The CLEP Test: How to Get College Credit From Anywhere
Posted on 02. Dec, 2009 by Cap'n Ko.
Why hasn’t anyone told me about the CLEP test before? After finding about more about it, and reading article after article of “Best Kept Secret in education,” I realized that there wasn’t much out there in terms of telling people why they should consider CLEP Tests. No matter who you are, as long as you’re interested in college, there’s no excuse not to take a look. First, let’s talk about CLEP and what CLEP is. [...]
Continue Reading
Why teaching needs to be a form of entertainment
Posted on 24. Jun, 2009 by Cap'n Ko.
I know right off the bat that 99% of teachers are going to disagree with everything I have to say. That’s why they’re not pirating education. That’s why they’re not swashbuckling the old-school ways. That’s also why their students don’t learn as much. It’s a bold piratey claim, but I believe in this 100%: Teaching needs to become a form of entertainment. And guess who’s responsibility that is? The teacher.
Why do I want to see this happen? There’s plenty of reasons. [...]
Continue Reading
Creating “Flashbulb Memories” in your Teaching
Posted on 09. Apr, 2009 by Cap'n Ko.
There’s a good reason why great teachers have students that learn more. First of all, they’re great, and that’s a given. Secondly, they create flashbulb memories for their students, which makes them remember more vividly what’s being taught.
Flashbulb memories are normally associated with really big events: 9/11, the Kennedy Assassination, when Bambi’s mom died… But did you know they can be used to your advantage in everyday life as well? [...]
Continue Reading
Demand-Driven Teaching on Twitter [#teach-me]
Posted on 30. Mar, 2009 by Cap'n Ko.
If you haven’t read it yet, there’s a post on this over on the eduFire blog that’s very similar to this one, but I’m going to go into my own opinion a little bit more here on eduPirate.
The #teach-me Twitter revolution has been kicked off today, which I believe will be the first step towards “demand-driven” teaching, where the student asks to be taught something, and it’s easy for teachers to find them (or friends to refer good teachers). The first thing that’s making this all possible is the Internet. If it wasn’t for live video learning sites like eduFire, there would be no way for that Russian Underwater Basket Weaving master to get in contact with that student in Mexico who wants nothing more than to weave baskets and get his hands wet. Secondly, Twitter is becoming a widely used tool, and will be a great jumping off point for this revolution. Here’s how it works. [...]
Continue Reading
The Future of Textbooks is Online [e-Textbooks]
Posted on 25. Mar, 2009 by Cap'n Ko.
Traditional textbooks are heading for the gallows. They’re heavy, expensive, and difficult to update across the board. Sure, people will hang on because it’s “easier to read” or “feels good in their hands,” but that won’t last long. Digital and online textbooks are where the future’s heading, I guarantee it. Want to know why? Here’s what I see for our textbook future. [...]
Continue Reading
The Idea of an “Open Credit” System
Posted on 02. Mar, 2009 by Cap'n Ko.
I was talking with Jon Bischke today on the telephone, and an idea came up regarding the concept of “open credits.” Call me an idealist. Tell me my cup is half full. Call me an education pirate (yarr). But I think I have something here. The idea is in its infant stages right now, but I’m going to tell you a bit about it anyways, to hopefully get a good discussion started. Really, that right there’s the spirit of “open.” Everyone helps by contributing, and the end product is something driven by the people!
What is an “Open Credit”
Everyone remember going to school and having to get credits so you could graduate? Only accredited institutions can give out credits (which makes sense, since you don’t want every Tom, Dick, and Jane getting degrees), and you take certain classes to receive these credits. [...]
Continue Reading
Teacher Welcome Messages: Myngle Walks the Plank
Posted on 26. Feb, 2009 by Cap'n Ko.
When you read the title of this post, you probably think, “there’s no way this is in any way interesting.” I agree, but it gives me an excuse to show you one particular welcome message that looks like it was written after a little too much drinky drinky. Seriously, this is the most unbelievably unprofessional (even less professional than a pirate, yar!) welcome message you will ever see, and it’s after the jump. [...]
Continue Reading
Using Drop.io to Share Files with Your Students
Posted on 24. Feb, 2009 by Cap'n Ko.
I absolutely love simple, technology-based solutions to simple, irritating problems. In this day and age, it doesn’t matter if you are an online or offline teacher. You’ll need to share files with your students via the net. One solution is to send e-mails out to you students, and attach the readings or handouts you want to get to them. The main problem with this, though, is that if you made a mistake, or want to add more files later, you have to send another e-mail with new files. If you’re teaching online, often times you won’t even have the option to attach files if you’re using the messaging system of an online learning site. Luckily, Drop.io solves most of these problems in a slick, simple interface. First, let’s go through a quick “how-to” on using Drop.io, and then we’ll talk about its implementation in the classroom. [...]
Continue Reading
6 Ways the Internet will Change Home Schooling Forever
Posted on 21. Feb, 2009 by Cap'n Ko.
Now, I’m no home schooler, but I am an expert in online education, so you’ll have to meet me halfway, here. I do know that a lot is about to change in the home schooling world, thanks to resources and possibilities available via the Internet. Gen-Y kids are getting to the age where they’ll start having children, and believe me, those kids will live and breathe technology, even more than their parents. This is going to show in homeschooling, too. Here are six ways I think we’ll see homeschooling change in the near future, all because of the web: [...]
Continue Reading
Welcome to eduPirate!
Posted on 10. Feb, 2009 by Cap'n Ko.
There are a lot of education blogs out there, and trust me, none of them are quite like eduPirate. It’s not the occasional “yarr” that you’ll find in certain sentences. It’s not necessarily the content, though that’s pretty good as well. It’s that we’re making education walk the plank. We’re “pirating education” over here, kind of like how you pirate music, or pirate DVDs (which of course we thoroughly don’t recommend you do). Anytime we see something that makes education easier. Anytime we see change. Anytime something challenges the status quo, you’ll hear about it here. There’s so much going on in the education industry, and not enough blogs covering it all, especially from a modern and fresh angle. We look forward to learning from you, and hearing from you in the near future!
Continue Reading
