Reduce, Re-use, Recycle and Reflect (this is the final exam)

Your final is to complete a text document completing and explaining the statements below. You will receive a 100 if you complete all four steps, a 75 if you complete only three, 50 if you complete two, a 25 if you complete only one step and a ZERO if you do not successfully complete any of the steps or if I do not receive your exam.

The steps:

• Write each answer with complete sentences. Separate each answer into a different paragraph. Each answer should contain a completion of the sentence given, AND an explanation. If you do not explain your answer, you have not completed this step.
• Format your text document to MLA Standards. Your document must contain your name, class period and date. The title should be “Final Exam.” If ANY of this information is missing, you have not completed this step.
• Attach your document to an email. The subject of the email should be “Final Exam.” If you leave the subject blank, you have not completed this step.
• Email your exam to: misterbjerke@gmail.com

The statements to complete are the following:

1. My favorite thing that I learned is…
2. The one thing that I learned, that I thought I couldn’t was…
3. The thing that I learned that I will use next year is…
4. The one thing that really made me think was…

The exam is due by the end of the exam period for your class. No late exams will be accepted. You will receive a confirmation if your exam is received at my email. If you do not receive a response, your exam was not received and you will receive a ZERO.

Final Project

It is on time if I receive it by 4:15, tomorrow, Thursday, May 29th 2008.

• If it is not in a three ring binder with a cover (on the front) and label on the binding with your Team Member’s names and the date, you will lose 10%.
• If you do not have all of the files that you have submitted by email on a CD, you will lose 10%.

Nothing you print has to be in color, but your work will look best if it is. You will not lose points if your portfolio is not in color.

Printing your Portfolio

Don’t forget, that you will not be able to print your portfolio on the printer in my lab.

You should get started on the final portfolio, printing, assembling, burning the CD and creating the cover right away.

No portfolios will be accepted after Thursday, 5/29, at 4:15.

*** Every part must be turned in to pass this semester of this class.
*** The portfolio must be turned in on time to receive any extra credit.
*** It is recommended that you carefully document what each team member does, and that you see me if you have any problems with your team members.
*** If you have questions about any element of the project, you must ask before the due date.
*** Exceptions to due dates require excused absences, but do not include extracurricular activities. If you know you will miss class on a due date for an extracurricular activity, you must turn it your work early or have a team member turn it in.
*** Any team who earns 90% of all of the points in this project, and turns in everything on time, will receive a 100 on the final exam.

Caught Up

As of this moment  – I have graded everything that was in my Inbox.

Web Ad and Banner Clarification

Web Ad A single image used to advertise on websites. It will be a single column ad that meets exact specifications. Image must be 160 wide by 600 pixels long  EXACTLY. Graded on content (product name and description, slogan and visual appeal).

Web Banner A single image used to advertise on websites. It will be a single column ad that meets exact specifications. Image must be 60 high by 468 long (horizontal) pixels EXACTLY. Graded on content (product name and description, slogan and visual appeal).

Down to the Wire!

If you are not done or almost done with your final project, you need to take some extra time (during lunch, before school or at home) to get your work finished. You really need to spend next week getting your portfolio ready.

Don’t forget:

1. YOU need to print your materials. You cannot use my printer to print your portfolio.
2. You need to have a binder that will hold a front cover sheet and a label on the binding. Taping on a label is not acceptable.
3. You should place all of your pages in sheet protectors so your portfolio will last.
4. YOU need to put all of the files on a CD, organized and in in folders. File names must be clear and tell what the file is. Do not include multiple versions – just the final approved version.

If you don’t get started on the assembly of the portfolio on Monday, you will not have enough time to finish. It is a huge part of your grade, so DO YOUR BEST!!!

Statesman Article

These students have worked very hard to make this event happen, which is a stepping stone to bringing technology to students who cannot afford it.
This is, exactly what I am trying to teach – social responsibility
I am very, very proud of them!

link

COMPUTER RECYCLING

Electronics recycling Saturday in Central Austin

McCallum High students collecting computers, cell phones, TVs and more.

By Asher Price
AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF
Friday, May 16, 2008

Seeking to give computers to students who can’t afford them and to keep the old machines out of landfills, a small group of students at McCallum High School in Central Austin has set up an electronics recycling drive Saturday.

Members of the McCallum Computers club will accept old computers and send them to a nonprofit that will refurbish and distribute them to needy students who don’t have computers at home.

“We’re accepting anything. And if we can’t refurbish it, we’ll recycle it,” said sophomore Joel Pearson, one of the organizers of the recycling drive.

People can drop off computers and smaller items like compact disc players and cell phones from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the school, 5600 Sunshine Drive.

Pearson and three other McCallum students have surveyed students to identify those who participate in subsidized lunch programs for the economically disadvantaged and who don’t have computers at home.

Pearson estimated, based on a survey of about 100 students, that a quarter of McCallum’s almost 1,700 students don’t have a computer at home.

“We all take for granted that we have a computer to help us get our schoolwork done. And when we realize how many people at McCallum don’t have a computer, it’s kind of shocking,” he said.

Pearson said he hopes the effort will help such students succeed in school.

The McCallum students will also have educational displays about electronic waste and how toxic the components of computers and other electronics can be: Both the monitor and the circuit board contain lead, a neurotoxin, as well as other heavy metals.

The computers will be refurbished by Computers for Learning, a nonprofit Austin company.

Students who get the refurbished computers will get free dial-up Internet service until they graduate from McCallum.

“If a computer cooperates, it may take as little as 10 or 15 minutes” to refurbish it, said Dudley Smith a Computers for Learning employee.

“Everyone understands that in today’s education world and business world, you’ve got to have access” to computers, Smith said.

“We know it has an impact on the student not to have to get to a library or some other place. It also has an impact on everyone else in the household if this is the only computer,” he said.

Cell phones will be donated to SafePlace, a nonprofit that offers shelter and counseling to survivors of sexual assault and domestic abuse. Phones can be given as a quick means of dialing 911, said Narissa Johnson, a spokeswoman for SafePlace.

Electronics that cannot be refurbished will be recycled by Austin-based Round2 Technologies. The machines will be tested and probably sold as scrap, said Marcus Butler, an account manager at Round2.

Electronic recycling drives at schools are not uncommon around town: The private Austin Waldorf School and public Anderson High School have had recycling events this year, Butler said.

asherprice@statesman.com; 445-3643

Volunteer Opportunity

If you help Joel, Wyatt, Jack and Clay this weekend, please speak with me.

Out Wednesday

I will be out all day on Wednesday, May 14th, 2008.

Continue working on your project.

Everything submitted on time will be graded as on time. The beauty of email – I know when you sent it in!!!

Important Concepts

File Formats

Have you sent in numerous emails with your work for the final project attached and received a reply that said “not accepted” or “wrong format?” What does this mean?!?

A file format is the type of information contained in a file, and how it can be opened. For example, Microsoft Word documents are usually saved in a Word document format that uses the file extension “.doc” which tells the computer that Microsoft Word can open the document.

To be sure that you are seeing this format indicator, called a file extension, you probably need to make a change on your computer. First open “My Computer,” then select the Tools menu, and choose the “Folder Options” choice from the menu. When the dialog box pops up, choose the “View” tab. Find the line that says “Hide extensions for known file types,” and UNcheck the box. Now, when you view your files, you should see them with the three character file extension at the end of the file or document name.

But wait, is there more to it? There is. One more CRITICALLY IMPORTANT tidbit. How does the computer know what three letters are the file extension? It looks for the three letters after the “dot” or “period.” So, a file name with a proper extension looks like this: JSanchezEssay.doc

If you have dots and other punctuation in the file name, it is unlikely that the person receiving the document will be able to open it. YOU MUST NOT HAVE ANY OTHER PUNCTUATION OR SYMBOLS IN THE FILE NAME.

For the purposes of the final project, you need to be sure that you send one of two files when submitting your work. These two types are “jpg” which is a picture, and “doc” which is a MS Word document. Only two emailed assignments should have anything else attached, and those are the radio spot and the TV spot. Everything else should be submitted as either a “jpg” or as a MS Word “doc.” Most of the assignments for this project require both.

Knowing the terms “file extension” and “file type” are critical for this project and for the final exam. Only technically perfect portfolios will buy a final exam, so you need to be sure to get this figured out now.

Webpages

When you view a web page, you are looking at a group of files that are displayed together in a format determined by the HTML that defines the page. Because there is more than one file (more than just the HTML), you need to package your web page in a folder, so that you can move it and still have a viable (working) web page. All of the pictures and files referenced in links has to be in the same folder. When you use a “img src” tag, this means that your page refers to a picture that is supposed to be displayed in the page. If this picture is not in the same folder (or the path is not correct) your web page will not display as you intended. You should always save the image to your working web page folder. Don’t use links to web sites like photobucket, because if that image is not accessible, you page won’t display the image at all.

Turning in Assignments

You need the confidence to submit your assignments and wait. When you submit an assignment, check to be sure that you have all of the required files (picture, or picture and a Word document in most cases), that you have team members first and last names on the email, that the subject line is identical to the assignment name, and that your attached files are in the proper format.

If you submit assignments with some care, then you don’t need to know the same instant if it was received and accepted. Do it right the first time. PLEASE DO NOT ASK ME TO IMMEDIATELY CHECK YOUR EMAIL. If you complete assignments early, and submit them carefully, there will be plenty of time to fix something if there is a problem. It is not fair to me or your classmates to expect me to interrupt everything to see if you sent an email to the proper address and attached the proper files.

PROFILE ARE GOING AWAY

What’s the difference between “My Documents” and your “H” drive? When you place things in “My Documents” or on your “Desktop” they are stored on the computer that you are touching – the one in front of you. They are not saved on the network or your “H” drive which is backed up (copied) every night. And when you save to your desktop or “My Documents” there is always the danger that your information will not be there the next day. When profiles (user folders) are deleted, your documents will also be deleted (everything in My Documents and on the Desktop).

Take a moment NOW to copy everything from your “My Documents” and desktop to your “H” drive.