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missing blog- Why I Took 1701

2008-05-08T02:57:29Z

comments on presentations

2008-05-07T03:19:49Z

I thought that the presentations were great, it was fun to see the same goals aproached in such different ways from group to group. It was also interesting to see all the different designs that the groups created. Many of the things that we were researching related to other classes I was taking so it was enlightening to see all the connections from subject to subject.

]]> One of the most interesting presentations from our section was the AIDS group. What I found interesting is that they had some information that I cannot remember ever hearing even after this subject has been extensively taught in schools. The fact that tattoos and piercings don’t transmit the infection was counter to what I had believed to be true. I would have believed that since both of these can potentially transmit blood between people that the virus could spread. I would have to agree with them that the best prevention is education. I came across research in my own group about how the South African president had spoken out against potential life saving drugs that could prevent mother to child transmission saying they were toxic and even making a statement about how HIV does not cause AIDS. I think it is very sad that this information was misconstrued to a populace that probably does not have the means to find out otherwise. I am not really sure why a leader would do something so counterproductive to the health of his people; maybe he was not educated on the subject either. It seems like lack of education is one of the biggest factors in the spread of many diseases in Africa. Many people do not know how diseases are spread and thus cannot protect themselves. The same can probably be said for many other problems such as over population, just by looking at the current growth rate for developed verses developing countries. I really do not think that any of the current problems can be solved without addressing the population density issues. With so many people to support and their numbers only increasing, it will be impossible to provide resources for everyone.

The other presentation I found interesting was the environmental sustainability one. Mainly I liked their approach to the information by creating the booklet to lead people to the website. I thought this was much better than just creating a site and hoping people access it. One fact I found interesting was that if everyone replaced one bulb in their house with a compact fluorescent bulb it would save enough energy to equal taking 1 million cars of the road (although I don’t know for how long). It seems like such a small change for a huge environmental impact. The bamboo clothing being naturally antibacterial was also something I didn’t know. The only thing I worry about is what kind of impact these energy saving devices will ultimately have. The light bulbs themselves contain poisons that damage the environment when not disposed of properly. It seems like so many of the new technologies we create lead to frenzies where people assume they have the answer to the problem and he ill effects are not realized until it is too late.

4/7

2008-05-07T02:26:59Z

I found out that today was going to be our last day to tutor. Everyone has BSTs next week so they won’t need to meet with us anymore. I wish them all the best of luck on their test. I worked with someone new again, but this time the teacher gave us a print out of her last test results so we could see what parts she struggled with. I didn’t know that it was an option otherwise I would have always asked for the results. So often the kids I work with don’t know what they want to work on so we just kind of guess our way through it all. This made everything so much easier and could have been extremely beneficial starting out. It’s difficult to cover chapters of math in one day. I hope that the kids enjoyed us being there as much as I enjoyed being there.

3/31

2008-05-07T02:26:12Z

No volunteering- classes out for spring break

3/24

2008-05-07T02:24:35Z

Well I didn’t really see any of the kids we were working with before come in today. It’s been a few weeks because I was unable to go last time and worked it out with Takara. I kind of feel like I let them down even though I didn't mean to miss the last day. Many of the kids seem to be specific with who they like to work with. We did get a new volunteer today which is strange because she is in the same class so I would have thought she started sooner. Now we seem to have more tutors than pupils, and spent most of the day waiting for the few that trickled in. I did get to work with someone new for a few minutes today and she seems to have a good handle on the material even though the teachers made it seem like she would need a lot of work before the test.

3/2

2008-05-07T02:24:01Z

I was glad to see that the girl that got in trouble last time was here again. In fact most of the people we had been tutoring came in again for help. That makes it really fun because you know they are actually getting something out of the experience. It seems like almost everyone wants help with their math because that’s the only thing we have worked on as of yet, which is fine with me because it’s the subject I find easiest to help with. Hopefully this will all help on the basic standards test coming up. I overheard that for a lot of the kids this will be the last attempt they get to pass it. I don’t really know how many attempts you are given but I can’t imagine that life will become much easier for any of them if they aren’t able to get a diploma. So many jobs today seem to require some form of education that alternate options are pretty scarce.

3 designs for a title page...

2008-04-02T01:26:53Z

a little messy, but it could be revised to be cleaner

might be too plain

I would like this better in black & white, the sizes need to be played with more I think. Maybe a different image would work better

Design Inspiration

2008-03-13T02:36:06Z

Here are several things I found interesting...

the color change w/ text under

]]> Images from HOW 2008 International Design Annual

Two ideas for book designs, one of layout and the other as a 3-D design

An interesting example how to incorporate pictures

From Print magazine Feb 2008

Different ideas for text and image layout for several topics on one page.

This is a really original 3-D design. The object opens on the line and text is inside with a picture layered over it.

I like the idea of creating unity in the images by changing the borders and that they all relate back to a central image.

blog issues

2008-03-09T02:50:02Z

I happened to delete the last blog entry because I got to the point where its very presence irritated me. It was a misserable failure as far as a blog goes and will have to be redone.

Random Thoughts

2008-03-06T02:07:10Z

Repetition, repetition, repetition…….leads to creativity?! Stranger things have happened. Anyway after several weeks of seeing the best of the blogs, I can’t help but feel that Blah…g was severely lacking in the creative aspect. I know that writing isn’t exactly one of my strong suit so I’ll concentrate more on something I enjoy. Yes- 1701 finally won me over, and even though I thoroughly dislike this thing and never intend to learn html programming- there’s more than one way to get this done. So after my small ramble- here we go with a new name and hopefully, at the least, a more interesting blog. -J

Monday 2/25/08

2008-03-03T00:02:42Z

Today did not go so well. It started out okay, I was happy that a lot of the students we worked with last time decided to come back. One of the students in particular had taken the material we had worked on last time home with her and completed the rest of the problems, which was great to see so much initiative on her part. Several times now there have been fights while we were volunteering but the one from today was very upsetting to me.
The student I had mentioned and a staff member got into a fight while I was at the school. Both of them had to be restrained from hurting each other and they yelled numerous threats while trying to get around the staff restraining them. At first I really didn’t think a whole lot about it because I had assumed that they were both students and I had witnessed this before, but when I learned that it was a staff at the school who was involved it really upset me. From what I overheard the staff had made a comment that the student felt was derogatory to her about not being expected to graduate. She then yelled at the staff about disrespecting her and treating her like a child which escalated. I could understand how the student might feel if a teacher said something like that, even thought the teacher probably did not mean it in this sense. What was upsetting was to see the teacher trying to physically get into it with the student, as I said both were restrained. I know many things were said but that is something that would have never happened at my school. There are better ways to deal with a student than trying to fight them. When we left the girl’s mother was there and they were going to meet with the head of the school. I just feel bad for the student because I would feel the same way if I was disrespected and if handled differently it would never have had to escalate to the point it did. Hopefully the student will be there when I go next week, if not I will be thoroughly disappointed that someone with so much promise was cast aside.

2/11/08- Monday

2008-03-03T00:01:17Z

This was the first day that I got to work with the kids. The schedule is all set now so I will be going every Monday and it sound like they have other volunteers set to cover the rest of the week. I really had fun today. It was great to work with the students and they seemed to like having us there. They said that the students had actually requested to have tutors and that makes it so much more enjoyable because they get to choose whether they want to come work with us. Everyone I worked with seemed ready to concentrate on the material, which was one concern I had. I wasn’t sure if the teachers would be the ones to single out kids and send them for tutoring which may have given us people who did not want help.
My only concern is that I am not sure what to study; I had thought that they would be bringing homework with them, but they had anticipated that we would provide the materials. There were some books in the room so I asked what they would like to look at and we went though some basic math that will be on the skills testing. Once we got going it all went pretty smoothly.

2/8/08-Intro

2008-03-02T23:59:43Z

Today was my first day at Minnesota Internship Center Charter Schools, which was basically a day for filling out paper work and meeting the people coordinating the program. It seems a little disorganized since I gather this is the first time they have instituted tutors so we are not sure of the times that they need us or how the kids will get referred to us for tutoring. I am pretty optimistic about it though, I’m sure everything will be worked out soon. I would have to admit that it was kind of different; I guess I had imagined that it was going to be like any other high school but it seems as if the kids just kind of wander from place to place and no one seems to be directing them to where they have to be. I guess they are expected to take that responsibility on themselves, which is very different from how my high school was organized.
The orientation packet that they had organized for us was very interesting. There was a quiz that we completed that measured what kind of life skills everyone had, which was very insightful. It was divided into 3 categories- could you survive in poverty, middle class, and wealth and had basic skills you would to thrive in that particular environment. It just proved how much you learn from your environment and how difficult it be to learn all the things necessary to thrive if you were removed from what you are accustomed to. They also went over some of the driving decision making forces that are attributed to different levels of wealth and the assets that help an individual succeed. So much that is not apparent goes into what a person easily achieves. This was one of the best orientations that I have been to. They actually provided a lot of information that I had not previously know about instead of the basic rules of conduct that you usually encounter.

Prompt #4

2008-02-28T03:27:03Z

What an interesting concept, what would I do if released from the constraints of architecture school? I guess this is something that never really occurred to me. The world is so busy that it seems either you are doing what needs to be done or that you can set goals and travel down the path of objectives to reach them, sometimes finding space where you can squeeze out some enjoyment. From what I’ve learned about myself over the years I know I would not be content to just be idle. Even the brief periods of my life when I did not attend school made me realize how much I crave to learn new things. Once I feel that I have an understanding of something I start searching for new ideas concepts, constantly feeling the need to learn more. What it is does not really matter, from learning to cook something new, to figuring out if seeds from an apple will really grow into a tree that produces more fruit. It seems that the world has a limitless ability to offer forth new ideas and information just in everyday life if you pay attention to the details. I have always had a difficult time with college majors because of this, there are just so many things to pursue that it seems impossible to choose just one focus. I always wished that somehow you could combine everything- languages, architecture, design, biology, engineering, botany, physics, astronomy, art, psychology and finance all into one in depth major.

would love to travel the world and become immersed in different cultures. In the past they had ‘the tour’ where people would travel and see for themselves great monuments and works of art. Technology and the access of information is a great achievement but I think that you lose too much of the actual place by looking at a book or online. I want to actually go to these places and see everything for myself- take into account the physical aspects along with the emotional ones that help to inform a place.

It is also very important to me that I be constantly creating something, no matter how big or small. I think that people all have different ways of viewing their world, I view mine in terms of possibilities seeing not only what is there but what can become. I can relate to Andy Goldsworthy on this level, he is constantly absorbed in his work as if it takes over his life for a short time while he creates. I am also happiest in this state of oblivion where my purpose and vision takes over. Project ideas constantly arise and I enjoy researching them to learn more and experimenting to learn new things in my free time. I have always longed for an educational environment where projects would be open and allowed to consume the syllabus and merge into ever continuing design, allowing the student to be constantly immersed, interested and inspired while learning.

]]> photos from www.flickr.com

Prompt #3

2008-02-21T00:57:10Z

The first place we begin to learn values is at home and school. Our parents teach us their ideas about the world and this is our only idea of truth until we start school. There we are exposed to many opinions and learn there is more than one viewpoint apart from our sheltered family existence. We are exposed to many ideas and begin to learn that it is important to think for yourself and create our own goals and ideals.
Make your own path.

What's around us affects how we see things.

I know that my ideas of the world are strongly influenced by what surrounds me. I value the environment, being from Minnesota I could not imagine a world that you would not be able to enjoy lakes and forests. I also value safety since I had a wonderful family that protected me when I was young, unfortunately many children do not get that advantage. It is something easily taken for granted when you are young and do not know how much the real world differs from the personal comfort your parents provide. My parents provided the biggest influence on my values, they taught me to think for myself and that any goal you set for yourself is attainable.

Private window to the world.

Some quotes I try to remember…..

“The reward for conformity was that everyone liked you except yourself.�?
-Rita Mae Brown, Venus Envy

“Happiness depends upon ourselves.�?
-Aristotle

“Pick a career field that closely follows a personal passion, regardless of financial implications or job availability. The most successful people in life are passionate about their work.�?

“Sometimes the hardest thing in the world can be to open your eyes & look at things the way they really are…But whatever you see, no matter how painful- it’s better than not seeing at all….�?
-last 2 unknown authors/ Mom’s advice
Song List
Wish upon a Star
Amazing Grace
One- Creed

I remember to always search for the truth and create my own opinions, never believe that something is impossible thereby limiting your self.
photos from www.flickr.com