Multiple choice and essay in early education

My latest adventure included the opportunity to teach assessment strategies to future early childhood educators. I was thrilled at the opportunity and really it all happened by chance. I began sending out application packets when I finished course work thinking that I might find an adjunct position. As it happens, I found so much more!! Alas, I was not ready for the work ahead.....

For this particular endeavor, I was given a handy dandy little text book entitled Assessing in early childhood (5th ed.) by Sue Wortham. It was not a bad text although I might have chosen one that spent less time on standardized testing. Still, appropriate practices, and discussion of such, were plenty so I was content in this regard. Unfortunately, I soon found that I had little use for the text. It seems that I was mandated to teach developmentally inappropriate practices for the bulk of the semester (despite assurance during the interview process that I would have some academic freedom and could choose many of my own assignments with student input).

In this instance, efforts to meet accreditation requirements required students buy membership to a portfolio management system. In this system, they would deposit uniform assignments that each instructor/professor must teach. Different courses carry different portfolio assignments that must be submitted. I understand this practice. I know that in the history of higher education, lack of standards made some degrees from some schools more valuable than others. Teacher candidates at one university might be learning something completely different than teacher candidates at another university (although, this may not be all bad if we consider varied needs across our nation)(Boning 2007; Silver, 2006). However, never in my wildest dreams did I think I would be required to teach early educators how to administer a 20 item teacher made test that included multiple choice, short-answer and essay items. Moreover, these future early educators were required to administer a pretest to all their young students at once. Then, they would teach to the weaknesses noted on the pretest and retest at the end of their learning unit. Testing 20-27 children 8 years of age or under with such a tool, at the same time, is absolutely not developmentally appropriate!! We are working with teachers who will teach children, age 0-8!! Many of the children are just learning to talk. The seasoned teachers working with the early childhood candidates often expressed dismay at such antiquated methods of working with young children.


This was an embarrassment. I have spent five years pouring over literature, making observations and working with young children in an effort to do better for our children. I know better than this but, for at least the foreseeable future, I would have had a huge fight on my hands in an environment resistant to change. Indeed, I was expected to spend the bulk of the semester on this monstrosity while neglecting early intervention, developmental check lists, rating scales and teacher observations. Further, alternative learning environments were not explored, at all. The traditional classroom reigned supreme.

This reminds me that I gave full disclosure. I am not a fan of the traditional classroom and have no intentions of preserving it. Our children deserve freedom from oppression and I will fight for nothing less. Hence, I have refocused my efforts on dissertation. I have no idea where I will fit in the larger scheme of things but I intend to be much more careful about who I align myself with in the future. I must remember to protect my reputation as well - it would be difficult to gain good reviews when working in an environment in which one is philosophically opposed! Thus my explorations into the world of academia have begun.....




Boning, K. (2007). Coherence in general education: A historical look.
The Journal of General Education, 56(1), 1-16.

Silver, H. (2006). ‘Things change but names remain the same’: Higher education
Historiography 1975-2000. History of Education, 35(1), 121-140.

Learning without scripts....

With qualifying exams behind me, I am now refining ideas for dissertation. In the process, I have happened upon some treasures that I have, regretfully, missed for so many years. First, I've finally met Paulo Freire - not in person, but through one of his books. In Teachers as cultural workers: Letters to those who dare teach Freire (2005) mentions that the rigidity of structured educational environments makes it such that some people are "...forbidden to be" (p. 16). The control of teachers and students is insidious and freedom is squelched.


Somehow then, I went from Freire's democratic ideas of education to the topic of unschooling.The idea of democratic learner centered education is not new to me. After all, I home school my children and try to help them explore their natural abilities and interests. But, I have not been a typical 'unschooler'. I have utilized curriculum to teach too many subjects probably.....or, this is what I've told myself since I heard Howard Gardner and James Gee on Edutopia recently. This belief that I have erred in my ways has been made stronger by my introduction to unschooling. Dr. Ricci, Sir Ken Robinson, Johh Taylor Gatto and George Land have opened a whole new educational world to me. The more I hear from these people, the more excited I get.


Initial thoughts are that I agree with Dr. Robinson when he says that we zap creativity out of children because of our methods of schooling. I agree with Dr. Ricci when he says that we have too many rules for learning and if we leave children to explore, they create rich learning experiences on their own. I like that Dr. Gatto recognizes mass compulsory education is similar to herding animals. And, I look forward to reading Land's books on creativity. I believe these new resources will help me explore my dissertation topic further and I believe they will help me become a better teacher - one who promotes freedom, individual creativity, and democracy.

We are hot again!

6/29/2010 - With an unofficial job offer (anxiously awaiting the formal job offer) I decided to get reconnected. I'll have much to prepare for with fall semester approaching and the prospect of teaching four college level classes solo (can't wait) and assisting in one class (can't wait for this either)....not to mention comprehensive exams and dissertation. I'm very excited for the future and feel very fortunate.

So, now we have internet up and running again; however, I have not reconnected dish television. We lasted almost two months without everything (except cell phones). It felt good. For now, weekends, Tuesdays and Thursdays are media free (unless someone has work, school or otherwise). Even without television, there seems to be more interaction and bed time is not a fight anymore. Kids are actually tired and ready for bed at a decent hour despite being teenagers. I have no intention of turning on the tube anytime soon so we'll see how life goes without it for awhile. And, I'm hoping we keep internet access under control - if not, everyone around here knows what I might do!!!! ;)

I hope to continue this discussion with myself and my family as we let the internet back in and we keep the television out for awhile longer.

6/14 - Media free living update

Found an interesting article about tech addicted parents from the Huffington Post. A link is given to both an article in the New York Times and a CBS show on the subject. Sherry Turkle is mentioned in the NY Times article. She's from MIT and is a well respected expert in this area. After perusing the information provided, I must say "guilty as charged" and I am happy to have taken this break.

Still, I wonder if I can keep this up. Can I keep a job and maintain a media free living environment? Brad has so far....lol. My middle son has said he can live without it - in fact, his exact words were "it doesn't bother me, I don't care". Wow! What a surprise. Every time I think about reconnecting, I shudder. I don't know that I want to. I long for the convenience of the tools; but, I also enjoy the freedom, and the limits, we have now. One and half months tomorrow and the countdown continues!

Media Free Living Spaces - One Month Update

6/4 - It's been about a month since I disconnected incoming media (internet and satellite television - not cell phones or radios) from our home. It's been interesting.....

I still have a few channels with infomercials coming in. I could disconnect the boxes and have a black screen but then I would not have access to the view of earth from space accompanied by classical music. For now, I will leave it. We've cheated and watched a health show or two but over all, the television never comes on. I thought I'd miss a couple of shows and, in particular, the news but I don't miss the shows. I do miss the news occasionally. Like many, I've been praying for the oil to stop spewing into the ocean and I have to wait until I turn on the radio, go to an internet cafe or go to the library to get an update. Still, I am not uninformed and I don't really mind the scheduled news brief.

I had a weak moment (or maybe it was a flash of sanity) last week and decided to call it quits. I've got work to do and thought I should make our house 'hot' again. I even made the call to reconnect but alas, I woke up the next day to find unauthorized use of video games. Come to find out the games have been used in bed at night (after the lights were out) and I now know why some people are tired when I wake them in the morning (after a full 9 hours of sleep mind you)!!! I won't mention any names..... ;) I realize this is typical childhood behavior; but, this behavior becomes dangerous when the technology can take them, unwittingly, into ugly places. Hence, my resolve returned full force.

It's difficult, though. I admit it and when I think about my delicious account, my prezi account, my wiki, my blog, and resources such as Worldcat I get withdrawals and wish I had access. Fortunately my Endnote library is FULL of articles I need to read. The side benefit is that my lack of internet access at home prompts me to take care of items I am often distracted from.

For everyone else, feelings are mixed. My husband still says he likes it. The peace is nice, the organization is nice and the lack of negotiating media usage is pure bliss....my daughter wishes that our home was 'connected'. She doesn't like the inconvenience of having to drive to access internet. BUT, she does appreciate the lack of 'arguing' (her words) we are experiencing. Her brothers' nightly negotiations are not missed! The youngest says he hates not having media.....he misses playing Webkinz with his friend. My other son does not like it either. He misses interactions with friends on XBox. He has discovered that he can buy a cable for the XBox that will allow him to connect to a laptop so some social gaming may be coming in the near future.

It's interesting that the negotiations for time with tech tools was such an ever present occurrence in our home. I like to think I can manage a home and back and forth banter is kept to a minimum when I make a decision. I see this isn't the case with technology and wonder if the draw to the tool is the problem or is it my parenting? Sigh......

Sometimes I look forward to August (when we reconnect) and other times, I have second thoughts. I really enjoy the peace and the talks we have at night.

Media Free Living Spaces - One Month Down

6/3 - I've been neglectful of my updates. Still, while I am short on time today, I would like to make a quick note of our progress.

Positives:

No fighting over media time.

We devour books.

At night, we sit and talk before bed.

Our garden is AMAZING compared to previous years.

My house is cleaner.

My media use is planned and more on target - less browsing.

The kids go to bed at night with little or no direction from me.

We are connecting with people face to face more.

No porn.

No viruses.

Negatives:

Sometimes I feel out of the loop - my social networking is down and I miss updates.

My media use is so structured, I have less time to browse and explore.

The library kicks me out at 6:00!!!

Till next post when I hope to have more time to discuss my recent tech support experience and thoughts from my family.

Media Free Living Spaces - Week 3

5/19 - Quick update to our family adventure. I thoroughly enjoy the peace associated with not having media streaming into our home. Never, do I have to worry what they might come across on the internet or the television. I love the quiet in the house - that is, it's quiet when we aren't talking or goofing off or laughing hysterically. I was very pleased, I must admit, when my son called and said the second Peretti book had arrived and wanted to know if he could drop everything to read it. I don't know if I can 'relight' our house after the summer is over.......

I have learned that I must plan well, though. I must take care of my communication needs, per a detailed list, or I will invariably forget something and feel as though I need to run to Starbuck's, the library or some other 'hot spot' to take care of the forgotten task. Still, I'm getting better at this. I also wonder if some of my urgency to take care of things immediately isn't associated with the fact that I'm accustomed to walking to my computer and taking care of business/communication whenever the thought occurs to me. Since I can no longer do this, it bothers me physiologically to have to wait. But, I'm getting used to having to wait until tomorrow.....it's hard but getting easier.

Finally, I picked up a couple of techno tricks that probably everyone else in the world has learned. One, when I go to an internet cafe, and open ITunes, I have found that I am able to view the music libraries of my neighbors. This wasn't a pleasant experience in the beginning as I thought someone had hacked into my daughter's ITunes library and I thought we were seeing their library by mistake. This particular library we had access to had over 8000 songs - many of which were labeled EXPILCIT in the big red letters. I nearly panicked until my son came over and told me he had experienced shared libraries with his cousin whenever they'd have their computers open in our house at the same time. Interesting......happily, the library in question disappeared when I left the internet cafe. I have also found the entire TWU campus is 'hot'. Library closed early (at 6p) between semesters and I had a proposal I was trying to complete and get submitted.....Walked outside the library doors, sat down in the beautiful courtyard and kept working!!!

Final thought - what if parents across the United States started disconnecting their homes in order to protect their children? What if we were able to send a message to media service providers that we want the product cleaned up and safe before it comes in our home. What if we told advertisers through disconnection that we are fed up with their onslaught on childhood?!!!!! I, for one, have had enough of it......

I want the good we get from media but I'm tired of suffering the bad.

Media Free Living Spaces Week 3

5/12/10 - So far, I love having a media free space. Unfortunately, this is not a feeling the rest of my family is sharing. My husband says he's not going crazy but he isn't saying he likes living without 'in-coming' media either. One son acts as though we've taken on an Amish lifestyle and my daughter says it stinks. My other child seems to enjoy our daily treks to the library.

While I have to admit that loading up our lap tops, school books, snacks and drinks is a chore, the process is not bothering me as much as I thought it would. Again, though it is hard to delay gratification when I think of a book I want to order but can't because I am no longer connected at home and don't have access to online book stores, I have managed. In like manner, when I long to gather more electronic resources for my digital library, I wait and I have learned that planning has become paramount.

Still, the positives far out weigh the negatives in my opinion. When I think about the aforementioned struggles and want to modify or cancel our experiment, I remember the peace I have at knowing pornography cannot slip into my house electronically. Advertisements for pornography do not lurk in the virtual periphery. Inappropriate or adult video is not coming into my house via DISH or another network. Knowing these things gives me determination to see this through.

A few things I've noticed to date. First, media negotiations are nearly nonexistent. For example, I do not have to wrestle anyone away from XBox, television or Facebook in order to get them to bed at a decent hour. For the first time in what seems like decades, my son came to me and said he was going to bed. He also mentioned that I need to buy the second book in a series written by Frank Peretti as he finished one of his books in two days this week. More reading? I do not mind this at all! We are also cooking together more, talking more and we are walking the dogs more. And, finally, it seems that we are getting some neglected home projects taken care of.

For me, I continue to struggle with the importance of knowing how to use the tools. Young (2008) mentions seven relevant points when considering the impact of the internet on the learner:

a). over time, the internet has evolved as a cognitive tool which is reflective of today's society

- at both the local and global levels;

b). access to, and subsequent mastery of, the internet exposes individuals to the rules,

values, and beliefs evident in today's global society;

c). the internet is a tool which promotes goal-directed activities (motivated by either the

user's own goals or the goals imposed by others);

d). engagement with the internet allows one to access and contribute to distributed

knowledge across society;

e). engagement with the internet develops mastery of the tool - a merging between user and

the internet;

f). cognitive tools, such as the internet, have the power to transform individual cognitive

processes and learner attitudes and behaviours;

g). individual actions using the internet have the power to influence its further development

and use - the internet will continue to grow and evolve to reflect changes in society (p.

177-178).

These points make me wonder.....One, could we have a home that is unplugged yet still use these tools masterfully? Second, if the internet is a reflection of societal attitudes, rules and beliefs, do we agree with these? If we don't agree, why? And, if we don't agree because our values are different, are we neglectful if we don't join the community to ensure a number of value systems are represented. I do not want to isolate. I want to protect children and use these powerful tools wisely.

Young, K. (2008). Toward a model for the study of children's informal

Internet use. Computers in Human Behavior, 24(2), 173-184.

Media Free Living Spaces - Week 2

5/8/10 - The end of our first week. Dish, while it still isn't completely off, is sufficiently devoid of options that viewing television is an unattractive prospect. Internet was not disconnected by Wednesday as promised so I've turned the router switch to off and we aren't using internet in the home. Junk cannot come in via internet or television. Handheld video games, XBOX and Playstation are reserved for Sundays only. So, it has truly begun.....

So far - I love it!!! The house is quiet and tranquil....a place for reflection, peace and interacting with my family - a place to escape from the hustle and bustle. It is my mountain cabin in suburbia. In the first week, we've enjoyed more time together, more talks, more walks and more art work!

We'll see how the family continues to react as time moves on. For now, one child says it stinks and doubts we can do this the whole summer. The other child says it's horrible. The third child says it's fine. Hubby thinks it's an adjustment and at this particular moment in time, that's all he has to say about it. He is trying to keep an open mind recognizing that it will be difficult.

5/5/10 - Monday morning came early as I woke up thinking "what have I done to myself? I still have papers to grade...." I co-teach an online class at TWU with my advisor and a colleague. Still, we were psychologically prepared to wake up to complete silence, no incoming media and the awareness that we would be traveling to connect from this day forward. I was looking forward to peace as it would be impossible to negotiate media usage if it's not available.

While DISH had drastically reduced the number of channels coming in - it was still available. We had infomercials, some smut channels and one channel with a satellite image of earth accompanied by classical music. The land line is off as well. But, we still had internet access. I made a phone call and was told it takes a day or two to complete the process. Ok, I can understand that. They've written up my request like an order and it will happen when they get to my request. At this point, I'm not too aggravated but a little disappointed. I want to know what it really feels like for us to be without access! And, I am sick of smut coming into my home. Yes, I can unplug the TV or throw out the DISH boxes but somewhere there is record of us receiving this stuff and I want the records to show, we've opted out for awhile. Plus, I'm getting rid of INCOMING media - not media tools altogether. We may want to watch a movie.....I shouldn't have to crawl behind the entertainment center to unplug my TV to be rid of this. I want them to quit sending this stuff to our home.

Wednesday comes and we STILL have internet access as well as the aforementioned DISH channels. Now, I'm aggravated. I can't shake this stuff. I want it out of my home. I want to be completely disconnected for the summer. I make another phone call and I'm told that our account shows everything is disconnected and we are not being charged (other than the vacation rate) so perhaps I should just leave services as they are. Boy, that's tempting....for about a second!! I ask about disconnecting. Disconnection will be a $200 disconnect fee since we are on contract for two years - I didn't know we were on contract with them for two years. We've had the services for six years so I'm not sure when the two year contract started. It's a racket - they don't want to loosen their grip!!! In the end, they say services WILL be suspended by the end of the day. If they aren't, I'm disconnecting......

Now, for time spent with family, doing yard work, scrap booking, writing an IRB proposal or charting resources for dissertation!!! Let the fun begin!!!!

Media Free Living Spaces Week 1

5/2 - Tomorrow is the big day!! All incoming media is shut off. And, I have so much grading.....should I rethink this? We took two road trips this weekend to visit my brothers. Perhaps I've been oblivious to the obvious but, on several occasions I saw bill boards saying "Make your car a no phone zone". My first thought was to get around the safety issue because I don't want to do without the phone. To do this, we need hands free capability - just another piece of technology I need!! Then, the phrase 'no phone zone' reminded me of my impending 'media free living space'. How long will we last? One child has predicted two weeks. I thought that was rather ambitious given that they are against it and I'm getting nervous!!

The kids have started to milk every minute of media, out of me, that they can get. One child has revisited his DS and his Gameboy Advance SP......Previously, they were buried in his back pack. I think he is constructing his strategy for back up media use. Such a good planner......alas, now I'll have to address this. The idea is to free up our home time, enjoy family time, and decrease the amount of time we spend engaging with media. I want to use the tools; but, I want to use the tools wisely and efficiently. Hand held video games may not have a place in my grand scheme!

Brad, my husband, has not complained a bit. Of course, he's been busy out of town off an on for the last couple of weeks so he's hardly noticed. He has access to media in the hotel rooms. As for me, I've started plotting ways to retain access while the house is cut off. Perhaps IPhones are now in order? The kids might consider this cheating so I'll wait......

An occasional pang of guilt strikes as I consider what my boys get from their social media connections. Each day, they would connect with friends and play games virtually. I looked at these times as the 21st century equivalent to monopoly, battle ship or scrabble (the games I used to play). I don't want them to miss out on these opportunities to engage with peers, yet I do see a need for change in our home with respect to media. I'm leaving this thought with some words of one of my favorite theorists - Jame Gee, provided by Edutopia:

Big Thinkers: James Paul Gee on Grading with Games | Edutopia

4/28 - Now that the weekend has passed and the viral threat is over, the kids are rethinking this adventure. One concern from both boys was how they would keep in touch with the friends they 'see' primarily online. I have to admit, one thing I have liked about highly interactive virtual environments (HIVEs) is that my kids have been able to 'play' with their friends - even if virtually - in a safe place (our home). Distance and danger makes it difficult for children to run around outside the way they used to; so, the XBOX 360 has been great for my oldest child. He's got friends spread out over the metroplex. Much like neighborhood kids know when their friends can play or ride bikes, my son and his virtual friends 'know' when they can get together for virtual gaming....at about the same time each day. My youngest son uses a speaker phone and computer to play online games with his friend. Again, they know each other's schedule and I'm able to supervise and join in their conversation. I love it. It's a great way to nurture friendships. Makes me feel a little sad as I don't want them to miss each other! And, I love to nurture good friendships.....

I reminded them (and myself), it's only for the summer (unless we really like having a media free living space) AND we will find other ways to visit with their friends. Our first outing with their virtual playmates and friends is a trip to Six Flags for the annual home school day.

Another thing - I have a media free bedroom policy. We do not have televisions, electronic games or computers in any of our bedrooms. A good night's sleep is essential for optimal growth, health, development and academic performance. Also, if we are going to use media - I don't want us in five separate rooms doing our own thing. The policy works well, I think. Everyone falls asleep rather quickly and there's no isolating behind closed doors. I'm hoping we get some of the same benefits this summer with our media 'diet'. At the worst, we will come away with new ways to maintain safety as media comes in and we may put new 'policies' in place to curtail the number of negotiations and the amount of time spent on media.

Lastly, I've asked the kids to journal about our media diet this summer. They didn't like that idea either. I read an article at the Chronicle.com describing a study examining college level students' reaction to abstaining from social media for one day. The students experienced withdrawal symptoms after only one day!!! What about an entire summer? At least for us, the incoming media is only off limits at home. We will simply feed our habits else where and it will require more effort! Home will be used for other activities I hope. Bless their hearts......

4/27 - It's Tuesday morning. The computer is loading updates and the offensive material seems to be gone. We shall see....While working on the computer virus, I decided to seize my youngest son's IPOD Touch. I had already decided he was too young for this tool and it sat, under used, for months. Hence, this was a good time to have a look. I figured this would help me decide whether I would like an IPhone, or not; and, honestly, I've been lusting after the IPhone for awhile.

I discovered a couple things. One, I LOVE the IPOD Touch......So, I'm pretty sure an IPhone or an IPad is in my future. This is a handy tool for checking e-mail, getting directions, checking time, keeping a calendar, and maintaining an address book. I'm sure most people know this by now as I've been a little slow with my cell phone upgrades. I have concentrated on other items needed for dissertation such as End Note, NVivo, Adobe, a projector, and a 500 GB storage device. I did find one reason to keep IPhones out of a child's hand, though. Despite the fact that I have set all ITunes programs on all five computers to TEEN - I still found x-rated material coming at me while I searched free applications on the IPOD Touch. This is nothing less than thinking we are walking into a PG film only to find we've entered an X-Rated movie - WITH CHILDREN!!!! How many children are walking around with these phones while parents think they've put proper restrictions in place? It's infuriating and I'm still mulling this over........

Has it gotten to the point that children aren't even safe in their own homes?

On a positive note, DISH waived our final bill!! ;)

4/26 - Our first day. Children complained, the husband feigned concern over my difficulties in teaching online if I don't have internet access at home and I worried myself....but, I didn't worry for long. On the first day, after much complaint from the children, our oldest daughter encountered a computer virus. X rated web sites kept popping up (fortunately, without the pictures) and security warnings were nonstop.....This brought them into the fold. We are all in agreement and the adventure began with several phone calls canceling or suspending services. Don't get me wrong, please. I love tech tools and we will continue to use them. I am simply pulling them from my home! I want safe, healthy access and I want to see if we fare better as a family with technology maintained outside the home (at least while growing children are here).....

Later, I began work on eradicating the virus. I didn't crawl into bed until 6am but I couldn't sleep until I knew the mess was cleaned up....I had several FB friends share their experience with this so I know I'm not alone!

Media Free Living Spaces

So, this weekend we had a media incident in our family. It was an important weekend. My six year marriage anniversary and my daughter's prom both fell on Saturday of this weekend. I had big plans to thoroughly enjoy myself. Hence, this was not the right weekend to bother me with trivial matters - and, it was certainly not the weekend to pester me with or about media issues. While, I love media and enjoy gadgetry, I've been vexed by media quite often of late. This last incident took me over the edge.

What bothers me about media? It bothers me when I find out my child has accepted text messages from someone or some organization that he or she is not familiar with despite frequent warnings. It bothers me when my children hound me throughout the day, on a daily basis, to play XBOX or Webkinz. I am concerned when I can see they are cleaning, or completing school work, or playing their music just to get through it so they can return to media. I am incensed when my husband sits at the computer and plays solitaire for hours on end....while watching scores and play by play action of his favorite baseball team via the web. I am not against Facebook; infact, I love Facebook but I don't like to look up from work to see my daughter on Facebook and distracted from her studies. I loathe the constant banter of sportscasters in the background knowing that we could all be outside throwing a frisbee, riding bikes or walking the dogs; yet, we allow ourselves to be held captive as mere spectators. For me, I am often distracted from my reading and note taking as I wander aimlessly in the world wide web looking for new resources or reading the latest news! Then finally, I was furious that I left my volunteer position at prom early to return home because my husband and son were having a disagreement over the amount of time that should be spent with media. In the end, I believe they were both right and they were both wrong. Still, I missed out on watching my daughter make her grand entrance (this prom was phenomenal and the decorations were breath taking - I couldn't wait to see her face) and I missed out on getting photos with her. Everyone else has a photo with her - even my husband and boys; but, I am painfully absent as I was busy working behind the scenes and then busy rushing home to keep peace. So, I have had it.....

My plan is this: I will suspend all incoming media, such as internet and satellite, in our living space (our home) for all of May, June and July. I want to keep a journal to see how we fare without media as it has become an integral part of our life. And, I do not say this lightly. We have five computers in our home, one for each of us!

The internet, in particular, has become a very important tool that we use daily. For example, I home school and my daughter has one online class that meets three times a week. We have to have access to the internet for this. I also have a wiki that I use for some of our studies. I have begun work on a world history class that my daughter is using to meet this high school requirement. I love my wiki and I am amazed at the number of resources I have found to help us enjoy learning about world history. I think of Guns, Germs and Steel - this is but one of the many resources I've found. This documentary is a fascinating look at why some civilizations may have become more powerful, or advanced, than other civilizations. To use this wiki, we will have to travel to a library or internet cafe. I imagine this will be a very difficult adjustment for both student and teacher!

My boys use media for their studies as well. We have enjoyed Teaching Textbooks and Switched on Schoolhouse(SOS). While they can use these without internet access, SOS provides links to outside web resources that may enhance learning. I utilize internet games to help with rote memorization drills. One of my favorite sites is Arcademic Skill Builders (yes, it's really spelled that way). Here, my boys can play math games with other students online. They enjoy it and it helps them with instant recall. I have no doubt we will miss this.

It's easy to see how I will miss the internet as a homeschool mom. But, as the manager of our household, I use the internet to balance my checkbook, make grocery lists and prepare my menus. I love MyRecipes.com - this, along with my blog and wiki, is a perfect example of cloud computing. I hold all of my recipes, menus and shopping lists here and I never have to hunt for a recipe again. The idea of having to travel somewhere to access these tools makes this plan of mine difficult to swallow. I don't know if I can do this!!

On top of everything else, my husband and I both, like many - if not most - Americans, use the internet in our everyday jobs. Brad often comes home to take care of things he did not have time for at the office. There are fewer interruptions here at home. I assist in an online class. Plus, as a doctoral student who has comprehensive exams and dissertation looming ahead (not to mention several research projects), I rather dread a daily trek to the library when I could easily walk to my lap top each day to complete much of my literature review and grading. This may be hardest on me; but, I feel as though our family needs some sort of intervention and this is what comes to mind. Negotiating and making life style changes have not yet worked as I must still wrestle with the monster on a daily basis. The monster is incoming media and the negotiating comes through my family - can I finish watching this, can I finish this match, can I call Josh to play on Webkinz, can you hand me the romote, change the channel, mute this, mute that and on and on it goes!!!!! Are the rewards greater than the hassles associated with media in the home? Can we keep media at bay by keeping it out of the home while we will go to it, rather than it coming to us? I don't know if this will work; but, I'm going to try. Here after, this will be my journal documenting this little adventure I have set before us!