ptong's blog

Coming into this institute, I had the impression that our weekly meetings were for discussing different approaches to education and how we can present this during the 2-week workshop. However, I was surprised to find that the workshop resembled very much like my 2nd semester course in Neurobiology and Behavior with Paul. I was very curious about how this lecture would relate to education since I had previously approached the course as solely a neurobiology class. I was astonished how approaching science as a “sum of observations” and a continuous loop related to education as well. At the same time I was wondering why I had not seen the connection earlier.

Interactive Game Websites:

• http://www.funbrain.com/
• http://www.apples4theteacher.com/science.html
• http://childparenting.about.com/od/sciencegamesonline/Science_Games_Online.htm

Science Project Ideas:

Tunde talked about how his high school was trying out a new approach to mentoring children by having each faculty member be responsible for looking after 10 students. This made me think about teachers can do this in their own classroom, especially elementary schools when a student stays in the same classroom for the most part.

I think giving take-home science projects can reflect how

http://www.sciencebuddies.org/

“Plugged In” is a book about the growing epidemic called video game addiction (VGA). The author, Terry R. Waite, discusses the psychological and physiological behaviors that are exhibited by video game addicts. The book is unique because the author gives a first hand experience of how VGA had affected him in the past. He acknowledges the fact that he was once an addict, and he gives personal accounts of his VGA and the effects it had on him and his family. This aspect really caught my attention because his personal involvement made him seem truly committed to helping fellow gamers. He also cites news involving VGA to inform the reader of the real life consequences of VGA. For example he

The reasons behind human actions and behaviors are directly related to the idea of motivation. There are many different levels of motivation that range from needs, to desires. For example, hunger motivates people to search for food and consume it while a new car may motivate teenagers to get a part-time job. However, this does not directly answer the question of why we become motivated.

Imagine a room full of people sitting quietly at their desks and suddenly laughing one after another for no apparent reason or picture a large congregation of people in the middle of a park laughing in a circle. As uncanny as it may seem, this is happening all over the world. Recently, scientists have begun paying more attention to Laughing Therapy and its psychological and physiological effect on humans. Studies have shown that laughter, or even the anticipation of a merry experience increases health-protecting hormones while reducing stress hormones. Although additional research is needed, there is strong evidence that Laughing Therapy is beneficial to patients and could be used to in addition to standard procedure.

Addiction:

Compulsive need for and use of a habit-forming substance (as heroin, nicotine, or alcohol) characterized by tolerance and by well-defined physiological symptoms upon withdrawal; broadly: persistent compulsive use of a substance known by the user to be harmful (1).