C4T with Beth Knittle

Thoughts on Technology in the Classroom
        Apple recently unveiled a new interactive program called epub 3 to be used in the schools currently using iPads and iBooks. Beth Knittle summarized this announcement in her blog Beth's Thoughts on Technology in the Classroom. Apple is collaborating with textbook publishers to bring the stale, static textbook to life in 3-D, with user interaction, and available for updates. Another creative resource, iBooksAuthor, is a book related site that allows for free distribution or can be sold through the Apple store.
        This means educators with adequate resources and ability can create books for their students
for free. I feel sure my Biology instructor Ms. Delaney at South Alabama would use this feature when structuring her classes and lab assignments. As it is the manuals for both are rarely used except as a photo album. Those two books were quite expensive photo albums. This could save time and paper once it is up and running. It seems that time invested for development would mean money saved down the road. And the ability to upload updates when necessary is quite the achievement.
         I agree with Beth Knittle when she states,

                     "Things they are a changin'."

The Internet Blackout
     On January 18th Beth Knittle blogged about the world wide internet blackout by many websites protesting the SOPA and PIPA bills up for a vote in the Senate and Congress. By limiting access to their sites these companies were dragging the public into the debate of impending censorship. This strike was the largest collective strike in the world so far.
     Senators and Congressmen were inundated by protesters. These bills were not passed and have been "shelved" indefinitely. What the internet companies really achieved was a more public awareness in depth look into what these bills would really achieve if passed. It was discovered that both were a lot more complex than what was seen at first glance.