What Happened to Wikipedia and Google?

I'm frequently writing about Google Doodles in this blog.  But today's Google "Doodle" is different than any before, at least as far as I know.  Today the famous logo does not appear at all, but rather is blacked out by a big black box.  However, at least that popular student resource is working.  If students go to the English site of Wikipedia, they will discover that it is down for 24 hours.  In its place is a short protest against two pieces of legislation and a request, complete with links to contact your representatives (according to the zip code you enter) and then tweet about it or post it on your Facebook page, to express your opposition to the bills.

The legislation in question is the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and Protect Intellectual Property Act (PIPA).  The goals of both these acts is to protect US intellectual property, primarily from foreign sources that are selling it as their own.  The main supporters of the bills have been Hollywood and other entertainment producers who are trying to shut down foreign bootleggers of commercial media, such as illegal downloads or DVDs of US films and TV shows, music, etc.

So the goal is something that I think most of us would support.  People shouldn't be making money by providing us with illegal copies of performances they don't own and that the performers themselves don't make any money for, right?

The issue that many Internet-based companies, and many of their customers, have is that these bills address the problem not by going after the illegal producers themselves, but the sources that give these illegal producers access to American consumers online.  So, rather than suing or arresting the bootleggers, SOPA and PIPA allow the producers to take action against anyone who provides services or even has links to the illegal websites and demand that they block any US access to this site.

Many in the online community have major issues with this approach.  Some consider this approach to be censorship, which they vehemently oppose in any form, despite the reason.  Others argue that the legislation as written is overly broad and would impose onerous burdens on even the smallest Internet companies. Yet others say that this is just the wrong way to address the problem of intellectual privacy.  As Alexis Ohanian, the founder of Reddit (another online resource that has gone dark for the day), says about this legislation, "It's like taking action against Ford (Motor Company) because a Mustang (car) was used in a bank robbery."  Reddit has a lot of educational information about this issue (albeit more anti-legislation than pro) as does the SOPA Strike website.

So as much as we might hate losing our Wikipedia (along with lots of other informational sites) for the day, this is a great opportunity for discussing with your children or students some of these issues, such as the downside of everyone (including criminals) being able to access everyone in the world, and what is the best way to deal with problems like this.  (Besides, only the English site of Wikipedia is down, so you can search in a different language and work on your translation skills along with researching the subject.)

And if you think your students will use this as an excuse to play games rather than do their research on the Internet, don't worry--MineCraft is one of the sites that has joined the blockout.

Curriculum Resource: Lesson Plan on the Occupy Movement

Last month I posted an NPR podcast and a dubious news item as resources to use for discussing the Occupy movement with students.  Now you can supplement those with an entire lesson plan developed by C-SPAN to drive students to consider this question:  Should students support or oppose the "Occupy" movement?

The lesson plan is build around some C-SPAN news clips and some current articles, pro and con, by some of the top columnists of leading newspapers.  However, it was low, medium, and high read levels indicated, so it can be used with a wide range of ages/abilities.  It is geared towards having a classroom debate, but the materials could be used on an individual basis and lead to writing a pro or con position paper instead.

It has some high quality resources on a timely subject, and the price is right, because it is FREE.  If you are interested, you can download everything from the C-SPAN Classroom Deliberations website.

Curriculum Resource: Explaining the Electoral College

I recently received the FREE 2012 Electoral College map that C-SPAN is giving to US teachers (for more information, read this post), and it is a durable and valuable resource.  Now I need some materials to help me explain this unusual voting technique to my middle schooler.

Enter C.G.P. Grey, who has created two videos that are perfect for my son, at least.  They are short and to the point, and use math examples to make the system concrete.  Best of all, they insert some humor, which always works to keep my son interested.

The first one explains the Electoral College System:


But I like the second one even better. It demonstrates the problems with this system, and dismisses some of the myths that are offered as explanations about why we have to keep this antiquated technique of electing our modern President:


I learned some stuff, and I'm already pretty well versed on the subject (or so I thought).

I definitely recommend keeping these in your arsenal of tools when you are covering the 2012 Presidential election with your middle schoolers.

Curriculum Resource: The Story of Broke

I found a new resource to use if you are having discussions with your middle schoolers about the Occupy Wall Street (and other cities) movement, the supercommittee, and other things related to our national economic system.  It is a short animated video called The Story of Broke (made by the same people who created the popular video, The Story of Stuff).

This is not an objective, news-type presentation.  Rather, this video represents the point of view of the 99% movement.  However, it does explain the budget and some of our major expenditures in a simple way, and it does support a peaceful and democratic approach to changing the situation.  I would supplement it with other materials, but it can, if nothing else, help explain some of what the Occupy movement is upset about and is trying to change.

You can watch the video below:



PS:  Here is a link to the previous Occupy Wall Street resource I posted last month.

Curriculum Resource: Explaining the Occupy Wall Street Movement

I don't know about you, but I've been having a hard time explaining the Occupy Wall Street movement to my middle schooler because I haven't completely understood it myself.  I don't think the mainstream media has done a great job reporting on what this movement is really all about, preferring to focus on the "sizzle" (growing numbers, celebrity drop-bys, the variety of issues and outfits among participants, etc.) rather than the substance.

However, I found an NPR podcast that I think gives a better background about what is really significant about these protests.  Things may seem disorganized and unfocused to outsiders because while participants disagree about what the MOST egregious problems in modern American policy are, they all agree that we need an entirely different PROCESS to address them.   So while they may all be protesting different specific issues, they are united in not only discussing, but in demonstrating, a different system for making decisions, setting policy, and even allocating resources in a fairer, more democratic, and ultimately better way.

But listen to the enclosed just over 20 minutes podcast to hear a better explanation, including the theory behind a different way to run our entire production system that is known as "participatory economics:"



Plus, come back tomorrow for a teachable moment around this weekend's protest news.

FREE 2012 Electoral College Map and Lesson Plans

C-SPAN is sponsoring another giveway to social studies teachers, including homeschoolers.  They are giving away one free Electoral College Map poster to any teacher in the continental US who requests one (at least until supplies run out).  I haven't received mine yet, but the previous ones I've gotten have been BIG and printed on thick, high-quality paper.  So it should last you through the 2012 elections, which is its intended use.

The map reflects the 2010 census figures, and also includes some Election 2012 dates as well as some historic results.  So it should generate a good deal of discussion on its own.

However, C-SPAN has also developed some free lesson plans to accompany the map.  On their website, you can download such resources as Electoral College Map Poster Activities, and lesson plans on The Electoral College and the Constitution and Pros/Cons and Alternatives.  The lessons include video clips of current political figures debating the issue, which helps makes the topic current.

I plan to do a lot of education around the 2012 elections in the coming year, so this is a great resource for us.  I hope it may be helpful to you as well.