Critical Thinking Class Essay

Critical Thinking Class Essay Free Online Research Papers Every once in a while a class has the opportunity of going on a field trip. A field trip’s purpose is to expand learning that the students are already learning about. A teacher can expand on what the students saw by incorporating new learning into current lesson plans. Upon returning from a field trip, students are usually excited about what has transpired during the trip. Having the students complete a paper, right after returning if time permits, explaining what they thought to be interesting will give them something constructive to do. Also letting the students pick the topic of what they are interested in, will give them an opportunity to explain about something that they paid attention to. According to Smith Kosslyn, the amount of attention given to information when presented is very important (2007). When children are interested in a subject, they are more likely to pay more attention to that information relating to that subject. Getting children outside of the normal classroom environment will also give them an opportunity to become more interested in the information. Letting the students pick a topic they were interested in will give them an opportunity to write about something that they paid attention to. The more attention is given to information, the more memory is stored. Encoding is â€Å"the various processes by which information is transformed into a memory representation† (p.202). Giving students memories on a field trip will help them to â€Å"encode† more information, and therefore create meaningful learning. According to the Center for Advancement in Teaching in order to create long-term memory, a student needs to have a working memory first (Everson Hammer, 2005). Information is brought in by sensory memory that gets transferred to working memory. Then the working memory gradually becomes long-term memory. Periodically, the long-term memory needs to be pulled out into working memory in order for the information to stay as long-term memory (2005). A student’s chance at creating a working memory is increased when they are able to elaborate on what they have learned. Elaboration is when information is interpreted, connected to other information, and then is thought about over and over (Smith Kosslyn, 2007). An article from Barbara Knowlton and Larry Squire raises the question of what kind of memory supports category level knowledge (1993). It seems that category knowledge is entered through sensory memory. The different pieces of information are represented by some form of memory that later becomes long-term memory (Smith Kosslyn, 2007). These representations are gradually turned into categorical knowledge. Every piece of information is put into a category that has similar traits, but not all the same traits (2007). Long-term memory can turn into meaningful learning that can be used to apply in life. By having students elaborate on what they have learned on a field trip, they are using their working memory. The information can be applied to long-term memory by representing a memory. Smith and Kosslyn also talk about strategies that increase meaningful learning. The generation effect is the concept that â€Å"you are more likely to remember the information you retrieve or generate than information that you simply receive† (2007, p.209). Using flashcards is a good example of using the generation effect of remembering information. Having a student generate information through writing an assignment is also a good example. The more a student generates information in the mind, the more they are likely to remember that information. Reference: Barbara J. Knowlton, Larry R. Squire (Dec 10, 1993). The learning of categories: parallel brain systems for item memory and category knowledge. Science, 262, n5140. p.1747(3). Information retrieved December 14, 2008, from Expanded Academic ASAP via Gale: http://find.galegroup.com/itx/start.do?prodId=EAIM. Center for the Advancement of Teaching, Bart Everson, Elliott Hammer, 2005. Information retrieved December 13, 2008 from http://cat.xula.edu/thinker/memory/longterm/. Edward E. Smith, Stephen M. Kosslyn (2007). Cognitive Psychology Mind and Brain. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall. Research Papers on Critical Thinking EssayDistance Learning Survival GuideStandardized TestingDeveloping a Computer Network for Bead BarThree Concepts of PsychodynamicYear Round SchoolingCo-Educational vs. Single Sex SchoolsThe Mechanics of Grading Grading SystemsExempt vs Non-Exempt EmployeesProbation OfficersEmployment Law Essay

3 Reasons Authors Shouldnt Worry About Piracy - Joanna Penn

3 Reasons Authors Shouldnt Worry About Piracy - Joanna Penn 3 Reasons Authors Shouldnt Worry About Piracy but How to Protect Yourself Anyway New authors worry about piracy, especially in this age of digital publishing and online marketing. Yes, piracy happens, but here’s why you shouldn’t let fear keep you from putting your words out into the world. 1. Serious readers prefer to buy books rather than download  stolen copies Most of the reading public are book lovers, law-abiding (usually) citizens, and want to compensate you for your creative work. Trust your readers. A  Personal Example I noticed a customer had bought two copies of the same ebook from my website. I emailed her, assuming that she must have clicked twice by mistake, and I wanted to refund her. She explained that she had bought a copy for herself and one for a friend. I was thrilled, of course, because she could have just shared the file. Hugh Howey, the bestselling sci-fi author of WOOL,  shares on his site  that one reader downloaded his book through a pirate site, then sent him money later in recognition of a good book. Most readers want to  help  authors, not harm them. Those who download from pirate sites are not likely to be your target market anyway. 2. Some authors use piracy as a marketing strategy Paulo Coelho, author of the worldwide hit  The Alchemist,  deliberately  leaked his ebooks in Russia  on piracy networks  . His sales went from 1,000 per year to over 1 million, because those free books gave him more visibility in a hard-to-reach market.  He says of piracy, â€Å"It’s a medal to any writer who understands that there is no better reward than being read.† Self-help writer,  Tim Ferriss, used Bit Torrent file sharing site  for the launch of his  New York Times  bestseller,  The Four Hour Chef,  and generated hundreds of thousands of sales from free downloads. Fantasy writer, Neil Gaiman, talks about  piracy as a modern-day version of lending a physical book. Broader distribution means a broader audience and a broader audience means more sales. After all, the most pirated books in the world are by the most successful authors, like JK Rowling or George RR Martin. Tim O’Reilly says,  Ã¢â‚¬Å"For a typical author, obscurity is a far greater threat than piracy.† So, is it better to be pirated and have your book read or have your unseen manuscript sit in a drawer? 3. What are you  really  afraid of? If youre not writing or publishing because youre afraid someone will pirate your books or your ideas, you might need to consider other issues. Steven Pressfield talks about creative resistance in his book,  The War of Art. Stopping writing because you fear piracy is a form of resistance. Its something your lizard brain- that primal part that tries to keep you safe- can distract you with, when really you need to get your butt in the chair and finish your book. It’s scary to put your words out into the world. You might be judged. You might fail. You might get a one-star review. Maybe no one will even notice your book. Such fears are part of the creative process we all go through. Don’t let the pirates stop you from fulfilling your goals. How Can You Protect Yourself? Register your copyright  so you have proof if you need to challenge anyone. This is not technically necessary, as you automatically copyright a work when you create it. But I’ve found it useful when challenged by Amazon to prove my ownership because someone tried to publish a duplicate book. Make sure your book is available in all formats and in all countries at the same time. If your ebook is not available in the UK when your US publisher launches it, don’t be surprised if an avid fan gets a bootleg copy because they just can’t wait. If your book is available only in print, why be surprised if it is scanned and uploaded as an ebook? Plenty of people (myself included) read only ebooks now, and you will lose a sale anyway if it’s not available in digital format. If you’re an indie author (self-published), you can release your books globally on the same day. If you’re traditionally published in one territory, consider self-publishing in other countries. Basically, if your book is available when and how a reader wants it, they are less likely to look for a pirated version. Set up an alert  with a free service like  Google Alerts. Use a couple of unique lines from your book so you will be notified if the text appears anywhere on pirate sites. If you use  digital ARCs  (Advance Reader Copies), consider a service like  BookFunnel.com  to deliver them. They can include a digital watermark and track who downloads the book. If your work has been pirated, email the site and ask for the material to be taken down. If they don’t comply,  issue a DCMA takedown notice. You can also notify the various search engines of infringement. For more detail on this, check out  A step-by-step guide to dealing with content theft  from attorney Helen Sedwick. Joanna Penn is a  New York Times  and  USA Today  bestselling author of supernatural thrillers as  J.F.Penn. She also writes inspirational nonfiction and is an award-winning entrepreneur and speaker. Her site,  TheCreativePenn.com  is regularly voted one of the top 10 sites for writers and self-publishers. Connect on twitter @thecreativepenn In comments, pose any questions or share your experience with literary piracy.