Author Archives: Julie Dodd
Having students be prepared; helping students be prepared
One of the topics of discussion in today’s Journalism Department meeting was students who don’t have adequate writing skills when we get them in our classes. We spent a little time lamenting that some of the skills we think students should know (including a stronger command of grammar) aren’t being taught in the FCAT-driven curriculum. […]
Professional advice from guest speaker
The lecture activity today was an interview with Joni Rollen (far left), recycling program assistant for the City of Gainesville. I conducted the interview with her about recycling, and students took notes. Their mission was both to collect information and quotes and also to determine a focus for their own recycling stories. With 250 students […]
Gunman on campus just 10 miles away; we’re in an auditorium that can’t be locked
Yesterday the gunman on campus wasn’t hundreds of miles away at Northern Illinois University or Virginia Tech. The gunman was 10 miles away at Santa Fe Community College. No one was shot. The gunman was captured. He did have a loaded gun on campus, which he allegedly threatened another student with. He was on the […]
The dreaded fact error
In Writing for Mass Communication and Reporting, students face the dreaded fact error. That’s the 50-point deduction for any factual error made in their writing. The factual error can be a misspelled proper noun or an incorrect address or an incorrect time. A fact error also could be making a factual error in presenting information, such […]
Signs provide clear communication
Clear communication — I’ve seen signs with more words or bigger words that have warned about the dangers of alligators. But this sign provides a clear message (even for non-native English speakers) about why having children in photos with alligators isn’t a good idea. The sign is along the La Chua Trail in Paynes Prairie. […]
The importance of practicing — Sandhill Cranes winter here in north central Florida. Today they were high in the air stream, practicing for their return flight north. Once the little cranes are big enough, the flock begins flying to give the little cranes practice. The flocks are way up in the sky, circling and calling to each other. Then one day, they’ll form their Vs and head north. What a treat to see and hear them.
The importance of practicing — Sandhill Cranes winter here in north central Florida. Today they were high in the air stream, practicing for their return flight north. Once the little cranes are big enough, the flock begins flying to give the little cranes practice. The flocks are way up in the sky, circling and calling […]
Money important part of answer to Florida’s educational concerns
All educational problems may not be solved by money, but money is part of the answer to some educational concerns. The story in Florida is that more than 60,000 students may not be able to enroll in Florida’s 11 public universities by 2012 due to budget cuts for higher education. At the University of Florida, […]
The question and the real questions
One of the college’s secretaries told this story. The secretary answered the phone in the departmental office. A woman identified herself as the parent of a student and said she had a question about her son’s class. Her son had called her earlier that day to say that he had gone at 10 a.m. for […]
Separating our professional blog assignment from their personal blogs
Another aspect of the blogging assignment: What if they have their own blog already? Can they use it and make our required posts as part of their own blog rather than setting up a new blog account? I had lunch today with Paige, a former adjunct for the course and a former student in the […]
Decisions for blogging as a teaching/learning activity
So what decisions did the MMC 2100 team make about blogging in our class? The consensus was that very few of the 250 students in the course have their own blogs. But we’ll find out before we start the assignment. We weren’t sure how many of our students are reading blogs. We think that those […]
Julie Dodd 