Nicole

Nicole

Jeremy Weber, 23, did just that.  Weber is a senior at Mercyhurst College, majoring in Art Education.  He also attended U-Arts in Philadelphia for two years with a major in Painting.  During his work-study program, assigned by Art Education Director, Camille Nischal, he has done much work in the field of technology research.  As an extension of this work-study, his findings in research sparked an interest and passion for spreading technological awareness to local schools.

I attended Weber’s teaching workshop entitled “Digitally Aware:  Promoting Purposeful Use of the Web in the Digital Era”, and was completely blown away. Being a student myself, working for a technology company, I was able to both share and learn information throughout the presentation.  This workshop included ways to leverage technology and web tools to benefit the overall learning experience for students.  Through social networking, wiki-host sites, folksonomies, and blogging, students were strongly urged to utilize the internet for more than just checking their own personal website or chatting with friends.

Weber believes that technology plays an important role in benefiting students’ futures.  “I care about the youth and education.  My courses at Mercyhurst have showed me that a majority of classes don’t have the type of tech prep that they need to live in today’s society, moreover, tomorrow’s.”  Jeremy states.  “[As educators] we need to start preparing students for their future, not ours.”  Weber is a strong believer in universal learning; it is vital that everyone learns the ins and outs of technology to be successful in the future.  “The majority of people aren’t using technology like they should.” Weber adds.  He is a strong advocate for promoting 21^st century learning skills, and plans to embrace this style of learning throughout his teaching career.

So what did I learn at this workshop?  I learned that technology is an ever-changing element, and it is something that we cannot avoid but must embrace with every aspect of ourselves in order to succeed in a digital world.  “The computer in your cell phone is a million times cheaper and a thousand times more powerful, and about a hundred times smaller (than the one computer at MIT in 1965).  So what used to fit in a building now fits into your pocket, what fits in your pocket now will fit inside a blood cell in twenty-five years.” –Ray Kurzweil

For more information regarding the purposeful use of technology in the classroom, or for information on how to schedule a workshop at your school, please contact:

Jeremy Weber:

jeremyeweber@gmail.com

(814) 490-5957

Big news here at Paragon Media One! We’re happy to announce our latest project to be launched, the site for Upick 6 Beer Store! Upick 6 is a new bar/beer store, located on upper peach street across from Krispy Kreme Donuts. But this isn’t just another bar. At Upick 6, they’ve got twelve different unique brews on tap! That’s not the best part. Hence the name, Upick 6, you can actually create your own six pack to take home with you. If you love to try new beers, this is the place for you. With over 1000 different combinations of six packs, you can try 6 different unique beers each time you check out the store. When we heard about this idea, and knew that the Beer Store would be in need of a website, we were happy to deliver. The site showcases the different types of beers on tap, along with their menu so you can check out what you’d like to eat with your beer. So check out the site for listings of upcoming specials, events and more at www.upick6beerstore.com!

Just an update on another recent project we’re excited about! We’ve worked with the Erie County District Attorney’s office and EngageIT to create and maintain a cutting edge forum for Erie County Neighborhood Watch Groups in an hopes to create a safer community for all. Check it out at www.eriealert.com/forum. All citizens of Erie County are encouraged to become involved in making our community a better place by posting any information that would be beneficial to all who live in it. The best part about the site is that it’ll give you an excellent opportunity to become active in the neighborhood watch program right from your own computer. Stop back soon to check out the Police Officer-of-The-Month page, allowing any Erie County resident to nominate the officer of their choice as officer-of-the-month. The good deeds of police officers in our community frequently go unnoticed, and with the help of sponsors like you we can honor many of these unrecognized heroes. So stop by the site and nominate an officer-of-the-month by posting a brief description of why you think the particular officer you’ve selected deserves to be officer-of-the-month. This can be done in the ErieAlert Forums section of the website. Three of the nominations will be chosen and put in a voting poll in which citizens themselves will choose the final candidates. The winner will receive small tokens of appreciation such as gift certificates, dinners, theater tickets, etc for him or her and their family. So check out the site, and help make our community a better place!