Blogs

Earlier this month The Washington Post Magazine ran a story titled "Can Parents Share Child-Raising Responsibilities Equally?" This article is a good contribution to a larger discussion about work / life balance,

Back when I was a nervous, first-time instructor, my colleagues and I decided to include a multi-class blog in our First Year Comp classrooms. We figured this would be a good way to keep tabs on each other: all of our students would write in the same place, and with three of us running it, there was no way we could screw it up.

As a kid, I remember being fascinated by the idea that all my cells regularly die and get replaced over an interval of several years, that at age 10 my body was all different from the body I was born with: what did this mean about who I was? We know even more about cell turnover now - I just looked up human cell longevity, and studies using modern cell dating techniques show that the cells in our body average about seven years of age (except for most brain cells, which survive our whole lives with stable wirings, perhaps answering my question of my identity also being stable, I guess).

I was shocked and saddened to hear of Aaron Swartz’s death. He was a bright, creative, and principled young man who helped build tools I use every day. He helped start the Open Library, helped defeat ill-conceived legislation that would limit freedom on the Internet, and courageously set public information free.

Death by suicide is always disturbing, even if a decision after a well-lived life facing terminal, painful illness. When committed by a young, talented person with a seemingly invisible illness, it takes on even more pathos. Think of Sylvia Plath or Tyler Clementi or so many whose names do not evoke immediate recognition. In cases such as these, and in reflection now of Aaron Swartz, I cannot help but feel how sad it is because it should not have turned out that way.

I read somewhere that the mark of an educated mind is the ability to hold two contradictory thoughts at the same time. If that’s true, then I’m feeling particularly educated of late.

Whatever you think of MOOCs or online learning programs (they are different things!), one great benefit of all the focus on both of these trends is a renewed focus on teaching. Suddenly, everyone is talking about learning. They are talking about learning at CES, in the press, and at provost and presidential meetings. As an edtech guy, someone who hangs out with learning designers and spends his days (and nights) as part of an online/blended learning program team, I am overjoyed with all the focus on teaching and learning.

A new year has begun and it's time to get back on the blogging horse. Per my usual habit of taking stock of the previous year's posts, here are the top ten most-commented posts from last year. The "radical" post garnered more comments than any post in the history of this blog...