Medical Miracles

This weekend my four year old daughter has been very sick with what appears to be a stomach virus. As I tried to sleep next to her last night, I was thankful to know that down the street are two emergency care centers and one hospital. I was thankful for the nausea medicine the doctor gave her that brought her some relief from hours of vomiting, and I was thankful for the medical knowledge I had from school and other cultural sources. While not understanding all the medical science, I do understand what a virus is and how our body fights it. How lonely and frightening it must have been for mothers earlier in our history to know their child was sick but not to have help and medicine close by.

A pioneer child might get injured in numerous ways or become ill with various epidemics like malaria. However, even a simple cold could be serious. A Colorado pioneer mother might have relied on home remedies such as herbs that she grew in her garden. She might also call on a self-proclaimed doctor who stuffed all his equipment into saddlebags. Doctors had little organized medical training, so they resorted to strange treatments like laying the patient bare in the snow and pouring cold water on them until they shook, or they administered large doses of what seem like archaic drugs today. Therefore, calling the doctor was often a last resort and feared by many.

We often take for granted modern medicine, but by comparison it seems quite miraculous at times. Below are some interesting sites for researching this more.

You will want to visit the United States National Library of Medicine as it includes video, images and articles on the history of medicine.

Another interesting site is the Dittrick Medical History Center.

Visit a Large Archive of Articles on Medical History.

From the invention of Bandaides to Artificial Hearts, this sites describes many medical inventions that have changed our lives.

Smithosian information on medical history

Hippocampus article on Progressive reform of medicine.

As we look to a new President in office, this is an interesting site about unknown illnesses of former Presidents.

May your holidays be healthy and all that you hope for!

US Christmas Holiday Traditions

By now, most of our students and you are taking a very much deserved break from school. My guess is you and I need a break from serious posts as well. The picture I used here came from a public domain site.

In this post, I've collected sites about some of the holiday traditions and commercialism that has become part of our history and culture in the US. Whether you like it or not, the holidays have become big business and are successful for a reason. As a child, I remember looking forward to each season with its unique holiday fun, and now as a parent I look forward to them even more. I also worked in retail in high school and college, and I recognize that among all the bustle and purchase of things, the meaning of the holidays is sometimes lost. However, I believe that no matter how out of control we get with shopping, decorating, and activities, we are united by the holidays as a family, community, and nation. As you might expect, some of these sites contain advertisements and silly fun.

For the history of Christmas and Santa in the USA as well as other countries. After all many our American traditions originated in other countries.

More holiday traditions information and fun

Santa Claus History

All things Christmas

Colonial Williamsburg Christmas

More Colonial Christmas Traditions

History of Eggnog

Antebellum Christmas history

Timeline of Christmas Lights

Here’s a Congressional Record about the role of the Christmas tree industry

Here is a reading list on Christmas from the Smithsonian Institute

History of Shopping

More shopping center history

Finally, your kids will love this one, but it doesn't have much to do with history, Northpole.com
Happy Holidays everyone!

Self-Evaluation

The fall semester is drawing to a close and students are taking final exams that evaluate their learning. However, what methods do you have to evaluate your success as an instructor?

Your institution may deliver student surveys. This anonymous and direct communication from students is valuable and launches some of my best ideas, but sometimes these results are very skewed by a couple unhappy students. I also consider performance on assignments and the number of questions I may have had regarding some of them. If students really struggled with something, then I need to go back to the drawing board on that concept. I also include a couple checking-in type discussions for feedback. I ask in the middle of the semester “How’s it going,” so that I can hear from students about what is working or not for them and share some ideas of how they could get the most out of the course materials. Another discussion at the end of the semester asks “What did you think”. Here students are encouraged to provide their thoughts about assignments, discussions, workload, and digital content. I thank each of them, positive or negative, and again get some of my best ideas directly from them.

Getting student feedback is important, but you should also consider using some rubrics for course design to evaluate your courses. CCCOnline gives faculty a self-evaluation list to consider. It asks a series of yes/no questions to help faculty carry on their inner-dialogue any time of the year. Other rubrics are more formal such as the Blackboard Greenhouse Project and Quality Matters. For more, you might also check out the De Anza College page for Excellence in Online Teaching and Learning and Best Practices in Online Teaching at Connexions.

We usually get a little extra time between fall and spring semesters, so no matter what, take a break over the holidays and then take time evaluate your course and online teaching.