Lloyd Lemons links to B. L. Ochman’s “How to Write Killer Blog Posts and More Compelling Comments” on her What’s Next Blog. Ochman’s advice is some of the best I’ve read lately, suggesting the deliberate nature of blogging and stressing audience expectations. I can’t follow all of her advice all of the time, like limiting an entry to 250 words, but the general idea of writing less and more accurately matches Neilson’s guidelines. Maybe I like her entry because it gives strong writing advice. Good stuff: reminders that we can all use.
Month: February 2005
Blogging in Primary Education
Prototype points to Stephen Downes’ “Educational Blogging” on Educause Review. It looks at the yet unspoiled attitudes of primary schoolers on blogging and the Internet. One student states:
The blogs give us a chance to communicate between us and motivate us to write more. When we publish on our blog, people from the entire world can respond by using the comments link. This way, they can ask questions or simply tell us what they like. We can then know if people like what we write and this indicate[s to] us what to do better. By reading these comments, we can know our weaknesses and our talents. Blogging is an opportunity to exchange our point of view with the rest of the world not just people in our immediate environment.
Ah, this attitude is in such stark contrast to that offered by Ted Nelson. Here, it seems, we can catch the child before traditional forms of education sap away her creativity and his imagination, like a vampire drains his victim of blood. As the article goes on to point out, these fifth graders will enter their secondary education with a new set of skills and attitudes about composition. Perhaps blogs can offer students an access to writing that revitalizes the art, rather than resigns it to the punitive measure it was for most of my education.
Now the real question is: how do we revitalize writing for the many college students who tell me “I’ve always been bad at English”?
Blogging in School
Prototype points to Stephen Downes’ “Educational Blogging” on Educause Review. It looks at the yet unspoiled attitudes of primary schoolers on blogging and the Internet. One student states:
The blogs give us a chance to communicate between us and motivate us to write more. When we publish on our blog, people from the entire world can respond by using the comments link. This way, they can ask questions or simply tell us what they like. We can then know if people like what we write and this indicate[s to] us what to do better. By reading these comments, we can know our weaknesses and our talents. Blogging is an opportunity to exchange our point of view with the rest of the world not just people in our immediate environment.
Ah, this attitude is in such stark contrast to that offered by Ted Nelson. Here, it seems, we can catch the child before traditional forms of education sap away her creativity and his imagination, like a vampire drains his victim of blood. As the article goes on to point out, these fifth graders will enter their secondary education with a new set of skills and attitudes about composition. Perhaps blogs can offer students an access to writing that revitalizes the art, rather than resigns it to the punitive measure it was for most of my education.
Now the real question is: how do we revitalize writing for the many college students who tell me “I’ve always been bad at English”?
What a treat! I was able to see more theatre in the last two days than I have in the last two years thanks to Dr. Greg McNamara’s efforts to bring the Shenandoah Shakespeare Express’ “Rife with Mischief” tour to Macon State College for two performances and two workshops. I was unable to attend the workshops, but the performances were exceptional. Last night was Oliver Goldsmith’s She Stoops to Conquer, a lampoon of 18th century British society’s quirks and customs, from matchmaking and marriage to character and class. William Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, a play that I had seen before at the Asolo when I was a graduate student, is a problematic comedy that begins with death and ends with marriage, but leaves a man psychologically broken: Malvolio, played subtly by Jeremy West.
The whole cast was exceptional, but Christopher Seiler‘s Sir Toby Blech, Paul Fildago’s Tony Lumpkin and Sir Andrew Aguecheek, and Jason Vail‘s Young Charles Marlow stood out for me. My only regret is that they didn’t perform Measure for Measure.
Thanks, again, Dr. McNamara. Your efforts have not gone unnoticed. Huzzah! If you have the opportunity to see this troupe, I strongly encourage you to do so.
Shenandoah Shakespeare Express
What a treat! I was able to see more theatre in the last two days than I have in the last two years thanks to Dr. Greg McNamara’s efforts to bring the Shenandoah Shakespeare Express’ “Rife with Mischief” tour to Macon State College for two performances and two workshops. I was unable to attend the workshops, but the performances were exceptional. Last night was Oliver Goldsmith’s She Stoops to Conquer, a lampoon of 18th century British society’s quirks and customs, from matchmaking and marriage to character and class. William Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, a play that I had seen before at the Asolo when I was a graduate student, is a problematic comedy that begins with death and ends with marriage, but leaves a man psychologically broken: Malvolio, played subtly by Jeremy West.
The whole cast was exceptional, but Christopher Seiler‘s Sir Toby Blech, Paul Fildago’s Tony Lumpkin and Sir Andrew Aguecheek, and Jason Vail‘s Young Charles Marlow stood out for me. My only regret is that they didn’t perform Measure for Measure.
Thanks, again, Dr. McNamara. Your efforts have not gone unnoticed. Huzzah! If you have the opportunity to see this troupe, I strongly encourage you to do so.
iWorkCommunity – Templates Exchange
Free iWork templates for Pages, Numbers and Keynote. iWorkCommunity is the largest community-driven template exchange site for iWork.
For those of you who have switched to Pages, from Apple’s iWork suite, there is a new web site you should know about: iWork Community. So far, it’s just a template exchange, but it’s exciting to see so much enthusiasm springing up around this product. I, for one, really like Pages. Its introduction has allowed me to finally rid my PowerBook completely of M$ products. This fact alone makes the $49 educational price worth every penny. Thanks for the link, Giles.
Template Exchange
For those of you who have switched to Pages, from Apple’s iWork suite, there is a new web site you should know about: iWork Community. So far, it’s just a template exchange, but it’s exciting to see so much enthusiasm springing up around this product. I, for one, really like Pages. Its introduction has allowed me to finally rid my PowerBook completely of M$ products. This fact alone makes the $49 educational price worth every penny. Thanks for the link, Giles.
There are really no words to describe Strindberg and Helium. I nearly fell off my chair laughing when I first saw these Flash shorts. I’d describe it, but it’s better if you just look for yourself. If you’re unfamiliar with August Strindberg, I recommend Miss Julie: “No! To be happy for — two days, a week, as long as we can be happy, and then — die …” and “Oh — I’d like to see your blood and your brains on the chopping block! —- I’d like to see your whole sex swimming in a sea of blood, like my little bird … I think I could drink from your skull!” Strindberg introduces Miss Julie in a preface to the play: “Miss Julie is a modern character. Not that the man-hating half-woman has not existed in all ages but because now that she has been discovered, she has come out in the open to make herself heard.” Oh, how we love to make fun of modernism.
(Source: https://www.youtube.com/)
Strindberg and Helium
There are really no words to describe Strindberg and Helium. I nearly fell off my chair laughing when I first saw these Flash shorts. I’d describe it, but it’s better if you just look for yourself. If you’re unfamiliar with August Strindberg, I recommend Miss Julie: “No! To be happy for — two days, a week, as long as we can be happy, and then — die . . .” and “Oh — I’d like to see your blood and your brains on the chopping block! —- I’d like to see your whole sex swimming in a sea of blood, like my little bird . . . I think I could drink from your skull!” Strindberg introduces Miss Julie in a preface to the play: “Miss Julie is a modern character. Not that the man-hating half-woman has not existed in all ages but because now that she has been discovered, she has come out in the open to make herself heard.” Oh, how we love to make fun of modernism. Via BoingBoing.
Mieville’s 50 sf/f novels for socialists
China Mieville is a brilliant science fiction and fantasy novel who is also a second-generation Marxist. He’s produced an amazing annotated bibliography of fifty sf/f novels for socialists. Ayn Rand–Atlas Shrugged (1957) Know your enemy. This panoply of portentous Nietzcheanism lite has had a huge influence on American SF.
China Miéville offers fifty works of fantasy and science fictions that socialists should read. Among them are two of my favorites: Mikhail Bulgakov’s The Master and Margarita and Yevgeny Zamyatin’s We. Interestingly enough, also included are Moorcock’s Hawkmoon novels and Morrison’s Beloved. I would also add Herbert’s Dune and Heinlein’s A Stranger in a Strange Land if you’re going to put Rand on there. Is there a distinction between socialist and fascist? How about something by Ballard or Tepper?
GRL Archive 