So here is the last option for the summer blog adventure...and it is a really easy one. All you you need to answer are these two questions and enjoy your last week before your senior year begins. Each question should be answered with 2 paragraphs.
1) What are three positives you have found from doing the blog this summer? You need to be specific.
2) What are three things you would change about the blog or the summer assignment? And writing about not doing it is not an option.
P.S. Get that summer assignment done it is due in a week and three days. See you in a couple days.
1. There are a lot of positive aspects I found by doing this blog. I mean it has gotten me prepare what I’m going to be facing in couple of days. And to be honest one positive outlook is that it got me to discovered more how the government is being run. I’m seeing many different perspectives by these people who come up with ideas of what would make this country a better community. I might or not agree with their ideas but it has made me come interesting about court cases, bills being debated, and a lot more stuff.
ReplyDeleteAnother positive way of this blog is has made me come close with my classmates on how they believe what would be a good or bad idea. It’s very interesting seeing everyone’s own opinion I may not agree with them but it still is good to see everyone’s point of view. Lastly, to be honest it was a stressful assignment but in the end it became a useful utensil for me because it got me involved to be into this class and I know in the future I’m going to have to create my own opinions, like when another election day comes along I have to be familiar with what’s going on I cannot just go up and voted simple as that I have to look at the pro’s and con’s and that is what this blog has showed me.
2. Now coming in the negative side of this summer assignment. I cannot come up with an idea what was not good or useful. It has helped me a lot so that’s why I guess I haven’t come up with a solution. But looking at the other side of the summer assignment, the essays I was having a tough time coming up with idea’s as to what to put on my topic sentences but it only was frustrated at the beginning later on it became less stressful.
A thing I have to mention is about the political quiz we had to take I was having a tough time where I stand, but in the end I guess I did know where I stand but it was difficult because it didn’t provided many details in my point of view. It was how to determine to know where I stood but as I say at least in the end I knew where. But I’m suggesting probably another website where the results can be direct to the point, it can be more helpful. To sum thing’s up I can’t come up with another way to make this blog better or the assignment I mean it was a pain and did cause me headaches but in the end it became very useful. I cannot attack something that I know would help me to succeed.
1. I'm sure there were plenty of positive effects from this blog for my classmates, but I am still having trouble deciding what those may be for me. The requirement of the blog has forced me to keep reading it... which is a good thing because I knew if it weren't required, I'd probably would have disregarded the entire thing during the summer.
ReplyDeleteIt's good to be committed to the blog every now and then when we need to post a response. It helps us keep in groove of things before school starts because I know that on the first day of school, if a teacher assigns homework, I feel like I've been slapped in the face. With the blog, that would be impossible because you guys assigned homework ages ago and an assignment during the first week would come as of no major shock to me. However, this is not an open invitation to assign us homework during the first week.
2. "And writing about not doing it is not an option." I wouldn't find this to be a very fair question if we couldn't write about not doing it. Anyway, I would change the book we read. I didn't find the court cases very inspiring except the one about the gay man in the South. I did not mind the length of the essay because I've had to do longer papers on topics that are so bland that I'd rather be pulling out my eyeballs.
Now about the blog, I found trying to debate through it to be nearly impossible because if you were about to make a point with somebody, that somebody most likely didn't check the post comments to see if somebody wanted to start a fight with them. Whenever I did that, I double checked to see if they replied, but no. I would have changed the back-and-fourth response part of the blog, but that is about it.
1) Three positives about the summer blog is that I learned a lot and even how the government works. It was fasinating to me to read the articles and even to read every else's view on the article because they were all so different. Another thing that i liked, was instead of sitting around all summer and forgetting things we learned from school, we actually worked our minds and were productive. I think its good to at least do something productive over summer having to do with school, that way when we go back, we wont be all out of it. We will really walk in and kind of know what's going on.
ReplyDeleteLastly, i really liked is that it prepared us for this class during the summer. So, now, even with the essays, we know really what to expect and how to approach subjects that come up that we need to write about or talk about in class. It defanilty got us thinking, and now i even pay more attention to the national news and even read the certain sections in the paper. Its fascinating about what is going on in the world, and i really like that this class will help us pay more attention to everything. Overall, the blog was a way to prepare for our upcoming senior year in your class.
2) One thing that i would change is doing the comments, i didnt really know how, it really confused me. i dont know if you actually have to do a certain something or you just write it in the box or like click on their profile, i could never find out really how to work it. I really wasn't so sure about that. I honestly think that that would be the only thing. I really honestly could not think of anything else. Like i said above, in the positive's, i think it was a good way to help us stay productive during the summer.
Thinking about it now, maybe the website, because it was confusing to work for me. My computer never really let it work properly so i guess that would be one thing to change. Like when i would try to post my blog it wouldn't go through and i had to keep messing with it. Other then that, those two things are really the only things that have given me problems. This blog was pretty good to help keep all of us in the mix and know whats going on in the world.
1) I think this summer assignment had a positive impact on me. This blog was useful and a good tool to keep me in “school mode.” I think that making us doing it was only a positive. It did intimidate some students though. Some people are going to drop the class because they didn’t do the homework in time. Although it is intimidating, it only had positive affects if you completed them.
ReplyDeleteFirst, I experienced that I paid more attention to what was going on around me. Having to read the articles kept me informed. The next positive from this blog was getting to defend my opinion. Having my classmates have a different view than me and debating/ discuss it was great. Last, I liked that on the blog there was a link to the current events. I could look at what was going on other than what was being asked.
2) If I could change a couple of things about the summer assignments I would. I think I would change that students had to sign up during the summer. I would make the blog a couple weeks before the school year ended and see how many students sign up than. Most likely their teachers would let them sign up in the computer lab, and more students would know. I wasn’t there when the assignment was given out, so until someone told me about it, then I got involved.
Next, I would change that you can’t answer the blog once another one is complete. I only completed five blogs out of the needed six, so I’m pretty bummed about that. Last, I would change… well actually, that’s all I would change. I know we are supposed to pick three things, but I can’t! Overall it was a great experience and there are more positives than negatives.
Awww here we are at the end of this blog and I get this sense of completion. Now, suprisingly I found many positive aspects of participating in this blog(now those essays were a diffrent story). This blog gave me a chance to keep up with current events. It was crazy, I was sitting in Starbucks and these two adults were discusing the Stimulus package, I was satisfied to know what that was. If it wasn't for this amazing blog, I would have been sitting in Starbucks feeling foreign. This assingment has kept me tactful and eager to see what the rest of this course has in store.
ReplyDeleteI also appriciated the fact that it is on the internet. That made it ver accessible during my travels this summer. I am glad i did not have to haul around a huge packet of government questions. Lastly, I liked how it was interactive and set at a nice pace. I am one to easily be overwhelmed with a lot of assingments at once and the posts were sparce.
I enjoyed this assignment a lot; however, some things could be changed for the better.I think it would be a lot easier if wegot like a notification to let us know that a new plog was posted. That way we wouldn't have to check the blog everyday. After a while i caught on to the patter of posting, but at first it was iffy.
Another thing I would change would be those essays that we had to write, I feel that a total of 5 essays would be fitting. So it would be three out of The Convictions book and two bills that were passed. My golly that was a whole lot of reading. That book became my best friend. Went every where i went, stayed in my purse! Its weird because I generally do not read. But all in all i was happy that I completed the assignments. :] Yay see you guys next Monday!
1. Doing this blog throughout this whole summer taught me so much. First of all, it forced me to pay attention to current events. Even though I hated to watch the news before, I have become quite used to it now. I think it's important to be aware of the situations going on in the world. I wouldn't know much of anything that occured in the summer if I wasn't doing the blog.
ReplyDeleteSecond of all, it showed me that politics could be very interesing. When I first heard about this homework, I was complaining non-stop, but I'm thankful for it now. Doing every comment taught me something new about the government, and the whole system. I think it prepared me for what is going to come up in our class for this year. Lastly, it taught me to be considerate of others' comments. I agreed with some people and disagreed with others but in a respectful way. Reading some of the students comments taught me something everyday. I think the people that chose not to participate on the blog missed out on alot. It ended up to be kind of fun actually, I didn't see it as homework. I also love the fact that you could express your opinion in any way you want, but you wouldn't be penalized for it.
2. I was satisfied with the way most things took place, but there was some exceptions. I didn't like the way that the page is set up because I couldn't find where to sign up and everything. Once I did sign up, I forgot my password, and I had to use my AIM account, which doesn't have my full name as a screen name, and I couldn't really change it, so I'm stuck with it. I would also change the fact that the comments have to be approved instead of just automatically letting them appear. I say this because I was freaking out after I submitted my comment, and I didn't see it appear until two days later. I thought I did it the wrong way or something.
The last thing I didn't really like is how it was hard to get the Courage of Their Convictions book. They ran out of it at the library and the bookstores, and somebody had to order it for me. It took a week to actually get it,so that kind of wasted some time for me. Overall, I think this whole homework over summer was a learning experience. It showed me that just because it's break time doesn't mean we should forget everything we learned.
Honestly, if I did not want to be in A.P. Government, I would not even bother doing this assignment. Even though I did procrastinate, as I'm sure many others did, it has helped me keep up to date about what our government is about. I am paying more attention to my surroundings when I go to the store and spend $50 on 2 things. It is very important for everyone to be aware of what is going on in the United States, as well as the world. Also by doing this blog assignment, I realized how my peers think about our government and our issues as a country. It is a very helpful way to help us understand what we will be discussing in our class throughout the year. It also demonstrates what our abilities can do on our own and prove to ourselves and others what to expect in the future.
ReplyDelete2. This summer blog assignment was very clear and straightforward about what to do. One thing that I would want to change about the blog in specific is that we should have a section about the response to the questions and a different section about the comments to the responses. It was a little confusing for me because I was not sure if to post the comments in the same spot as the responses or in a different spot. The first time was somewhat confusing, but after one posted something, I think we all got the hang of it. The rest of the summer assignment is that I think we should go over some of the cases in the book because there are two parts to each case, I believe it was confusing going back and forth through the book. Other than that, I think everything else was okay. Nothing that we could not handle. Besides the fact that some procrastinated, but I know it is a bad habit that I will break this year!
1. I found numerous great positives from completing this blog. The first positive aspect of this blog is that is paving the road for my success in AP Government. This blog is giving a preview of what to expect from this class. I know that this class is not going to be all about government and that there is going to be real-life topics. I would say that this blog is one step closer to the top of the ladder. Also, I’m becoming more aware of the governmental structure and how each one of them works.
ReplyDeleteI used to think that the government was not that “complex” as it was portrayed on TV, but I am realizing that it is just like a network of “spider webs” mingling around a center. Lastly, this blog gave me the chance to express my feelings towards some things while not being criticized (I hope not) too much. In addition, it gave me the opportunity to learn what my fellow classmates think of some issues.
2. I would have to say that I can’t really point out any necessary changes. I would recommend that we have like a reminder sent to our e-mails. I would always face the problem of forgetting to check the website to check out if we had any new blogs to answer. One time, I got lucky because I remembered and when I got to the website; it had been like about 3-4 days since you (teachers) posted the blog questions. I almost missed it. Another “change” would have to be a timer posted at the top of the blog questions or time frame reminders.
When I answered the questions, I asked myself “How much time do I have left to comment on other people?” It would really helpful and it would give us a time frame to work with. Lastly, the fact that we have to use certain e-mails in order to send the answers to the blog questions. When I first started using the blog, I realized that I couldn’t use Yahoo, so I had to create an e-mail account with Gmail in order to use the blog. I would be more convenient if we are able to use Yahoo or some others.
1.There were many positives doing these blog entries. Writing the entries allowed me to see and hear my fellow classmates beliefs. I thought it was great, though at times it raised some unusual thoughts in my crazy mind, I loved it. It allowed each student to express their thoughts and beliefs. This blog allowed us to do something that we young adults get scolded for in other places. I got to know my friend Mekdelawit’s thoughts more and she got to know more about mine. It was funny because sometimes our debates online would turn up into little “text wars.”
ReplyDeleteI argued with people, in a respectful way this time ;). I loved how I was allowed to finally debate and express my mind about how this government is. It allowed for me to show another side. I am passionate about these issues and for people to actually listen was awesome for me. The blog entries made homework fun honestly. I know I didn’t complete all of mine. (by the way im really sorry for it). And what I really liked was that, it gave me a healthy reason to vent, and I really needed that.
2. I really liked the summer assignments. The blogs, the reading but not so much the writing. I don’t mind the writing, it gave me something to do at work when they had nothing for me to do that day. The blogs were so much fun, but I admit the approving part got me a bit frustrated because I would freak out when they wouldn’t show up. I thought I didn’t do it correctly or I thought that I put a little too much of me in the entry and when I do that, it bites me back.
Another thing I didn’t like was the book hunt. I tried to look for it on Amazon but sadly I couldn’t find it. The library was no help to me at all. I went to Border’s and they didn’t help me. I went to Barnes and Nobles, they helped a lot. I ordered the book but the wait was frustrating. It took more than two weeks for me. But other than these little things, I enjoyed it. It was fun and plus I learned something valuable during the summer. =]
1. During the course of this summer break I thoroughly enjoyed this assignment. 1st I believe we can learn a lot about these blogs and how they affect us. 2nd It’s essential that every student becomes aware of the happenings in local and national politics. When we began this summer long work, I thought to my self, why not any sooner? Lastly, everyone should have a good idea on how all the posts can teach us where we are headed during these tough times. As our break has progressed, much has happened from the economy to scandals up in Washington.
ReplyDelete2. From the very beginning of summer I thought this was the best thing a class could do in order to prepare us for what we would learn about. I speak too many of my friends and colleagues and I find it quite surprising the lack of interest or information they have on such important issues. The blog spot was I feel, the best Valley has done to expose what’s going on in the hidden world of politics. After all we are the future and having a well informed youth can and will result in our future success and prosperity. Valley High School truly has assisted in the growth and understanding of what happens around us which will eventually trickle down, and impact us all.
3. I feel there is not much more to do. Perhaps making the directions on the site clearer. For some reason, I got lost during the first few assignments, however, quickly got the hang of it. A second improvement would be possibly asking us how the post would affect our lives? All posts did have a potential affect on us all. It’s always important in my mind that the students are aware of possible outcomes of these most important aspects of government.
4. Should the students realize that their futures could be impacted, than perhaps more interest would be taken. Lastly perhaps ask more questions than just 3 or 4. I do believe that 3 or 4 just doesn’t cover all that needs to be discussed. Possibly get more in depth on these issues and discuss all possible outcomes of the post. (I have a feeling that I will be the only one to suggest more work.) Seriously though, the more information we obtain the more we can learn for the upcoming school year.
1) This summer assignment had many positives some of the ones I can mention are that it was a good form of reading classmates thoughts and beliefs about the blogs that were posted along the summer. Second, it was a form of making you think about what you believe, think and support in issues that were disscused over the summer.
ReplyDeleteLast, it helped me to be active in a school related manner over the summer, the reason being is that when school is over, i totally move school aside and wait or remember about school 1 or 2 days before the year begins.
This blog assignment was a good thing, it helped me alot, not just in the things that I mentioned above, but also, I can say be more active in political issues in the way that I give an opinion on what is happening, since most of the time I tried to avoid that, but this was actually fun and it is a great way of involving students in politics.
2)The negatives I can think of is the one we are not allowed to write, I think this is kind of unfare since we are giving an opinion, you could put WHY you didn't what to do it, other than that i can't really think of anything, I didn't actually think of negatives since I just did the work because I had to.
Lastly, I didn't liked that most of the time you had to wait 3-4 days to see if your comment was posted or not, and this kind of made me angry when I logged on and saw nothing, and the political quiz was long and some of the questions didn't make sense to me.
That's all I can think and say about the negatives.
1.One thing I enjoyed from the blog is that it kept me on top of things. The different topics really interested me. Also that with the topics we got helped on the references that we can used. I really liked that little extra help. Another thing was that I was able to share my opinion with my friends. I didn't realize that we agreed on somethings, but that also we disagreed on others.
ReplyDeleteThe last thing is that it got me interested on government. I watch a lot of news because of my family. I thought government would be boring that it wasn't really interesting. By doing the blog it helped me realize that government is a lot more interesting than I thought. I am really looking forward to this class because it will help me to be on top of the news. The blog was a good experience eventhough it was summer and we had homework. When I was bored at least I has the blog to entertain myself with and also to know my friend's opinions.
2.One thing I did not like about the blog was that we were not given an alert on when it will start. I missed the first two blogs because I was lost on what to do. I didn't know how to work this. I did know how to sign in, but I dind't know where to answer the questions. Another thing I did not like was that the comments had to be approven. I would check often and I wasn't able to see my comments or my questions. I think because it took time for them to get approved, it scared me that I didn't do the blog correctly.
The last thing I did not like was the book hunt. I knew that the library would have the book and when I went to ask for it I found out that they didn't have it. They did have the book, but they only had one copy. I had to go to barnes & nobles to buy the book, but they were sold out. I had to order it and it took one week to get it.
1. Three positive results for me from doing this blog were that I was paying more attention to my surroundings, I felt more comfortable to discuss politics with friends and family, but most important the blog helped me see that being informed is very valuable. I started to see more things, it was like those things you don’t know, and once you do it comes up over and over again. It hits you in the face and the best thing is that you been talking about it. Once you hear about it you wonder and come with your own ideas and answers. Is just amazing how knowing current events can get you to have more satisfying and interesting conversations with other young adults and that is a result from this blog.
ReplyDelete“That more you know that better”…. Not only did I pay more attention to my surroundings and was able to participate in interesting conversations, but I valued that information I obtained. I felt updated and full of knowledge. That more information I received that more information I wanted to know I will Google and read other articles found in the WWW and even watch news and videos . I remember my mom was very surprised that I was watching Fox Sunday News with Chris Wallace hahaha. I am very happy to have had this blog. And I am sure with a bit of suggestions this blog will help even more students next year.
2.Three things I will probably modify or try to get fix will be; getting comments approved faster, have a due date for the post at the bottom of the article, and lastly but most important a chat room or a “ help” button or link for students and teachers to debate. Time is something little but that that could probably be changed, I wonder why sometimes my comments could not be approved the same or the next day. I was thinking maybe an assistant could help but then I remember budget cuts, mmm, hehehe so yea I guess for this year that was alright, and maybe next year there could be an assistant. I hope you teachers are getting pay to do this because is an excellent idea and I have to agree that it helped many of us.
I don’t know if I should mention that due date because sometimes even though the article was due in one week when the teachers give you one or two extra days that felt like paradise ,and what a relief! Hehehe. The last thing I could say will be a chat room or link to contact a teacher or obtain help with more questions about the assignments. A help link or chat room will be great; will be like a chat room where we just talk about intellectual stuff and politics. It will be more one on one connection and feedback. Because Personally I wrote to Mr. M for help in the begging of June and have not yet received an answer (sorry to put you on blast hehehe but I end up getting help from classmates). FINALLY THANK YOU TO YOU TEACHERS … THE BLOG IS AMAZING! HOPE TO SEE YOU IN A FEW DAYS! :D
THIS IS A REMARK TO MY COLLEAGUE MS. CHYNNA:
ReplyDeletePersonally believe you are a very intellectual young lady, and *hehehe laughing* I think is funny how you and Mickey will go back and fort (bit creepy at times), but very interesting. The “text wars” I think is something eminent and something that you will do hehehe (with all the respect). I agree with the suspense and the tension of getting our comments approved, it did take some time and was very intriguing. I hope to have you in my government class because I know your way of debating can be very tough, strong, but still delicate and respectful.
About the book am very sorry that it took so long to come to you. I always received my mail within 4 days no matter what it is, but am very glad that that book store was able to help you. Maybe one day you could help me find a book or tell me what they sell in there (I never been to that store), but I heard really good references and that was where I order my French dictionary ;D. Going back to AP government I sincerely hope you finish your homework so you can start the year very strong. Do not have anything else to say so take care and see you in few days.
THIS IS A REMARK TO MY COLLEAGUE MS. CAMIIE:
ReplyDeleteHahaha is very funny and a very good story that one about Starbucks. I second your satisfying feeling of knowing about something so pivotal and the feeling of “Oh I know what you are talking about”. It is true like our Professor Wade will say, things don’t hit us in the face or we are not attentive until we know about it, and then we see it over and over again. By having to pay attention to current facts we are more updated, and that more we know that more we can do. Also I want to say I agree with you in the fact that the homework was in the internet and it made things so much vulnerable and convenient, and it actually did became a fun thing. Instead of endless and very complicated questions in a package that you mention.
Disagree with the idea of a notification when the next blog will be because if we know when the next article will be post, most of us could just answer and be done. When we look every everyday we also check other comments or get curious and read other comments and points of views, and we have a better chance of writing a comment to other people and know and have a more general view about the opinions of our classmates or young adults like you and I. Is nice to check everyday so we won’t leave our comments for later until the end, because am pretty sure many people had problems with the timing or due dates. I really hope the book becomes my very best friend*hahaha* and I wish I was you and had that connection with my book already. See you next Monday Camiie :D.
THIS IS A REMARK TO MS. ANDREA:
ReplyDeleteYou answered your own question on what were the benefits to you by doing this blog. I think you got it you just can’t see it. You said that it keep you in the groove. Hehehe, see you got it you responded your own question. Because you mention that by doing the blog you felt more comfortable with assignments, thinking, and am pretty sure that it lessen your stress and anxiety of homework because you are prepared: D. I like the hyperbole about “ slapped in the face,” “assignments ages ago,” and “however, not an open invitation for homework” *hehehe* you are funny :D (in a very respectful way).
But I think the teachers are super excited and anxious to “provide us with tools of knowledge”. ;D If you know what I mean, *wink, wink* (homework). I can bet you that they were preparing to make this year’s H.W.
Mmm, am bit confused about the question “not writing isn’t an option”. Perhaps you could help me because I think you get it or that you understood, for me sounds like a sublime message. Does it mean we can still comment on previous post? Second I would like to recommend or at least insist that you book and watch “The Great Debaters” from your local library because it talks about the passion of debating and am sure you will enjoy.
THIS IS A REMARK TO MS. RAFAELA:
ReplyDeleteNo missy its been a pleasure to have you in this “virtual class”, I agree that it was very neat to recognize and learn from other people’s point of view, but I have to say that it was more satisfying to have an anchor or something for support. You happen to provide that anchor …many of us have to agree. You were always updated on time, doing your work searching, and trying to give more and more. I admired how you could do all these things, and how you made your comments very detail and self-explanatory, but also your amazing pace. Sometimes *hahaha* I would say; “has Rafa written her comment if so is time for me to do so” (I know bit weird, but I swear it was like twice hehehe) , but like I said am sure that you enjoy this summer assignment.
I think this is more like your thing, I have had the privilege of had you for different classes and for different occasions. I see that you are very good at writing and that seems be a talent for you, because we known each other for a while now, and you know that I liked to be extroverted and talk and discuss and that is my talent but you, you kill when it comes to writing, I hope next year you are less quiet and share more! It will be a waist of talent to not provide us with your ideas. I know you are sometimes you are very private with your things and introvert but am sure that if you could try to find a balance you will feel so good! You are an excellent student.See you next Monday kiddo. :D
THIS IS A REMARK FOR MS. MEKDELAWIT:
ReplyDeleteAbout the comment you said on how you did not like to watch news and now you are more interested I have to say “maybe we just growing up” *haha* . I like news since I can not remember, but you are right the blog and this summer assignment are very positive and make things more interesting. But I am not sure what you mean by you “learned something new every day?” Well maybe you mean by searching about the subjects, and reading the book. Yea I think that is what you mean. Honestly I have not read all your comments from the beginning of the blog until now but am pretty sure that we all have improved or at least change a bit in a positive way and am sure you did feel more comfortable. Especially with your answers to Chynna (Which I sometimes thought they were though).
Oh wow, I didn’t know rest there was not “forgot your password” button, hehehe I think something similar happen to me and I end up creating two accounts, but one of them did not send me a confirmation or something like that. I agree trying to sign in was a bit difficult but am glad that at least my “regular” name appears, but hey look at the bright side we can see your whole name and more. Remember how your name was very long so I could never even attempt to spell it? Man, I hope they change that, probably that was another reason why they are more accounts than people working in the blog. Well maybe just one reason why. I hope you had a nice summer and hope to see you next Monday.
1. One of the positives I have found from doing this summer's blog is that I didn't pick up a habit of not doing school work. This blog has kept my brain thinking and trying to analyze various aspects of our government. Another plus about this blog is that it allowed me to view my future class mates' opinions on current events. Their comments let me know how they felt about the stuff that was going on in our country. The articles that we commented on were also interesting and insightful.
ReplyDeleteThe final positive of this summer blog is it's unique way of introducing me to what the class is all about. The types of questions that will be asked and examples of the topics that will be discussed in class were outlined nicely. The blog let me brush up on my writing skills over the summer. It also kept me informed on the current events that I wasn't aware of.
2. The first thing I would change about the summer assignment would be the essays on the bills congress passed. I didnt know where to look for a reliable source on the bills. I also had trouble thinking what to write about. The other thing I would have changed would have been the fact that you couldn't post comments on old blogs. Since I started this blog kind of late, I only had the chance to comment on the later blogs.
The last thing I would changed about this assignment would be that we should have been able to start earlier on the blog. My travels took me away from easy access computers so I was forced to rush on the assignment after I got back. By the time I had returned, I saw that quite a few blogs had already been posted and I could not comment on them. The book was also hard to find, so I had to order it and wait a week for it to come in. Overall, this summer assignment was very interesting and I TOTALLY would rather do this than relax all summer.
This is a response to Mekdelawitx15 comment:
ReplyDeleteI agree with you on the part about approving comments, I understand that teachers don't want students posting comments that are attacking students or whatever reasons, or what teachers can do is send a message to the ones that their comments were not approved and tell them why it was not approved. That will be a better thing instead of just posting them without approval.
I would like to comment that I responded to this on Monday, it is now Thursday and I'm shure that others are in the same place.
Also about the book, it took me alot of time to get it too, but that was because I didn't looked it up. I went to couple of libraries but nothing.
It was way easier and faster buying it on the internet.
1.I really liked this summer blogging. It kept me from being lazy. Even though I started out really late for the summer blog I felt like I still got some positives from this. This made me realize how our government is actually ran. I kept my mind working and it kept me from forgetting everything I learned in school.
ReplyDelete2.Also, another positive is that I believe that I am fully prepared to tackle anything that gets thrown at me during government this year. Like the A.P. test, homework and assignments/projects. Like I said this blog is a very good idea and it was a very positive experience for me. Thank you guys for pushing me to do better.
3.I really had to put some thought into this answer because there were so many positives and each negative I could come up with has positives alos. But, Some things that I would change about this summer assignment would be how this website works. Honestly, I’m pretty good with computers and stuff like that and I coudlnt get how this website worked and I was totally lost. It would really help if it’s less confusing next time.
4.Also, the comments were pretty confusing to. I didn’t know if I should go to the peoples profile or just put it right on there. But once you knew how to do everything it was pretty easy. Another thing i would change about this summer assignment would be how we could kind of attack eachother. What I’m speaking about is like how people would fight with different views but it was pretty cool seeing other peoples views. It was very informational just don’t make it directly towards others sometimes.
This comment is to Rafael Blanca
ReplyDeleteI agree with you when you say this got me ready for what I'm about to go through in a few days. This is a very important experience for me because it shows me you can't procrastinate and you have to be mentally prepared to get into this class. This made me not have my brain go into snooze mode.
When you say we got closer to our classmates by reading these blogs and finding out their opinions. I can't agree with you more. Before this I didn't know how everyone would respond to my feelings or opinions. This made me kind of cautious about what I said but everybody took it in as a positive. You learn about people through what they stand for and I learned that everybody has different opinions and you must respect those opinions.
1. I find that there were many positive effects to discussing with our fellow classmates through these blogs. I got to see the ideals alot of my classmates possesed, and also saw who I am most like. I got to read different points of views that sometimes didn't even cross my mind. Although I did not agree of some comments, it did teach me to be more tolerant of others opinions, and thus feel like I have accomplished a greater sense of respect for my fellow classmates.
ReplyDeleteI also learned what to expect for the class, by actually participating in the blog. At first I thought we were just gonna learn dates and peoples names, but now I see that we will be going more in debt in the issues we will be studying. It gives us a voice in the class instead of just listening to the teacher. We are allowed to express our personal opinions on issues that we feel strongly about. Overall I think the blog really prepared me in what to expect from this course.
2. I think we should have like a time frame of when a new blog is posted, or maybe given emails to us in order to know. It was kind of frustating for me to find out when a new blog is posted because I get really side tracked throughout the summer and sometimes forget to check the website.
I also think we should have a notification sent to our emails to let us know when a comment or response was approved that way we wouldn't have to check everyday to see if we did it right. At first I thought I did alot of the blogs wrong because I wouldn't see my responses. But other than just notifications I wouldn't change that much to this assignment.
This comment is to Chynna Victorino..
ReplyDeleteI agree with you when you say you enjoyed the assignments this summer.I liked reading and learning about everything that's going on the world. It was the first time in my life I stayed informed over a period of time. I also agree I didn't like the writing but that can't be changed and it really did me some good to do this.
I also agree with finding the book. It took me forever and I got it from Barnes and Noble to. The book was really the hardest part of this whole summer assignment because ordering over the internet took forever. Also, the library had like only one copy and that was bad because there were like thirty holds on a book.
Why we wrote that 2 negatives could not be "not doing it" because the blog is here to stay so we need what to change not what to stop doing.
ReplyDeletePriscilla,
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment it brought a smile to my face. You got me by surprise saying you admired me for doing my work; I don’t get that told often. I mean this was a very challenging assignment and it was a pain in the ass because seven essays, the blog, and the political quiz. But in the end it turned out to be a good start for all of us to get each ourselves prepare for what’s going to occur throughout our senior year. I sense this class is going to cause us a lot of headaches but hey what can I say its for the good right? I just hope after this school year I don’t get my brain damage, well I’m only kidding with that. I know how our teachers are getting us prepare is most likely that we would do great on the AP Exam.
Oh, and the part where you mention I should open myself more. I know what you mean I know I’m reserved and I’m shy to speak up but I’ll take your advice and I’ll give it a shot. I’ll try even though I feel I’m going to be picked on a lot so I must be prepare for that. Great haha. And thanks you’re an excellent student too. Oh and about my writing yeah I can say it’s my thing its like my hobby writing, its fun for me. But overall thanks for every word you stated and see you on Monday too hun. ;)
Jakeypoo101,
ReplyDeleteI’m glad you agreed with me on this basis. Yeah I know what you mean its good that this summer assignment was given to us for various reasons. It would had been bad if we would had started the school year without knowing nothing about what’s going on in the USA this moment. As I for example a long time ago I didn’t really focus on how our government was being run and now I feel bad because I didn’t pay attention that much. This class has got me more interesting in news on what’s going on inside our country and even worldwide.
I know what you feel I was actually afraid to speak my mind. I felt that my opinion wouldn’t be taken seriously. But that’s good you know because now it prepared you and I to not stumble ourselves from saying what we feel about certain issues. Indeed, it’s a must to respect each other’s opinions because that shows even how big a person we become to be. Each of us stand on a different place about issues and that’s good to know to comprehend each other. I think that’s all I would like to say oh and my name is Rafaela Blanco not Rafael Blanca I know it was probably a typo haha but yeah I just wanted to point that out. I’m hardheaded what can I say. But overall thanks for your comment. (:
1. The first positive thing about this blog is that it helped me out with the current events that were going on. I heard plenty of people talking about the economy which included the health care program that Obama was planning to get out. I also heard and saw on the news about how Valley High School made AYP. I even saw Mr. Montoya on TV. Secondly, it showed me how I need to pay attention to what’s going on in the news. This can mean economy wise, health issues, or even problems that people go through.
ReplyDeleteThirdly, even though I didn’t keep up with the blogs, or the comments it kind of showed me a little bit of how the class is going to be. I also got to see everybody else’s point of view, some being completely different from mine, but I understood them and why they said that.
2. One thing I had trouble doing was looking for the book. Just as was recommended, I went to amazon.com but I couldn’t find it. I ended up going to the library, but they didn’t have it. Hence, I had to ask them if they had it , unfortunately they didn’t have it but they were nice enough to order it from somewhere. The bad thing was that it took almost a month before it got to the library.
I thought it was pretty the assignment was pretty easy, just that I was a little bit too distracted and that I did procrastinate during the summer. But I am still here with the willingness to finish up the assignment for the first day of school, as it is a big grade for the quarter. Other than the book thing I think that this assignment was good and helpful.
This was a very interesting experience for me this summer. The thing I really liked was the idea behind this was nothing but positive. It will give us as the students some background of how the goverment works. In my opinon I believe everyone should have this knowledge it will do nothing but improve our society. Plus when the year begins we can just jump right into taking our knowledge to another level so we can all do great on the AP test.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed really choosing a side. I personally watch MSNBC everynight before this, so when it was time for us to blog I really enjoyed taking the time to learn more about what I was seeing and hearing from the news, plus I liked making my decsion about it.
If I had to change something about this, I persoanlly wouldn't give soo much work. To you as teachers you might not find it alot but it kind of is. I really like the blogging, and test, but the essays didn't do it for me. While The courage of our convictions was a magnificent book, honestly, I didnt want to read it. If i had the choice between say hanging with my friends or reading im personally going to choose friends because it is summer and because this is my last summer with my friends because next year at this time we will be going our seperate ways it is sad but true.
So for the classes to come I would cut out one of the essays or give the students the choice of which one to do. By no means am I a lazy student and I honestly do love goverment but it's a bit much for my last summer.