Learning is Learning (or is it?)

 Wikimedia Commons

Many years ago I read a short story by the science fiction write Ray Bradbury. I have not, to this very day, been able to find the work. Nonetheless this piece stuck in my mind as a profound analysis of the disconnect between people as a result of technology. It described a lamenting man who while strolling through a residential area noticed that there were no people outside their homes. There were no children playing, there were no neighbors conversing over the common fences, there were no gatherings of women in the empty streets. This man could only see a faint blue light flickering from the front window of each home. As I ponder the online learning environment, I can't help but feel as the character walking the ghostly street. I feel as though the interactions between students are superficial at best. We all stare at the pale blue light of our computers which claim to assist us in being better connected. But are we? We as humans need the interaction of our peers to complete a well-rounded learning environment. They provide sources for peer review and feedback which are vital to catching things we often miss being too close to our own work. They are at arms length to be questioned or aid us in real time if need be. Here in lies my dilemma.  I hold these beliefs on one hand while simultaneously proving the opposite. Let me explain. You see I have received the best grades of all of the classes I have taken in the online environment. This is adverse to what I truly believe and yet the results speak for themselves. While technology advances we as students must embrace it or suffer a disadvantage in future endeavors. I had a difficult time this semester getting in the habit of creating a well developed blog post. I had no experience with this technology. Honestly, I had no idea exactly what a blog was. Looking back this seems silly and after the initial post was finished I felt quite accomplished. With each subsequent posting the sting was less and I found (to my surprise) that I was beginning to enjoy the process. So in closing I must say that there are pros and cons to everything and this is no exception. I look forward to the next technological advance that might in some way re-establish the significant role of interpersonal communication in the online learning environment. In the mean time I will also lament the pale blue glow.

If you would like to learn more about learning online:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E-learning

Revision Decision

 picture courtesy of wikimedia commons

I use to be the most lazy pre-writer you have ever seen. This lead to a great deal of revision later on. Not just revision...major substantial revision. Not grammar, or punctuation but serious nuts and bolts of composition. I've learned though, (the hard way) that I was just hurting myself. I fought this advise from teachers as one step that a good writer might very well skip.......boy was I wrong. Revision might be directly related to pre-writing. I usually go about the revision process in the following ways. First I make sure to read the paper out loud and slow. something takes place when your own words are physically spoken into your own ears. This is where I usually pick up my need for commas and the like. I get a feel for the "cadence" of my prose and really ""feel the tone I've tried to impart to the piece. The next step is to enlist peer review. I used to fight this concept as well only to my own demise. You would be surprised by what gets missed when you focus so closely on your own work. The phrase "Can't see the forest for the trees." comes to mind. Just getting a fresh set of eyes on your work takes revision to a very productive level. But this can only be achieved if one can get passed the adversity to criticism. The peer you choose is not criticizing your work as an attack or with malicious intent. Quite the contrary, they are helping to improve your work and prove to be very beneficial. The re-working of our current paper has been very easy as I really focused on pre-writing on this one. Boy! what a difference. If I had known how beneficial this was to the process I would have started this much earlier. Now the only revisions I have are grammatical or involve punctuation and the like. I'm pretty happy with the composition as a whole and will keep the format very close to the outline I started with. Good Luck with your papers.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Daniel

If you would like to learn more tips on revision follow the following link:

http://writingcenter.unc.edu/handouts/revising-drafts/

How Cohesive a Thesis!

photo courtesy of sptimes.com

The Sheriff of Hardyville, Arkansas has been called to the scene of a terrible accident. The body of a young farmhand has been found under the wheel of his still running tractor. The sheriff had never seen anything like it before although he has served this area for over thirty years. Through the sobs of the young man's young brides tears he senses that she knows more than she is saying as to the circumstances surrounding this tragedy. She is taken in for questioning where the truth finally comes out. The young man has been awake for nearly a week using crystal-meth and fell from his seat under the tractors wheel when his body couldn't take any more. The story of "Winter's Bone" written by Daniel Woodrell takes place in a town deep in the Ozarks  with many similarities to Hardyville. The grip of  methamphetamine seems to be tighter on such rural areas across the country. By choosing a rural setting for his novel "Winter's Bone" Daniel Woodrell has shed light on the social conditions existing in rural areas which promote the manufacturing and use of methamphetamines.

If you or someone you love is struggling with meth addiction and wants help clink on the link below for more information:

http://www.stopmethaddiction.com/Meth_Addiction_Help.htm