GT Seminar 2: On the topic of loneliness with Ezra Klein and Roger Ebert

After reading "Being fully human online" by Ezra Klein, and the two blog entries about loneliness by Roger Ebert (here and here), write a personal reaction to the pieces.

In your post, reflect on each of the readings individually. Then, reflect on the concept of loneliness and relate it back to yourself. Have you ever felt lonely? If so, what have you done to "cure" your loneliness? Do you use the internet as a place to round out who you are? How? To socialize? To inform? To learn? To communicate? Overall, do you think the internet is isolating us or bringing us closer together?

Ebert says, "What do lonely people desire? Companionship. Love. Recognition. Entertainment. Camaraderie. Distraction. Encouragement. Change. Feedback. Someone once said the fundamental reason we get married is because have a universal human need for a witness. All of these are possibilities. But what all lonely people share is a desire not to be -- or at least not to feel -- alone." Do you agree? Have you seen examples of this in your life experiences?

Boo!

GT Seminar II: Life in a Day documentary

After watching Life in a Day, blog about the film, making sure to:

-introduce how the film was made (re-explain what I told you/research it)
-include which scenes were most memorable to you
-include which scene(s) caused you to have a positive emotional reaction
-include which scene(s) caused you to have a negative emotional reaction
-answer the question of "What does it mean to be human?" informed by the film
-include any patterns of humanity that you saw
-include any juxtapositions that you saw (remember: juxtaposition is when you place two things side by side for purposes of compare and contrast)
-include any other comments or critiques you have about the film
-include whether or not you would recommend this film to a friend (why or why not)

GT Seminar 1: Terri Schiavo, a Bioethics case study

For your next blog post, you will write about all that you learned about the Terri Schiavo bioethical case study.

-summarize what you learned about the case study (give background information about what happened, referencing major points on the timeline)

-provide your answer to the following ethical question: Do you believe that the decision to disconnect Terri Schiavo from life-support was justified or not? Provide evidence to support your claim (research of facts from articles, medical journals, etc.)

What do you value?

The Gifted and Talented Seminar 1 class has just begun a unit on Ethics. First, it was necessary to define values, morals, and ethics. After we came to a conclusion and agreement on what the differences are among these three things, we took a values survey to determine what our values are.

I just completed the survey and am quite content with the results. The survey said that I value:

-education/intelligence/wisdom
-altruism/compassion/fairness/justice
-artistic appreciation
-family love/emotional security

I truly believe that these results describe me perfectly. My whole life is based around helping others and working toward equal rights for all. Right now, I cannot imagine myself in any other job besides teaching. Teaching allows me to foster a love for learning and an appreciation for art (literature, music) in young people. I highly value education and learning in general and see myself as a lifelong learner. I continually read and learn and can never get enough. In addition, my family means the world to me. I have six nieces and nephews with whom I spend a majority of my free time. I am the youngest of three daughters and became an aunt at the age of eleven. My husband and I have been together since we were sophomores in high school and I am as close with his family as I am with mine.


Your blog post assignment is look at the results of your values survey and think about what it told you. Did the results agree with your perception of yourself? Were you surprised by anything? Write about what the values survey told you about yourself on a deeper level.

I look forward to reading about the results of your value surveys!

GT Seminar 1 - Outliers: The Trouble With Geniuses Part 1 & 2

Outliers chapters 3 and 4 were long but informational and eye-opening. For your next blog post, you should do the following:

1) Introduce the fact that we are reading Malcolm Gladwell's Outliers in class. Discuss the basic premise and purpose of the book (as laid out in the introduction and subsequent chapters).

2) Summarize chapters 3 and 4, highlighting Gladwell's main points.

3) Is Chris Langan successful? (Recall our class definition: "To be successful is to maintain a balance between financial stability and happiness with self and others and to accomplish the goals you want to achieve.")

4) Discuss what YOU learned and will take away from these chapters.

ROGATE - ups and downs of being gifted

Write a blog post in which you discuss the ups and downs of being gifted. Continue our conversation from today's class and draw upon past experiences to explain the advantages and disadvantages of being gifted and talented. Your post should be at least two paragraphs long.