Sometimes, a topic that I've touched on in one of my log entries may need a little elaboration, or I may want to put thoughts scattered around many entries together in one place. And so I'll periodically contribute short essays to this site (Tripod 2001).

For example, I might include an essay on a controversial subject, like the effectiveness of capital punishment. Or I might write a personal essay about growing up or about my philosophy of life or child-rearing (Tripod 2001).

Writing essays requires a little more work than writing log entries, but it also gives me a chance to really shape and express my thoughts (Tripod 2001).

Research paper from EDTC510

The Future of e-Learning

Business and education are converging. The above research paper documents some of the trends of this convergence. In addition, those who learn quickly and well will be those who are in demand to employers in the future. In other words, being able to learn will become an employable skill in and of itself.

I am one of those people who learns quickly. Typically, before I completed my MS in systems ecology, I would master a job in about two weeks. I mastered word processing programs, accounting packages, graphics packages...

It is important for me to have almost constant learning challenges. Otherwise, I become bored and my productivity declines. In the job I have now, I have "mastered" the techniques, the software, FORTRAN ... but not the publication process, GIS and/or spatial applications.

My current challenge is learning to teach. In particular, learning both classroom and online teaching strategies and practices.

WDTI Intro to NR

In April 2002 I was invited to teach face-to-face freshmen vocational agricultural students. I spent a week in the Rapid City, SD area. Western Dakota Technical Institute offers their agricultural courses in Sturgis, SD where there is a working ranch at Sturgis High School. It is a uniquely appropriate situation.

Mark Keffeler invited me to teach an hour of Introduction to Natural Resources. I ended up teaching two hours!

I used Saturday and Monday to create my PowerPoint presentation on a computer at the classroom site. Then I uploaded my presentations to the internet. As soon as I completed each hour of class, the students could go to the internet and review the presentation.

This combination of distance, online, and face-to-face teaching convinced me of my capability as an educator.