Free Campus Events!

I have worked at CSM in various jobs for almost 10 years. Every summer I get the e-mails about the summer performance series events, and tell myself I need to attend. And every summer goes by without me getting there. Until this year! I got to see several of this summer's events and I wish I had gone sooner. The crowd and atmosphere were great. The price was right (free). And the events themselves were awesome. If you haven't been to an event yet, next summer you should include this on your list of things to do, especially if you are on a tight budget!

Feeling Green?

Well, today begins CSM's new Code Green project. The idea is that we can save money and be environmentally responsible by closing services during a non-peak time on Friday afternoons. Sounds like a really great idea, but probably we are just scratching the surface of becoming more environmentally-friendly as a college.

So...send in some ideas (click the "comments" link below). Maybe we can do some things to expand on the start we've gotten with the Code Green project!

Effort versus Achievement

The great John Wooden once said, "Never mistake activity for achievement." I have definitely taken this advice to heart in coaching sports. So, when I read an interesting article (http://www.tcrecord.org/Content.asp?ContentId=15602) today, I noted similar advice on teaching, "Teachers also should help their students understand that effort and quality are not synonymous and that it is achievement, not the effort that led to it, that is rewarded." So, for example, class participation based on quantity is not a collegial means of grading students. Instead, students who participate in a meaningful way should see the results when they complete tests or papers or other assignments that are grades based on achievement of learning objectives.

What do you think? Click "__ Comments" below to leave your thoughts on the topic.

Online Labs???

As we start gearing up for fall courses, I get a lot of questions from faculty and students about online labs. So, how can you do a lab course online? You'd be amazed at the cool ways faculty, publishers, and web page developers have come together to create interactive and stimulating lab experiences for students.

Physics and Java applets have come together in one of my favorite ways - Physlets (check them out at http://webphysics.davidson.edu/Applets/Applets.html). Kind of like peanut butter and chocolate, at least to a Physics professor!

Other labs use kits you can buy at the bookstore. Others use workbooks and publisher-provided access codes for materials that allow you to see online simulations - you set up the knobs, dials or other information and then press "go" to see what would happen in the lab. And if you mix the wrong chemicals together, at least you haven't caused a fire (or worse)! Many students find that they can actually be more creative bacause they don't have to worry about these sorts of things.

Not sure if an online lab is right for you? Feel free to e-mail (ssubocz@csmd.edu) - we can put you in touch with the right instructor to ask!

Just one amazing resource

Before she retired, my mother was a teacher. She taught middle school and high school Consumer and Family Education courses. We (my two brothers and I) used to make fun of her whenever we would go on a long trip and she would bring a great big bag of books with her. WE teased her because she always said that these books were to help her "revise her lesson plans." I assure you that at 13, 16, 21, I thought, "Seriously mom, who cares?"

Well, fast forward a number of years and now it appears that I have caught that disease. However, instead of books, I tend to be a lesson plan "web junkie". Like her, my lesson plans always seem to be in the "tweaking" stages in part because I am always finding a nifty idea or two on the web.

I would like to share a resource with all of you that was passed on to me this semester from Michelle Simpson (LAN).

The New York Times has created this amazing line of lesson plans that connect back to thier articles. Absolute brillance in my mind from a conceptual standpoint, but even better than that, the lesson plans are REALLY good.

http://www.nytimes.com/learning/index.html

The lesson plan from today was "Assessing the Role of Statistics in Baseball Strategy" which tied back to the NYT article "Answering Baseball's What-Ifs" I found myself reading intently and getting very excited about statistics and baseball, neither of which I am normally that exctied about.

In addition to the daily lesson plan, they have a great archive of past lesson plans. I find reading them somewhat addictive, so beware.

I also like perusing some of the ones found on this site:

http://www.teacherscount.org/best/lessonplans.shtml

Great resources, all of them. So I hope that some of you find these useful to help yourselves into your own lesson plan addiction.

Faculty Spotlight

CSM faculty do some really neat things! As a math professor, I don't pretend to know much about art, unless you count geometric figures in that category! It's easy to spot the talent displayed by many of our CSM art and literature faculty, though.

You might want to check out Professor Andy Wodzianski's artwork that has been chosen for display at the Affordable Art Contemporary Art Fair in New York. The Fraser Gallery has his new work online and details can be found at:
http://www.aafnyc.com/exhibitors.php?fair=2&exhibit=128&artist=1036

Of course, you might also get to know Professor Wodzianski's work in one of our classes - he teaches ART-1200/1210/1220/1230 and many studio arts classes.

More shining work can be found in the Languages and Literature division.
Professor Erich Hintze will be attending a workshop for the nation's top "undiscovered" writers. The workshops will be held at the Mercantile Library Center for Fiction in New York City and conducted by the noted author, editor, and renowned writing teacher Gordon Lish

Professor Hintze teaches ENG-1010/1020/2070 and will be opening new Continuing Education opportunities for aspiring poets with a class at the Waldorf Center in the fall.

Five Good Reasons to Complete That Associate's Degree

I read an interesting article today, which I'd like to share. As a faculty member, I have often been asked whether the associate's degree is worth the effort. I've always held my own belief that an associate's benefits people, but this article really struck me as a hitting all of the ideas I have considered. Thanks to the League for Innovation and Jeffrey Ross, here are five really good reasons why students should complete that associate’s degree before moving on (or up):

Program Articulation. Most community colleges, including CSM, have articulation agreements with local universities that allow associate’s degree completers to transfer articulated courses and programs.

Terminal Work Force Program Completion. The career benefits of an associate's degree for people in nursing, computer, and hundreds of fields should not be overlooked, even for individuals who hold baccalaureate or graduate degrees in other academic fields.

A Rung on the Ladder to Personal Success. An associate's degree can be a great milepost of academic success. By completing an associate’s degree, a student can take pride in accomplishment and envision a future filled with other academic successes.

Future Career Plans. This is probably not mentioned often, but for students who may some day consider working at a community college, the attainment of an associate’s degree might help land a job at such an institution.

Immediate Career Advancement. An associate’s degree is a college degree and is often highly regarded by employers; impacts on lifelong earnings have also been well-documented.

Other reasons to complete that associate's degree? Share them by commenting using the link below.