Author: grabe

Common Sense Media announces a new web-based media ratings system (New York Times).

I just finished finals week. One of the useful by-products of this time for me is the opportunity to read student papers. It becomes a useful way to increase the breadth of the material I normally read. A couple of papers this time dealth with high stakes testing and both papers cited the work of Arizona State Univ. profs Amrein and Berliner. These researchers assumed that any general benefit of high stakes tests would be evident on other standardardized tests administered in the state (ACT, SAT, NAEP and AP). They concluded “evidence from this study of 18 states with high-stakes tests is that in all but one analysis, student learning is indeterminate, remains at the same level it was before the policy was implemented.” This finding raises some interesting questions about what the tests actually accomplish.

A recent Education Week special report considered “Technology and Testing”. A variety of issues, applications, and concerns are addressed. I see the new PT3 “call” for proposals includes this area as a possible area of emphasis.

New York Times has an interesting description and analysis of how women are portrayed in video games. The article considers both positive and negative perspectives on the agressive roles female characters (or any character) portrays in interactive entertainment.

I see that KidLink has generated some online press. Kidlink has utilized the Internet to enroll students from 157 countries on every continent in a variety of programs. KidLink put “kids” in touch with each other through listservs, chats, forums, and lesson series.

Marco Polo offers resources that all teachers should take the time to examine. Recently, there was some concern that financial difficulties of a company supporting this site would force the site to close. However, the site has survived and continues to offer great resources. Marco Polo is known for a careful review process and for linking lessons to standards at the state level.

We spent Mother’s Day in Minneapolis involved in the Race/Walk for the Cure. I walked. It rained a lot, but was a great day.

Here is Cindy (left) with brother Scott and his wife Denise.

The Race for the Cure raises money for breast cancer research. She is now a nine-year survivor. Appreciate each day.