Harvard Distance Education

Earlier today, I heard on the radio that Harvard University is just a click away: that's Harvard Distance Education. It offers a wide range of on-line classes, which anyone can attend from anywhere in the world. The offering includes complete lectures that you can watch on-line and you don't have to pay anything for that! One can learn just about anything, from Cellular Metabolism to Sustainable Ocean Environments and Fundamentals of Academic Writing.

http://www.extension.harvard.edu/DistanceEd/online-courses/;jsessionid=KDFLCEOLIEMJ

Classes recommended

Theory and Practice of Web Pedagogies

Educational Innovation and Social Entrepreneurship in Comparative Perspective

Take a Trip Around the World's Most Famous Museums

Art Project is a new website sponsored by Google that can take you and your students to amazing museum explorations all around the world. Take a trip around New York's Met and MoMa, Madrid's Prado and Prague's Museum Kampa, among many others.

Art Project uses streetview technology (just like Googlemaps) and high resolution images. There are magnificient artworks to be explored and that can used to illustrate your classes. Also, there are 360º tour and videos, which are all super easy to use.  You can create your personalised artwork collection for a tailor-made class and share it through social network, such as Facebook or Twitter.



Visit Picasso and other masters



Once Upon a Time... there was a Book Club!

If you and your friends (maybe students?) are into reading, why not found a Book Club?

Follow these tips and enjoy it!

1. Start a book club with 2 or 3 people who have some kind of connection - co-workers, friends, classmates, relatives. If the club is small, don't worry about it. Invite people as you go;
2. Set a regular meeting schedule - the first Wednesday of the month, at 7, at California Coffee or at a member's house (then there will be a host). By setting the time before the club starts, everyone knows that they have to be available for it and you won't play favorites;
3. Advertise the book club through e-mail, Twitter, Facebook; you should also use the oldest midia: word of mouth;
4. Establish rules on how books are chosen, who leads the discussions (maybe you'll take turns every month) and what kind of commitment is expected;
5. Some Book Club guides recommend that reading the book is a must. In case of a member not reading it, they should be dismissed. Well, that may not work well among friends, but you should think of establishing some ground rules;
6. Every member should choose a favorite passage of the book and read it aloud. It can be quite fun if you decide to role play it!
7. Create an atmosphere that keep people coming back. The more controversial the book, the more fun the meetings will be. Leave the easy-reading books to your own night table and choose books that will heat up the meetings.

                                            Oprah also has a Book Club!

http://www.oprah.com/book_club.html

                     The movie: The Jane Austen Book Club