Important EDM310 Information

1. Class is CANCELLED Thursday December 6, 2012.

2. If you have not completed your Foliotek you must do so by 4 pm Thursday December 6, 2012.

3. You have been sent the Final Exam/Questionnaire. It must be completed by midnight Sunday December 9, 2012. Do it earlier if at all possible. If you did not get it, send an email to EDM310 Help immediately.

4. Your Final Reflection is due midnight Sunday December 9, 2012. Keep it between 3 and 5 minutes and I will be happier. If necessary, do more but do not exceed 10 minutes.

5. Grades will be submitted to the Registrar by noon on Monday December 17, 2012.

Happy Holidays.

Foliotek

We will check your Foliotek entries at the beginning of your first mandatory class this week (December 3, 4 or 5, 2012) or we will help you complete them if necessary.

1. You must have registered for Foliotek BEFORE your first class this week. It costs $ 35 for one year. To register and pay for Foliotek follow these instructions:
a. Use Chrome or Firefox browsers ONLY.
b.Go to the USA Online Login page.
b. Login. Your User ID is your J number. Your password is the last 4 digits of your social security number.
c. Click on Sakai and then click on Foliotek in the left column. If you have not established a Foliotek account, do so. You will have to pay by credit card. After all information has been entered you will have to Accept the Foliotek rules, etc.
2. Once you have registered and paid for Foliotek and Accepted the Foliotek rules, etc. you will be able to post to Foliotek.

Think of Foliotek as a storage device in the sky where you will store evidence of your accomplishments in the College of Education. Every course you take in the COE has state established standards which you must meet. You must store the evidence used to determine whether or not you have met these standards in Foliotek where anyone desiring to can see that evidence. Your instructors will provide detailed instructions of what evidence must be submitted for what standards. You then place electronic copies of that evidence in Foliotek.

In EDM310 all of your evidence for all of the standards associated with EDM310 is in your blog and the EDM310 Class Blog. Therefore your blog and the Class Blog are what "go" into Foliotek. Since your evidence consists entirely of blogs we only have to provide Foliotek with links - links to your blog and the Class Blog. Therefore completing the Foliotek requirements for EDM310 is quick and easy.

You will need:
1. A list of the standards associated with EDM310. They are:

Literacy: Oral and Written Communications (3)(c) 1.(iii)
Literacy: Technology (3)(c) 4.(i)
Literacy: Technology (3)(c) 4.(ii)
Literacy: Technology (3)(c) 4.(vi)
Professionalism: Ethics (5)(c) 5.(ii)
Professionalism: Ethics (5)(c) 5.(iv)
For Elementary Majors ONLY: General Special Education: 290-3-3-.34 (2)(g)2.(iii)

Note that the standards are grouped into Literacy, Professionalism and Teaching K-6(for General Special Education). (There are other groups.) Also note that there is one small letter i (or two or three of them) at the end of the numbering system. These are VERY IMPORTANT. Be sure you pay attention to them!

2. You will need the URL to your blog and the URL for the Class Blog ( http://edm310.blogspot.com )

3. Then follow the instructions in Foliotek Instructions.

4. After you have completed Foliotek, your entries must be checked in person by one of the EDM310 staff members. This is an ABSOLUTE requirement and it must be done in class before 4 pm Thursday December 6, 2012. If one of us does not sign off on your Foliotek entries in person you will get an I in the course. And if you do not complete Foliotek (which is a GREAT hassle for you and an even greater hassle for Dr. Strange) no later than February 18, 2013 your I will become an F no matter what you would have gotten in the course.

Dr. Strange Selected as "Top Prof"

Dr. John Strange was selected as a Top Prof by Mortar Board member Bailey Hammond at the Annual Mortar Board Top Prof Celebration held Thursday November 29, 2012

In her award comments Bailey cited Dr. Strange's antipathy to "burp back education" as one of the reasons for his selection as Top Prof.

Lab Open and Closed

For the Thanksgiving Holidays the Lab will be OPEN and CLOSED as follows:
Wednesday November 21, 2012 OPEN and staffed until 2:00 PM
Thursday November 22, 2012 CLOSED
Friday November 23, 2012 CLOSED
Saturday November 24, 2012 CLOSED
Sunday November 25, 2012 OPEN and staffed 1:00pm - 6:00 pm

Happy Thanksgiving

Normally I have no assignments during Thanksgiving Week. Hurricane Isaac necessitated moving the "lost week" into Thanksgiving Week. To partially make up for that I will end C4K posts after the one due next Sunday (11/25/12). I will also end C4C after next Sunday (11/25/12). And there will be no Blog Post #14 Assignment which I had removed but warned of a replacement. I am also allowing Blog Post #13 to be submitted no later than Sunday December 2, 2012. These changes do not totally eliminate the work necessary during Thanksgiving Week. I hope, however, these changes make the next two weeks a bit more enjoyable.

C4C and C4K assignments will be available by noon on Monday 11/19/12 and will be due Sunday November 25, 2012. They will be the last C4C and C4K assignments. Happy Thanksgiving (and the week after).

Foliotek

If you have not paid for Foliotek, you should do so NOW!

If you have paid for Foliotek you need do nothing until the last week of class.

I will post additional instructions for Foliotek on the Class Blog after Thanksgiving so you can complete your EDM310 Foliotek ahead of time. We must still check your Foliotek BEFORE classes are over. We will do this in the first class meeting of the first week in December.

You must use either Chrome, Firefox or Internet Explorer to access Foliotek.

Click on USA Online at the bottom of the USA Web Page.

Click on Sakai.

Enter your J Number as your user name and your JagMail password as your password.

You should see EDM310 at the top of the page. Click on it

In the left column you should see Foliotek. Click on Foliotek and follow the instructions to make your payment.

Entering the Contest? Watch These Videos.

These two videos should help you generate ideas for your contest entry. Remember: Due Date Sunday December 2, 2012. The contest entry movie should be from one to two minutes long.

Additional information can be found at the Made At the USA site.

Dr. John Strange and Chris Smith Discuss the Contest

Dr. John Strange and Chris Smith discuss the Made At the USA Contest in USA Contest Video 1 (3:21)

Chris Smith Discusses the Contest

Chris Smith elaborates on the Made At The USA Contest in USA Contest Video 3 (1:42)

Blog Post #14 Assignment Will Change

Beware. I have changed the Blog Assignments Manual once again. We are now using Version 11. There is no assignment for Blog Post #14 BUT THERE WILL BE. Another version of the Blogpost Assignments Manual will be published soon. If you have an earlier version, DO NOT USE the Assignment #14 that is shown in it. Always use the latest version of all manuals.

How to Use Green Screen and Examples

Learning to Use the Green Screen

Elizabeth Brooks shares her Green Screen (Chroma Key) Secrets in her video How to use Chroma Key in Adobe Premiere Elements 9 starring previous EDM 310 student Ramsey Willis.

Jacey-Blair and the Jag Brooms

Elizabeth directed Jacey-Blair in a thrilling green screen movie Jacey-Blair and the Jag Brooms. Watch it to see how the green screen magic allows Jacey-Blair to fly, as Elizabeth said,"around South Alabama's campus using the new Jag Brooms providing much better transportation than Jag Bikes".

Song used in this video is "Prologue" from Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by John Williams.

Spellbinding

Elizabeth and Bailey spend another Spellbinding Day in the Lab - well with a bit of "extra" added.

Special Blog Assignment Due Wednesday Midnight November 7, 2013

Read the USA Today article A World Where Grades Will Be Left Behind by Mary Beth Marklein. Summarize the article. Then respond to the arguments of the author from your perspective as a preservice teacher. This response, should be thoughtful, personal, and reflective. It also must be well reasoned. It must not contain any grammar or spelling errors. DUE WEDNESDAY midnight November 7, 2012

Midterm Evaluations

Otherwise Known as Grades

You gave yourself a grade at midterm after evaluating yourself on a number of items of importance including doing all your work on time, the quality of your writing, the quality of the content of your posts, the grading system prescribed by the University of South Alabama ( A - Outstanding, B - Above Average, C - Average, D - Below Average, F - Unsatisfactory.) You also were to have been honest in your evaluations. You also were to have considered the evaluations provided by me and the Lab Professionals through our comments as well as the comments of your fellow students (which, I fear, must be heavily discounted since most are not true evaluations but cheerful "You are doing great" statements even if that is not true).

How do the grades you gave yourself compare with the grades I have given you?
Here are the data:

Dr. Strange gave a one letter better grade that the student gave him or herself: 4 - 3.5%
Dr. Strange and the student agreed exactly on the grade given: 37 - 32.7% (including 2 D grades)
The students gave him or herself a one letter higher grade than Dr. Strange gave them: 38 - 33.6%
The student gave him or herself a two letter higher grade than Dr. Strange gave them (A vs. C):10 - 8.9%
The student got a D from Dr. Strange but gave him or her self an A, B or C: 12 - 10.6%
The student did not complete the midterm questionnaire and therefore did not give a grade to him or her self. (All of these students were given an F or a D by Dr. Strange.): 12 - 10.6%

How were the grades given by Dr. Strange distributed?

A - 25 22.1%
B - 35 31.0%
C - 27 23.9%
D - 13 11.5%
F - 13 11.5%

How were the grades given by students distributed?

A - 59 52.2%
B - 31 27.4%
C - 09 08.0%
D - 02 02.8%
F - 00 11.5%
No Grade given 12 10.6%

Here are data concerning how you evaluated yourselves as to writing:

Here are data concerning how you evaluated yourselves as to as to the quality of the content of your blog posts:

Some of you need to sit down and have a talk with me about your work. Who needs to do that?
Everyone to whom I gave an F or D (24 students not including the 2 students who gave themselves a D)
Everyone who gave themselves a grade two letters better that I gave them (10 students)
The two students who gave themselves a D (and I agreed) might also benefit from a chat with me although it is not required.
If you were within one grade of my grade or equal to my grade (and you did not get a D or F), we do not need to meet. Why not?
1. I have not reviewed all of your work yet (podcasts, my sentence, C4T, and some C4K assignments as well as comments by partners on cooperation or lack thereof).
2. This is midterm. Most students are improving the quality and timeliness of their work (which is what we should expect).
3. I used + and minus scores which the University does not recognize and which will not show on your midterm grade report.
4. There is limited time and I must meet with 34-36 students already.
How can you find out whether you must meet with me? I will send everyone who needs to meet with me an email by midnight Sunday October 29, 2012 stating the time for our meeting. You MUST confirm the appointment by return email. All appointments will be scheduled during the time slots allocated to your EDM310 section.

Correction: Lab Open and Staffed Saturday 10/28 and Sunday 10/29

The Lab will be open and staffed Saturday and Sunday October 28 and 29, 2012. We have found an available staff member (Carly) for Sunday.

Richard Howell Offers Good Advice on Writing

Richard Howell, an EDM310 graduate, offers excellent advice on writing in his blog The Demeanor Report. Read his post How to Write Something Thoughtful and Commendable.

Lab Open and Staffed Saturday, Sunday, Monday and Tuesday

Need to catch up during the Fall Break? The Lab will be open and staffed Saturday 10/6, Sunday 10/7, Monday 10/8 and Tuesday 10/9. Regular hours will apply.

Lab Open Sat 9/29 But No Staff; Sunday 9/30 Open and Staffed

The Lab will be open (if it locked ask the Lab attendant across the hall to open it Saturday September 29, 2012. It will NOT, however, be staffed on Saturday. The Lab will be OPEN and STAFFED Sunday September 30, 2012.

Comment Rejected Because It Did Not Meet 3rd Grade Standards

On p. 16 of the Projects Instruction Manual you will find this listed as point #3:

All comments must be proofread and free of spelling and grammatical errors. Have you read Some of You Won’t Make It Through 3rd Grade ? If not, do so now. I do NOT want to find out that your comments have been rejected by a teacher (3rd grade or not) because of spelling or grammatical errors. For heavens sake! You are planning to be a teacher, correct?

If not, do so now made bold and italicized for this post.

I also told this story in every class during one of the first mandatory classes.

Sunday (September 23, 2012) I got this email from Anthony Capps, my very first Lab Professional and now a 3rd grade teacher (just like Mrs. Yollis) at Gulf Shore Elementary:

If you can't read the text in the image, here is what Anthony wrote:

Hi Dr. Strange,

I can't publish this comment because BBBBBBBB BBBBBBBBBB didn't capitalize her letters appropriately, and she included more than one run-on sentence. We just got finished discussing the importance of capitalization and punctuation last week, and I don't want this comment to undermine our progress.

In contrast, Daniel Morgan's post was very helpful! We just began learning how sentence variety makes writing more interesting, and his use of questioning was exemplary.

Thank you,

Anthony

OH MY! Four times she used i instead of I. One time she made poll plural by adding an apostrophe s. She had one run-on sentence. In addition, data is always plural. The singular form is datum. Using data as a singular noun is incorrect. Unfortunately, many people treat it as a singular noun as did this student. The misuse of data as a singlar noun apparently played no role in the rejection of her comment. I would have rejected it for that reason, however.

Students:
You must proofread your comments.
You are not texting when you leave a comment.
Please do not let this happen again.

Where Have All the Students Gone?

One of my favorite songs by Pete Seeger is Where Have All the Flowers Gone?

Where have all the flowers gone?
Long time passing
Where have all the flowers gone?
Long time ago
Where have all the flowers gone?
Girls have picked them every one
When will they ever learn?
When will they ever learn?

So Where have all the students gone?
When will they ever learn?
When will they ever learn?

Why do I ask this?
Well 25 (21%) did not do Blog Post #4
40 (34%) did not do the C4T#1
and 34 (29%) did not do their presentation.
For some they have started like the Saints: 0 and 3. Not many teams have ever made the playoffs starting 0 and 3.

Embed Your Presentation - Google Changes the Rules

Google has changed the way to get the code that will embed your Presentation in your Blog. Here are the new instructions:
1. Create your presentation.
2. Proof it for spelling and grammar.
3. Make sure you have followed the instructions and have 15 or more slides including a Title page and an End page as well as acknowledgements for pictures and material used.
4. Go to the File menu in Google Docs (Drive) with your presentation open in Docs (Drive).
5. Select Publish to Web.
6. Click Start Publishing.
7. When asked if you are sure you want to publish this documet, Click OK. 8. Change size to Small (480x 389). 8. Select time for slide to Automatically Advance The default - 3 seconds - will probably work. If it does not, go back and change it by selecting Publish to web under the File menu. (Unfortunately the new version of Google will not let you select Manual Advance.)
9. Copy embed code.
10. Go to Blogger and create new post.
11. Add a Title - Project # 5 Presentation.
12. Be sure the HTML tab is selected.
13. Paste embed code.
14. Publish and make sure it works.

C4K Starts Monday September 17, 2012

I think C4K is one of the most important parts of EDM310. You will be commenting on kids blogs throughout the world. But you must PREPARE for this activity before you undertake it. Here's how:

1. Read/watch all material for which links appear in the section for Projects#3, #4 and #7 in the Projects Manual, p. 18
.....a in the opening paragraph
.....b in the General rules numbers 1-5 (on p.18) and 6c (on pp. 19-20)

2. If your C4K assignment has a Class Blog, look it over. see what you can find out about the class and the assignment. For Week 1 I have done a bit of that for you. Where possible I have listed the teacher's name, the school, and the grade. But YOU must explore every week. Don't just treat this as a quick assignment. Think about the way the teacher is approaching instruction, how she uses blogs and for what purpose.

3. PROOFREAD your comment. Do not have it rejected because of your failure to use good grammar, to spell correctly, or to avoid texting techniques.

4. In this first iteration, C4K will take more time than it will later in the semester. Invest quality time in this assignment. I assure you it will be beneficial to you in the future.


Some Additional Reminders:

Many of these students have been blogging since September. The students at Pt. England School probably have been blogging for 3 or more years! They know more about blogging than you do. Pt. England School is one of my favorite schools and has been for a long time. We will visit Pt. England School quite often.

Three Special Reminders
1. If the student to whom you are assigned does not have a post, choose another student and notify me (at edm310help@gmail.com) of the student you selected instead.
2. You must find out about the teacher and the school BEFORE you leave a comment. You are a visitor there. Know where you are and with whom you are interacting! This is extremely important!
3. We will discuss what you should do in completing your C4K assignments in class this week. Tuesday and Wednesday classes are mandatory (Wednesday night 6-7:15). If I were you I would wait to start on C4K until after that mandatory class.

Add Your Picture to Your Blog Profile

Here's how:

Go to the Class Blog.

On the right, just under Instruction Manual, click on Click on the Emergency Access to the Instructon Manual.

At the top of the light blue area, click on your class in the Subpage(s) list

At the right, click on the Down Arrow. This will download your picture to your computer. On a PC it will (probably) go into the Pictures folder. On a Mac it will go into the Downloads folder.

Go to your blog.

In the upper right you will see your name with a down arrow. Click on the Down arrow.

Click on Blogger Profile

Click on Edit Profile in the Upper Right

In the area where it says Profile Photo, click on From your computer and choose your picture which should be in the location specified above. It will be named YouLastName,YourFirstName.jpg, e.g. Baxter, Alecia.jpg

It will upload and appear in the Profile page and on your Blog

VERY IMPORTANT: Scroll all the way down and click on Save Profile on the Left.

In a yellow bar near the top of the Profile page it will say "Your settings have been saved" and there will be a link to "View Updated profile". Click on that link to check it out.

Lab Closed 12:00 - 2:00 Wednesday 9/12. Use Lab Across the Hall

Due to a College scheduling problem, the EDM310 LAB (3301) will be closed Wednesday 9/12 from 12-2. EDM310 Lab Assistants WILL be in the labs across the hall (3304 and 3306) which you may use.

Missing Too Many Posts!

Be on time with your work! I hope you remember that. Some students apparently did not. We have 121 students in all four sections of EDM310 this semester. Of those, 2 are inactive since they have not attended class and have done little or nothing. That leaves 119. Of those, 18 did not have their Blog post Assignment #1 done on time. That is 15%, the typical percentage since the new version of EDM310 began 3 years ago. But I am not happy with that number! You are learning to be a professional. Act like one. And if you are having problems (other that procrastination), COME TO THE LAB.

In addition, 4 additional students did not do all parts of the assignment, and one did part of the assignment and then removed the entire post. I am not sure what that is about.

The staff and I will start reading the posts today. By the end of the week we will have a report on the quality of your work.

Five students are ahead in their posts! That is an excellent way to start EDM310. Some 8 others wrote their Blog Post #2 quite early but have given up that lead by not moving even further ahead. Being ahead in your EDM310 work is valuable, especially at crunch time for other courses.

Books and Chapters Assigned for Podcast

I have added to the Groups Fall 2012 Doc specific assignments for your Group Podcast. Each member of a Group will need to purchase a book. There are three possible books, all by Rafe Esquith. They are available from Amazon and other bookstores. Prices shown below are Amazon prices.
Teach Like Your Hair's On Fire - Paperback $ 10.20; Hardcover $ 15.59; Kindle $ 12.99
There Are No Shortcuts - Paperback $ 10.20; Kindle $ 13.99
Lighting Their Fires - Hardcover $ 9.98; Kindle $ 12.99

You can get free 2 day delivery from Amazon by joining Student Prime which is free for the first 6 months.

Your assignment is now shown in the Groups Fall 2012 Doc.You should order (or get a copy from a library) NOW!

Groups List Now in Your Docs (Drive)

I have shared the Doc Groups List Fall 2012 with you.

There are 9 students who are not in a group. There are several possible reasons for this:
1. They were absent on the last day of class this week (a mandatory meeting date).
2. The person who was supposed to send a Gmail to edm310help@gmail.com listing the group members did not do so.
3. The student left class before groups were formed.

If you are not assigned to a group you must contact me (Dr. Strange) as soon as possible.

Lab Open and Staffed Thursday, Friday and Saturday Aug 30, 31 and September 1

The Lab will be open and staffed Thursday and Friday August 30 and 31 and Saturday September 1.

OPEN AND STAFFED
THURSDAY 8/30/12 9:00 - 6:00
FRIDAY 8/31/12 9:00 - 6:00
SATURDAY 9/1/12 1:00-6:00

See the post immediately below (posted Tuesday at 7:53 am) about the Mandatory Classes.

Classes Cancelled This Entire Week; Lab Closed Today and Wednesday - maybe More

Except for the Monday class which met last night, I have cancelled ALL classes for the rest of this week.

A new Master Calendar with new due dates will be issued later this week through your Google Docs. ALL classes next week (Tuesday 9/2 through Thursday 9/6) will be MANDATORY Attendance classes. Monday is a holiday but the Monday/Wednesday class met yesterday so that works out just fine. Dates for other Mandatory Attendance Classes will change except for Week 16 (the last week of classes). Thanksgiving Week, which had been empty, will get the overflow. You will get a new Master Calendar later this week with all changed dates and instructions on how to throw away your existing calendar and replace it with the new one and how to provide the data we need to check to see that you have done that correctly.

I am unsure about the Lab times this week. I do know that the Lab will be CLOSED today Tuesday August 28 and Wednesday August 29.

You may work ahead to the extent possible. Emails, calls, etc will be answered. It is excellent to get and stay ahead in EDM310.

Certain students still do not have some of their mechanical settings correct in Blogger. Others need to make other adjustments. Watch for Gmail instructions should we decide to send them out individually.

Check the Class Blog every day for new information.

C4T assignments may be published today. If so, you can get started on them. C4C assignments will NOT be made until classes resume. You will do your first C4C in class.

If you have any questions send a Gmail to EDM310 Help of call the Google EDM310 help line or call me personally.

University Cancels Classes Wednesday. I Add Thursday.

ALL EDM310 Classes Scheduled for the rest of this week are CANCELLED.





At 6:00 pm last night (Monday 8/27/12) the University added Wednesday as a closure day:
Tropical Storm Isaac Update: Monday, 6 p.m.

Due to additional information on Tropical Storm Isaac and the announced mandatory evacuation of parts of Mobile and Baldwin counties, the University of South Alabama has canceled classes at all locations for Tuesday and Wednesday and will resume its normal class schedule on Thursday. University offices will close Tuesday and staff employees should not report except for employees designated as essential personnel. Staff employees should plan to return to work on Wednesday. Should the weather worsen beyond current predictions, staff employees will be notified of any Wednesday office closings no later than 6 p.m. on Tuesday. Students residing on campus are welcomed to stay in residence halls, and food service will be provided. Students, faculty and staff should use their best judgment to make decisions based on their personal safety.

All Health Sciences Division students should follow the directives of the general University except those in clinical settings, who should follow the directives of their assigned clinical supervisors. USA's hospitals and clinics will remain open, and employees and all medical residents/fellows should report to work as usual. Hospital and clinic employees experiencing hardships should contact their supervisor.

Please be reminded that the only official sources of USA weather and emergency information are campus wide e-mail, the USA Weather and Emergency Hotline at (251) 460-6999, and the University's Web site. For the latest updated information on the evacuation announced by the
state of Alabama, go to www.readyalabama.gov .

Keith Ayers
Director of Public Relations
University of South Alabama
Phone: (251) 460-6211
kayers@usouthal.edu

As a result I have decided that Thursday EDM310 Classes are also cancelled in order to create a workable schedule. See the post immediately above this post for an explanation of what these changes mean to you.

What Does the University Closure Tuesday Mean For You?

NOTHING if you are in a MW class or the Wednesday night class. Be in class Monday and Wednesday or Wednesday depending on the class you are assigned to.

If you are in either Tuesday/Thursday class, you will meet only on Thursday this week. Tuesday next week will be a MANDATORY class. We will NOT change any deadlines for ANY Assignments.

If Isaac decides to come our way, these instructions may change. The University will issue another update Tuesday night at 8pm.

Classes CANCELLED Tuesday ONLY. Noon Monday Udate.

The Latest University Advisory on Isaac (12:00 noon CDT Monday 8/26/12)

Tropical Storm Isaac Update: Monday noon

Due to Tropical Storm Isaac, the University of South Alabama has
canceled classes at all locations for Tuesday and will resume its normal
class schedule on Wednesday. If any additional cancellation is needed,
notification will be made by 8 p.m. Tuesday. University offices will
remain open Tuesday and staff employees should report as usual. Should
the weather worsen beyond current predictions, staff employees will be
notified of any office closings by 8 p.m. tonight (Monday). Students
residing on campus will be allowed to stay in residence halls and food
service will be provided. Staff employees living in the evacuation
areas should contact their supervisors to report their status.
Students, faculty and staff should use their best judgment to make
decisions based on their personal safety.

All Health Sciences Division students should follow the directives of
the general University except those in clinical settings, who should
follow the directives of their assigned clinical supervisors. USA's
hospitals and clinics will remain open, and employees and all medical
residents/fellows should report to work as usual. Hospital and clinic
employees experiencing hardships should contact their supervisor.

Please be reminded that the only official sources of USA weather and
emergency information are campus wide e-mail, the USA Weather and
Emergency Hotline at (251) 460-6999, and the University's Web site.

Here is the statement from the Governor's Office:

Alabama Governor Robert Bentley on Sunday declared a statewide State of
Emergency and issued mandatory evacuation orders ahead of Isaac's
expected landfall as a hurricane along the Gulf Coast. Governor
Bentley is also ordering a mandatory evacuation beginning at 8:00 Monday
morning for Zones 1 and 2 in both Mobile and Baldwin Counties.

In Baldwin County: Zones 1 and 2 include all areas south of U.S.
Highway 98 and areas on the Eastern Shore of Mobile Bay that are South
of Interstate 10 and west of U.S. Highway 98. Additionally, all people
living in proximity to the Fish, Styx, Blackwater, and Perdido Rivers
should evacuate. Also, all people living in manufactured homes, and
those living in low-lying, flood-prone areas should evacuate.

In Mobile County: Zones 1 and 2 include areas south of Interstate 10
and those areas that are north of I-10 and east of I-65 and east of U.S.
43. Also, all people living in manufactured homes, and those living in
low-lying, flood-prone areas should evacuate.
For more information go to www.readyalabama.gov.




Keith Ayers
Director of Public Relations
University of South Alabama
Phone: (251) 460-6211
kayers@usouthal.edu

Lab OPEN Saturday 8/25; Closed SUNDAY 8/26

The Lab will be open Saturday 8/25 from 1 until 6.

The LAB will be CLOSED SUNDAY 8/26.

Questionnaire

I have sent the Questionnaire that is due Sunday to everyone.

BUT....Google has not been cooperating so I am not sure whether they have really been sent. I will be checking on that today. If you have NOT gotten the link to the questionnaire when you read this post, please send a Gmail to EDM310 Help and advise me that you have not yet received the questionnaire.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

I have added some very important information to the first Blog Post Assignment on p.8 of the Blog Assignments Document, p. 8. Be sure yu are using VERSION # 3 of the Blog Post Assignments!


Because I include HTML code which I want you to see but which I do not want to work I cannot show you here what I have written. Go to the Blog Assignments and then go to p. 8. Read what I have written and follow those directions.

Confused by Blogger?

Watch Bailey Hammond's 12 minute video Blogger in 12 Minutes

Syllabi and Instruction Manual Now Available for Fall 2012 Term

You can find the links to these documents in the column on the right under the heading Essential Materials for Students and Visitors. We look forward to learning with you this semester!

Welcome Fall 2012 Classes

Classes start next week. Be sure to do the following

1. BEFORE CLASSES START sign up for a Google account and send me your Google mail address. It is essential to do this BEFORE classes start. See my email I sent to all of you.

2. ALL Classes during the first two weeks are MANDATORY. Be there!

3. Bring your personal computer or your iPad. This is VERY IMPORTANT.

4. I will take your picture either on Day 1 or Day 2 of the first week. Be prepared to look your best.

We welcome you to EDM310 and are excited to begin learning with you.

John Strange and the EDM310 Staff

Final Exam/Questionnaire

You should have received a Gmail with a link to the Questionnaire at about 1:00 pm yesterday. It is to be completed by Friday midnight 7/20. That is tonight!

If did not get the link to the Questionnaire, check your Gmail again and then send me an email (strange.john@gmail.com).

Have a productive and fun break.

iBook Author, iBook and iPads

Overall, I was quite pleased with our experiment this semester in creating iBooks and previewing them on the iPads. I believe iBooks have an enormous potential for learning and training - in schools and elsewhere. I hope you will keep experimenting and keep us posted on your progress. As soon as possible I will find a way for others to view your work. When I do, I will also provide you with how to add a link to your Blog.

Thanks for participating in our experiment.

Blog Post #10

Many of you failed to understand all or most of the messages contained in the assignments for Blog Post #10. Here is a general comment for all of you:

The first part of the assignment was to explain the cartoon. Papermate is a metaphor for a PC. Ticonderoga is a metaphor for a Mac. The cartoon characters resemble the stars of the long series of Apple ads (66 over 4 years) starring John Hodgman as PC and Justin Long as Mac.

2. The second part of the assignment was to read the post Why Were Your Kids Playing Games? , read at least one other post, create a link to in on your post, write a quality post about the two posts you read. Mr. Spencer uses satire and metaphors to deliver this message: the principal wants Mr. Spencer to use "drill and memorize" activities instead of projects or other learning approaches. All to pass the tests.

You were to select another post and comment on it.

3. The third part of the assignment was to read the post Don't Teach Your Kids This Stuff. Please? and some comments by previous students and then to discuss your position on the arguments made by Dr. McLeod.

The satiric message of Mr. McLeod which is that you can try to keep your kids away from technology which is fine with me. Mine will use it and speed past your kids in skills, abilities and rewards.

In addition you were to send Tweets to Mr. Spencer and Dr. McLeod.

Evaluate your performance on this assignment yourself.

Lab Closed Saturday 7/7. Open Saturday 7/14 and Sunday 7/15 1-6

The title says it all:
Lab Closed Saturday 7/7. Open Saturday 7/14 and Sunday 7/15 1pm - 6pm