these types of programs became very available in stores. There wasn't an ecommerce dragon yet for the likes of Buy.com and eBay. They weren't even a glimmer in anyone's eye yet.

Well, I just had to have the new Casio watch calendar, and then the one that kept real appointment reminder dates. I got cool, and dove head on to the Day Timer leather ring, fully tabbed, day at a time, junior book. That became too cumbersome so I downsized to the wallet (checkbook) size. This was my bible. Without it, I could not keep track of breakfast.

Then came the no turning back point, sychronizing software came on the scene to synchronize my Day Timer data with my computer. As if that wasn't enough, the Palm Pilot came front and center. It was given to me by one of my sons. A hand me down, but full of possibilities. After the novelty wore off, it was boring. It had a plain dull screen, limited games, and was hard to read for my already overtired computer eyes.

Then, da dum, tah dah (drum roll, trumpet call,) The clouds parted, sunlight beamed through the heavens, my heart raced... I got my first iPaq- full color with all the bells and whistles. Pant, pant...

A techno data junkie was born! My life has NEVER been the same. My iPaq is now my bible. It syncs with my computer, laptop and cell phone. I rely on getting reminders for appointments, birthdays, etc. I can give photo slide shows, have a program just for my shopping lists, give powerpoint presentations, edit spreadsheets and do email. As if that isn't enough, I actually make my own backgrounds/themes for it to go with holidays etc. Geek to the nth degree. Yep, and I guess I have a bit too much time on my hands too.

That said, I still find some use for pen and paper. Telephone messages go well with message pads. Jotting down a license plate is still faster in the car on the fly with pen and paper. Post it notes work great as bookmarks and leaving "buy milk" notes on the fridge. Truth be told, my handwriting leaves much to be desired. Arthritis has made using pens, pencils very difficult. I believe that my digital communications make a much better impression than by pen (Mont Blanc or not!). However, there are some devoted analog folks who still really love their paper and pens (my hubby is one of them.)

This brings me to the issue of whether or not to allow grammar school students to submit reports (for non-tech subjects) that are done on the computer. I have observed, through over 34 years of teaching, that handwriting instruction is almost non existent, past second grade in New York City. I've heard from other educators around the country that is becoming the norm all over. The focus is on literacy and not legibility. I believe that they go hand in hand. So many students can't add a columns on multi digit numbers because they can't read their own numerals. I've seen countless students unable to read back their own compositions because they couldn't read their own handwriting. Fine motor skills need to be developed. Penmanship is important! Homeschooling parents need to keep this in mind also.

School systems have become so busy, showing that they are providing such complete curriculums in EVERY area, that handwriting is just considered relatively expendable. I've never heard of a supervisor wanting to see a penmanship lesson for an observation. I have never even seen it mandated on lesson plans since the 80's.

I remember when schools provided workbooks specifically for penmanship. There is no such thing in the Big Apple. Perhaps a school here or there gets them, but overall, administrators just aren't concerned with penmanship. The teachers I've spoken to, embed penmanship into their curriculum. Unfortunately, my observation is that it is not consistent enough, and not done by every teacher across the board. I also believe that there is something to having a book dedicated to it. Somehow it gives a sense of respect for the skill.

Too much time and effort is wasted in schools today running off sheets for elementary students. One school I know, has reading and math programs that require tons of sheets to be handed out to the students. The teachers have to waste their precious few prep periods running off this nonsense and use their Teacher's Choice money to pay for the paper. This is an outrageous situation which is the result of a union that just doesn't care.) Yes, teachers do model for students, but having samples and letters to trace is, in my opinion, indispensable. So goes by the way side, one of history's most important communication tools.

Students with home access to computers are so busy instant messaging each other, that even invitations to parties are not handwritten any more. Remember the thrill of getting a card in the mail inviting you to a friends birthday party? The art and practice of letter writing, in today's fast paced techno society are long gone. Unfortunately, the teachers who have to mark essays, are left to their own devices to transcribe the chicken scratch that is half print-half cursive. If it isn't given a city wide test, then there is no need to "waste time or money" on it. Thus follows the warped logic of minimizing phys ed, music, art and drama.

Parents who homeschool their children need to find their own happy medium. The world of today requires most professions to have solid computer literacy. A non-computer literate student will be hard pressed to compete in college without solid computer experience under their belt. See an interesting article: Study: 'Power Users' Drive Pedagogy Research suggests tech-savvy students are having an impact in the classroom- By Robert Brumfield, Assistant Editor, eSchool News.

What's your opinion on the paper vs tech issue?

~JRY
The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet PDA iPaq Paper and Pens

UFT - Members urged to review their files - Moot?

2006-02-03T11:18:00.000-05:00

The ICEUFT Blog and The Delegate's Chair discussed how teachers were unable to remove files older than 3 years from their files because of the again, UFT leadership pushed giveback contract.

Ironically, the UFT web site has prominently posted this on their home page: UFT - Members urged to review their files

Well, I believe tht is is always a good idea to review your file every year like clock work, what you know is better than what you don't know. However, it seems questionable as to whether or not you can do anything about what you find.

If you have insight on this please comment and give us the facts. Inquiring minds want to know!

~JRY

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers UFT Teachers UFT Contract Instruction New York City

Carnival of Education Week 52

2006-02-01T13:55:00.000-05:00

The Carnival of Education -- Week 52 is on the midway now! Diane Weir did a wonderful job weaving it all togather. There are interesting reads from all contributors. Check it out!

~JRY
The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet Carnival of Education Instruction

The 5th Carnival of Homeschooling

2006-02-01T11:16:00.000-05:00

The 5th Carnival of Homeschooling is online. PalmTree Pundit edited this edition and did a real fine job of it! I really enjoy the Hawaiian theme woven through it. Delightful! This is a must read this week!

~JRY
The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet Carnival of Education Instruction

A Great Resource: School Psychology Blog

2006-01-31T02:01:00.000-05:00

Check out a terrific blog: School Psychology. It is a very interesting blog by Andrew Livanis as a resource for the LIU school psychology students. Check it out!

By the way, I had some wonderful student teachers from LIU over the years. Thanks!

~JRY

NYC Teachers Alert: Some IDs stolen at TRS!

2006-01-24T00:55:00.000-05:00

UFT - Some IDs stolen at TRS

This should have been on the main page of the TRS website. Why isn't it? Thank you UFT.org for posting it!

~JRY

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers UFT TRS New York City

The Fourth Carnival of Homeschooling is up and

2006-01-24T00:44:00.000-05:00

The Fourth Carnival of Homeschooling is up at The Common Room. The Headmistress worked hard and it sure shows! Read and learn! Enjoy!

~JRY
The Educational Voyage Portal Search Engine

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Education Teachers Technology Computers and Internet Instruction Carnival of Homeschooling

NEA's Works4Me

2006-01-20T23:52:00.000-05:00

NEA: Works4Me: Works4Me is a free weekly E-mail newsletter with practical classroom tips from the real experts—your colleagues!

I love their Works4Me feed:
http://www.nea.org/works4me/feeds/rss.xml

The expression, "Necessity is the Mother of Invention" certainly applies to teachers. What a sharp bunch of folks! Love smart, don't you!

~JRY

Technorati Tags:
An Educatonal Voyage! Teachers Teaching Help New York City
Classroom Tips

PRINT ENTIRE SITE (PDF)			KEEP ME INFORMED
EMAIL THIS SITE TO A FRIEND			ASK A QUESTION
CITY EMERGENCY PLAN