why i teach naked

I am a firmly in the camp of those who teach naked. Teaching naked causes students to pay more attention in class and become more active learners. There is more than enough research to show teaching naked increases student learning. I've found to teach economics effectively I must teach naked.

Isn't student learning what is important?

Oh, did I mention that to teach naked is to not use technology in the classroom? That is, to teach without computers.

The most often used technology in the classroom is PowerPoint (ppt). PPT presentations make it easy to follow lectures and the slides can be posted online for students to reference later. The only problem is that ppt has been shown to lower learning outcomes. Students are not actively involved. It is better for student learning to have them just copy notes from a chalkboard than to sit passively listening to a lecture and watching the pretty pictures on the ppt slides. The worst active learning beats the best passive learning.

Here is a sad commentary on higher education. Recently I was talking with a yet-to-be-tenured colleague from another department who mentioned she felt pressured to use technology in the classroom. So far she has resisted the pressure because she cares about student learning. However, she also has to receive tenure to keep teaching.

A recent post on Freakonomics cites articles and findings about ppt. PPT is not only destroying student learning but according to the Armed Forces Journal, PowerPoint is hurting our national defense by diminishing decision-making skills at the Pentagon.

Power corrupts, PowerPoint corrupts absolutely. Six years ago that was the quite appropriate sub-title of the first known ppt-hating article. The title of that article was:

PowerPoint is Evil.


Be blessed.
RB

P.S. I do require my students to use Aplia outside of class to do both practice and graded problem sets and assignments. However, this requires active learning.

for alex of the 3-61st cav

An award-winning newspaper series about the death of Alex Funcheon and its aftermath can be downloaded by clicking HERE.


Our Offspring #2 was a platoon leader in Iraq, who served in the same cavalry scout troop, and was good friends with LT Bland, Funcheon's platoon leader. Our daughter-in-law and LT Bland's wife were also close. At the time of the tragedy, I heard about the impact on the wives of the men from Fort Carson.

Be blessed,
RB

multiple blessings for offspring #2

Offspring #2 had some wonderful things happen today:
(1) His 3rd wedding anniversary.
(2) His promotion to captain.
(3) His lovely wife took part in the promotion ceremony by pinning the captain's bars (a.k.a. railroad tracks) on his uniform.
(4) Dinner with his bride of three years at the famous Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs.

Yes, our LT is now our CPT.

He has one more month as executive officer (XO) of the 3-61st Cavalry Regiment's Apache Troop before he heads off to Ft. Knox, Kentucky for the Armor Captains Course.

Our CPT also earned the Expert Infantryman Badge (EIB) and now has that. However, he can not wear the EIB on his uniform because he is an armor officer and not an infantry officer. (As he often tells me, "It doesn't have to make sense; it's the Army.")

Be blessed!
RB

flag etiquette

Summer is the time for parades and parades mean a lot flags going by. There is some etiquette (i.e., good manners) concerning this of which I was unaware. If people are present and a U.S.flag passes by or is hoisted or lowered, they "...should face the flag and stand at attention with their right hand over the heart, or if applicable, remove their headdress with their right hand and hold it at the left shoulder, the hand being over the heart" (Section 9 of title 4, United States Code).

The National Defense Authorization Act of 2008 has this new provision: "Members of the Armed Forces and veterans who are present but not in uniform may render the military salute" (italics added). "The amendment does not address saluting the flag during the playing of the national anthem, pledge of allegiance, honors (i.e. Taps), or any other saluting situations" (military.com).

Be blessed.
RB

P.S. This Saturday, June 14th, is FLAG DAY.

got guns?

For a photo essay on a Middle Eastern arms bazaar, please click HERE.

it is officially over

As a follow-up to the previous post:

Our LT's trip from Kuwait to Colorado was about 40 hours long, with two refueling stops (Germany and Bangor, ME) and 14 hours to go through U.S. Customs (where I don't know). His plane was delayed in Bangor due to snow and ice. The welcoming ceremony was then pushed back to 5:30 p.m. MST on New Year's Eve. We were told the speeches by a two-star general and a colonel (the Brigade Commander?) were refreshingly short.

I believe our LT has a pass this week but needs to report next week for four days of "reintegration training." Starting the 12th, the entire 3-61st Cavalry gets thirty days block leave. Our LT and his lovely wife plan on taking a two-week trip traveling up the west coast to visit family and friends.
No plans to visit NNY. :(

Be blessed.
RB

it is official

Our LT is listed as being on a flight headed toward Colorado Springs. His plane should land early Monday afternoon and the welcoming ceremony at Ft. Carson is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. MST. After that he can leave the post and go home with his wife.

elvis has left the sandbox

We just heard that our LT is in Kuwait. He and the last five guys in his platoon left IQ with no plans to return any time soon. Some of his other men were back in Colorado Springs in time for Christmas. He is scheduled to leave Sunday for Germany and then on to Colorado Springs.

Today another son was given the day off with pay so he could spend time with his daughter. Is that a great boss or what?

The other night I saw something I thought I never would see: an argument between a toddler and her great, great aunt. (There is an 80-year age difference.) Miss Lois would cough and say “Sneeze.” Aunt Lois would respond, “No, that is a cough not a sneeze.” Miss Lois would say “Sneeze.” Aunt Lois would again reply “No, that is a cough not a sneeze. This went on for many, many rounds with neither one giving in. BTW, Miss Lois knows full well the difference between “cough” and “sneeze.”

Yesterday, the day after Christmas, I was in a store and noticed Valentine’s Day cards and displays are out.

We had a classic Christmas incident. A certain daddy bought his little girl a lovely baby doll. After pulling the doll out of the box, the little girl spent the next half hour playing with the box.

For the first time in my long teaching career, I did not complete my fall semester grading before Christmas. Some things came up at the end of last week so one seminar’s papers were not read. Since grades are not due to the registrar until January 3rd, I decided to wait until the New Year to grade and to endeavor to enjoy a few days before Christmas and this week without any compulsion or guilt about work I should be doing. So far it is working. (BTW, it feels wonderful.)

A certain little girl has yet to open her Christmas stocking. Of course, this same little girl does not understand the concept of a Christmas stocking. She’ll learn soon enough without our help.

A very special aunt and uncle of hers are again with us for Christmas. They have made Christmas into a longer-than-a-week event rather than merely a special day. We all have long realized their presence is more important than presents.

Be blessed!
RB

our guy's guys

"Clean House: U.S. Army Soldiers from 2nd Platoon, Alpha Troop, 3rd Squadron, 61st Cavalry Regiment instruct Iraqi police on room clearing procedures at Forward Operating Base Volunteer in Baghdad." ~ Source: Multi-National Force - Iraq

(This was published earlier this week and these troopers are in our LT's platoon.)

P.S. The trooper in the foreground is our LT's humvee driver.

let's say thanks

If you go to this web site, www.letssaythanks.com, you can pick out a thank you card, Xerox will print it, and it will be sent to a service member serving overseas. You can't pick out who gets it, but it will go to some member of the armed services.

Last year folks from our church sent packages to my son in Iraq who then put together Christmas stockings for the men in his platoon. We were shocked when he told us that for a number of the men, that was the only thing they received from anyone on Christmas.

So if you can take a minute, please go to www.letssaythanks.com. It may make a real difference to one of our men or women deployed overseas.

Be blessed.
RB

a training mission

A Black Hawk helicopter crashes in northern Italy with eleven on board. Four dead solders are pulled from the wreckage. Another died soon after in hospital. Others are in critical condition. The fifth fatality, Army aviator Captain Christian Skoglund, was an outstanding young man married to a wonderful young woman. A young woman from Canton. A young woman I watched grow up.

Excuse me while I write to myself. This is just for me. I feel so stupid and that my writing is embarrassingly sophomoric. No need to read on. I'm out of my depth trying to work through this, indulging in a futile attempt to reason about the unreasonable.

This afternoon I went to tell a colleague the bad news. He had met Christian only once but was impressed with the guy. My colleague had a very understandable and common reaction to the news, saying something to the effect that he had trouble understanding God's will in the death of this remarkable young man.

I don't know if it was God's will. Anyway, that was my reply. After thinking about this all afternoon, that would still be my reply. There is so much that happens that is not God's will. There is so much that I do that is against God's will. There is so much evil and sin in the world which God in his mercy does not eradicate, and therefore allows. (If God destroyed all the evil in the world tonight, where would you and I be in the morning?) There is so much that is not God's will, why should this be any different?

What if sin or evil was not the cause of this crash? What if it was the result of an innocent mistake (e.g., pilot error) or the result of a mechanical problem beyond any one's control?

I do not mean to be flippant, but death happens. Training missions. Combat. Helicopters crash. IEDs and grenades explode. Snipers. Ambushes. Soldiers die.

Why Christian? Why not?

Was he less deserving of death? Are others more deserving of death? To be honest, as I look at the people around me, when I look in the mirror, I have to say yes. It seems such a waste. It seems so unfair.

Our LT leads a cavalry scout platoon. Only 18 men but eight have purple hearts. Seven of his troopers were saved from certain death. It was the protective hand of God: multiple, obvious miracles.

Why were they spared? Why not?

Well the prayers of believers for these men are powerful and God is merciful. These prayers guided the protective hand of God. However, Captain Skoglund was a believer. His family members are believers. God also heard their prayers for the safety of him and his men.

Why Christian? Why not?

I do not know. I do not know.

What do I know? Christian Skoglund gave his life to Christ a long time ago. He was a child of God. To paraphrase an old hymn, his life was not his own, it was bought with a price; bought by the precious blood of Jesus Christ. His life belonged to Jesus. His life did not belong to a now grieving mother nor to a now grieving widow. It wasn't his. It wasn't theirs. It certainly wasn't any of ours.

We look for meaning in the tragedy in Italy. We want the seemingly senseless to make sense. I think there is meaning. I do not think this is random. However, I do not expect to find meaning unless God supernaturally reveals it. I also think the pat answer, the theological bromide, "It's God's will" does not help me or anyone else make sense of this.

The end of the Gospel of John (21:18-23) has Jesus talking one-on-one with Peter, indicating the manner in which Peter will die. Peter then saw John and asked, "Lord, what about him?"

Jesus answered, "If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you?"

If you ask Jesus why, maybe he'll answer, "What is that to you?" Christian had a personal relationship with the Lord. Christian's life and his death are between him and God. It is none of our business. We are not owed an explanation. God does not need to justify himself. It is personal. It is a private matter between God and Christian. Go ahead and ask. Maybe God will answer.

Jesus also promised to comfort those who mourn (Matthew 5:4). Jesus wept (John 11:35) when he saw the pain caused by the death of his friend Lazarus. God knows what it is like to have a son die. He even had to watch it.

We should cry. We should mourn. We should grieve. We should be angry at death. If we are angry with God, we should tell him. Why pretend otherwise? Like God doesn't know?

Let's also thank God for Christian. He was a gift. Let's be grateful for the time we did have him. Those who knew him the best, those who were closest to him, those to whom Christian blessed most, are the same who have the most for which to be thankful.

The great paradox of this is that those who are grieving and suffering the most right now, are those who have the most to be thankful for. Those who are most angry with God are those who have the most to thank God for.

I understand the hurt and the anger. I understand the need to be thankful. These coexist together. What I don't understand is how or why they can coexist together. They do, but it doesn't make sense.

. . . blessed be the name of the Lord (Job 1:21)

thursday 8 november, 12:34 p.m., local time in italy

red cloud v. ivy

Our LT is in the 2nd Brigade of the 2nd Infantry Division (2-2). The 2ID's shoulder patch insignia is an Indian head (Chief Red Cloud) in a star. As mentioned a couple of days ago, the 2-2 will be reflagged in 2008 as the 4th Brigade of the 4th Infantry Division (4-4).

While 4-4 may seem to be twice as good as 2-2, the 4ID's insignia is ivy. Like the Ivy League, this comes from the Roman numeral for four, IV. However, ivy is not nearly as cool as an Indian warrior.

Which would you pick: The Warrior Division or The Ivy Division?

army numerology

From yesterday's Stars and Stripes:

ARLINGTON, Va. — Following the latest deployment to Iraq is like playing a game of musical chairs.

The 4th Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, based in Fort Hood, Texas, is heading to Iraq next summer, according to the Defense Department.

Before they go, they will be reflagged as the 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, Defense officials said.

Here is where it starts getting confusing.

The existing 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division is already in Iraq, officials said.

They are returning home this winter and will be reflagged as the 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division as part of the Army’s efforts to have 1st Armored Division units based out of Fort Bliss, Texas, officials said.

Those aren’t the only changes planned for fiscal 2008.

The 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, which is now in Iraq, will be reflagged when it comes home as the 4th Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, an Army official said.

Meanwhile, the 5th Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division — a new unit — will become the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, the official said.

Any questions?

To help clarify, there are ten active divisions in the U.S. Army. Ft. Drum's 10th Mountain Division is the tenth and last one activated. [Note: This is where this stops making sense.] You'd think they would just number the divisions in, well, numerical order (like one through ten). No way! That what the marines do so the army can't follow their lead.

First of all there are three first divisions: The 1st Infantry Division (Ft. Riley, KS), the 1st Armored Division (Ft. Bliss TX), and the 1st Cavalry Division (Ft. Hood TX).

Now there is a a 2nd Infantry Division (South Korea), a 3rd Infantry Division (Ft. Steward GA), a 4th Infantry Division (Ft. Hood, TX) but no active 5th through 9th divisions. The remaining three are the 82nd Airborne (Ft. Bragg NC), 101st Airborne (Ft. Campbell KY) and the 25th Infantry (Schofield Barracks HI) Divisions.

Our LT is in the 2nd Brigade 2ID (2-2) stationed at Ft. Carson CO but the 2ID's 1st Brigade and HQ is in Korea while the 3rd, 4th and 5th Brigades are at Ft. Lewis WA. The 2ID is the only division with 5 brigades -- but not for long!

Also at Ft. Carson are two of the four brigades of the 4ID but two others and HQ are currently at Ft. Hood.

With the changes described by Stars and Stripes, the army is actually trying to have all this make better sense. The 4ID will move entirely to Ft. Carson and have all four brigades and HQ there. The 2ID will have three brigades at Ft. Lewis (all but Korea's 1st Brigade).

To do this the 2-2 will become the 4-4 at Ft. Carson and at Ft. Lewis the 5-2 will become the 2-2, while the old 4-4 at Ft. Hood will become the 4th Brigade 1st Cavalry Division. Of course to make this happen the current 4th Brigade 1st Cavalry Division will need to have a completely new designation, the 4th Brigade 1st Armored Division.

I trust this clears things up.

Be blessed!
RB

military intelligence goes postal

A common line from those who have served in the armed forces is that military intelligence is a contradiction in terms. It is still as true as ever.

This week we received a letter from Ft. Carson, Colorado informing us that the 3-61st CAV is due to return sometime in the first half of January.

They also informed us of the last date to send mail to IQ. Now it usually takes a week, maybe two weeks tops, for letters and packages to reach Baghdad. So guess when the last day is to mail things? Mid December? December 1st?

Nope. November 1st.

Anything post-marked after that date will be sent directly to Colorado and will not be opened until the troopers return.

No mail for two months. No Thanksgiving treats or Christmas presents unless sent on or before the day after Halloween. In fact, the guys will get no mail at all after the middle of November.

This is dumb.

How dumb? Too dumb, and not at all humorous enough, to make her list.

cn & iq & add ons

I have added some gadgets in the right-hand column.  First, is a feature where someone can automatically receive daily updates of this blog by email.

Due to some inadvertent changes, if you subscribed to a news feed you may need to subscribe again.  Sorry.

Under the heading International  Time & Temp  (you may have to hit page down once or twice) there are clocks for IQ and CN as well as weather forecasts.  Why IQ?  I know an LT there and this might cause someone to remember him, especially with highs over 110 degrees daily and the lows sometimes get below 100. 

As mentioned in my March 23rd post, I'll be traveling to CN with three students for three weeks visiting four cities (Shanghai, Fuzhou, Shenzhen, and Chengdu). Since I'm leaving for CN on Friday, I also have the Shanghai weather forecast posted.  The CN time is easy if you are on EDT since it is 12 hours ahead -- just change a.m. to p.m. and p.m. to a.m. That is, 8 p.m. in NY is 8 a.m. the next morning in CN. 

If you check out the Shanghai weather you won't envy my traveling there.

The Chicago to Shanghai leg of my trip takes 27 1/2 hours on the clock but the return trip only 40 minutes.

So this week is being spent running around and trying to prepare for my departure and absence from NNY.

ya gotta love marines

Marines are noted for being blunt, no nonsense types. This seems to apply even to marine generals, as reported on Wednesday by The Washington Post:

The White House wants to appoint a high-powered czar to oversee the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan with authority to issue directions to the Pentagon, the State Department and other agencies, but it has had trouble finding anyone able and willing to take the job, according to people close to the situation.

At least three retired four-star generals approached by the White House in recent weeks have declined to be considered for the position....

"The very fundamental issue is, they don't know where the hell they're going," said retired Marine Gen. John J. "Jack" Sheehan, a former top NATO commander who was among those rejecting the job.... "So rather than go over there, develop an ulcer and eventually leave, I said, 'No, thanks,' " he said.

If you want to know how and why the administration made the present debacle in Iraq inevitable, here are two excellent books:

The Assassins' Gate: America in Iraq by George Packer. The author, a journalist and a pro-war liberal, writes a gossipy, anti-Bush history without citations. It is more fun to read if you can overcome his biased, liberal dislike of the administration.

Cobra II: The Inside Story of the Invasion and Occupation of Iraq by Michael R. Gordon and Gen. Bernard E. Trainor (USMC Ret.). This is by the very respected authors of the definitive history of the Gulf War (The Generals' War: The Inside Story of the Conflict in the Gulf). This is more of a military history where the authors had access to classified materials and access to insiders who would never be so open with journalists. Although not as fun to read, it is still very readable and gives a much better, very unbiased, understanding of events.

In a nutshell, the administration had no planning, or even interest in planning, phase four of military operations: occupation and stabilization after defeating enemy forces. For military success, three out of four doesn't cut it. As the late Larry Burkett used to say, "If you don't plan where you want to be, you'll end up somewhere else." That is, you'll end up where you don't want to be. I guess it applies to more than finances.

Semper Fidelis.

soldiers spooked by new orleans spirits

Click HERE for an interesting video about California National Guard troops on duty in post-Katrina New Orleans. It was originally broadcast in September 2005 by a CBS-TV affiliate in San Francisco.

how to drive the devil crazy

I received this from an LT in IQ today. Only the names have been changed to protect those blessed by God:

“[O]n Monday [January 22nd] my Platoon Sergeant (SFC Shadrach) and two other guys (SGT Meshach and SPC Abednego) dismounted on a road when an IED detonated from underneath them. SFC Shadrach was standing directly on top of the IED when it exploded and he was thrown 10-15 feet in the air and landed in the 7-foot deep crater surrounded by sharp chunks of asphalt. He has nerve damage to the right side of his face and lost hearing in his right ear. Doctors are saying he has a 50/50 chance to regain hearing. The other two guys have blown eardrums and may have to get surgery to repair the damage. Other than damage to hearing, everyone emerged with only scrapes from this incident.

“An analysis of the area showed that my guys had been standing on top of 200 pounds of explosives placed inside of a culvert that ran under the road. There is no reason that any of them should have survived 40 pounds of explosives let alone 200. I think this is the answer to prayers from people in the church and some may want to know the real results of their prayers. People could also pray that SFC Shadrach's hearing returns and my guys’ eardrums are healed without the need of surgery.”


Now that is a miracle. At least everyone in the platoon sees it that way. Using 200 pounds of explosives when 40 pounds would have done the trick was going a little overboard, but I guess someone wanted to make extra sure. The timing of the detonation was perfect: the platoon sergeant was standing directly on top of the explosives. It was a can’t-miss, they’re-as-good-as-dead, sort of thing.

Can you imagine the reaction of the devil, his frustration, when he saw the three young men emerge from the devastation?

A long time ago in what is now IQ, not too far away from where this occurred, another three young men survived another can’t-miss, they’re-as-good-as-dead, sort of thing (see Chapter 3 of the Book of Daniel).

This stuff must drive the devil crazy.

Be blessed!
RB

P.S. I received a call this afternoon. Sergeant First Class Shadrach can now hear some low level sounds. The doctors cannot operate, the nerve damage is something that requires healing, so we need to pray for complete healing. Please also pray for the eardrums of Sergeant Meshach and Specialist Abednego to be healed without surgery. Thank you.

our lt in iq pic

Our 1LT uploaded three pics that you can see on webshots. His internet connection is slow and it takes a long time for him to do this.

I believe these photos were taken soon after he arrived in IQ last fall, during the transition between the 1-61st CAV of the 101st Airborne Division and the 3-61st CAV of the 2nd Infantry Division. Note the shoulder patches in the photo above. The guy on the left has the "screaming eagle" patch of the 101st Airborne while our LT has the 2ID's patch with the Indian head in the star. (Just click on pic above if you want to enlarge it.)

Be blessed!
RB