Wednesday, February 26, 2014

How to capture a webpage as a PDF -- use web2pdfconvert.com

here's a tip.

I am stuck in an office that does not have a printer.  I have a website that needs to be printed.
http://www.web2pdfconvert.com/

paste in the address of a website and the program conversts the site to a PDF, which can be sent to google docs or to a PDF download.

Tuesday, February 18, 2014

Here's a checklist of tools for you to learn for the future. SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS to students at European Leadership School www.ELSleaders.com

What are some of the tools that we need to get started on the Internet?

What tools help us with projects?

OpenOffice.org for a free suite of programs (so you don't have to pay for Microsoft Office)

Google Drive (free 15 Gigs with a gmail account) or One Drive (Sky Drive) for storing files

GIMP for photo manipulation (thanks to Ben Udy for showing me this link)

Linux if you want a free operating system

Google has free software, too.

http://www.freepdfconvert.com/   When you need a file converted.

Scribd.com to share a document with people

Twitter and Facebook and Tumblr and StumbleUpon

Flickr.com to share photos

Blogger to share stories and to create free blogs and quick (simple) websites

Sites Google for more complicated websites

Wordpress for more complicated blogs

... so, these are some of the tools that we use to share information.  You can see some of these items at work when you visit www.TransformTeaching.org and www.EveryoneIsHere.com (the alumni reunion website and free system to share)

Adsense is fun (for earning money with your YouTube account) and Youtube is helpful for sharing videos

Vimeo.com is for sharing videos and easier downloading

KeepVid.com to download videos from Youtube

VidToMp3.com will allow you to download mp3 audio files from Youtube videos.

Here are two other converters:
  1. YouTube to mp3 converter - free Youtube download video.

    www.video2mp3.net/

    YouTube to mp3 conversion done right. Easily use our youtube converter to change video into a downloadable mp3.
  2. www.youtube-mp3.org/

NOTE to students at ELS (www.Facebook.com/QBEELS)

Here are your instructions:

when the students get on board the QBE school of European Leadership www.ELSleaders.com, ask them if they can go to http://preview.tinyurl.com/QBESkills and become mentors to other people who need to learn these skills.

if they don't know the programs and tools, I am happy to be one of their one-on-one tutors.  

The typical lesson is for them to follow the following procedure

a)  visit the site associated with the skill, such as openoffice.org and drive.google.com

b)  describe the site and the features of the program.

c)  send the description to me at VisualAndActive@gmail.com

d) arrange to create a project using the skill or the web tool

e)  send the product of their skill to me (perhaps posting the tool product and sending me the link)

f)  put the item in their portfolio.


If they need feedback, they can leave a message on Skype  SteveEnglishTeacher.  Note:  Please put your name and contact info in the SUBJECT heading so that I can put a higher priority for your message.  Send duplicate messages to 9546468246@mymetropcs.com with "Please check your email" in the message.  VisualAndActive@gmail.com.  
If you want to text my mobile phone, please send to +1 954 646 8246

the students should aim to create at least one project with at least four of the tools mentioned in that list.

What does a portfolio look like?  Click HERE

Steve McCrea
Online Instructor for ELSLeaders.com
Learn more by getting free ebooks and posters from www.TransFormTeaching.org
Facebook:  www.Facebook.com/TheGuideontheSide
Twitter   www.Twitter.com/freeenglish

Tuesday, February 11, 2014

What books would you suggest for young people to study (to prepare for the Global Economy)?

This list is found at http://preview.tinyurl.com/QBEBooks

What is an easy way to get your head into the top 20 or 30 books or ideas for the next century?

Here's a suggestion:

Read extracts of the top 20 books.
Look for the QUOTES

Look for a place where people have posted extracts of those books.

The Destination:  GoodReads.com and Wikipedia.org 
Step1:  Look up a book
Step 2:  Look for the "QUOTES" section of the listing.
Step 3:  Focus on the quotes
Step 4:  Read the Wikipedia summary.

The following links are what I've collected for the QBE European Leadership School in St. Malo, France.   Director Will Sutherland requested a list and (in consultation with Wes Green, Noel Thompson, John Vornle, Enrique Gonzalez, Dennis Littky, Matt Blazek and other mentors) here's a start:

FIRST TIER (one size fits all)
Transformation of education” and “21st Century skills”
What books and questions could inspire teachers to move away from lectures and toward becoming "guides on the side"?

(1) Transparency
Bennis, Goleman and O'Toole
Daniel Goleman
Click here for Goodreads
Read an extract
Biography of Warren Bennis
Ken Blanchard newsletter

Free Articles             Read this article (archives)  

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SUGGESTION:

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See more photos

(2) Magnificant Brain at any age
Daniel Amen
Click here for Goodreads
Click here
Quotes:

“Your brain is involved in everything you do.
Your brain controls everything you do, feel, and think. When you look in the
mirror, you can thank your brain for what you see. Ultimately, it is your brain that
determines whether your belly bulges over your belt buckle or your waistline is trim and
toned. Your brain plays the central role in whether your skin looks fresh and dewy or is
etched with wrinkles. Whether you wake up feeling energetic or groggy depends on your
brain. When you head to the kitchen to make breakfast, it is your brain that determines
whether you go for the leftover pizza or the low-fat yogurt and fruit. Your brain controls
whether you hit the gym or sit at the computer to check your Facebook page. If you feel
the need to light up a cigarette or drink a couple cups of java, that's also your brain's
doing.ACTION STEP Remember that your brain is involved in everything you do, every
decision you make, every bite of food you take, every cigarette you smoke, every
worrisome thought you have, every workout you skip, every alcoholic beverage you
drink, and more.” 

“To feel successful, you must be able to be honest about the things that are really important to you.” 

“It is your brain that decides to get you out of bed in the morning to exercise, to
give you a stronger, leaner body, or to cause you to hit the snooze button and
procrastinate your workout. It is your brain that pushes you away from the table telling
you that you have had enough, or that gives you permission to have the second bowl of
Rocky Road ice cream, making you look and feel like a blob. It is your brain that
manages the stress in your life and relaxes you so that you look vibrant, or, when left
Visit Dr. Amen's website   AmenClinics.com
unchecked, sends stress signals to the rest of your body and wrinkles your skin. And it is
your brain that turns away cigarettes, too much caffeine, and alcohol, helping you look
and feel healthy, or that gives you permission to smoke, to have that third cup of coffee,
or to drink that third glass of wine, thus making every system in your body look and feel
older.Your brain is the command and control center of your body. If you want a better
body, the first place to ALWAYS start is by having a better brain.” 
“Your brain is the organ of your personality, character, and
intelligence and is heavily involved in making you who you are.” 


“Most people throughout the world, not just in
Newport Beach, care more about their faces, their boobs, their bellies, their butts, and
their abs than they do their brains. But it is your brain that is the key to having the face,
the breasts, the belly, the butt, the abs, and the overall health you have always wanted;
and it is brain dysfunction, in large part, that ruins our bodies and causes premature
aging.” 

“Dried oregano has thirty times the brain-healing antioxidant power of raw blueberries, forty-six times more than apples, and fifty-six times as much as strawberries, making it one of the most powerful brain cell protectors on the planet.” 


“Caffeine restricts blood flow to the brain.” 


“Caffeine dehydrates the brain and body.” 


“There is rising concern about pesticides, used on plants for food, causing endocrine disruption, meaning that the residual pesticides appear to be changing hormone levels in our populations.” 


“Dr. Daniel Amen’s 18, 40, 60 Rule: 
“At 18 you worry about what everyone thinks of you. At 40 you don’t care.
At 60 you realise no one was thinking about you anyway!” 


==========================

(3) Free Agent Nation Key idea: We are all free agents. Even when we are employed, we can have a website and a business that we are growing.
Click here for Goodreads


Quotes

========================== 

(4) A Whole New Mind Key idea: To succeed in the future, projects will need to use Asia, Automation and appeal to Abundance. Pink' quotes include “Designers give us what we didn't know we were missing.”
Click here for Goodreads


Quotes

========================== 

(5) Drive Key Idea: Money is an incomplete incentive. Motivators include autonomy, mastery and purpose
Click here for Goodreads
Quotes
“The ultimate freedom for creative groups is the freedom to experiment with new ideas. Some skeptics insist that innovation is expensive. In the long run, innovation is cheap. Mediocrity is expensive—and autonomy can be the antidote.”   TOM KELLEY General Manager, IDEO” 

“The problem with making an extrinsic reward the only destination that matters is that some people will choose the quickest route there, even if it means taking the low road. Indeed, most of the scandals and misbehavior that have seemed endemic to modern life involve shortcuts.” 


========================== 

(6) To Sell is Human Many of us spend 40 percent of our day doing “non-sales persuading.” We ask people to alter how they use their time and energy. Dan Pink gives tips including the “new elevator speech” and the “question pitch.” See more at www.danpink.com.
Goodreads


Quotes

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Malcolm Gladwell, 
(7) The Tipping Point
Key idea: Often a trend emerges and fades because there was not enough to “tip” the balance. Gladwell helps us detect the point where there is a change.
Goodreads


Quotes

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(8) Blink Key idea: We think that more information will lead to better decisions. In fact, our decision making becomes clouded and we instead can often find a better decision-making process if we rely on tips from this book.
Goodreads


Quotes

========================== 

Outliers Key idea: 10,000 hours to become an expert
Goodreads


Quotes

========================== 


========================== 


Thomas Friedman, 
(9) The World is Flat
Key idea: Do you know why the world is flat? Friedman gives ten factors, including the 11/9 factor (most people think about the 9/11 factor and asymmetrical conflict).
Goodreads


Quotes

========================== 



(10) Hot Flat and Crowded Key idea: Energy use and climate change offer opportunities in Environmental Technologies (ET). http://www.etmsolar.com/gsuu/gs/friedman/synopsis.pdf
Goodreads


Quotes

========================== 


(11) Carol Dweck, Mindset
Key idea: Fixed vs. Growth Mindsets and how we can alter our perspectives.http://mindsetonline.com/whatisit/about/
Goodreads


Quotes

========================== 
(12)
Neil Postman and Weingartner, Teaching as a Subversive Activity
Chapter 12 offers tips to turn any teaching situation (and we are all teachers) into a
Goodreads


Quotes

========================== 



MORE TO COME...  (THIS BLOG ENTRY IS UNDER DEVELOPMENT)


Innovative teaching methods
www.Transform-Education.com, a web book by Abraham S. Fischler, former president of Nova University and a pioneer of distance education.
www.VisualAndActive.com www.thelearningweb.net the Learning Revolution, described by Gordon Dryden
www.WhatDoYaKnow.com managed by Dennis Yuzenas
www.BigPicture.org and www.MetCenter.org, managed by Dennis Littky and Elliot Washor
https://sites.google.com/site/networkofeducators offers translations of key concepts.


The Flipped Classroom search “Katie Gimbar Why I Flipped my Class”

QBE Academy uses the technique of “flipping” the class. A traditional class involves a lecture by an expert followed by discussion and homework. The Flipped Classroom asks students to (a) study materials and view lectures before the class meeting
b) compile some questions and participate in a pre-discussion before the class meeting
c) At the class meeting, the discussion is led by one or two of the students with the teacher as the “guide on the side.” The discussion leads to a project (often a poster to summarize what was raised and agreed to in the discussion).

To learn about the flipped classroom, the student is encouraged to search “Why I flipped my class” by Katie Gimbar on Youtube.


http://theindependenteducator.blogspot.com/2013/05/what-books-could-stimulate-lets-put.html This list of books is expanded from the list that appears at this blog.





Note:  These books are not in alphabetical order.
These books are just in the order that I've thought of them.  I put the three Daniels (Amen, Pink, Goleman) on top because their work is currently "hot" at my school.


I hope you will contact me with your suggestions to add to this list:   VisualAndActive@gmail.com




I have a SECOND TIER list -- I've kept the writings of Jose Marti off the Main List because most people don't see Cuba in their future.  If you see yourself in Havana someday, then read some extracts from Martí's writings.  How about memorizing the first line of Cultivo una rosa blanco en julio como en enero...?


SECOND TIER (for special interests)

The Writings of Jose Marti

Writings of Tom Peters




Write to me:  VisualAndActive@gmail.com or text me at +1 954 646 8246

Steve           http://preview.tinyurl.com/QBEBooks  this list is found easily at this tinyurl link.


Sunday, February 9, 2014

Some key quotes from some books (suggested reading for students who want to train to take the initiative): Books for QBE Academy

 Key quotes:  We have, as human beings, a storytelling problem. We're a bit too quick to come up with explanations for things we don't really have an explanation for.” 
― Malcolm GladwellBlink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking


“Insight is not a lightbulb that goes off inside our heads. It is a flickering candle that can easily be snuffed out.” 
Key quote

What is the difference between choking and panicking? Why are there dozens of varieties of mustard but only one variety of ketchup? What do football players teach us about how to hire teachers? What does hair dye tell us about the history of the 20th century?

REVIEW 
Gladwell uses examples here and in his book-length works of inaccurate patterns imposed in fields as diverse as these: a) military intelligence b) stock market analysis c) criminal profiling d) cancer detection, e) nuclear power plants, f) animal control, and g) the staffing decisions for filling corporate positions, political seats, orchestra musician positions and football teams. I suspect that he sells a lot of books to people who are hoping to impose order on things, people and ideas. He's very popular with the business set. But if you pay closer attention, Gladwell makes quiet concessions that despite all this will to order, we are defeated by chaos, whimsy, serendipity, folly, and gremlins. (OK, he didn't list gremlins directly.) I don't think he's telling us to abandon the drive to predict and control, but he's certainly pointing out the hubris in believing that we can do so. Consequently, I will now file something with a little fear and trembling. But before I do, here are some specifics, motivated by my will to order the details of his book. 

"The Pitchman" describes the charismatic Ron Popeil, inventor and demonstrator of the Veg-o-Matic. Gladwell describes this amazing pitchman and others of his ilk, contrasting them with actors and ending with the syngergy created when Popeil's methods met live television. 

"The Ketchup Coundrum" describes how various foods are developed, tested and marketed, but the central example explains why ketchup sells for staying focused whereas mustard and spaghetti sauce have diversified. 

"Blowing Up" contrasts two methods of investing on Wall Street--finding patterns and banking on chaos. 

"True Colors" draws the curtain back from the marketing strategies for hair coloring, revealing something about the mind of American women and how the women's movement made ripples through this market. 

"John's Rock Error" explains the rationale of the Pill's inventor as he worked to resolve the science of birth control with his faith as a practicing Catholic. 

"What the Dog Saw" describes how dogs are highly sensitive to the body language of humans, which explains why Ceasar Milan focuses on training owners as a way to better train dogs. 

"Open Secrets" retraces the signs of Enron's risky practices and explains why people didn't see what became so apparent after its fall. 

"Million Dollar Murray" provides shocking data on how the current policies on homelessness actually costs society a great deal of money.

"The Picture Problem" presents the complexities of properly reading mammographies, making screening for this type of cancer particularly challenging. 

"Something Borrowed" discusses the gray areas in intellectual property and Gladwell's own experience of having his words sampled (without credit) into another person's work. 

"Connecting the Dots" bears some similarity to the pattern problems discussed in the Enron article and the mammography article in its discussion of how challenging it is to predict acts of war and terrorism--not because of lack of information but because of an overabundance of it. 

"Blowup" again talks about the issue of information overload, this time in the safety procedures put in place in the space program. Even though the O-rings were viewed as a trouble spot for any space flight, the risk-benefit analysis employed allowed the Challenger to launch, which resulted in tragedy. 

"Late Bloomers" contrasts two forms of genius: the young, experimental types vs. the older, practice-makes-perfect type. The examples of Picasso vs. Cezzanne crystalize his theory, but this essay contains more examples for good measure. 

"Most Likely to Succeed" describes the challenge talent scouts have in predicting an athlete's performance in the NFL based on his performance in college football. It turns out that the two games are vastly different, requiring a different set of skills for success.

"Dangerous Minds" compares the work of criminal profilers to the work of psychologists, detectives, psychics and other who seek to find a connection between crime and criminal. 

"The Talent Myth" suggests that the value placed on talent has set up some companies and sports teams to overlook other important aspects of their "players." Gladwell examines the corporate culture of a handful of companies, such as Enron, Proctor & Gamble, and Southwest--each time looking at how the leaders evaluate performance, personality and group dynamics. 

"The New-Boy Network" hones in on the job interview as an information-gathering task. He surveys psychologists, human resource directors, job applicants and bosses in an effort to describe the dynamics of the interview. 

"Troublemakers" examines the stereotypes about dangerous dog breeds and the statistics for fatal bites. As he did in the title essay about Milan's work with dogs, Gladwell moves his gaze from examining the dog to examining the environment fostered by the dog's owner to ask whether or not banning particular breeds really serves as the best response to the problem of dangerous breeds. 


Karen

Key quote:
 “Practice isn't the thing you do once you're good. It's the thing you do that makes you good.” 
“The key to good decision making is not knowledge. It is understanding. We are swimming in the former. We are desperately lacking in the latter.”
― Malcolm GladwellBlink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking
“We have, as human beings, a storytelling problem. We're a bit too quick to come up with explanations for things we don't really have an explanation for.”
― Malcolm GladwellBlink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking
“Who we are cannot be separated from where we're from.”
― Malcolm GladwellOutliers: The Story of Success
“Those three things - autonomy, complexity, and a connection between effort and reward - are, most people will agree, the three qualities that work has to have if it is to be satisfying.”
― Malcolm GladwellOutliers: The Story of Success
 Key quote:


Freakonomics Quotes

Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything (Freakonomics, #1)Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything by Steven D. Levitt
330,802 ratings, 3.86 average rating, 10,171 reviews
buy a copy
Freakonomics Quotes (showing 1-20 of 20)
“Morality, it could be argued, represents the way that people would like the world to work, wheareas economics represents how it actually does work.”
― Steven D. LevittFreakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything
“Information is a beacon, a cudgel, an olive branch, a deterrent--all depending on who wields it and how.”
― Steven D. LevittFreakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything
“As W.C. Fields once said: a thing worth having is a thing worth cheating for.”
― Steven D. LevittFreakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything
“If you both own a gun and a swimming pool in your backyard, the swimming pool is about 100 times more likely to kill a child than the gun is.”
― levitt, stevenFreakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything
“Levitt admits to having the reading interests of a tweener girl, the Twilight series and Harry Potter in particular.”
― Steven D. LevittFreakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything
“An incentive is a bullet, a key: an often tiny object with astonishing power to change a situation”
― Steven D. LevittFreakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything



 Key quote:
“While complying can be an effective strategy
for physical survival, it's a lousy one for personal fulfillment. Living a satisfying life requires more than simply meeting the demands of those in
control. Yet in our offices and our classrooms we have way too much compliance and way too little engagement. The former might get you
through the day, but only the latter will get you through the night.” 
― Daniel H. Pink


See also the Principals blog posts about Drive and the use of the book in Education
 Key quote:
Key quote:  

Books that might guarantee a more secure future for future leaders?

If you read these books, will you be better ready for the future?

Procedure
Do the right thing:  Click here
and click LIKE
a) look for Cognitive Dissonance:  not wanting to see things that we don't want to believe
b) scan the cover
c) flip through to see what phrases jump out to you
d) read the quotes that are marked
e) read the notes inside the book (left by previous readers)
f) write some clear guidelines and suggestions in the margins (notes to future readers).  Add your point of view.




Warren Bennis (who wrote about Transparency) talks at Harvard University





Yes, thats' David Gerfin in the vdioelk                    






Key quote:  Look out for Cognitive Dissonance...