To the students of 2007,

This BCIS class provides a broad and rigorous technology program while promoting personal growth for all students. We will discuss educational issues, particularly related to learning technology.  My hope and plan is that you reach your full academic potential. Whatever your experience using computers, little or heavy, you will improve.  You will learn maneuvers on the computer often that will be ah-ha moments.  Share them with your family and friends.  You will have to work every day.  Some concepts will be review to clarify accepted standards in the business marketplace and many will be new and fresh.  My aim is to create an environment of high achievement without competitiveness, where academic rigor and creativity are celebrated side by side.  You will express yourself daily by your work.  You will learn the mechanics of how to prepare documents and publish files in professional format using Access, Excel, Movie Maker, Photostory, Powerpoint, Publisher, and Word but the content of those documents will provide opportunities for research and exploration on topics that don’t seem related to computers … that’s the fun part, relevant topics.  The internet is a valuable tool; you will use it daily to improve your reading, writing, blogging and research skills. 

Your input and opinions are valuable, so share your thoughts if you want to impact others.  We want to be a Think Team.  We will share discoveries, resources, accomplishments, excitement in many areas of interest.   I want you to find areas of interests and topics that you are passionate about.  Read about passion-based learning … http://www.teachandlearn.ca/blog/2007/02/05/passion-based-learning

Technology at a glance:  expressing yourself or a topic of interest via images, sound, numbers and text. 

Cutting edge:  read blogs, wikis, watch podcasts, RSS feeds to stay abreast of collaboration, reflective learning, and innovation.  

Daily (as much as possible) check the WHS blogs directory.  Some of these are written for educators, but there is so much information coming, I can’t possibly tell you everything I learn.  Help yourself by READING:

WHScareertech, http://whscareertech.edublogs.org

Not so distant future, http://futura.edublogs.org

Edutopia, http://www.edutopia.org/index.php

Arapahoe High school, The Fischbowl, http://thefischbowl.blogspot.com

Will Richardson, http://www.weblogg-ed.com

It will change your life.

The Chinese people are pushy in crowds (pedestrians on busy streets) and in airport security lines, yet humble and polite when they serve you.  They live in a world of extreme OLD poverty (rubble and shambles of buildings) and state-of-the-art modern, contemporary opulence, blocks apart.  The countryside is not beautiful (where we were) because of the heavy pungent odors due to heavy manufacturing and smog, desert dry conditions, and lack of money for maintenance and repairs … maybe it’s a cultural thing, I don’t know.  There is little obesity, people are image-conscious and the food is much lighter than America’s hearty fare.  The workers in the business marketplace dress for success:  business suits, straight skirts, hose with pumps or heels, tucked-in blouses, always- always neat and tidy hair styles.  They love fashion!  They are not lazy … THEY ARE WILLING TO WORK!  Our notion of feeling sorry for the Chinese because of their law preventing couples from having more than one baby being negative, is not true.  They young people we visited with like that rule, it’s acceptable.  If a couple wants to have more than one child, they pay about $12K (once) to the government; although if they have government jobs, they can be made uncomfortable when having more children.  Students take a test once a year to determine if they proceed to the next level.  Students (& families) pay for college education.  There are many improvements happening in Beijing to prepare for the Olympics.  There are bulldozers, cranes, construction crews everywhere in the city … but, it’s not our customary style.  They tear down so many things and leave the rubble instead of finishing an area before moving to another.  Our American minds wonder if they can possibly finish what they’ve started before 2008.

In Beijing, there were so many similarities and so many differences!

I do not know if this is becoming boring for my readers, all I can write about is what we are seeing and how we are living on our first trip to Beijing.  Thank you for your interest.

I didn’t realize that we would be treated to so many extraordinary experiences on this Genesys President’s Club Trip, several that seem to be unattainable for the general population of this country.  Our large group moved about the city and countryside in a procession of coach buses, with a police escort stopping traffic to let us pass through busy intersections and highways, as we set about to go somewhere.  We never waited meal service or museum entrance, everything was prearranged and prepaid.  Each evening when we returned to our room, a gift with a note of appreciation for the hard work of 2006 would be waiting.  They admin hosts guiding us through the week’s events seemed to want it to be lasting good impressions for us … we are sure we will have fond memories of Beijing (even though there is horrible pollution and smog, the worst I’ve ever seen.)  I witnessed firsthand the global influence and internationality of a large company, there were literally people from all over the world on our trip with beautiful accents:  England, Australia, South America, India, Canada, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Singapore, all parts of the US, I could go on and on, all speaking English.  It made for interesting conversations and observations, and everyone connected with ease and seem to have much in common.  We laughed about the Chenglish … mixing Chinese and American words or phrases:   “Don’t stroke the works” meaning “Don’t touch the paintings” and other phrases they are hoping to clean up before the Olympics next year.

To sum up our last day, we enjoyed an afternoon of shopping at the Silk Market which had much more than jewelry, in fact 5 floors of booths packed with bargains and all kinds of merchandise.  Haggling over price with the merchandise vendors brought both exhaustion and fun, and we became better at it with each purchase.  In the end, we decided to exit while we could, before we bought more things than we knew what to do with, just because there were bargains to be had. For our Beijing finale, the Genesys group enjoyed an outdoor cocktail hour on the terrace of Forbidden City overlooking the lowering of the Chinese flag at Tiananmen Square with hundreds of onlookers, and we were told that Richard Nixon was last person entertained behind this first gate of Forbidden City, it’s been closed since.  The semi-formal gala dinner that followed was at Great Hall of the People, the Chinese congress a couple of blocks down, which was a beautifully decorated grand ballroom.  In between dinner courses, talented and exotically costumed dancers and gymnasts entertained with dancing, balancing, flipping, even some intricate stunts on Indo Boards.  The executive management made ovational remarks for the success brought to the company by those on the club trip.  It was a fun evening in a place I will never forget!

My attempts to visit Beijing #80 High School (sadly) were unsuccessful.  The person I was to see was unavailable (Miss Li), you had to have an appointment, and they seemed to be impossible to get.  I tried calling numerous times, of course emailing requests for a tour before I left the States, I tried to hire an interpreter to go with me, visited numerous times with the Concierge about my possibilities … none of it worked out.  Our schedule didn’t give me much extra time, but I’m very disappointed not to see the highly regarded school, now I have a reason to return.

My brain hurts with all of the new adventure and I haven’t had a chance to write notes for a few days (we have not stopped!), so I will catch interested readers up on our journey.

Tiananmen Square … looks just like the pictures we saw in ‘89 when the protests and revolution was broadcast all over our country.  Many tourists and groups from all over the world converge to see the historical place daily.

We liked hearing details about the 13 Chinese dynasties and seeing the vast complex of buildings that comprises Forbidden City and the Palace.  The emperors had quite a life of luxury, everyone else waiting on them, including armies, wives, concubines, and children.  When someone did something that displeased the Emperor, he simply had them beheaded, buried alive, or oft in some other way.  There were 9 entrances with big gates into Forbidden City … all of the structures hundreds of years old, and still standing.  (All over Beijing we are seeing construction and renovation as the city prepares for the 2008 Olympics here.  They say the national bird is the “crane.”)  Even in Forbidden City, they are cleaning things up.

The Great Wall (about an hour’s drive out of town) was breathtaking and magnificent when you consider the magnitude of its length, 7000 meters long (longer than LA to NY in the states).  It was built 2000 years ago to protect China, and still stands (with the same bricks and mortar, very steep steps and stones) with people climbing on it and enjoying the fantastic view of the countryside, as well as the history.  Astoundingly, Genesys was treated to a private dinner on the wall (beautifully decorated formal tables & chairs all around the wall) and, at the end, a special lighting of the wall occured with much fanfare to end our dinner (about 11pm).  This was majestic and special, beyond description, because we are told that it is only done for state dignitaries.  There are about 325 of us on this club trip (employees & spouses).  Truly, something I will never forget!  We are thrilled that one of our daughters is able to see this … when will we ever return to China?

This morning we met in the hotel lobby at 5:30 to reach Xian (a 2-hour flight from Beijing) so we could tour the escavated Terra Cotta Warriors, a stunning display of buried tombs of clay warriors, you’ve probably seen this on TV.  To think that an emperor was so incredibly superstitious that he had artists make as many as 8000 clay warriors to protect him after he was buried (in the afterlife) defies my understanding.  Farmers unearthed the first soldiers in 1984 and the archaeologists have been digging since.  You must come see this for yourself!  But, many of the clay soldiers were destroyed after this emperor died because there was much bitterness and hatred for this leader who had forced so many to work, toil and die themselves in building these soldiers.

China Eastern Airlines (flown from Shangai to Beijing) has superior cabin service … beating the American airlines’ standards hands down, no question.  Seeking to make travelers comfortable and offering quick service with ease and a smile was their practice.  Upon arrival (after 23 exhausting hours in airplanes!), an American would think they were on US soil if the signage was not in Chinese, because it’s another big beautiful city, with skyscrapers, beautiful blooming flower bushes lining the parkway from the airport, bustling streets of commuters and pedestrians.  The wait staff and service personnel are numerous (they’re everywhere), and are meticulously groomed, and standing by to humbly serve.  Incredible work out facilities in hotel (enough to even make people who don’t like to work out want to expend a little energy), grand and elegant decor and a pool too amazing to describe are features of our hotel.  Front page of the Chinese Daily news features a story of students blindfolding themselves to experience the world of darkness while dining with students from the School for the Blind, as they celebrate the National Day of the Disabled People, which was yesterday.  Another story making news in Beijing, to improve education and a lack of qualified teachers in underdeveloped central and western regions, six universities are offering a free college education for students who will sign a contract with the university and their hometown education departments to teach for at least 10 years upon completion of their education.  The agreement stipulates that graduates breaking the contract must repay all the money the State has expended on their education along with a fine.  I observed different wording for our term “profile” or “biographical summary” …  here:  Career Graph.  Another observation:  American and European companies working in China have made “adaptation” the key to success.  Being flexible to cultural differences is crucial as is keeping the winning essence to succeed in a new environment.  Efficient people and having a good definition of work for everyone seems common.  American concepts like discounts, one-stop shopping, freshness, selection and a free parking lot are popular.  Interesting note:  Desperate Housewives at home equals Desperate Dolls here, no doubt the Chinese have their own fame, but the American movie stars are pictured here almost as much as they are in US.

One of the oldest civilizations and fastest growing economies in the world … and, with the recent win of the Olympic bid for 2008, this city is propelled into even higher global visibility.  The Temple of Heaven and Imperial Palace in Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square, The Great Wall, the archeological excavations of the Terra-Cotta Warriors - these will be our itinerary stops.  I am interested in the people, too!

For the first time, I will visit Beijing.  No doubt, my viewpoints will be altered after learning about China first-hand.  I am an educator, so opportunities for young people interest me.  In addition to touring famous sites, museums, eating real Chinese food, and shopping, I hope to tour and learn about the classroom experiences at Beijing #80 High School.