C4T Summary Post # 1

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A GeekyMomma's Blog 

http://www.leekolbert.com/

Grading Parents?

This blog entry is concerned with a bill proposed by Florida State Representative, Kelli Stargel that would requires elementary educators (k-3) to assess the quality of parental involvement within their child’s education. Parents will be scored on how well their child’s homework is completed, the child’s attendance, and the parents’ willingness to attend or respond to meetings.  They will also be graded on the physical fitness and preparation for school. The received grades will be provided on the child’s report card. While all of these requirements are important, teachers should not have to grade their students’ parents.

In this post, Mrs. Kolbert approaches the idea with a satirical attitude.  It is understood that Mrs. Kolbert rejects this proposal and believes that it will not pass. On a more positive note, the bill will open the discussion to the fact that parents must begin to bear some responsibility for their child’s progress.

I agree that the idea is bizarre. Parental involvement is important in the educational success of students, but who are we to tell parents what should and should not be done at home. If I had children I would not want their teachers grading me on my parenting skills, and as a future teacher, I would not want to have to grade my students’ parents. I’m sure that Representative Stargel’s intentions are good, but there are better ways to involve parents than with a grading system.

Protecting Reputations Online

Sharing your life online can be fun and productive but it can also mean losing control. It is important for not only young people but also adults to think about what they put online. Photos, comments, and videos that contain inappropriate materials do not necessarily disappear when they are deleted. The video presented in this blog entry repeatedly encourages its audience to "think before you click" This lesson is an important one to learn. 

In this blog entry, Mrs. Kolbert proposes that students make their own Common Craft style video to share their own story of caution for younger students. She explains that her students used the video technique to create science videos explaining rocks and ho they are formed. Kolbert explains that education should be ongoing, engaging, quick, and most importantly different.

We all assume that once we delete something, it is forever gone, but this video taught me otherwise. I think it is very important for students to understand the risks involved in posting unwanted information online. The Common-Craft video technique seems to be a positive, new, and exciting way for students to learn caution when posting while creatively sharing educational information.