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Charles Rich

PortableApps.com - Portable software for USB drives - 0 views

portableapps.com

portable USB flash windows

shared by Charles Rich on 14 Jun 09 - Cached
  • Charles Rich on 14 Jun 09
     
    Have you ever used someone else's computer and wished that they had your favorite application, like Firefox web browser or VLC media player? Now you can carry compressed versions of dozens of useful programs on your flash drive and use them on any Windows computer without having to install them first.
Brenda Wohlfeil

Virtual Schools Provide the Power of Choice - FamilyEducation.com - 6 views

school.familyeducation.com/...38763.html

schools homeschool choice

shared by Brenda Wohlfeil on 07 Apr 14 - No Cached
  • Virtual schools provide parents and children, from Oregon to New York and across the globe to Russia and other countries, with access to world-class curricula, myriad teachers, and support, just about anytime and anyplace. Most importantly, virtual schools provide the power of choice.
    • Brenda Wohlfeil
      Brenda Wohlfeil on 07 Apr 14
       
      As a prior home school mom, access to curricula at anytime and anyplace was very important.  I needed a curricula that I could take with me to hours of piano lessons and family trips across America. I home schooled my children year-long and took advantage of the many learning opportunities that occurred throughout the year.  Our curricula needed to be flexible and portable.
    • eeverett3
      eeverett3 on 07 Apr 14
       
      Even understanding the flexibility of online classes, I had not thought about how effective this would be for someone who travels ALL the time! The best part of this article is how virtual learning takes advantage of all the online bonuses that a traditional teacher does not have time to look for!
    • Araceli Gracia
      Araceli Gracia on 09 Apr 14
       
      Brenda, My youngest son, who is a 5th grader, always said he wanted to be home schooled, and if I could have, I would have. Giving him the opportunity to "visit" around the world and go at his own pace would suit his personality better. He has never been a big fan of school and it is not the teachers, because he likes them. I feel it is the structure of it all. If he was in a virtual school that provided the flexibility of online classes and learning, he would probably be a happier student. http://www.ehow.com/list_5965288_advantages-virtual-school.html
    • Don Martin
      Don Martin on 09 Apr 14
       
      Araceli, I think it is still possible for your son to be in a virtual school so long as he has the resources and motivation to do it. The virtual schools are not quite the same as home schooling, they are more like the distance learning programs here at UTB. They have dedicated instructors with state approved curricula and a wide variety of choices in classes, instructors and educational experiences (including field trips). If I had this option when I still had children at home I might have considered this option. Our youngest daughter was never really connected to anything in school except for extra-curricular activities. She was "bored" with it and this offers opportunities and experiences that might have been beneficial to her.
    • Brenda Wohlfeil
      Brenda Wohlfeil on 11 Apr 14
       
      Araceli and Don, Some virtual programs are self-paced. For example, my daughter took classes from Texas Tech ISD for high school. They were all self-paced classes She could start a new class whenever she wanted, and she had a good amount of time to complete each classes. Extensions were also granted with an extra fee, of course. http://www.depts.ttu.edu/uc/k-12/ In a homeschool, parents are really facilitators, especially as the kids get older. (I can't imagine ever giving my kids a lecture. They would have just tuned me out completely. :) Most of my kids learning came from project based learning, although at the time I didn't know there was a name for it.) Homeschool kids take classes at co-ops, on the internet, through distant-learning, using a box curriculum, or using a curriculum parents put together. The parent facilitates the learning by providing the tools needed for the kids to learn and the expectations. It is amazing how these kids learn.
    • Brenda Wohlfeil
      Brenda Wohlfeil on 07 Apr 14
       
      Deciding which method best serves their child's unique needs and talents is key here.  Children learn in so many different ways.  If virtual classes focus on only reading passages and answering questions, they will fall short of reaching so many children.  How can virtual classrooms cater to the needs and talents of so many children?
  • ...3 more annotations...
  • Families facing educational choices need to research all options thoroughly. They must examine their educational priorities in order to determine which features best support their goals. Most importantly, they must decide which method best serves their child's unique needs and talents.
  • Are Virtual Schools a Type of Homeschooling? The answer to this question depends on the virtual school. While most of the learning happens in the home with virtual schools, many of them are public schools without doors. Students who register with a public virtual school are counted as public-school students, not homeschoolers, in their state. These public virtual schools collect ADA (average daily attendance), just like the neighborhood brick-and-mortar school. They offer a standards-based curriculum; require attendance keeping, frequent assessments, and progress reports; and comply with mandated state testing.
    • Brenda Wohlfeil
      Brenda Wohlfeil on 07 Apr 14
       
      Take a look at this website for just a short list of online classes for home school familieshttp://a2zhomeschooling.com/home_school_programs/online_homeschooling_programs/
    • Merrill Redfern
      Merrill Redfern on 08 Apr 14
       
      I'm impressed with the diverse list of classes available to home school families seen on this website. Also, an interest-based curricula for students is an awesome way, I think, to help ensure student engagement. Some of the "fun/creative" courses for students in traditional public schools, at least in the elementary level where I teach, are in the form of clubs or additional after school programs. The flexible schedule of online classes leaves room for the management of a more stress-free existence as long as online classes are appropriate for the family. I found this article (or something similar to it) back when I was considering home schooling our daughter. #3 and #6 were our obstacles from moving forward into homeschooling. http://homeschooling.about.com/od/gettingstarted/a/homeschool4you.htm
    • Don Martin
      Don Martin on 09 Apr 14
       
      In the allied health education setting at the college level we are moving more and more towards an integrated curriculum. Soon that approach will be bleeding down into the high school allied health programs. The model originally comes from the integrated approaches now being employed at many medical schools and nursing programs across the country. This might be a form of "interest based currcicula". If a student has an interest in a particular area then wouldn't it make sense to approach the areas they don't have as much interest in but still have need for through their area of interest? We are now offering Developmental Reading, Developmental Writing, and Developmental Math courses in a format that approaches those areas using information and examples from the allied health arena. Students read articles and writings related to allied health, they write papers on allied health subjects and they do math problems (pre-algebra and algebra) with information related to allied health concepts. I think we will see a greater degree of this in the virtual school system as we look for new and innovative ways to connect with students that just don't thrive in the traditional setting or don't have access to the kinds of content they are interested in because their school can't offer it due to lack of funds or the size of the school.
  • Eric Folks on 11 Apr 14
     
    As much as I like the idea of teaching from home, I do hesitate to jump on board with virtual schools, especially after reading stories like this: http://blogs.edweek.org/teachers/living-in-dialogue/2014/01/15_months_in_virtual_charter_h.html I think a blended approach with both face to face (for experiments and activities that have to be hands on) and online (for PBL and the potential for students to own their learning more, possible with objective based goal setting and self paced facilitated approach) would be ideal. Honestly, if I had a chance to teach my teachers virtually, and home school my kids using an online virtual curriculum to help provide structure (while working in much PBL and experiential learning), I'd be all over it!
  • ...2 more comments...
  • Olivia Basham on 13 Apr 14
     
    Eric, I had a friend who worked for K12 and when she started and was so excited to follow her experience as I imagined it would be an excellent way to reach students and I imagined that perhaps one day I could follow her. As her year unfolded and she shared what it was like for her, I quickly lost interest (at least in that particular school). She had much the same experience described in the article, except her principal was even more abusive than what was described. She was overloaded, had almost constant meetings, did 15-16 ARDs and 504 meetings a weeks (she she was one of few certified teachers, she received the majority of these students who enrolled) and felt impotent to actually help the students she was trying to teach. Worst of all she took a 40% pay cut to do it. No thanks. Nobody becomes a teacher to get rich, but I can't imagine feeling like my students were being under served while also just barely getting by financially.
  • Don Martin on 13 Apr 14
     
    Eric and Olivia, I don't believe that this type of problem is unique to the virtual school environment. Abusive administrators, overloaded instructional staff and feelings of helplessness unfortunately are more common than they should be at any level and in every format. The solution is to identify the strengths and weaknesses of virtual schools, emphasize the strengths, find ways to minimize the weaknesses and subject the process to a continuous Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP). QEP, if properly developed and employed can lead to the same type of success in a virtual learning environment as is seen in a face-to-face setting. In fact there are many instances in which the quality of the online education is as good or better than what the students are getting in the face-to-face setting. The potential benefits of VLE and virtual schools should not be overlooked or simply discarded because there may be some issues. Progress is made by doing, evaluating, planning, doing again and evaluating to start the cycle over. VLE has not been around long enough for us to have had the opportunity to work out all the bugs. Look at how long we have been practicing face-to-face education and the improvements that we continue to make today in the way we deliver education in that arena, not to mention the continuous research aimed at understanding how to make it even better. Perhaps a blended approach at first is best, it gives us an opportunity to explore the potential of VLE while developing the standards, guidelines and techniques necessary to make it a successful learning experience while using the support of the familiar face-to-face environment. However, it is my opinion that this approach should be used to help us develop the best possible VLE experience for the future. Not as a replacement for face-to-face learning (I believe there will be a place for that for many years to come) but as an effective alternative for those who would benefit from it.
  • Brenda Wohlfeil on 14 Apr 14
     
    I agree with Don. I think from a teacher's perspective, possibly Dr. Butler can give us some insight as to the validity of the problems stated by this teacher with regards to VLE in general.
  • lbanuelos on 14 Apr 14
     
    I too believe that a hybrid approach to instruction is the best way. Although virtual schools sounds like the way of the future, like all new technology it may not be simply for everyone. http://neatoday.org/2012/07/25/virtual-schools-not-passing-the-test/
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