Teacher who dropped out recalls experience to inspire at-risk students

Excellent and inspiring article for students of all ages, for this holiday season:

Tears well up in Deborah LaPlante’s eyes as she sits at the back of the Orleans Arena, watching intently as her students file one by one across the stage to receive their high school diplomas.

As with most graduations, it’s a joyful occasion. Parents are smiling, teachers are beaming and students are radiating pride and hope for the future.

LaPlante, a 51-year-old teacher at Chaparral High School, never experienced the triumph of a high school graduation. In 1976, she dropped out of Orange Glen High School in Escondido, Calif., just a few weeks into her junior year. She was 16.

Continue reading: Teacher who dropped out recalls experience to inspire at-risk students
http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2011/jun/21/chaparral-teacher-uses-personal-experience-inspire/

The Case for Humor in the College Classroom

My light thoughts for a new semester...

As college professors nationwide prepare for a new academic year, my message for them is simple: Lighten up! Your students just might engage and learn.

I never dreamed of being a college professor. Does anybody? When my third grade teacher asked us about our dream job, Molly said an astronaut; Evan, an actor. Perry: Obtain a terminal degree and lecture on legal morasses.

Whether the subject is law or nuclear physics, every student wants a good laugh. As teacher accountability objectives collide with shorter attention spans, laughter is the secret ingredient to keep everyone on task. Humor can even be found in the most stressful situations. ...

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The Case for Humor in the College Classroom
The Huffington Post, College Section
Perry Binder

Closing Speaker at The Future of Education conference in Florence, Italy

I was honored to present "Motivating Students Toward Success" for The Future of Education conference's 300 attendees.  This two-day conference "aims to to promote transnational cooperation and share good practice in the field of innovation for Education."  It focuses on the following thematic areas:

• Innovative Teaching and Learning Methodologies
• Education and New Technologies
• Media Education
• E-learning
• Learning Games
• Studies on Education
• Studies on Second Language Acquisition
• Art Education
• Music Education

My wrap up session was based on 99 Motivators for College Success, and was attended by higher education colleagues from around the world.  It was a fun adventure for me to interact with great people.

Closing Speech

Motivating Students towards Success

Perry Binder

Legal Studies Professor, Georgia State University and 

Author of 99 Motivators for College Success (USA)

Conference Details:

http://conference.pixel-online.net/foe2013/index.php

The 5 Best High School Graduation Gift Books

What's the lamest high school graduation gift you've seen? How about a good book instead, for college prep or just for pure fun. Hey, I had to sneak my book onto this list.

The Best High School Graduation Gift Books
via Amazon Lists

Graduation Speech from 99 Motivators for College Success

Your Graduation Inspires Me

Excerpt from 99 Motivators for College Success

When I participate in graduation ceremonies, I often imagine delivering my own speech to the graduates, as if I were the commencement speaker:

Good morning chancellor, president, deans, faculty members, staff, students, friends, and family members.  And to the graduates:

Every one of you is special.

Every one of you is a productive member of society.

Every one of you is what inspires ME - because…

Every one of you has a story to tell.

I just wish I had the time to hear every one of them, and to be there as your career paths unfold.

You have already accomplished a huge milestone on that journey.  The biggest step though was just showing up.  That’s it.  The secret most people don’t get until it’s too late.  Just showing up as young freshmen was a threshold event.  Trying something which may be hard for the first time.  Experiencing new things, even if it’s unknown whether the objective is attainable.

To me, the greatest barriers to success, however you define that, are a fear of the unknown, a fear of change, and a fear of failure.  But you need a game plan, and hopefully you can lean a little on what you learned in school to figure out that route.  No matter what you do in life, you always will have your education.

I hope you made some lifelong friends here.  Frankly, I learned more about life from my peers than from my professors.  And I hope you got more than knowledge from your profs because you can get that from a book.  I’m hoping you gained insight on whatever subject, and then stamped your own original perspective on how to resolve issues and solve problems.

Many times the things you do won’t work.  And you will fail at some things you try.  That’s just a fact of life.  Abraham Lincoln once said:  “My great concern is not whether you have failed, but whether you are content with your failure.” 

And you will make mistakes.  A lot of them!  Both in your careers and your lives.  That’s just another fact of life.  But that’s okay.  The trick is figuring out how to deal with setbacks.  Your family and friends will always be there for you.  And your education will continually serve as a foundation to get you back on track.

Franklin D. Roosevelt said: “We are not prisoners of fate, but only prisoners of our own minds.”  Graduates, each of you must unlock your mind and blaze a path built on reason and purpose.  Life is too short to spend it bouncing around like a random and aimless ball in a game of Pong.®  And whether you are 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, or 80 years young, it is never too late to test the boundaries of your dreams.

Finally, I want all of you gathered in front of me to please lose the title of “former” student, because you will be my students for many years to come.  And I expect in return that I can become your student, as I learn about your professional successes, trials, and tribulations.

Every one of you is special.

Every one of you is a productive member of society.

Every one of you is what inspires me – because...

Every one of you has a story to tell.

What will your next journey be?

Excerpt from 99 Motivators for College Success

c 2009-2013 Perry Binder, LLC

Article: Social Networks and Workplace Risk: Classroom Scenarios from a U.S. and EU Perspective

Social Networks and Workplace Risk: Classroom Scenarios from a U.S. and EU Perspective

Now available for free online.  Click here:
Social Networks and Workplace Risk: Classroom Scenarios from a U.S. and EU Perspective

Perry Binder and Nancy R. Mansfield, Social Networks and Workplace Risk: Classroom Scenarios from a U.S. and EU Perspective, 30 J. Legal Stud. Educ. 1-44 (2013)

Introduction

The explosion of social networks and the growing concern over privacy in the digital age—both in the United States and Europe—have provided an opportunity to introduce students to the legal risks of using social media in the workplace. In general, the U.S. legal system views privacy as a legal right, while member states of the European Union (EU) view privacy as a human right. In fact, the EU Directive on Data Protection of 1995 mandates that each EU member state create a Data Protection Authority to protect each citizen's privacy rights and investigate breaches. However, novel transborder legal issues have complicated protection of privacy rights in the twenty-first century, as EU nations attempt to balance cherished privacy with the free speech evidenced on U.S.-based social networks.

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Social Networks and Workplace Risk: Classroom Scenarios from a U.S. and EU Perspective

Top Takeways: Success in the College Classroom

TOP TAKEAWAYS:  SUCCESS IN THE COLLEGE CLASSROOM

-  Seek out a friend in every class you take, so you can share lecture notes and maybe even study together.

-  Develop and stick to a firm studying schedule.  Procrastinators often claim to be self-motivators and need to consider working like structure people.

-  Your professors are rooting for you to succeed.  Ask them how they would study for their own exams.  Request practice quizzes, with the answers explained in class.

PERSONAL MOTIVATOR GOALS

Based on Motivators 34-66, list three specific goals you will work on this year.

1.

  

2.

 3.

Conference Paper on Using Classroom Response Systems to Teach Ethics

I'm presenting this paper in the next few months...

The Intersection of Ethical Decision-Making Modules and

Classroom Response Systems in Business Education

Perry Binder, J.D.

Assistant Professor of Legal Studies

J. Mack Robinson College of Business

Georgia State University

Abstract

I would trade all of my technology for an afternoon with Socrates. Steve Jobs, 2001

This paper supports the idea that cutting-edge classroom technology tools can blend seamlessly with “old school” teaching techniques, and produce a higher quality of student learning.  More specifically, it discusses how Classroom Response Systems (CRS) provide the crucial classroom ingredient for frank ethical discussions in business courses: Anonymity.  To teach ethics in business, I use a module entitled Ethical Decision-Making in Contract Negotiations (business scenarios fraught with ethical dilemmas), and ask questions which challenge students’ moral codes and levels of empathy.  With an old school “raise your hand” feedback method, there is a high probability that students will not provide candid responses (or they may not respond at all), for fear of what peers and/or the professor may think.  Alternatively, by utilizing CRS, I get anonymous feedback and 100% class participation.  However, there is an ongoing debate in academia on whether Clicker (Hardware) Technologies should be utilized or the emerging Free Application Technologies.  The former is an effective tool, yet it is expensive for students to purchase and their professors may use different devices in class.  On the other hand, all of my students bring a smartphone, tablet, or laptop to class, thus permitting the use of free CRS apps. These apps are easy to use and are equipped with multiple choice, short answer, and true/false questions/polling features.  The results of each question are instantly viewable by students on the classroom projection screen, whether the professor uses a computer or a document camera to project data from a smartphone or tablet.  In sum, this paper details my model to teach ethics, which is adaptable across the curriculum.  The model is divided into three sections: (1) CRS student reaction multiple choice questions on ethics, leverage, and empathy, prior to discussing the Ethical Decision-Making in Contract Negotiations module; (2) Introduction and discussion of the module; and (3) CRS post-module reinforcement multiple choice questions which assess what students learned about themselves.  Finally, this paper addresses the classroom limitations of merging traditional teaching methods with app technology, most particularly when the technology fails.

99 Motivators - Top Takeaways for Success in Picking a Major or Career Path

TOP TAKEAWAYS:  SUCCESS IN PICKING A MAJOR OR CAREER PATH

-  The media shapes our impressions of what different careers are like.  Research the benefits and challenges of your major and career path by interviewing people who work in that industry, and by securing an internship in that field.

-  Keep an open mind when choosing a major or career path.  Base these decisions on your likes, dislikes, personality, and work style, rather than on the expectations placed on you by family and peers.

-  Don’t let anyone crush your dreams.  However, the riskier your dream, the better your backup plan must be.

PERSONAL MOTIVATOR GOALS

Based on College Success Motivators 1-33, list three specific goals you will work on this year.

1.

2.

3.

College Success Motivator #10 - Do what you love but don’t let your career choices jeopardize...

COLLEGE SUCCESS MOTIVATOR

#10

Do what you love but don’t let your career choices jeopardize anyone you love.  Including yourself.  Translation: Take care of others but don’t forget to take care of yourself, sometimes before others.  Listen to our airline flight attendants: “Put your own oxygen mask on first before assisting others with their masks.”