13 AprWho Are Virtual Schools For?

This past week I have been trying to find other blogs, or at least entries from other blogs on the virtual school movement. A few that I came across were Althouses post on Virtual High School , Snooze Button Dreams entry entitled Virtual School , Kimberly’s Number 2 Pencil’s post titled Surf the web, earn an A , and Joanne Jacobs entry on Online classes for all . The essence of these entries look at who virtual schools are for and how they will affect the quality of education.

I’ll leave the second issue for another day, but I wanted to look at the first issue in this entry. Many of you who have been reading my blog to date know of my own bias towards students in rural schools who are disadvantaged because their schools aren’t able to attract teachers qualified to teach specialized courses or they simply don’t have the enrolment figures to justify allocating a teacher to so few students.

But let me through out the issue in another way. The legislature here in Georgia, has decided that not only will the publically-funded, state-wide virtual high school cater to students in the public system, but will also be available to students in private schools and homeschooled students. While I am no expert on the homeschooling movement, I do know that I had a homeschooled student in one of my online Advanced Placement courses a few years back.

This girl was an exception student who was in my course for two reasons: the content was at a level where she felt that she was unable to do it on her own and her family were unable to support it, and she was interested in trying out an online course because it was something that was becoming quite popular at the university that she was interested in attending. It was at about the same time that the Pennsylvania Homeschoolers Association was beginning to offer their online courses (see http://www.pahomeschoolers.com/courses/index.html ).

While the feelings towards the online opportunities offered to homeschooled students by virtual schools was mixed in the four blogs above, I can’t see how these opportunities could be a bad thing?!? Like any instructional product, there are online courses that are well designed and online courses that aren’t so well designed. Like any traditional classroom, there are some online teachers who are quite good and some online teachers that aren’t so good. However, I would argue that in many of the specialized areas (such as the AP courses offered by the Pennsylvania Homeschoolers Association) are beyond the ability of many parents of homeschooled students to support in a way that maintains the academic rigour of these courses.

But like I said, I’m no expert in homeschooling So let’s hear from those out there who know a little bit more about the homeschool movement than I. What do y’all think?

Tags: virtual school , cyber school , homeschool , high school , education

10 AprOn holiday

This blog is taking a break until early September. drug and alcohol services.

David Chater, head of policy at youth charity Rainer, says the tax is a brave proposal.  The treatment tax is a brave step and is really positive, it would double the budget for drug and alcohol services. It takes a brave politician to say they  increase tax, especially on something like alcohol.

But Chater is less impressed with the report&s emphasis on abstaining from drugs and alcohol.  Measures like reclassifying cannabis as a class B drug, risk dragging a lot more young people into the criminal justice system. The best bits are outside the addiction section, with ideas for family support that will do more to tackle substance misuse than abstinence programmers.

Filed under: Conservatives

27 NovBESRA: I think we still don’t get it

In UNESCO’s “ Advocacy Kit for Promoting Multilingual Education: Including the Excluded “, the question was posed: “Can quality education for all be achieved when education is packaged in a language that some learners neither speak nor understand? This is the situation faced by many children from ethnic minority groups when they enter formal school systems-the official school language is very different from the language they speak at home. Forcing children to learn in a language they do not understand creates an educational handicap that should not exist.” The document concludes that “…understanding the true panorama of providing education in learners’ mother tongue is one of the crucial steps towards achieving quality education for all.”It is therefore disappointing to note that, after going through the “ Full Report for the Policy Recommendations for the Basic Education Sector Reform Agenda for the National Language and Literacy Learning Strategies for the Filipino and English Languages ” submitted to the Department of Education on Sept. 30, 2006, there isn’t any doubt which among the 170 or so Philippine languages BESRA is “strategizing” for under its Key Reform Thrust #3.Of course there is widespread agreement to use the indigenous languages as medium of instruction in preschool through elementary school in the areas where they are spoken as a bridge to learning Filipino and English plus other areas of learning using either Filipino or English as medium of instruction. But BESRA does not have any KEY REFORM THRUST to keep our non-dominant non-Tagalog languages from dying. All this BESRA strategizing to make Filipino and English so dominant will eventually make the case for the other indigenous languages as bridges or stepping stones simply irrelevant, dead. The socio-economic and political prowess of a dominant language as Tagalog/Filipino and English as they are now aggressively being promoted by the government to be so dominant will simply eviscerate all reasons for anyone to want to stick with any indigenous non-Tagalog language any longer.What’s the real incentive to cultivate our own indigenous non-Tagalog languages if BESRA is there to make sure Tagalog/Filipino and English are going to be the only ones that matter ultimately and that these are the only languages every Filipino needs? The decreasing ranks through natural causes of the elderly population who are the remaining mainstays of our indigenous languages all but insure that many of these languages will be wiped out soon. And so does the varied cultures associated with them unless there is a conscious effort–like a BESRA type KEY REFORM THRUST– woven into a multilingual education policy designed specifically to save them, at least the ones that still manifest the dynamics of surviving. Those languages with, say 30 or so remaining speakers will understandably be difficult to save with any type of intervention.Those who have the power to institutionalize mother tongue-based multilingual education in our schools are urged to NOT water down the recommendations of UNESCO’s “Education in a Multilingual World”. UNESCO’s recommendations on multilingual education are based on years of research so that to tinker with them, such as radically shortening the length of immersion of the child in his mother tongue from the ideal 6 to 8 years, would be the height of myopia. DepEd Order No. 60 s. 2008, the first department order to recognize and recommend the use of mother tongue-based multilingual education, requires Filipino and English to be introduced in grade 1 and that renders UNESCO’s recommendations virtually ineffective. I think we just don’t get it.Those of us in power who make language policy, especially one through our educational system, please watch the above video and the one below and understand their implications. If at first you don’t get the message, pretend you’re one of those who don’t speak Tagalog/Filipino.[Click here to view the movie, " The Linguists ".]Posted in DepED Order No 60 s. 2008 , Education policy , K. David Harrison , Language of instruction , Mother tongue , Multilingualism , UNESCO’s Education in a Multilingual World , When Languages Die , mother tongue as language of instruction , multilingual education | Tags: Languages Do Work! , Lubuagan Experiment , medium of instruction (MOI) , MLE , MLE training , mother tongue as MOI , multilingual education

22 OctRemembering Those Who Fought And Those Who Have Died

I thought that I had posted something on this topic on my old personal blog a few years ago, but I wasn’t able to find it anywhere (or on any of my former blogs).

Anyway, today is Remembrance Day in Canada. For those of you who aren’t Canadian, you can get the sense of it here . As I posted in my short note about this last year (see An Act of Remembrance ), today is the reason why we wear poppies on your left lapel in Canada.

It is the reason why we gather to recite the poem…

In Flanders Fields

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved, and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders Fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders Fields.

- John McCrae

Simply put, it is the reason we remember. So take time today to think about those who have fought to preserve the freedom that we enjoy today. And at 11:00am today, make sure to observe two minutes of silence.

A Pittance of Time – Terry KellyFinally, let me at include the link for this week’s broadcast of CBC Radio’s Vinyl Cafe: VC: November 8th, 2008 “Remembrance Day” If you don’t have anyone to remember today, like Stuart, just remember George Lawrence Price.

08 OctAnother installment of the funnies

Another installment of the funnies, courtesy of Darren at Teaching and Developing Online.

- Gee I was bad at math.

- When you think your day is bad …Part 8.

- This made me laugh.

- My parenting skills.

- This is the one statistic that is true

- When you think your day is bad … Part 9

- This makes a lot of sense…NOT

- When you think your day is bad … Part 10

- this might be why I don’t camp.

- When you think your Day is Bad … Part 10 (yes, this is a second one with the same title)

Until next week…

Friday Funnies.

Another edition from Darren over at Teaching and Developing Online .

- Some say to do this job you must be insane.

- Now that would be interesting.

- Cartoons are aways wrong

- Reality is so real.

- Fifty percent

Until next week…

Virtual Schooling in the News.

Beginning with the Yahoo! News Alert for virtual school.

Virtual school leads way
The Hendersonville Times-NewsSun, 14 Sep 2008 7:09 AM PDT
Brandon Warren leans back in his chair, staring at the computer screen.

News briefs for September 15
The Danville Advocate-MessengerMon, 15 Sep 2008 8:55 AM PDT
Area news briefs for September 15 regarding Junction City Fire Department, Kentucky Virtual School, Stanford chili cookoff and meetings of the Danville Housing Authority and City of Danville Sister Cities Committee.

Districts move toward online learning
The Elyria Chronicle-TelegramSun, 14 Sep 2008 10:09 PM PDT
Remember carrying big, heavy books and using typewriters at school? Well, those days are long gone. Today, technology, such as the online textbooks used in Avon and “virtual computers” being tried in Avon Lake, are changing the way students learn. Both high-tech tools are being rolled out this school year. “Our children [...]

Michael Horn Will Offer Keynote Address at NACOL’s Virtual School Symposium
PR Newswire via Yahoo! NewsTue, 16 Sep 2008 12:30 PM PDT
The North American Council for Online Learning (NACOL) is pleased to announce that author Michael Horn will be the Virtual School Symposium keynote speaker on Tuesday, October 28 at 8:00 a.m. in Phoenix, AZ. His address is titled, Disrupting Class: How Disruptive Innovation Will Change the Way the World Learns, and his keynote will cover the case studies and themes of his book of the same …

Correction: School grades story
Miami HeraldTue, 16 Sep 2008 11:23 AM PDT
In a Sept. 9 story about appeals of state school grades, The Associated Press erroneously reported the name of the school that had its grade raised. It was the Florida Virtual Academy, not the Florida Virtual School. The Florida Virtual School is not graded by the state.

Cheyenne district seeks virtual charter school
Billings GazetteThu, 18 Sep 2008 12:03 PM PDT
CHEYENNE – The school district in Cheyenne is looking into starting a virtual charter school for students in kindergarten through 12th grade. Students enrolled in the school would take classes online. …

Cheyenne district seeks virtual charter school
Billings GazetteThu, 18 Sep 2008 11:53 AM PDT
CHEYENNE – The school district in Cheyenne is looking into starting a virtual charter school for students in kindergarten through 12th grade.

Cheyenne district seeks virtual charter school
KIFI Idaho FallsThu, 18 Sep 2008 11:16 AM PDT
Associated Press – September 18, 2008 2:06 PM ET CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) – The school district in Cheyenne is looking into starting a virtual charter school for students in kindergarten through…

Next the Yahoo! News Alert for cyber school.

Board briefed on cyber school
Lebanon Daily NewsFri, 12 Sep 2008 9:31 PM PDT
FREDERICKSBURG — Nate Byler, coordinator of the Northern Lebanon High School Virtual Academy, presented the Northern Lebanon School District board with a progress report on the V3
PA Cyber Charter School Weathers Remnants of Hurricane Ike
PR Newswire via Yahoo! FinanceWed, 17 Sep 2008 2:08 PM PDT
The Pennsylvania Cyber Charter School continued nearly normal operations in spite of power outages which closed school headquarters for two days as remnants of Hurricane Ike blew through Western Pennsylvania.

Moving on to the Google News Alert for virtual school.

Virtual school leads way
BlueRidgeNow.com – Hendersonville,NC,USA
The school has 35 students, mostly freshmen and sophomores, who take high school courses through North Carolina Virtual Public School. …
See all stories on this topic

School board approves new online high school
Siuslaw News – Florence,OR,USA
For each class, students participate in a “virtual classroom” where they interact with the instructor and other students by using a two-way …
See all stories on this topic

Obama, McCain Push Different Visions for Schools, Teachers and …
NewsHour – USA
On September 10 he delivered a major education policy speech in the key election state of Ohio, calling for big increases in federal school spending and …
See all stories on this topic

Finally, the Google News Alert for cyber school.

New ice rink opens in Campbelltown
The Patriot-News – PennLive.com – Harrisburg,PA,USA
He attends cyberschool, to give him more time to practice the sport he dreams will some day take him to the Olympics. With the opening this weekend of the …
See all stories on this topic

Madison Central school enrollment is up
MADISONet.com – Madison,SD,USA
Chester Area School dropped from 373 students last year and now boasts 365. This doesn’t include the cyber school enrollment, which went down from 248 to …
See all stories on this topic

Cyber high school completes transformation
Newport News Times – Newport,OR,USA
By Terry Dillman of the News-Times The Oregon Council for Online Learning (OCOL), the board of directors for Insight School of Oregon (ISO), …
See all stories on this topic

22 SepThere is an old saying in bluegrass: “We tune because we care.”

drtombibey
April 18, 2008 at 2:08 pm

Wow chili! You do have your hands full.

There is an old saying in bluegrass: “We tune because we care.”

I guess something similar is true for folks who doctor, write, or teach, but that kind of e-mail is bound to test your patience.

Dr. B

Reply

9 Comments.
Clix
April 13, 2008 at 7:50 am

Hm. ARE they pedagogical gold? If, after showing these emails to students and demonstrating what’s wrong with them, you still get similar emails… is it really working?

(This is something I wrestle with A LOT. Sometimes I’ll think that lesson X has worked better than lesson Y… but you know, it’s never with the same group of students, so maybe the lesson X group was more attentive and would’ve done just as well with lesson Y…)

I don’t think you’re in water that’s ETHICALLY murky, that’s for sure. Teachers use prior student work as samples all the time, and that’s stuff that’s turned in for a grade, not for use as an example. As long as you leave out identifying details, you’re fine.

OTOH, there’s something to be said against ridicule in general. I don’t think it’s an effective teaching method. The students who most need to see your real point – that stupid mistakes should be avoided – are the ones most likely to get caught up in the vicarious embarrassment and tune out what you really want them to hear.

Anyway, to make a long story short (well, short-ER at least!) I just don’t know. I think mostly it depends on your delivery.

Reply

28 AprWhat is also so galling is that this is a viable conversation topic AT ALL

organic mama
October 22, 2006 at 5:14 pm

What is also so galling is that this is a viable conversation topic AT ALL. Will they train the students on effective blocking and/or throwing techniques? What about the counseling for those students who worry about A. whether it will ever happen and B. what if they don’t do it right. Doesn’t this sound like satire? Why not body armor? How about we stop the GUNS in this flipping country!! Apologies for soapboxing, but this is INSANE!!

Reply

More Musings About Current Events.
Jump to Comments
The superintendent of our school district called my cell phone Monday morning and left a message inviting me to watch the school board meeting on public access cable on Monday night. The first thing I have to say is DAMN! School board meetings are BORING!

As promised, the superintendent spoke about school security, and rather early in the meeting (thank heaven!). While he talked a lot about locked doors and security cameras, crisis preparedness and how closely the school district works with the city’s police and fire departments, he didn’t mention anything about EDUCATION.

I really think many of our current school violence problems can be alleviated through education. We need to TEACH kids how to deal with their stress just like we teach them language, mathematics and how to avoid drug use. We need to show children that it’s not okay to cope with your problems with violence. As responsible adults in schools and other child-rich environments, we need to be aware of which of our students come from homes and family situations that may be prone to pass, shall we say, less-than-ideal social skills to the students. We need to know which students share their homes with guns.

Let me say that again: We need to know which children share their homes with guns.

Why do I want to invade the general privacy of some families by knowing whether the household owns a gun? The same superintendent who spoke about door locks and security cameras wrote to me last week in response to my email. He told me that, when he was principal of my daughters’ school about ten years ago, a fifth grader brought a .375 to school, and that the weapon had been discharged in a classroom by accident. Locks on school doors and security cameras would have done nothing to prevent this.

When I was strolling up and down our city’s main street during the annual autumn festival this past weekend, I saw that our police station had a tent set up along side the merchants and service companies. An officer stood in full uniform behind a bin of trigger locks. A bin of FREE trigger locks. A bin of free trigger locks standing behind a sign that essentially said “please take one – no questions asked.” While no one was hurt in the .357 incident, a trigger lock could have prevented the punchline of the whole story (though it could be argued that a nine year old having access to a gun in the first place should be a felony offense on the part of the parents).

It’s all about education. We need to teach parents to be responsible with the care and keeping of whatever weapons they feel they need to possess. We need to teach children to deal with their feelings in socially acceptable ways. We need to teach everyone to see themselves in others and to do no harm.

Leave a Comment

Filed under Uncategorized

17 AprI completely understand your frustration and amazement about their lack

Dingo
September 8, 2008 at 10:33 pm

Sounds as if you are off to a great start. I completely understand your frustration and amazement about their lack of knowledge of basic U.S. history. I once asked my class about McCarthyism. Blank stares. What are they teaching these kids in high school?

Reply

4 Comments.
Mrs. Chili
August 22, 2008 at 7:19 pm

Parking on THIS college campus is especially so. We joke (in a not so joking way) that our parking permits are really just hunting licenses – there’s no guarantee whatsoever that you’ll actually be able to kill yourself a spot on any given day. This is why I keep my car packed with quarters during the school year; sometimes the only places to park are at city meters, and believe me, they check those bad boys on a REALLY regular basis….

Reply

7 Comments.
Julia
July 23, 2008 at 1:24 pm

LOL! Maybe they only like 20% of EACH lab. “We like the head and shoulders, but the rest of the dog has to go!”

If I had a lab I’d be a little afraid to take her there since they have sharp objects. They might decide to remove the parts they don’t like!

Reply

2 Comments.
Chatty
July 21, 2008 at 6:49 am

Yes, it is definitely time for vacation. Our last unit of the year is on Dafur and genocide in general. Luckily it’s how we end the year so we can decompress and start all over.

Does your cottage have a dock?

Reply

27 FebCampus Saskatchewan News

This showed up in my inbox a few days ago.

Campus Saskatchewan News

2008-2009 Distance Learning Courses Available

Posted: 30 May 2008 12:57 PM CDT

The Campus Saskatchewan Distance Learning opportunities guide for 2008-2009 will be delivered to locations around the province in the next few weeks. Download a copy today: 2008-2009 Distance Learning Guide (PDF) NOTE: The televised insert is not included in the download version as most users will not be able to print it, please use the online course [...]

Possibly related posts: (automatically generated)

- 2nd Annual 21st Century Learning Symposium
- [DEOS-L] New Distance Education Research Centre
- 2009 Annual Conference-Pre-Conf. Event-Hot Job!
- Students at

Virtual Schooling in the News.

Beginning with the Yahoo! News Alert for virtual school.

New online school targets Hispanics, at-risk students
The OlympianSat, 17 May 2008 0:20 AM PDT
The state’s newest virtual charter school is expected to go online this fall, but only after a strategic campaign to recruit Hispanics and teenagers at risk of quitting or getting kicked out of public high schools.

School Board makes tough decisions on budget
KOTA Rapid CityFri, 16 May 2008 4:10 PM PDT
The board did vote to cut the virtual high school program, a gifted program, the Academy daycare, and some math and literacy coaches.

New online school targets Latinos
The Salt Lake TribuneSat, 17 May 2008 11:46 PM PDT
BOISE, Idaho – The state’s newest virtual charter school is expected to go online this fall, but only after a strategic campaign to recruit Hispanics and teenagers at risk of quitting or getting kicked out of public high schools.

LRN: Court Judgment Ends Suit Filed by Wisconsin Education Association
NasdaqMon, 19 May 2008 12:54 PM PDT
K12 Inc. (LRN) announced that a judgment has been entered by the Circuit Court of Ozaukee County in Wisconsin, bringing to a close a lawsuit brought by the Wisconsin Education Association against the Northern Ozaukee School District and K12 Inc. for operating the Wisconsin Virtual Academy (WIVA). The Court stated that the “parties and the Court agree that the recent enactment of Act 222 obviates …

K12 Inc. Announces End of Lawsuit in Wisconsin
Centre Daily TimesMon, 19 May 2008 12:07 PM PDT
K12 Inc. (NYSE:LRN) is announcing that a judgment has been entered by the Circuit Court of Ozaukee County in Wisconsin, bringing to a close a lawsuit brought by the Wisconsin Education Association against the Northern Ozaukee School District and K12 Inc. for operating the Wisconsin Virtual Academy (WIVA). In an order filed May 6, 2008, the Court stated that the “parties and the Court agree that …

K12 Inc. Announces End of Lawsuit in Wisconsin
Business Wire via Yahoo! FinanceMon, 19 May 2008 11:44 AM PDT
HERNDON, Va.—-K12 Inc. is announcing that a judgment has been entered by the Circuit Court of Ozaukee County in Wisconsin, bringing to a close a lawsuit brought by the Wisconsin Education Association against the Northern Ozaukee School District and K12 Inc. for operating the Wisconsin Virtual Academy .

School system providing students opportunity to attend the Louisiana Virtual School (LVS) Summer Session
Beauregard Daily NewsTue, 20 May 2008 9:24 AM PDT
The Beauregard Parish School System is providing students the opportunity to attend the Louisiana Virtual School (LVS) Summer Session, according to Director of Curriculum Karen Cunningham.

Online High Schools Draw Students — and Worry Some Educators
KTRE-TV East TexasTue, 20 May 2008 9:17 AM PDT
Rather than send her kids off on the yellow bus, Briana LeClaire has school come to her home. Her kids attend a virtual public school, connecting online to teachers and coursework. Everything from books to microscopes to radish seeds arrives via brown trucks.

‘Virtual tutor’ for Hampshire schools
Hampshire ChronicleWed, 21 May 2008 4:32 AM PDT
EVERY school in Hampshire is set to have a new “virtual tutor.” Hampshire County Council has signed up with educational software provider Etech to provide Studywiz, a secure on-line learning platform, to 530 primary and secondary schools across the county.

Online school targets Hispanics, at-risk
Casper Star-TribuneThu, 22 May 2008 1:20 AM PDT
BOISE, Idaho — The state’s newest virtual charter school is expected to go online this fall, but only after a strategic campaign to recruit Hispanics and teenagers at risk of quitting or getting kicked out of public high schools.

Online school accepting applications
Pahrump Valley TimesWed, 21 May 2008 5:54 PM PDT
Insight School of Nevada, is accepting applications for the fall semester 2008. It is a tuition-free, diploma-granting, online public high school opening its virtual doors to students throughout the state.

Online school targets Hispanics, at-risk
Casper Star-TribuneFri, 23 May 2008 1:19 AM PDT
BOISE, Idaho — The state’s newest virtual charter school is expected to go online this fall, but only after a strategic campaign to recruit Hispanics and teenagers at risk of quitting or getting kicked out of public high schools.

Online school targets Hispanics, at-risk
Casper Star-TribuneSat, 24 May 2008 11:45 AM PDT
BOISE, Idaho — The state’s newest virtual charter school is expected to go online this fall, but only after a strategic campaign to recruit Hispanics and teenagers at risk of quitting or getting kicked out of public high schools.

Tulpehocken School Board OKs contract to allow online classes
Reading EagleFri, 23 May 2008 8:08 PM PDT
The Tulpehocken School Board has voted 6-0 to approve a contract with Virtual High School Inc. that will allow some high school students to take classes online while attending Tulpehocken.

Next the Yahoo! News Alert for cyber school.

GNA considers cyber school
The Citizens’ VoiceSat, 17 May 2008 0:13 AM PDT
Greater Nanticoke Area school district officials are tired of losing money from sending students to charter schools and computer-based cyber schools. So they’re trying to get into the act themselves.

Cyber school undergoes metamorphosis
Newport News-TimesMon, 19 May 2008 11:37 AM PDT
School officials say it’s a change in status, not a change in service. Insight School of Oregon (ISO), Lincoln County School District’s (LCSD) public online charter high school, has morphed into what’s known as a private alternative school

Cyber academy plans move forward
The Indiana GazetteWed, 21 May 2008 11:12 AM PDT
FORD CITY – Armstrong School District administrators received approval Monday night to move forward with the creation of the district’s own cyber academy.

Dr. Nancy Minshew, Autism Researcher, to Speak at Regional Learning Alliance in Cranberry Township
PR Newswire via Yahoo! FinanceFri, 23 May 2008 7:02 AM PDT
Dr. Nancy Minshew, a leading researcher on the thinking processes of children with autism will talk about her work in a presentation co-sponsored by the Pennsylvania Cyber Charter School.

Troy signs cyber charter school letter
The Daily & Sunday ReviewSat, 24 May 2008 0:07 AM PDT
TROY — Troy Area School District officials signed a letter this week in support of a House Bill dealing with the funding of cyber charter schools.

Moving on to the Google News Alert for virtual school.

New online school targets Latinos
Salt Lake Tribune – United States
By Jessie Bonner AP BOISE, Idaho – The state’s newest virtual charter school is expected to go online this fall, but only after a strategic campaign to …
See all stories on this topic

New online school targets Hispanics, at-risk students
The Olympian – Olympia,WA,USA
By JESSIE BONNER | AP Writer • Published May 17, 2008 The state’s newest virtual charter school is expected to go online this fall, but only after a …
See all stories on this topic

Horace Mann school survives cuts
Rapid City Journal – Rapid City,SD,USA
The labored discussion continued with a debate about cutting the Virtual High School, math coach and literacy coach positions and administrative jobs. …
See all stories on this topic

Finally, the Google News Alert for cyber school.

GNA considers cyber school
Citizens Voice – Wilkes-Barre,PA,USA
If GNA starts a cyber charter school for those students to attend, the state funding would stay in the district, Perrone said. He said he has been going to …
See all stories on this topic

Cyber school undergoes metamorphosis
Newport News Times – Newport,OR,USA
By Terry Dillman Of the News-Times Insight School of Oregon (ISO), Lincoln County School District’s (LCSD) public online charter high school, …
See all stories on this topic

17 JanIf I want to make sure, my readers finds their way

Petit Posted August 31, 2006 at 7:26 pm | Permalink

Using new windows to open off site links can be frustrating or not.

If I want to make sure, my readers finds their way back from a visit somewhere else, I may open them a new window, but a named one. This means that clicking many window opening links on my site, will paint all the off site stuff in the same window.

I’m not using this technique often though, just when I invite my visitors to take a short excursion in the middle of my text.

Lorelle, don’t you contradict yourself a bit here?

In your excellent tutorial “A Tagging Bookmarklet for WordPress and WordPress.com Users”, under “Changing the Tagging Bookmarklet Tag Links” you say about bookmarklet links:

“They can be off-site or on-site (intrasite) links. I personally prefer to keep my visitors on my blog, so I use intrasite links.”

Yes, you do for some strange reason.
Your writing is good enough, that I’m coming back time and again, despite the fact, that I’m visiting others as well

Behind the Scenes of Blogging: How I Blog Series by Blogging Herald.

The Blogging Herald has started a “How I Blog” series featuring interviews and posts by a variety of bloggers on how they blog.

The bloggers share their methodology and practices about how they blog, including why they blog. The range of tips, advice, and techniques is educational for all bloggers, but the overriding theme is passion. These people really care about what they write and what they have to say and it guides their work. And they come up with some amazing ways of incorporating blogging into their lives.

A good number of these have a substantial income from their blogging, so it’s also a look into the business side of blogging.

Check it out.

Site Search Tags: blogging , blog , blogger , write , writer , tips , advice , techniques , writing , life , lives , work , business , company , professional , interview , series , corporate Copyright Lorelle VanFossen , member of the 9Rules Network