While I was researching Internet safety for this week’s article Internet Safety Programs, I happened upon the FBI’s publication, A Parent's Guide to Internet Safety. At first, I was a bit annoyed that this site seemed to underestimate parents’ ability to understand their children because the site listed some vague indicators that a child could be at risk online, such as:
-Your child spends large amounts of time on-line, especially at night.
-Your child turns the computer monitor off or quickly changes the screen on the monitor when you come into the room.
-Your child becomes withdrawn from the family.
There are several other symptoms listed, which seem much more indicative of a possible threat to a child’s Internet safety.
I suppose these warning signs offended me because my son, now 23-years-old, did these things when he was in college, exactly as quoted by the FBI, and my husband and I never once suspected he was in danger online, except of failing a test or two.
Then I realized that perhaps I was being just a bit defensive because we didn’t think that such a horrible thing could happen to a college student—someone who was, by most definitions, an adult, capable of making rational decisions about his online safety. It never even occurred to us, and I wonder how many other parents out there feel the same way.
Were we naive?
Take a look at a couple of the Internet Safety Programs available to parents, students, and educators. I think you’ll especially like the detective-style multimedia application MISSING.
Plagiarism
I encounter freelance writing plagiarism daily on the Internet; and surprisingly, I encounter student plagiarism weekly in my classroom. It’s quite alarming that so many writers do not understand the definition: writing that contains someone else’s words or ideas, rewritten or copied verbatim, as your own. Simply put, plagiarism is the absence of credit to a person whose thoughts, ideas, or words are presented as your own.
Many SEO freelance writers believe that plagiarism is copying another writer or copywriter ‘s article, or perhaps a minor offense would be copying a paragraph. No, it’s not that. Plagiarism is the act of copying or REWRITING someone else’s words or ideas and not giving credit to that person—called CITING.
Many SEO copywriters say that paraphrasing relinquishes their obligation to cite another’s work—it does NOT. Paraphrasing without citation is plagiarism. It’s that simple.
Many SEO freelance writers believe that plagiarism is copying another writer or copywriter ‘s article, or perhaps a minor offense would be copying a paragraph. No, it’s not that. Plagiarism is the act of copying or REWRITING someone else’s words or ideas and not giving credit to that person—called CITING.
Many SEO copywriters say that paraphrasing relinquishes their obligation to cite another’s work—it does NOT. Paraphrasing without citation is plagiarism. It’s that simple.
Freelance Writing - SmartBoard Study
This week’s Teaching and Technology Freelance writing article, Interactive Whiteboard Study, reviews the interactive whiteboard (or SmartBoard as many call it, although that is a brand name). Learn how this interactive learning method works, and read about a study that reveals how this classroom technology can change your workload and your students’ learning.
Although the article is limited to the interactive whiteboard, there are other interactive learning products available. For example, there’s a portable interactive panel that can be connected to the PC and an interactive panel that attaches to a wall-mounted plasma screen that works well for roaming teachers.
Portable Interactive Panels
Interactive panels, when connected to the PC (desktop or notebook and a projector), also allow you to face your classroom while you teach, edit, and annotate computer applications directly from the panel. Using an interactive panel is very similar to using an interactive whiteboard, except the panels are usually much smaller: 15", 17" or 18". However, the screen image can be projected through a multimedia projector to various sizes onto a screen, making it perfect for large auditoriums and lecture halls. The advantage to an interactive panel is that it’s portable, making it ideal for roaming teachers or limited budgets.
Panels for Plasma
Plasma screens with an interactive panel or overlay have the same functionality as interactive whiteboards; however, they offer even more versatility because they can also be used as televisions to utilize public education channels or DVD’s.
The advantage of using a plasma screen is that the presenter doesn’t cast a shadow, unlike front-projection interactive whiteboards. The biggest disadvantage with the plasma screen is the cost and screen size (40-52”). However, Plasma screens do provide much sharper images than do similarly priced projectors.
If you would like to learn how the interactive whiteboard works or how it can impact your workload and your students’ learning, read Interactive Whiteboard Study. Also, participate in our poll: select SmartBoard if you already use an interactive whiteboard.
Although the article is limited to the interactive whiteboard, there are other interactive learning products available. For example, there’s a portable interactive panel that can be connected to the PC and an interactive panel that attaches to a wall-mounted plasma screen that works well for roaming teachers.
Portable Interactive Panels
Interactive panels, when connected to the PC (desktop or notebook and a projector), also allow you to face your classroom while you teach, edit, and annotate computer applications directly from the panel. Using an interactive panel is very similar to using an interactive whiteboard, except the panels are usually much smaller: 15", 17" or 18". However, the screen image can be projected through a multimedia projector to various sizes onto a screen, making it perfect for large auditoriums and lecture halls. The advantage to an interactive panel is that it’s portable, making it ideal for roaming teachers or limited budgets.
Panels for Plasma
Plasma screens with an interactive panel or overlay have the same functionality as interactive whiteboards; however, they offer even more versatility because they can also be used as televisions to utilize public education channels or DVD’s.
The advantage of using a plasma screen is that the presenter doesn’t cast a shadow, unlike front-projection interactive whiteboards. The biggest disadvantage with the plasma screen is the cost and screen size (40-52”). However, Plasma screens do provide much sharper images than do similarly priced projectors.
If you would like to learn how the interactive whiteboard works or how it can impact your workload and your students’ learning, read Interactive Whiteboard Study. Also, participate in our poll: select SmartBoard if you already use an interactive whiteboard.
Building Website Content with Articles
The biggest and best tip to developing a successful website is content; search engines love it. Without content your website is doomed to failure before it even starts. Your content must include the keywords or keyword phrases that will increase your page rank; for example, if your website is about Internet freelance writing, your keywords may be seo, search engine optimization, copywriting, copywriter, editing, articles, free articles, writing service, write articles, and so on.
Your site should also have these keywords spread naturally throughout the content. Choose three to four of the most relevant keywords and place them on your home page. It's important to repeat them four to five times each, at a minimum. I have seen keywords repeated on successful websites over twenty times.
Choose between 50 - 100 keywords searches and have those repeated throughout your home page copy too. Your site should also have at least ten pages of content rich copy; successful sites have thousands of pages that are rich with good information.
Also, you need to update your site as frequently as possible. I suggest updating daily, if possible, using relevant copy while incorporating keywords.
Write articles to accomplish this task. If you hate to write articles or to create website content, you can easily and inexpensively hire someone to do it for you. There are several freelance writing and writer reference websites that encourage low bidding. For example, you can get a 400-500 word article for as little as $1 each. One such site is GetAFreelancer. You can also get free articles from public domains such as GoArticles, but you must include the author's name and copyright info.
Be careful about these cheap articles though: often they are written for spiders, not humans, so they don't read well, which will hurt your site. You must find a balance between keyword usage and good content.
Your site should also have these keywords spread naturally throughout the content. Choose three to four of the most relevant keywords and place them on your home page. It's important to repeat them four to five times each, at a minimum. I have seen keywords repeated on successful websites over twenty times.
Choose between 50 - 100 keywords searches and have those repeated throughout your home page copy too. Your site should also have at least ten pages of content rich copy; successful sites have thousands of pages that are rich with good information.
Also, you need to update your site as frequently as possible. I suggest updating daily, if possible, using relevant copy while incorporating keywords.
Write articles to accomplish this task. If you hate to write articles or to create website content, you can easily and inexpensively hire someone to do it for you. There are several freelance writing and writer reference websites that encourage low bidding. For example, you can get a 400-500 word article for as little as $1 each. One such site is GetAFreelancer. You can also get free articles from public domains such as GoArticles, but you must include the author's name and copyright info.
Be careful about these cheap articles though: often they are written for spiders, not humans, so they don't read well, which will hurt your site. You must find a balance between keyword usage and good content.
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