Extending Firefox workshop

September 27th, 2006 Stewart

One of several new workshops we added to the HSL roster this semester, Extending Firefox for Research has been getting lots of attention. Unfortunately, due to some inclement weather (In Buffalo? Can you believe it?), the first workshop, which was to be taught by my colleague Michelle, ended up as a wash.

That brings us to next week where she and I will do the first session for UB’s School of Dentistry, which apparently is making Firefox the default browser on all the student laptops and lab machines. In preparation, I’m going over the handout we developed with a close eye. If anyone feels like taking a look themselves, just click below:

Extending Firefox handout.pdf (application/pdf Object)

Now I just need to get started putting together that Web 2.0 for Research workshop. The one I’m supposed to teach next week. The one that has a full registration sheet and a sizable wait list.

You know, I might just get started on that first thing tomorrow.

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Zotero - Are EndNote’s days numbered?

September 24th, 2006 Stewart

Zotero - The Next-Generation Research Tool

I’m remaining neutral on this until the beta is released and we can all start to play with it. I really like the idea of a browser-based citation management tool — It’s the most intuitive location for such a tool, if you think about it, and it potentially can take advantage of the “native web” in ways that software like EndNote seems unable to.

That said, some immediate thoughts:

  • How many styles will be supported? EndNote’s exhaustive list of over 2000 styles makes it a natural choice for multidisciplinary researchers, as well as those in more rarified fields.

  • Will there be support for open sharing of bibliographic data, akin to CiteULike?

  • For that matter, will Zotero be compatible with existing libraries of references, such as those in CiteULike, EndNote, Reference Manager, or RefWorks?

I hope to play with the beta version of Zotero soon and have more to report. I’m cautiously optimistic — I know the people behind this have their heads and hearts in the right places, but I’m concerned about compatibility and longevity of the software, and it’s ability to grow with the user’s needs.

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Parents using Facebook to weed out bad roomies?

September 15th, 2006 Stewart

Roommates, the Online Version - New York Times

New Freshmen and their parents are using Facebook to scope out their assigned roommates. For students, this is a potential boon, to forge new friendships early or at least learn something useful about the person they’ll be sharing space with. For parents, though, Facebook entries often paint a picture they don’t care for, and that’s prompting calls to colleges demanding new roomies. Thanks to KUAL for the link.

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More Heli-Doonesbury

September 14th, 2006 Stewart

Thursday’s Doonesbury is the funniest yet…

Mike will not go gently into helicopter parentdom.

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Mike Doonesbury, Reluctant Helicopter

September 12th, 2006 Stewart

Today’s Doonesbury is well worth a look. In fact, it looks like the whole week is going to be dedicated to Mike dealing with his daughter, who just started as a frosh at MIT. I’ve always loved Doonesbury, and Mike’s daughter Alex is such a perfect Millennial that this week’s strips are just irresistable.

Enjoy!

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Millennials and remedial learning

September 3rd, 2006 Stewart

At 2-Year Colleges, Students Eager but Unready - New York Times

On top of the NYT article above, I have an interesting stat that was shared with me by one of the faculty during my recent SUNY Orange visit. Seven years ago, I’m told, the math department offered two sections of remedial math. This year, they have filled eleven sections. And, although she didn’t have the exact numbers for me, a member of the English department reported that the number of sections of remedial Reading/Comp courses has likewise increased dramatically.

Millennials make up one of the most competitive generations in history. The pressures to compete and succeed have been considerable, but actual achievement has rarely been part of the equation. This competitiveness has always been rewarded during childhood, regardless of outcome — Everyone who plays for the team gets a trophy. Eighty percent of high school grads plan on attending college, and they are assuming that high school has adequately prepared them for college-level courses.

Unfortunately, all the anecdotal evidence seems to be to the contrary — Having a high school diploma is, of itself, no guarantee that a student is prepared for college. A high school diploma used to mean a lot more than it does today. But as long as the federal and state governments continue to force K-12 programs to “teach to the test,” it’s unlikely that the high school diploma will ever mean as much as it once did.

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