Celebrate The National Day of Listening - November 26th

November 26th is The National Day of Listening.  Started by the national nonprofit organization, StoryCorps, in 2008, The National Day of Listening is an effort to encourage Americans of all backgrounds and beliefs to interview a friend, loved one, or member of their community about their lives on the day after Thanksgiving-offering a holiday alternative to Black Friday shopping sprees (StoryCorps). 

From the StoryCorps website, you can even download a Do-It-Yourself Instruction Guide, which will help you prepare for, record, preserve, and share your interview.   If you need inspiration, listen to some of the interviews.

Blanca Alvarez and her husband risked crossing the border to immigrate into the U.S. and then struggled to make ends meet. They hoped to shelter their children from these harsh realities, but Blanca's daughter Connie reveals how much children can really see of their parents' lives—and the inspiration they draw from their struggles.




Joseph Robertson was an infantryman in the U.S. Army during World War II, where he fought in the Battle of the Bulge. The stark black and white images in this short haunt the viewer, just as Robertson is haunted by his memories from that battle.



To learn more about The National Listening and StoryCorps, go to www.storycorps.org

National Distance Learning Week Starts November 8th

Image from: ngdc.noaa.gov

November 8th-12th is National Distance Learning Week and Berkeley College has many activities planned.  Attend a Virtual Open House,  view a sample course, and enter a distance-learning essay contest.  Visit this LINK to learn more.

Carol Smith, dean of Berkeley's distance learning program, has planned an all-day Distance Learning Symposium for Monday, November 8th.   Online faculty members will attend this faculty development symposium and participate in a variety of workshops on effective practices in online learning.

In addition to teaching social science courses online, I also serve as Online Chair for the School of Liberal Arts.  On Monday afternoon, I will deliver a presentation on the use of multimedia resources to engage students and help meet course objectives and learning outcomes.  I will be showing some examples of how  Liberal Arts faculty have successfully incorporated multimedia into their online courses.

For more information on National Distance Learning Week, visit the website here.