Tuesday, October 6, 2009

Good Teamwork

"Well done!" to those who have completed their profiles and procedure posts, uploaded their photos and linked to my blog. By now you have received your first blog feedback.

Next week your narrative post on Ramadan is due and teams will evaluate your procedure posts. Blog teams: 1= Talal, Abu Baker & Salem, 2= Ali, Mohammed A & S., 3= Basel, Yousef & Hamza, 4= Hamad Y, Alqam & Omar Eid, 5 = Eid, Omar A & M., 6 = Saeed & Zayad M. Please let me know if your name does not appear on a team.

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Note the Venue

To maximize student success, we will have regularly scheduled class time in the ILC. Our time will be 16:10-18:10 every Wednesday beginning this week! I will be available to help students get started. Your ongoing work will be tracked in a log.

Monday, September 28, 2009

Off and posting!

Congratulations to those who have created a blog and successfully sent me their links! Please check out yours and classmates' blogs in the student links section.

The next step is to post the procedure essays. Enter your dashboard and select new post. Copy and paste your essays from word docs. Always save a back up until your portfolio has been graded.The title for the first procedure essay should be: Procedure Essay: How to Fail the Portfolio. The title for your second post: Procedure Essay: The Hajj. Remember all procedure essays should be written using the imperative form of the verb and utilizing organizational words: first, next, then, after that, etc. Elizabeth is available in the ALZ to proofread assignments. Once again, I encourage you to make use of this resource. I will be commenting on your posts in the comments section. You may then edit your essays. They will not be graded until the portfolio deadline. This will be our drafting system; please do not send assignments through email.

If you are missing any assignment hand outs, there will be a sign up sheet available in the classroom today, so that I may get more printed.

I appreciate all your enthusiasm for a successful term.

Sunday, September 27, 2009

Fresh Start

Greetings 125 Students,

Eid Mubarek! I hope you all have had a good holiday and are ready for the regular class schedule.

We have had a bumpy start in this class. With new students joining us throughout the weeks our class has grown dramatically.

To meet this challenge, we will take several steps to help everyone maximize opportunities for success. If you are a new student, please partner with one of the original students to ensure you have gotten all the information you need. Please see me if you are missing any handouts. I encourage everyone who has not yet registered in the ALZ to do so as soon as possible and to make use of the facility for extra help with writing process. Please also utilize the ILC IELTS programs for extra listening, reading and writing practice. Finally, we will be transferring from a binder style portfolio to an electronic portfolio. Your writings will be saved on a blog you create and linked to my blog. You may access future information about the class at this blogsite to remain up to date with assignments.

I look forward to getting to know you all in further detail as you develop your profiles and begin posting. Blog on!

Wednesday, May 20, 2009

Light at the End of the Tunnel

We still have some important and powerful information to cover before we reach the end of our time together. However, we are going to begin looking at how to synthesize and present your learning through the blog project.

First, view the critical thinking PowerPoint under options. Your oral presentation will be based on your applying critical thinking to the tasks you have completed for your blog. Please include evidence of the following in your presentations supported by your own PowerPoint:

  • Summarize your learning about the issues
  • Explain the application to your own life
  • Any changes you’ve already made
  • Any changes you plan to make
  • Anyone with whom you’ve shared this information
  • Describe your response
  • How you have felt about the changes
  • How you feel about making them
  • Others’ reactions to your sharing
  • Evaluate the meaning for your life and the future of the planet

Saturday, November 8, 2008

Get Vocal!

Voicethread assignment instructions:
1. With a partner open www.Voicethread.com ; register as a user.
2. Read partner's IT summary.
3. Write a 75-100 word opinion commentary about your partner’s summary; exchange commentaries with your partner and correct / edit them.
4. Record
your commentary of your partner’s summary to the Voicethread site.
5. Upload / post your Voicethread commentary to your 174 blog site.

Wednesday, October 29, 2008

Heating Up

By now you have commented on each other's posts demonstrating your proficiency in blogging skills: posts, comments, links, etc. Now we will be moving further into the topic: the consequences of global warming and your and others' opinions as well as technical challenges.

You will view the film, An Inconvenient Truth, and make two posts. The first post is a summary of the movie similar to the reading summaries which should include introductory and concluding paragraphs. However, it should not include any statements of opinion!

Your analysis and opinion should be covered in the second post where you address what you think of the film's effectiveness at addressing the topic of global warming/local solutions. You should cite facts, references and solutions from the film as examples to support your points as well as two other sources (Check the assignment description under blog entries and requirements). Again include an introduction and conclusion to your post.

Check the task requirements (entries link) for word length for both posts. An opinion interview using Voice Thread technology will be completed next week. Check out www. Voicethread.com and keep on blogging!