Tech-savvy teachers shine in Durban at the 2012 SA Partners in Learning Forum Awards

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><i style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">This is a news release from Microsoft about the winners of the 2012 Partners in Learning Forum in South Africa. 20 finalists were chosen and they attended the finals in Durban. Microsoft sponsored the finalists to attend the South African Basic Education  Conference and the winners were announced at a ceremony at the conference. Photos have been added by the editor. </span></i><b></b><br /><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><i>Durban – 3 April 2012 </i></span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><i><br /></i>Projects that encourage learners to tell stories digitally; find solutions to rehabilitate a local polluted area; collect data on how trees grow; and create educational toys and games for the blind have won four tech-savvy teachers top honours at Microsoft’s annual Partners in Learning Awards, announced here last night. </span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">The teachers, Caroline Adelaar from St Mary’s School in Johannesburg, Maxwell Funo from Mkhanyiseli Primary in Cape Town, Gaye Pieterse from Durban Girls’ High and Charli Wiggill from Eden College, also from Durban were among 19 finalists at the awards. The awards aim to stimulate the use of technology in schools, enhance teaching and learning and give teachers an opportunity to share their ideas and projects with their peers both locally and across the world. </span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">  </span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">  </span></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA0wpXUZGwbyoeMjjZYIhVasbiJir-mMqXGodqwlo6NPpC1S7h9rMo2c6sZfgSH_beBXYYuzNxtc7yuHzwxXYw9_z1g-IicKNvZjr2DMFBS0Ky6aq6jL3w9gCynNiwizKt80qoD-QfcxA/s1600-h/image%25255B18%25255D.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="image" border="0" height="196" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBxc2oOoedNwFx0qh6Q4Q9zNMjA5CnLxBOdsKgEBxQ2xPa-435e9cPyNOA2wYDYGCq593silR_OA_3FmNmLHUXJ_zaECYUmpXX0MhREhDAuetjmPAlChyphenhyphenKkHIUuTDddzi4RYUL0f4DTs4/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-color: -moz-use-text-color; border-style: none; border-width: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="244" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The four overall winners</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"></span> </div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Each of the four innovative teachers has secured a spot to represent South Africa at the regional finals in Morocco in July. Two of the projects, Trees4Africa and the Braille Memory Game/Toys for the Blind, collaborated with other schools to widen the reach of their project results. </span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTadA73SXHDhJyJKuKyi6x0sxJVCu1HF03r-beyImtbATAAuzBbIdj4HWRL2qF9bD3CJLvASwBTGlNniqGemSmVFX6pVUDamm8Yfz20B6Gtq8iF1TBZ0VBUBxmpi0Z4gALPQceW9gvYuo/s1600-h/image%25255B5%25255D.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="image" border="0" height="244" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlnxPFruCSvyH-uHOO3E-eHmlXHkqjt3vBjOc2th2TlDyQJH4CVm2jY6fCyGX8hJ5ZXDukS7m-4I_syxVwm_hifalpGpiau6UkCLvcReogfkNSSzFy5J5_433Unowxc44kIljup9vJBX0/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom-style: none; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-style: none; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-style: none; border-right-width: 0px; border-top-style: none; border-top-width: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="161" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Caroline Adelaar from St Marys in Joburg</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"></span></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAWs-S-xGVWbFlP0qPLewKtA2Wyy9qhgMbwB-8zR4srOWKY89fqfM014ll0jJnfAzFcxv-DcUgLV1UGBmTAGIUlgFbAltBu4PzqdEpz_RaWC7clcmSBivvAGIoAZd5F-htTMx8T7jipxk/s1600-h/image%25255B23%25255D.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="image" border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvEId_LBIrlWK6kxShg-_-dULlxZ2ZzaoS-BpREx8qCyvuHM7MeuM5Shl0tItGp0WJKsANZxFYnpe7BYxzu1d3U512u6h29zfzjkc2iORyADrilVG_1oIINa7TWWj_qq4RSb-NBMbuOQw/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-color: -moz-use-text-color; border-style: none; border-width: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="295" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Charli Wiggil from Eden College in Durban</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">In a third, learners were taught how to effectively use social media as a platform for distributing movies while fostering emotional intelligence by teaching them how to use emoticons to comment on their peers’ work. </span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">  </span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVfOINH7EsyUFf-dgFDVQ5j2j3Z85yAuzHOagy308HWHdEZJimswUfCpTjGnTvMtpMQu8I1XJMdYiR5FlnSFtQ7kD1jW1o1VJe1vI5TQtslagGPwqPuTge-hVhh0KYTkSsEB9HO0EeZdM/s1600/Gaye+Pieterse.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="247" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVfOINH7EsyUFf-dgFDVQ5j2j3Z85yAuzHOagy308HWHdEZJimswUfCpTjGnTvMtpMQu8I1XJMdYiR5FlnSFtQ7kD1jW1o1VJe1vI5TQtslagGPwqPuTge-hVhh0KYTkSsEB9HO0EeZdM/s320/Gaye+Pieterse.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br /></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Mkanyiseli Primary School teacher Maxwell Funo is delighted with the results his pollution impact project is delivering. “It all began when we noticed an alarming number of learners had been developing infected wounds from playing in polluted areas,” he says. “The children are now able to make a real difference to the safety of their community as we are escalating our suggested solutions to the local municipality and the City of Cape Town.” </span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div align="center" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbQsqcHoGPXYDiPyPR-XjP2kAfkEa10TQ5apuhAuAmCDn0fcebFEUQZT45BdDjQMzFkcKDukaL-aNiyGmcnF-ICey6mxggKz-HAvxKHGUmoHVocLhm2cYTLJhlkGZUobrIn6XRYeiPcZA/s1600-h/image%25255B22%25255D.png" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img align="left" alt="image" border="0" height="244" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4SnDdpha8cn7KrzgExThMMSfmNA37NEzPpIdWb3rgQO3dpUgZAAgKjyf6hGyGx8V8-lJZGf9eqQsWfyuCuLse5V8g94_17bL1yeuTSUhKoZQh2_rOyag3fY05BypZjDnJtrTZxdjX4JA/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-color: -moz-use-text-color; border-style: none; border-width: 0px; display: inline; float: left; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="161" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Maxwell Funo</td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1Nifoqj67UGkY_uWSU871JzPbfFnoSnDVh2sEZRD2l4T7xU28C3lu9_rotudd_no2VMuLIMxgTFkcvjjnfxqhmUeHq5tnQnb-eOEQI3exRSTVR5v7N3MW75163u7bPlHE3Z0ICT12S5k/s1600-h/image%25255B30%25255D.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="image" border="0" height="242" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlHB7nF_uErQ8BvC3eMJQ-W8SSa7kx3BcwyUUvIpr0eSDr-tmO126cRIqGlVVEdqrV42RZMvXXOcFE2mx362Axbesw8555tP21fGZG2-Xv0u6QCZwPhgd6d9_oteTavricjAxdnkRjqmA/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-color: -moz-use-text-color; border-style: none; border-width: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="291" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Maxwell Funo from <span style="font-size: x-small;">Mkanyiseli Primary School</span></td></tr></tbody></table></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />Speaking at the awards, Microsoft South Africa managing director Mteto Nyati said a Microsoft-commissioned Innovative Teaching and Learning Research (ITL) study in 2011 showed that innovative teaching practices will flourish when supportive conditions are in place such as peer support, the sharing of ideas and a common vision among teachers to offer relevant, innovative and learner-centric teaching methods.“The quality of the entries demonstrated that even the slightest change in how teachers use the technology tools they already have – like a cell phone or laptop – can impact the way teachers teach and learners learn,” said Nyati. </span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">  </span></div><div style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>The finalists and their projects</b></span><br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJqvC7IAwSiJqIR7lQtnZ7iR4Chp2vODN6lrIo8dpb_BQ4qLk7F3343x6oz_btLhHd2EFAY2coKpmhyTBFHGTeVv_sfT8nQ3xXusmhoVtBKf2xVefwqFAZwPN7Z2WEGEJbBMI-iG0cCx0/s1600/Finalists1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="268" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJqvC7IAwSiJqIR7lQtnZ7iR4Chp2vODN6lrIo8dpb_BQ4qLk7F3343x6oz_btLhHd2EFAY2coKpmhyTBFHGTeVv_sfT8nQ3xXusmhoVtBKf2xVefwqFAZwPN7Z2WEGEJbBMI-iG0cCx0/s400/Finalists1.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Finalists</td></tr></tbody></table></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"></span></div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img alt="image" border="0" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNR-DNQLjqQv3LKSMvKOycotm98iBhgGppxQ8uO7YKST9SQl9PVy4vW9xBH3A5bNhk6Lfm3qJ2wR78WI2dESZdw7niZal_2kyiPHRb6yqIiRyPn2OwgEHi4Qy2ML7QS7Rr9WBY-snv4ao/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-color: -moz-use-text-color; border-style: none; border-width: 0px; display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="400" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The finalists</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The following projects were on display at the South African Finals. Unfortunately one of the finalists, Clair Dean from Stirling Primary, was unable to attend the finals this year and her project is not listed here.<br /><br /></div><table border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><tbody><tr> <td valign="top" width="308"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Caroline Adelaar</b></span> <br /><span style="font-size: small;">St Mary’s School </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Johannesburg </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Gauteng</span></td> <td valign="top" width="496"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Trees4Africa</b></span> <br /><span style="font-size: small;">Grade two girls initiated a Smithsonian tree growth data collection project and collaborated with other African schools to create a Trees4Africa Wikispace. The wiki will be used to generate collaborative presentations integrating ICT skills, movement and music. These will be filmed and used a community outreach project to encourage sapling planting.</span></td></tr><tr> <td valign="top" width="308"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Nkosilathi Dlodlo</b></span> <br /><span style="font-size: small;">Batswana Secondary School </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Mafikeng </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">North West</span></td> <td valign="top" width="496"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Serving water to save</b></span> <br /><span style="font-size: small;">Learners investigated a range of possible causes of water shortages and proposed several solutions. Interviews were conducted with the community and a local mining industry next to the school; models were constructed; research took place in the lab and a song was produced. Findings were presented to the MEC of Education for further consideration.</span></td></tr><tr> <td valign="top" width="308"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Riathe Engels </b></span> <br /><span style="font-size: small;">Harmonie Primary School </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Virginia </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Free State</span></td> <td valign="top" width="496"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Innovative ways to recycle -TRASH ART</b></span> <br /><span style="font-size: small;">The intention of this project was to give learners not participating in other extra-curricular activities an opportunity to experience technology and learn new skills. Learners collected bags and cans; they researched pollution and the fusing of plastic using the internet and they created art from recyclable materials. At the final event designs were revealed at a fashion show. </span></td></tr><tr> <td valign="top" width="308"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Maxwell Funo</b></span> <br /><span style="font-size: small;">Mkhanyiseli Primary </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Cape Town </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Western Cape</span></td> <td valign="top" width="496"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Our community our pride</b></span> <br /><span style="font-size: small;">This project began when the teacher noticed that learners were developing infected wounds from playing in polluted areas as there were no playgrounds or parks in the area. The grade seven learners photographed the affected learners and interviewed people living near the polluted areas. They are now investigating solutions and raising the issue with the municipality and City of Cape Town. </span></td></tr><tr> <td valign="top" width="308"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Lisa Gair </b></span> <br /><span style="text-align: left;">The Rock Academy</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Fish Hoek </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Western Cape</span></td> <td valign="top" width="496"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Cultural Exchange</b></span> <br /><span style="font-size: small;">The aim of this project is to connect grade four classes in South Africa and the United Arab Emirates to share information about their environments, cultures and faiths. A variety of tools are being used including a blog, wiki, screencasts and skype to commmunicate and keep a classmate who is spending the year at sea involved. </span></td></tr><tr> <td valign="top" width="308"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Gilmour Gordon </b></span> <br /><span style="font-size: small;">Elkanah House School </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Tableview </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Western Cape</span></td> <td valign="top" width="496"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Fun with Class Music</b></span> <br /><span style="font-size: small;">Groups of grade sevens wrote stories and selected songs to enhance their plots. They performed the songs, recorded them with their cell-phones and imported the songs into their stories using Moviemaker. Grade eights and nines become familiar with Audacity and manipulating music using this application. They viewed a soundless video clip and added in the sound based on their interpretation of the clip. </span></td></tr><tr> <td valign="top" width="308"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Siobhan Louw </b></span> <br /><span style="font-size: small;">Somerset House </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Somerset West </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Western Cape</span></td> <td valign="top" width="496"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>ICT'd! Innovative and creative travel document</b></span> <br /><span style="font-size: small;">In this project Grade six learners take a virtual international holiday. The “vacation” includes creating an itinerary, booking airline tickets and creating a travel journal. Learners sourced screenshots from online maps and their street views and manipulated these. They also edited photos to put themselves in a variety of destinations. Collaboration with the drama and English teachers allowed for extended learning opportunities.</span></td></tr><tr> <td valign="top" width="308"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Mabore Dorothy Lekalakala </b></span> <br /><span style="font-size: small;">Toronto Primary School </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Polokwane </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Limpopo Project</span></td> <td valign="top" width="496"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Lazily learning</b></span> <br /><span style="font-size: small;">The activities in this project draw on the learners’ love of television. Firstly learners watch their favorite television programme and compare and contrast their conclusions with learners from the United States. Secondly they draw up time management tables and share these. Thirdly they create posters and act out puppet shows, dramas, poems and songs on different learning content as alternative entertainment. </span></td></tr><tr> <td valign="top" width="308"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Hafeeza Ebrahim Mayet </b></span> <br /><span style="font-size: small;">Marlboro Gardens Secondary School </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Sandton </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Gauteng</span></td> <td valign="top" width="496"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Mathe City</b></span> <br /><span style="font-size: small;">The focus of this project was to build a model of ‘MATHECITY’ that integrates grade five Geometry content. Learners investigated tessellations and created an AutoCollage of these. Learners folded nets of 3D shapes to form buildings and decorated these in the Arts and Culture lessons using MS Paint. Learners then used the model to find out more about cardinal points, measurements and even and odd numbers. </span></td></tr><tr> <td valign="top" width="308"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Nombuso Mnguni </b></span> <br /><span style="font-size: small;">Asithuthuke Combined School </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Balgowan </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">KwaZulu-Natal</span></td> <td valign="top" width="496"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Designing and building a model of bridge</b></span> <br /><span style="font-size: small;">This Grade nine Technology project involved learners identifying contemporary problems in the community and exploring them using various technological tools. Learners were then challenged to design and build a model of a bridge that can be used to address a problem that they identified. This will be presented to the community. </span></td></tr><tr> <td valign="top" width="308"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Neith Moore </b></span> <br /><span style="text-align: left;">Durban Girls’ High</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Durban </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">KwaZulu-Natal</span></td> <td valign="top" width="496"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>The Mobile Digital Classroom – ’Flipping’ a studio</b></span> <br /><span style="font-size: small;">This teacher designed and built a mobile digital classroom and is training teachers and learners to use it. The flipped classroom has led to teachers starting their own blogs; a local gallery and artists working with the learners; the local environment being interrogated through a ‘shoot-n-share’ task; and the Glenwood Forum being involved as a showcase. </span></td></tr><tr> <td valign="top" width="308"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Gaye Pieterse </b></span> <br /><span style="text-align: left;">Durban Girls’ College</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Durban </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">KZN</span></td> <td valign="top" width="496"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Inside Outside</b></span> <br /><span style="font-size: small;">In this digital storytelling project, girls created their own screenplays that showed how emotions are experienced inside and external factors which impact on them. The movies were posted to a closed social networking site and feedback was given. In addition to the technical skills of creating a movie, learners learnt how to comment on peers’ work and how to use digital storytelling to foster emotional intelligence. </span></td></tr><tr> <td valign="top" width="308"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Anita van Vuuren </b></span> <br /><span style="text-align: left;">Primêre Skool Universitas</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Bloemfontein </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Free State</span></td> <td valign="top" width="496"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>TjokvolLEER</b></span> <br /><span style="font-size: small;">In this project, The grade 3 learners chose an individual project to work on with their own plan and goals. They were paired with grade four learners who supported their younger colleagues. The projects involved taking photos, making videos and producing PowerPoint presentations. In addition to doing worthwhile activities such as making cards to sell to support the CANSA foundation, this project taught time and self-management skills and the importance of completing something that you start.</span></td></tr><tr> <td valign="top" width="308"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Charli Wiggill </b></span> <br /><span style="text-align: left;">Eden College Durban</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Durban </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">KwaZulu-Natal</span></td> <td valign="top" width="496"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Braille Memory Game and Toys for the Blind</b></span> <br /><span style="font-size: small;">In this project pupils identified with the blind and manufactured memory game cards in Braille. As an extension project, they adapted existing educational games and designed and created new educational games and toys for the blind. As a Pass it Forward-type exercise, they communicated with and collaborated with other pupils in their class and around the world.</span></td></tr><tr> <td valign="top" width="308"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Lerato Mazimba </b></span> <br /><span style="text-align: left;">St. Bernard's High School</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Bloemfontein </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Free State</span></td> <td valign="top" width="496"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>From Trash to Couture</b></span> <br /><span style="font-size: small;">Learners sketched designs of fashionable clothing and shoes; runways and props for a fashion show. They gathered waste material and learnt how to turn this into fashionable items. They began designing clothes or shoes from plastic and waste material and then graduated to designing couture clothes using cloth from old clothes. Invitations, score sheets, photos and film were all produced as part of the fashion show.</span></td></tr><tr> <td valign="top" width="308"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Michelle Dreyer</b></span> <br /><span style="font-size: small;">Courtrai Primary School </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Paarl - Boland </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Western Cape</span></td> <td valign="top" width="496"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Bread Tags</b></span> <br /><span style="font-size: small;">This school’s enrichment team has implemented a number of initiatives to collect plastic bread bag tags and to use these across learning areas. Activities include competitions to guess how many tags are in a jar; using bread tags to create three dimensional objects in Technology; and finding out about the stages of production in Economic and Management Sciences. The school hopes to collect enough bread tags to purchase a wheel chair.</span></td></tr><tr> <td valign="top" width="308"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Sarah Hanton </b></span> <br /><span style="text-align: left;">Boudina McConnachie</span><br /><span style="text-align: left;">Anna Wertlen</span><br /><span style="text-align: left;">Victoria Girls High School</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Grahamstown </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Eastern Cape</span></td> <td valign="top" width="496"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Good Vibrations through Social Networking</b></span> <br /><span style="font-size: small;">Using internet research, interviews and awareNet (an online school social network) learners engaged in cross-curricular research projects focusing on science and music. They created on-line teaching and learning resources and they collaborated with one another and with community members to research and publish information. This project involved working with a disadvantaged school, sharing presentations at SciFest and using discussion forums, messaging and chat to develop and share resources. </span></td></tr><tr> <td valign="top" width="308"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Jenny Martin </b></span> <br /><span style="font-size: small;">Somerset House </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Somerset West </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Western Cape</span></td> <td valign="top" width="496"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>T-ICT 7.0</b></span> <br /><span style="font-size: small;">Grade seven learners were challenged to research randomly assigned ICT tools, work out how to use them and then record videos of themselves discussing the merits of their tools. The project included a WebQuest and a wiki maintained by learners who wished to build a tool to support their peers in this challenge. Learners identified community members who could benefit from their tools and then demonstrated the tools to them.</span></td></tr><tr> <td valign="top" width="308"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Joan Martin </b></span> <br /><span style="font-size: small;">Gaye Pieterse</span> <br /><span style="font-size: small;">Durban Girls’ College </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Durban </span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">KwaZulu-Natal</span></td> <td valign="top" width="496"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>Project Runway</b></span> <br /><span style="font-size: small;">The objective of this project is to integrate technology with art. Learners were required to research an artist and to then present their findings in an innovative way by transforming the artist’s concepts into fashion design. Learners were required to research their artist and find inspiration, “buy” their fabric online and create a PowerPoint with suitable music showcasing their designs.<b> </b></span></td></tr></tbody></table><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>The prize-winners</b></span></div><div style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue',Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Categories for Awards</span><br /><br /></b><u>Extending Learning Beyond the Classroom</u></span></div><ul style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: small;"><i>1st place</i>: Charli Wiggill, Eden College Durban, KZN – Braille Memory Game and Toys for the Blind</span></li></ul><ul style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: small;"> <i>2nd place:</i> Caroline Adelaar, St Mary’s School, Gauteng – Trees4Africa</span></li></ul><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><u>Collaboration</u></div><ul style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: small;"><i>1st place:</i> Maxwell Funo, Mkhanyiseli Primary School, WC – Our Community Our Pride</span></li></ul><ul style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: small;"> <i>2nd place</i>: Lerato Mazimba, St Bernard’s High School, FS – From Trash to Couture </span></li></ul><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWuJIBo1tcDII_OmvtnIixRK2Q6Gl_hdbGo1cqyz4ixcl41NOHaULvVN0fBPZjPEehXamSRpI1VSPiyYjHW_8u8-wy4kqVgCDrJwgPtYW6s6SPz0LxYyoFSMzJJTveLXcHSdwqKTxZ84s/s1600/misc_123.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="303" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWuJIBo1tcDII_OmvtnIixRK2Q6Gl_hdbGo1cqyz4ixcl41NOHaULvVN0fBPZjPEehXamSRpI1VSPiyYjHW_8u8-wy4kqVgCDrJwgPtYW6s6SPz0LxYyoFSMzJJTveLXcHSdwqKTxZ84s/s320/misc_123.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lerato Mazimba</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /><br /><span style="font-size: small;"><u>Knowledge Building and Critical Thinking</u></span></div><ul style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: small;"><i>1st place</i>: Gaye Pieterse, Durban Girls‘ College, KZN – Inside Outside</span></li></ul><ul style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: small;"> <i>2nd place</i>: Jenny Martin and Siobhan Louw, Somerset House, WC – T-ICT 7.0</span></li></ul><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9FCrXmABosOaMME7Nj5sfUXPDnNgcMsOs4WnG0hoKLcY_CLuA_S53UWZ85UP3nKB5VqV-WOO9cjgla80F3X6O7zyDFIkuHLqenWvQdxNds4SMmWW3_xL-zOKJTehq8DyIKN_yG9EqnUU/s1600/Siobhan.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9FCrXmABosOaMME7Nj5sfUXPDnNgcMsOs4WnG0hoKLcY_CLuA_S53UWZ85UP3nKB5VqV-WOO9cjgla80F3X6O7zyDFIkuHLqenWvQdxNds4SMmWW3_xL-zOKJTehq8DyIKN_yG9EqnUU/s320/Siobhan.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Siobhan Lowe and Jenny Martin</td></tr></tbody></table><u>Cutting Edge Use of Microsoft Technology for Learning</u></div><ul style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: small;"><i>1st place</i>: Caroline Adelaar, St Mary’s School, Gauteng – Trees4Africa</span></li></ul><ul style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: small;"> <i>2nd place</i>: Anita van Vuuren,Primêre Skool Universitas, FS – TjokvolLEER</span></li></ul><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div align="center" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg68hyLtj6gYdBe2gPNz2V0XJQx1sC0Y6sjUM-5m3noNQ_VYnjl6OCmb89CFMGQ9Ii7m0J6fx12GUxdCIXjWdFFviR6s4XXs_EKsf5gBzSS6qSQoKEcpuF3VwzUd7ewx_bvKdWr3Nsbaoo/s1600-h/image%25255B39%25255D.png"><img alt="image" border="0" height="244" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3ItWnlIWtkPUCzVUUcWjwqoadl-4720s4O5RzICj2QRqCoPRoOS7C51wB2E-ZchHJ0OraFrrECLZZDq2iX4ZFk2FprC9HHnrnk9HtUU0ONVO_-v5S3QSupHhLORAAwDR7hRxMHdZ0EZo/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-color: -moz-use-text-color; border-style: none; border-width: 0px; display: inline; margin: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="183" /></a></span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><u>Innovation in Challenging Context</u></span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"></div><ul style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: small;"><i>1st place</i>: Maxwell Funo, Mkhanyiseli Primary School, WC – Our Community Our Pride<br /></span></li></ul><ul style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: small;"><i>2nd place:</i> Nkosilathi Dlodlo, Batswana Secondary School, NW – Serving Water to Serve</span></li></ul><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqQkEk0hlq1z1E9YZI5nGGvgiNdl10pQPLv1mEJD8IvGZrbaow-3-q2qDQzf-4QXeoOPCeHlEZ8nROcsYHoDWJyq2ILHbzFc3MDWML8Xb7QGq2CRkSNzDDjw84SODWqfxg-D5rnX72JXo/s1600-h/image%25255B48%25255D.png"><img alt="image" border="0" height="184" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQvyGpRtdvRHYuW-1ukNjG9eK6yE5xGWifinN0pqRJjgWB4ZHkB7EXFOD21plTqyVomLgjuqUrAklOBiBb_crO-bCaeW_tucPIuMNlKdB76GNkwumJIwRn5Iz4eypin_US7TvCWnl9lwQ/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-color: -moz-use-text-color; border-style: none; border-width: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="244" /></a></span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><u>Educators’ Choice</u></span></div><ul style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: small;">Riathe Engels, Harmonie Primary School, FS – Innovative Ways to Recycle – TRASH ART</span></li></ul><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcoR-Vcpa_TIxN1ltqj5_6_NZo7XSAaSmz0W1C2v7ZX5X4DYa2q3kW1qEkJav65syYKaDcs_R4gK_dzSU0L-kkLq2CF-C1a0SJ-REzrvcwtJCYllfopHlvL_4zg5YIf8gD3hPXWnMgMX0/s1600-h/image%25255B45%25255D.png"><img alt="image" border="0" height="244" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjj_GngzFBS9G9eKX2_vB2kPeElIs6faQgFE_TXdJMAP7oZP1V3qcKuwD5tSV-t9VLnV8FrD0kF-QuCLmuzHGSE2Udz6zat_ovf5kKzZXR80LLeGF7_m35u6qy83m1ns22M13sHeHF64Ao/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-color: -moz-use-text-color; border-style: none; border-width: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="187" /></a></span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><u><span style="font-size: small;">Judges‘ Awards:</span></u></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></div><ul style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: small;">Use of Social Networking -Sarah Hanton, Boudina McConnachie, Anna Wertlen, Victoria Girls High School, EC - Good Vibrations through Social Networking </span></li></ul><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitibxQvUhpuz0-4UX4xUIFCEibrw_duvsyYmT2qoEz6D2GxIa5WTfhw9yTLoRxkrQMF7roPd8lXMeco1LYX0-bB90OrkBIGX-MaA-oR9b5PQ-Xu35LjE5P3p48IoKKrv08ug_wTroVqjs/s1600/misc+128.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="258" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitibxQvUhpuz0-4UX4xUIFCEibrw_duvsyYmT2qoEz6D2GxIa5WTfhw9yTLoRxkrQMF7roPd8lXMeco1LYX0-bB90OrkBIGX-MaA-oR9b5PQ-Xu35LjE5P3p48IoKKrv08ug_wTroVqjs/s320/misc+128.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><ul style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: small;"> </span><span style="font-size: small;">Use of Technology – Neith Moore, Durban Girls‘ High, KZN – The Mobile Digital Classroom – ’Flipping’ a Studio</span></li></ul><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIcG899hpRQTYJmIx1aLYA9DV3TH6qouy5KdWzj5Ko8oi-uS88PXK8Z2eVuQGRAyZdSvK9SjP94kMc7KpEatquDDFp-N6xA0wdHUVCFnau3rrdPwr-xQuo9dVxeSv6AyPb0E-pi15mDPw/s1600-h/image%25255B42%25255D.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img align="left" alt="image" border="0" height="244" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7pyxM5RRKxz2jS7kIMGadQq1WQsMXYxzPNqr7fAI5r4fdWUYURJ956H34heLkkjPThACfHzSqUzPaFUsS-jLDeyFhGozVsMAzJBDgVZF42FCwsET6C5nDcAP0vLo1KjDr9VnnNPHvUig/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-color: -moz-use-text-color; border-style: none; border-width: 0px; display: inline; float: left; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="185" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Neith Moore</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"></span></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeqf8TUPwZAnkRIR62WNPm-RUTqZgz0EuuOHD-CnuJVZM8dzGGL28mHxM6nA05X36WgYrcBks0U2iSTBxvHFpHNhB2LbGa5yGK2S8Ce9mrr_aVuhmB14awTVKbqeWss17fxT729mypewA/s1600-h/image%25255B54%25255D.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="image" border="0" height="244" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3z8Rb2HFZHY19YA0qgX_Hdz5YY-jz33k7fCyRFKNmor3vsk5W2WF_0VAVqRGkx_4Y_6RPA1BAlTw2HMXUT8fAYdNCIIiq3wtDLk-UtUxf5I-nZ0NlTppGILQm2d_fc7NtWbTzRNaC3gM/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-color: -moz-use-text-color; border-style: none; border-width: 0px; display: inline; margin: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="162" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Neith Moore</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: small;"> </span>Innovation and Change Agent - Anita van Vuuren,Primêre Skool Universitas, FS – TjokvolLEER</li></ul></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDGFORog5ImpZEebq-P7HvRGNsNeDVYIKlA96c2gYa2w43zIPkbFT2RlledYu_gJFvSPd8qL3KxZOOOeFNrv926271oNz3ua864DxClBS9MD5d25uR0MzkLqxxaHVtrnY0V_IvmIW3880/s1600-h/image%25255B57%25255D.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="image" border="0" height="244" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh11BoOvIglS8VZX4OtVvxWQ1qAGK_13w9-L-tQr9fmJ7B8ZPZUQV0gj1_cT8mdika0KtHiO744uq_hNFxi906JXwoi7xr_8MR9TJdqju5rzsjNoLN_W_A2N9y0frKu60nEn74pk8jE_5Y/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-color: -moz-use-text-color; border-style: none; border-width: 0px; display: inline; margin: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="172" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Anita van Vuuren</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"></span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><u>Top Four Overall winners</u> who will be participating in the Middle East Africa Partners in Learning Forum (in alphabetical order):</span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Caroline Adelaar, St Mary’s School, Gauteng – Trees4Africa<br /></span><span style="font-size: small;">Maxwell Funo, Mkhanyiseli Primary School, WC – Our Community Our Pride<br /></span><span style="font-size: small;">Gaye Pieterse, Durban Girls‘ College, KZN – Inside Outside<br /></span><span style="font-size: small;">Charli Wiggill, Eden College Durban, KZN – Braille Memory Game and Toys for the Blind</span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEja_vSDnzcMFMaP3LLvBN-233LFwkHFE1APVgyMQLCfVypLmpSpXpiTU6y_FqYfmimCuCjy0XQh0gMFjrYXO_aeJpaYJj_hhdw19Tujm59G_sH876fJWGFTyecwWilFZilN7M2aR6Q49F8/s1600-h/image%25255B26%25255D.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="image" border="0" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYjqO7VXCdQdsOdvL5pJAANzgZpVFAXdGeNjU4owTJXxBO6jO8KmhEBNbH9We75fYnUH8qcHmJNzFGPuacKZ1Mqg4KXKByHlwEmfEIIkYSiY-pC-8_TZSCLOYtnyLJrb5P42YooTyMeMU/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-color: -moz-use-text-color; border-style: none; border-width: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Top four overall winners</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"></span></div><div style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">Prizes</span></b></div><div style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">*Each of 1st place Winners will receive a Dell Laptop<br />*Each of the 2nd Place Winners will receive a Slate Device donated by Vodacom Foundation<br />*The Educator Choice winner receives a SMART SB680iV interactive whiteboard system including SMART Notebook, installation and Basic User Training.<br />*All Finalists will receive a subscription to Encyclopaedia Britannica and Interactive Curriculum Content from Learnthings<br />*The Judges‘ Award Winners </span><br /><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: small;">Use of Social Networking –EInstruction Mobipad and portable Interactive Whiteboard from Sangari</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;">Use of Technology -EasyView Visualizer from Sangari</span></li><li><span style="font-size: small;">Innovation and Change Agent – Mouse Mischief Set</span></li></ul></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: large;">More photos are on view at: </span></span><br /><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: large;"> </span><br /><a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/114485521154323474375/20120402MicrosoftPILAwardsForum%20" target="_blank">https://picasaweb.google.com/114485521154323474375/20120402MicrosoftPILAwardsForum </a></span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><br /><embed flashvars="host=picasaweb.google.com&hl=en_US&feat=flashalbum&RGB=0x000000&feed=https%3A%2F%2Fpicasaweb.google.com%2Fdata%2Ffeed%2Fapi%2Fuser%2Fschoolnetsa%2Falbumid%2F5727043821799323873%3Falt%3Drss%26kind%3Dphoto%26hl%3Den_US" height="192" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" src="https://picasaweb.google.com/s/c/bin/slideshow.swf" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="288"></embed><br /><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/114485521154323474375/PartnersInLearningForumJudgementDay%20" target="_blank">https://picasaweb.google.com/114485521154323474375/PartnersInLearningForumJudgementDay </a></span></div></div><embed flashvars="host=picasaweb.google.com&hl=en_US&feat=flashalbum&RGB=0x000000&feed=https%3A%2F%2Fpicasaweb.google.com%2Fdata%2Ffeed%2Fapi%2Fuser%2Fschoolnetsa%2Falbumid%2F5726468018493593953%3Falt%3Drss%26kind%3Dphoto%26hl%3Den_US" height="192" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" src="https://picasaweb.google.com/s/c/bin/slideshow.swf" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="288"></embed></div>

Microsoft Tech-savvy teachers shine in Durban at the 2012 SA Partners in Learning Forum Awards

This is a news release from Microsoft about the winners of the 2012 Partners in Learning Forum in South Africa. 20 finalists were chosen and...

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ARGENTINA: A COUNTRY WITHOUT VISIBLE POLITICAL OPPOSITION.

<br /><div class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><br /></span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6l6LtHQdBWWKoMAA5h4nrLD-v2Z9Y1MuHPV2oQAIPcBmJcEpoMWWTUF9D484M4xsZmiZat-Qi3s8ch9DgdA4a_kbGvcLW0sD4A0YhLgYa-sGVUbVdXAaYRCdGDe9wm9GYiEzeSXbXC4Rm/s1600/media-manipulation.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6l6LtHQdBWWKoMAA5h4nrLD-v2Z9Y1MuHPV2oQAIPcBmJcEpoMWWTUF9D484M4xsZmiZat-Qi3s8ch9DgdA4a_kbGvcLW0sD4A0YhLgYa-sGVUbVdXAaYRCdGDe9wm9GYiEzeSXbXC4Rm/s400/media-manipulation.png" width="400" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: blue; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: blue;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">ARGENTINE</span></b></span><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">’</span></span><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">S "INVISIBLE OPPOSITION", CONSISTING OF SELF - SEEKING ONE MAN SHOWS, WHO USE CORPORATE MEDIA TO OPPOSE THE GOVERNMENT </span></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Since the Kirchners’ (Center left) took rein back in 2003, their “unorthodox” but successful governing of Argentina infuriated Argentines “conservative” political opposition, if one can call it that, for unlike other countries, Argentina in reality does not have a political party system as such. Granted, when election time arrives, different so called political "parties" with fancy names start emerging, but in reality they are one man shows of ambitious self seeking individuals, mostly of who are from the large but fractured Peronist  movement, but with completely different political ideologies. </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">This is where it becomes complicated understanding Argentines political landscape. The first thing that comes in one’s mind when talking about Argentine politics is Peronism, which by definition stands for an </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;">economic, political, and social ideology called Justicialismo (social justice). When listening to some of the so-called “opposition individuals” ( who claim to be Peronists) one comes to conclusion that their political objectives are a far cry from social ideologies but rather are those of a center right conservative political stance. Thus, since the Kirchners’ took office, during election times a fractured opposition of self seeking individuals with conservative views have tried to gain power and failed to do so for lack of unity and being unable to “feel the pulse and needs” of the common people. </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: blue;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;">OPPOSITION LACKS UNITY THUS USES CORPORATE MEDIA TO OPPOSE THE GOVERNMENT </span></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAXdjkoy45XwVOXt9EAf8wbJrijd0TsdBRlhr0tTGfhNQEOTZ_Qhy8NQyLhShbzhxhnvD2zjiU7Sjd_sQBiWh6TGRGPVQdiibbbL26aSDeHoQzQzxrjP3wAishhDDB-A9XUBOwUpXzvO5J/s1600/_48871145_papers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAXdjkoy45XwVOXt9EAf8wbJrijd0TsdBRlhr0tTGfhNQEOTZ_Qhy8NQyLhShbzhxhnvD2zjiU7Sjd_sQBiWh6TGRGPVQdiibbbL26aSDeHoQzQzxrjP3wAishhDDB-A9XUBOwUpXzvO5J/s1600/_48871145_papers.jpg" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;">Since they (the opposition) lack unity they are practically invisible and thus refer to a different tool of opposing the current government: CORPORATE MEDIA.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;">Since 2003 the media giant Clarin Group and La Nacion have been the main and powerful tool of the “invisible opposition” to oppose the current government. Misinformation, lack of objectivity etc. both in Clarin Groups TV News Channels as well as print media is a daily occurrence in Argentina. Needles to say these media giants are well connected and thus use their influence to spread misinformation about the economic situation of the country etc to <i>The Economist</i>, who as long as this government is in power will never write an objective article on Argentina, as well as international mainstream media outlets. </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: blue;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;">THE AVERAGE CITIZEN HARDLY HAS THE TIME AND PATIENCE TO ANALYZE AND RESEARCH NEWSPAPER ARTICLE IN ORDER TO FORM AN OBJECTIVE OPINION, SOMETHING MAINSTREAM MEDIA EMPIRES ARE FULLY AWARE OF</span></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfjOmQU2nHGRZmKjKZswbU6znnGK8k1R0VWTFJLMOOPZzoMiRs6j8s619BtVSVZCtqif6tSrgJlKPc5wulgat5EVeye_3cmB2I2FY6jEaDuepP2KYhUolAJjwy21LpxWrbiX5hxkRBCtz2/s1600/0622_todo_negativo_g.jpg_1121220956.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="217" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfjOmQU2nHGRZmKjKZswbU6znnGK8k1R0VWTFJLMOOPZzoMiRs6j8s619BtVSVZCtqif6tSrgJlKPc5wulgat5EVeye_3cmB2I2FY6jEaDuepP2KYhUolAJjwy21LpxWrbiX5hxkRBCtz2/s320/0622_todo_negativo_g.jpg_1121220956.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Todo Noticias news channel belonging to Clarin Croup, reporting predominantly negative news </span></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: large;">Needless to say that media giants such as Clarin group, La Nacion and the “invisible</span></span>opposition” are fully aware that the average citizen hardly has the time and patience to analyze and research each article or report these entities print or transmit, nor use alternative information sources to research their claim in order to form one’s own objective opinion. <b>Thus the majority of people of different social and educational background by large absorb and take for grant what Clarin and La Nacion (the two most read dailies in Argentina) “feed” them with.</b> The same goes for their News Channels who are also a manipulative tool to form public opinion. </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: red;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;">IN VIEW OF ABOVE MENTIONED FACTS <i>THE ECONOMIST,</i> WITH THE HELP OF ARGENTINE S INVISIBLE OPPOSITION AND BACKING OF LOCAL MEDIA GIANTS, STRUCK AGAIN WITH ITS LATEST ARGENTINE BASHING ARTICLE:</span></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;"></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;"></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;">See related article: </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://news-these-days.blogspot.com.ar/2012/02/economist-far-cry-from-renowned-and.html"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;">http://news-these-days.blogspot.com.ar/2012/02/economist-far-cry-from-renowned-and.html</span></span></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://news-these-days.blogspot.com.ar/2011/12/economists-sorry-journalism.html">http://news-these-days.blogspot.com.ar/2011/12/economists-sorry-journalism.html</a></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrftReL8kF1YpKtoIW4GrjaMHEE5h3_5spm2wg-47iKTL7u94XGjP0N6Boh88P4SJUYYV_bcvgO_PGy4Wyk55J_FgOYwHfuLwntZGVI7zgr0Pnb7GqAgOb5jEsCaDcZgGUWdoUiXSA98nM/s1600/EconomistOrPropagandist.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrftReL8kF1YpKtoIW4GrjaMHEE5h3_5spm2wg-47iKTL7u94XGjP0N6Boh88P4SJUYYV_bcvgO_PGy4Wyk55J_FgOYwHfuLwntZGVI7zgr0Pnb7GqAgOb5jEsCaDcZgGUWdoUiXSA98nM/s400/EconomistOrPropagandist.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">The Economist wrote:</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: red; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Argentina’s economy</span></i></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: red; line-height: normal;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: red; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Piggy bank</span></i></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: red; line-height: normal;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: red; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Rootling around for cash</span></i></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">FOR the past 20 years a plaque has adorned the lobby of Argentina’s Central Bank, proclaiming its “primary and fundamental mission to preserve the value of the currency”. This week the plaque was removed after the country’s Congress approved a government bill that gives the bank a new, wordier mandate: “to promote, to the extent of its ability and in the framework of policies established by the national government, monetary stability, financial stability, jobs and economic growth with social fairness”.</span></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Put more simply, the bank has lost the last shred of its legal independence and become the piggy bank of President Cristina Fernández’s government. It can now be required to transfer to the treasury cash equal to 20% of government revenues plus 12% of the money supply; to use its reserves (of $47 billion) at will to pay government debts; and to play a more active role in regulating banks and in steering credit to favoured industries.</span></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">After forcing out the bank’s governor, Martín Redrado, in 2010, Ms Fernández has used more than $16 billion of reserves to pay debt, and earmarked $5.7 billion for 2012. But there was a hiccup: under the old law, which dated from the currency board in effect in the 1990s, the government could only spend reserves above the amount needed to back up the stock of pesos in circulation, and it had already exhausted that amount. Rather than “brutal belt-tightening,” as Mercedes Marcó del Pont, Mr Redrado’s replacement, put it, the government changed the law.</span></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Ms Fernández, like her husband and predecessor, Néstor Kirchner, has relentlessly pursued economic growth. </span></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">This is getting harder. Public finances have fallen into deficit thanks to bloated subsidies used mainly to keep utility and transport tariffs low. As the current-account surplus diminishes, the government has imposed curbs on imports and stricter capital controls. The latest protectionist measure requires buyers of books from foreign websites to collect them personally from the airport and pay a fee of up to $80.</span></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">The government could now use the Central Bank’s reserves to pay the $9.3 billion it owes to the Paris Club of creditor governments—an obstacle to its being able to tap international capital markets. But the immediate effect of the change in the law has been to stoke worries that inflation will take off, putting pressure on the peso (see chart). The gap between the official exchange rate and the rate in the swap market has widened to nearly 20%. But Ms Marcó del Pont insists that the bank will be “very rigorous” and will not print more pesos than needed. The government’s fairly low debt burden and its strict curbs on capital flight may prevent a rapid collapse of the peso.</span></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Another sign of the government’s growing desperation is its bullying of YPF, a unit of Spain’s Repsol. As the former state oil monopoly, YPF tugs at nationalist heartstrings. Government-inspired posters recently went up in Buenos Aires showing YPF’s logo, a map of the Falkland Islands and the statement: “They’re Argentine.”</span></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Ms Fernández blames YPF for a fall in output of oil (down 32% since its peak in 1998) and gas (down 10% since 2004). Oilmen blame the government: producers receive just $42 per barrel for exports and around $70 in the domestic market, whereas the world-market price is over $120.</span></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Repsol has offered to pay YPF’s 2011 dividend in stock, and not to repatriate profits. But the government wants the dividend paid into a special investment fund. It is not clear whether the president’s aim is renationalisation: she would find it hard to raise the funds, although her threats have depressed YPF’s share price by 14% this year. Six provinces have stripped YPF of oil concessions, but mostly minor ones.</span></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">What makes all this perverse is that Argentina sits on possibly the world’s third-biggest reserves of shale hydrocarbons. (<a href="http://news-these-days.blogspot.com.ar/2012/03/argentine-shale-gas-production-could.html">http://news-these-days.blogspot.com.ar/2012/03/argentine-shale-gas-production-could.html</a>)YPF estimates that developing them will cost $25 billion a year for a decade. Not even the Central Bank can provide Ms Fernández with funds like that. But short-term political need, rather than long-term prosperity, is dictating Argentine policy.</span></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnNBIvWqOn48YHDHUl2tWP_DHi-1uQv57C3P4MuacGwQsGkjv7YVE6QSuUZN8qNZfjZAlsOwhY8YpRhSRElkhnCcy-IinkoB-16Diha5Zv3bzBv3nxB4DNYdQBG5yVca2YgvuXEodm8Htj/s1600/image_people-together.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnNBIvWqOn48YHDHUl2tWP_DHi-1uQv57C3P4MuacGwQsGkjv7YVE6QSuUZN8qNZfjZAlsOwhY8YpRhSRElkhnCcy-IinkoB-16Diha5Zv3bzBv3nxB4DNYdQBG5yVca2YgvuXEodm8Htj/s400/image_people-together.gif" width="400" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% white; color: blue; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% white; color: blue; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">FEELING THE PULSE OF THE PEOPLE: – DIFFERENT VIEWS AND OPINIONS REGARDING <i>THE ECONOMISTS</i> ARTICLE</span></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Wingdings; line-height: 115%;"><span style="-moz-font-feature-settings: normal; -moz-font-language-override: normal; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> <span style="color: red;"> </span></span></span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;">The "independent" European central banks have lead the economy of Europe to a total collapse, whereas the economy of Argentina has been growing at exuberant rates in the last few years. Why is Argentinean government wrong?</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: black; margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: black; margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Wingdings; line-height: 115%;"><span style="-moz-font-feature-settings: normal; -moz-font-language-override: normal; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">  </span></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;">Argentina has been growing at fast pace for almost 10 years with what <i>The Economist</i> calls "short term policies, cheap tricks, lies, etc.<br />How many years of nonstop growth does it take for <i>The Economist</i> to call Argentina's growth a solid sustainable growth?</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: black; margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: black; margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Wingdings; line-height: 115%;"><span style="-moz-font-feature-settings: normal; -moz-font-language-override: normal; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">  </span></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;">IMF measured the GDP growth of Argentina taking into consideration their own private sources to measure inflation. And the number they came up with was 8.6% of solid growth for 2011. 2012 economic outlook indicates that  the economy will probably grow "<b>only 7%"</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: black; margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: black; margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Wingdings; line-height: 115%;"><span style="-moz-font-feature-settings: normal; -moz-font-language-override: normal; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">  </span></span><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;">THE ECONOMIST</span></i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; line-height: 115%;">is unleashing an ideological battle of words.<br />In the US the infrastructure is decaying. Potholes are cropping out in highways and expressways. Refineries are shutting down driving gas prices to 5 dollars a gallon. Sick people are getting kicked out of hospitals. There are tons of men, women and children in the streets begging for money.<br />But hey, at least nobody is lying about the inflation in the US</span></span></div><div style="color: black;"><br /></div>

ARGENTINA: A COUNTRY WITHOUT VISIBLE POLITICAL OPPOSITION.

ARGENTINE ’ S "INVISIBLE OPPOSITION", CONSISTING OF SELF - SEEKING ONE MAN SHOWS, WHO USE CORPORATE MEDIA TO OPPOSE THE GOVERNMENT...

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School Librarian - Hopkins School

<strong>School Librarian</strong> - <span style="color: #48286d;"><strong>Hopkins School</strong></span>, New Haven, CT. Founded in 1660, Hopkins is a coeducational, college preparatory day school that offers a challenging academic program combined with a wide variety of extracurricular activities. We serve approximately 700 students in grades 7 through 12 drawn from 45 communities across Connecticut. We seek an experienced school librarian with an MLS degree from an ALA-accredited school for a full time faculty position beginning August 15, 2012. The successful candidate will enjoy working with middle and high school students and understand how to foster a strong academic environment that is friendly and welcoming. He or she will be comfortable working as part of a team within a shared space, possess an excellent work ethic with strong interpersonal and organizational skills, and be able to maintain a sense of equilibrium and good humor in providing services in our busy library. Other desirable personal attributes include having a passion for reading, being intellectually curious with broad academic interests, and being technologically competent. Independent school experience a plus. Responsibilities include: provide information skills instruction to classes and individual students, assist with developing, maintaining and promoting library resources, assist in daily operations of the library and academic advising. Salary commensurate with experience. Interested candidates should send a cover letter with resume and contact information for three references OR three letters of reference to <a href="mailto:academicopening@hopkins.edu">academicopening@hopkins.edu</a> or Carla MacMullen, Dean of Faculty, Hopkins School, 986 Forest Road, New Haven, CT 06515.

School Librarian - Hopkins School

School Librarian - Hopkins School , New Haven, CT. Founded in 1660, Hopkins is a coeducational, college preparatory day school that offe...

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School Library Media Specialist - Glastonbury High School

<strong>School Library Media Specialist</strong> - <span style="color: #48286d;"><strong>Glastonbury High School</strong></span>. Full-Time Position. Beginning Date: August 27, 2012. CT Certification Required. Endorsement 062 - School Library Media Specialist. Closing Date: <span style="color: red;">April 13, 2012</span>. AA/EOE. <a href="http://www.applitrack.com/glastonbury/OnlineApp/JobPostings/view.asp?all=1&AppliTrackJobId=191&AppliTrackLayoutMode=detail&AppliTrackViewPosting=1" target="_blank">Get more information/apply online</a>.

School Library Media Specialist - Glastonbury High School

School Library Media Specialist - Glastonbury High School . Full-Time Position. Beginning Date: August 27, 2012. CT Certification Require...

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Library Assistant, Evenings and Sundays - Saint Joseph College

<strong>Library Assistant, Evenings and Sundays</strong> - <span style="color: #48286d;"><strong>Saint Joseph College</strong></span>, West Hartford, Connecticut. This position assists the Access Services Coordinator with the daily functions of circulation. The individual handles these functions during evenings and Sundays. RESPONSIBILITIES (include but are not limited to): Provides library service at the circulation desk on Sundays, plus Monday through Thursday afternoons and evenings. Some schedule flexibility during school breaks and dependable attendance is critical. Assists the Access Services Coordinator with reserves, over dues, shelving and stack maintenance. Processes material for the cataloger and assists in technical services as needed. Assists the college community with general library assistance, including library technology and equipment. Performs other duties as required. Occasionally will share with the other library assistant responsibility for library public services and securing the library at closing. QUALIFICATIONS: B.A. or B.S. Academic library experience desirable. Strong service ethic and the ability to work well with people is required. Strong organizational skills and attention to detail. Possess solid general computer skills, including ability to work in a Windows environment. Familiarity with specific applications used by the College a plus. Physical ability to perform essential functions of the position, with or without reasonable accommodation. GRADE 7; salary is commensurate with qualifications and experience. To apply, please email a cover letter, resume, salary requirements and the names, addresses and telephone numbers of three professional references to <a href="mailto:hr@sjc.edu">hr@sjc.edu</a>. Saint Joseph College is an Equal Opportunity Employer (M/F/V/D) that values diversity; people of color and women are strongly encouraged to apply.

Library Assistant, Evenings and Sundays - Saint Joseph College

Library Assistant, Evenings and Sundays - Saint Joseph College , West Hartford, Connecticut. This position assists the Access Services Co...

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How to send photos by email

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><i>This is a guest post from Lisa Gair who is the technology teacher at the Rock Academy in Fish Hoek. She originally placed this post on her school blog: </i><a href="http://rockacademynews.blogspot.com/"><i>http://rockacademynews.blogspot.com/</i></a><i>, and since Lisa is a keen SchoolNetter I asked her if I could use her post on the SchoolNet blog. Thank you Lisa!</i></span></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">With us making increasing use of technology for class related projects, we are encouraging children and parents to take their camera's on outings and to special school events, and then to email their photographs to school which can either be used for their work or for the Blog. However, when emailing high quality photographs of sometimes up to 4MB per photo, it can become a long and tedious event!  Below is one way of reducing your photographs to send to school in an email format that is quick and easy.</span></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span> </div><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Step 1</span><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">:</span></b></span><br /></span><br /><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Select the photo's you would like to email by holding down your CTRL key and selecting the photo's.</span></span></li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> Click on : "File". Select "Send to". Select "Mail Recipient".<br /></span></span></li></ul><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8Pgr0AMhLMwu1fZ-JxMFMdYSbcxFOzl8zdRuo2iH07ts-kIQnLzNb_i0tGEiPVhO1y1JMkl1y0pcK4fGo9pR6j33XX0diQsUCDKjb5u0DT2zwldTphUXMMZwp2024jBUfMV1vNAK0eSc/s1600-h/image%25255B15%25255D.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="image" border="0" height="194" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJvcNfXjKF0z1LNWXKn2bI-wihaZnOU27Xws-PT9MVc-o_L4lzQyj3xih4UpzUtVD-GX-wUotvUEQvkMTnoVjAxMe984_R52NoXwAwr1eBMQmoI4CHdWdfoOR4i8YVi-oQph6ZGtTerWM/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-color: -moz-use-text-color; border-style: none; border-width: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="260" /></a></div><br /><br /><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Step 2</span><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">:</span></span></b> </span><br /><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Click the Dropdown Arrow in the Dialogue Box that appears.</span></span></li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> Select the recommended size.</span></span></li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> Click on "Attach".<br /></span></span></li></ul><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6tB3iUBhu1r97LIinSpYqtXp4P5YD_cL4iNkzlv5vm997JOHxUQBhTOilEwfnIvRTWVJ1R9V6xfLu4hsafuvoZk_2Mh9O8lAf8Dc9oCUydSfuKeX9ulM-TD38wMUAWWvm1FBg7nHIpJs/s1600-h/image%25255B19%25255D.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="image" border="0" height="186" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1lD5naFUCBafJj2yB-Moml7JbNyadNk9Y4E7hyV8rjhzIM-jfVRSBEM7F_mvFYWc48KdhlX2A7Hto2d2Zw3MHA2uimrsGEbkHa0lnOB6P_u3e6oUshAtJH7_WW6yTPiOjY3PPpnkph8U/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-color: -moz-use-text-color; border-style: none; border-width: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="260" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Step 3:</span></b></span></span><br /><br /><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: small;"> Your email window will automatically open with the selected photo's attached and ready to send.</span></li></ul><ul style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: small;"> Proceed as normal.</span></li></ul><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoAmPsHZRIIeNFGBiQQFslayEEnRPXWuxT3v3uXaDEswCqNUTnLGBseFv1r9Kxy9QEVRPCF90cSakMbG4YoBnNZHJOJOGGOTKuuZXmryzdbVfaJYYrnRDTAi7w6oixIPd35JfkmcpqYx4/s1600-h/image%25255B23%25255D.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="image" border="0" height="189" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4ryHVE9JhgfFmpXa6JcpdKjYcChm3R8PPRy6Ve5efuZAbBWnqo03zL6o-feGV8cscb8NcKiA5dE4MvgbdYZRnjMyaA50-aYK3saov_ED3vVFFlmxup-tRp6j_RlBXX9AOS8sJZ-KrVyQ/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-color: -moz-use-text-color; border-style: none; border-width: 0px; display: inline; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" title="image" width="260" /></a></div><br /><br /><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Editor: Once again, thanks you to Lisa!</span></div></div>

Guest post Tutorials Web tools How to send photos by email

This is a guest post from Lisa Gair who is the technology teacher at the Rock Academy in Fish Hoek. She originally placed this post on her s...

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I should have done this a long time ago

Therapy. I should have done therapy a long time ago. I tried a few times, but never liked the therapist. In the past twenty years I've seen three therapists, one session each. They all gave me books to read and lots of homework. I often thought, I'm paying you, you should have read the books and then give me the Cliff notes. <br /><br />The therapist I'm seeing now is also called a "life coach" and specializes in helping people deal with stress and anger. I've known her for about ten years through Toastmasters (which I haven't attended in over two years). I've always liked her and enjoyed her company. It turns out she's an amazing therapist, and better yet, she sees me on weekends so I don't have to leave work for a "doctor" appointment every week.<br /><br />After only two sessions, I'm already developing the tools to deal with my life. I feel so much better. No hives last week for the first time in five weeks. Although I did have what I guess would be called an anxiety attack on Thursday night.<br /><br />I was at the gym at 6pm. I had experienced a terrible visit with my sister on Wednesday afternoon, when I visited her during her physical therapy session. I don't want to relive it, but she was filled with anger and frustration. It was awful and I left in tears. I've heard of this behavior from her before, but I had never witnessed it. To see my sweet, beautiful sister act like a bratty two-year old was more than I could handle.<br /><br />The anxiety attack started while I was on the elliptical, thinking about what had happened the day before with my sister. Suddenly, I couldn't breathe. I was determined to get in at least thirty minutes on the elliptical, but my breathing got progressively worse. I realized I was in trouble. It was like an asthma attack, which I haven't had in over 20 years. It was a feeling of impending death, of my own death. And the unreasonable fear that I couldn't explain or define. I was scared, but I didn't know why. Death? I don't know. The two were intertwined.<br /><br />I quickly left the gym and sat in my car for thirty minutes, practicing breathing techniques for relaxation and trying to calm down. I didn't know if I should call 911 or my husband or just drive myself to the nearest emergency room. I had my heart rate monitor on, and usually after a workout my pulse will go from 145 to 56 in a couple of minutes. Even though I was sitting still, my heart rate stayed at a steady 100 or more for a full half hour. Finally, I calmed down, started breathing normally and my heart rate returned to normal. It was a very scary experience. Although I will say, I still had my sense of humor about my life. As I drove away, I thought, "well, guess the night workouts don't really work for me!". Followed by a lot of laughter (my therapist said I'm definitely not depressed...I should be, but I'm not). <br /><br />Today, during therapy, we decided I should take the weekend off from my sister. I still feel wounded from Wednesday. As the therapist explained, this is not my sister as I knew her. My sister before the stoke would never scream at me and slap my hand as I tried to help her. This is my sister with brain damage. I have to accept that I will  never have my sister back the way she was before the stroke. As heartbreaking as that is to say, I know it's true. We can't communicate, she doesn't really even know what's going on most of the time. I am in the process of accepting her for who she is now, and love her the best I can. I have to stop criticizing myself for not doing enough. I've done everything I can to help her, and I've given her everything I can give. I have to tend to me, to my needs, to myself.  <br /><br />Weight this morning, 195.6. Workouts this past week: 3. My tribute to this being a weight-loss blog.<br /><br /><br />

I should have done this a long time ago

Therapy. I should have done therapy a long time ago. I tried a few times, but never liked the therapist. In the past twenty years I've s...

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Hy-Vee 5K

<p align="left">If you didn’t see <a href="http://weightloss-stories.blogspot.com/2012/03/5k-here-i-come.html">my post from Saturday</a>, I’ll catch you up! I ran my first 5k in 18 months…the first one post baby! It was a challenge, but I finished and I’m proud of what I did. </p> <p align="left">The weather was much different than expected. A day or so ago the forecast said it was supposed to be sunny and 73 degrees…but I woke up this morning to fog, chilly, and 48 degrees! Woa!</p> <p align="left">I didn’t let that stop me though! Threw on my sneakers and headed the 3-4 miles to the race location…I love hometown races! Kyle and Adelyn were in tow as well, official race cheerleaders!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglRMCFrUjxiMzr4Uj39NB1AXtM4pEY1817zPR3PNRF16jHgpIjSGXGqIYUdPNQB4SJP4GIOoL-O1u4dT4mymXfPZYI61lYlEWHQoVK-l7niBPHTbRnoJCRs9MEn6Kf0gyVwJ0h4IaCuALd/s1600-h/IMG_1415%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img alt="IMG_1415" border="0" height="271" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4L-_MQgf9VDFVcG1phlAG19NfFCWn90YHcHc32T8nOqYeHF_n5DLGLtVzvAdU3VBVgTEpesn3uEgpHFl4unyyNiUoyGt1WUR56IZQUnVXfzImzIsf3HuI4LDw6dTYtfi-qqk3oR8g1wu3/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="IMG_1415" width="404"></a></p> <p align="left">The race was held at a park just outside of the town where I live, thankfully they had REAL bathrooms! I took advantage of that, got a few good luck kisses from my race cheerleaders and headed for the start line, nerves and all.</p> <p align="left">The race started at 9:30am sharp. I was a little too close to the front and started out quick. At one point I looked down at my Garmin and it said I was pacing at 7:45…not my 10 minute normal. Somewhere around that same time I spotted my race cheerleaders…only 1/4 mile into the race. This is where I backed off a little and got to a more comfortable pace!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnVk2y_CMO_F21xQokbPQLleRYxn2nicdKiVDMWH_xOzks3F6X1f9j0EtkjweVT4clgfmrxIqvv6nqeOHnhoUHdBDQyC-EPp2n1goT4qfXTyPsZzI1zK_MqPcJjvH2hIVgUkMJLL4iGBzO/s1600-h/IMG_1416%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img alt="IMG_1416" border="0" height="271" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUAbfWCcWcZN2swxvWq77f-SLHlPipYelm4Rdi5vm_4XK9Uy-3_0IW_rxj0Hsu2L_9_ul_WNtdlwdhSGbQ2Y47wS78vadtqRDa2Vs5FPqwYA-P2CEBYG0PdDUNmDkEv64kU7RqD4mgmnLT/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="IMG_1416" width="404"></a></p> <p align="left">To say that this race was a challenge is no joke! Little did I know that this park not too far from my house was filled with <strong><u>HILLY</u></strong> trails! Yep my first non flat race! Here’s a side note, I live in Iowa…the FLAT LANDS, I never run hills!</p> <p align="left">Ok, back to the race recap…the first hills weren’t too bad, but later in the race it did start to wear on me. I ended up finishing the race with a walk/run routine, which I was was A-ok with. I felt like the slog (SLow-jOG) I was doing up hill wasn’t anymore productive than a power walk. </p> <p align="left">My ALL TIME favorite race cheerleaders were waiting for me at mile 3. It was so refreshing to see Kyle and Adelyn and it gave me the “umph” I needed to finish that last 0.10 miles strong!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiim4u6hXr4iSkUvobeD0q1mqLZSvYrCZmBPb54jL3r0WxUpOPsIZnAb35DpB5VBGFcRV1N7KytlhMvLvUn_XKVOPYiId46mrAvDTOrChnTq4HeUozQ4ENhysEah6fxYTSdVuPnko7uWBAr/s1600-h/IMG_1419%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img alt="IMG_1419" border="0" height="271" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7DD7JYATrxtShgd7kFDozvZb5aX5pRlwG__9gsaW0W56VRm1tJawArY-H0hFz1mCHlpfVYjKKFtEdTGG9YVqviy2DzUdiCxOshmjtJwGQsA85rZtlDTxpxF70ASCcFYTQZDdX_W4WEKRL/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="IMG_1419" width="404"></a></p> <p align="left">I blew them kisses and was off to finish my first 5k since having a baby! At the end of the race route you had to run <u>right past</u> the finish line and do this little loop…such a tease!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbU7ajGeywJNqlLSJ4gXAZwRpWh18Yi4PcDexs8g_o55HEK_L_UdVV38i2vmWTR5OUYPtpnDNx57jYbCoe-VC-kn4ZJSGqIDJkIXw70yLThBDYrScb_kpgiOGTZVXy-vmm6AOTKPcaHG_r/s1600-h/IMG_1421%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img alt="IMG_1421" border="0" height="271" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiX-p8sxfrD8PtSnwcluC4TBPXkrdl7AOLD8Mx1Cwm0YfUVu-fV8c3akV0tGIBk0NGbwz6FWfgXpbBrd9ZrRmehWikjcv_C0FBfhyphenhyphenkR7A6w5MymguN4dMb5z5b1rI9_mOUcXE3pRtFuS1-r/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="IMG_1421" width="404"></a></p> <p align="right">I did it, finished my 5th 5k, 1st one post-baby!!!! I don’t have an official time yet, but my Garmin said 37:02. And I’m proud of that!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDxLwbqCsUUwK9mhosUGy8HKGrS6yJhVpoGpotIE6nbHP_XkqsQg7n-u5YQ1a17hSiVCfm_kE5ClLCwP6pCRImxLcVI-9iivLtLU4-WTI9SCTKTVnKsvRLBAXj9qFXABsDrtGI0Lkbzb1O/s1600-h/IMG_1422%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img alt="IMG_1422" border="0" height="271" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmc-HGT43K1sIMDASTTIgBrY21_5MzqvxmEVNrnE-0OpJbDR3ieuEOkyVMdrXBF__Qe3kWEn5YgEJw9alhobjwTzBEWCWbYl4A73GnPBfBJU_0La_s6jKifiuE0XYlqdX6byfA2F0WXzJC/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="IMG_1422" width="404"></a></p> <p align="left">I grabbed a banana and 1/2 bagel and met up with this sweet girl who was waiting for me in the warm car! (it was too cold for her & daddy to be outside too long)<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS6ZQuQIhyphenhyphenZw8XiSEd1z8aHe6Ow1-saR1q1_c4b5m-FzkAJVlg_mp0FuZWAl9pK7jCxI_ecF8xUtMVLU_Fxfx1CuZumBCG-HxrwF2A10Yn_mQtZc2g1bXl8vjgYmqbj_b0_zGNrokuzgAB/s1600-h/IMG_1431%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img alt="IMG_1431" border="0" height="271" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHywAGJpRDYHR_-kDv3r3GK33syyC0P__ucNO5ja6mgPiRLDiCkEafc4ahUbmxQKYJyZGhjGqfgA4if-KB95-yaUfKTufqHbQoQ6alGSCaVm4aCO529-TAtLwJmRNsnIBpR-sHeIANnSwP/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="IMG_1431" width="404"></a></p> <p align="left">This was the first year this race was put on and they did an exceptional job! I’ve ran both big and small races and you never would have known that this was the first go-around. First class race! Great volunteers, well marked course, and awesome goodies! </p> <p align="left">I’m proud of what I accomplished today, it wasn’t easy, but I did it! I’m looking forward to more races this year! <img alt="Winking smile" class="wlEmoticon wlEmoticon-winkingsmile" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUWwjdb473WTj28_evrlC071363qklx-fhiI772fRVkcJwgxsIsOl_Q1G6bINUeWn26T4VD5QRtpVb3oU4GfqiNWessCTcmFE0mScVKGGnxcbqkc7PtoJwtezCHm4Oov7_xPhh43r335o9/?imgmax=800" style="border-bottom-style: none; border-left-style: none; border-top-style: none; border-right-style: none"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2DAbTGVb7uqf_kOlKwumFUlEY77qbElNmM8zi4PFCKjvft5RXYP1F_dVZct8cQX6s8YhGwff518K3V9l7GtXsBvE1gLFG7sd1eTQXJyDhsaLGJi09oXXz8NYveC5OFhm68KUBLlEe3UAk/s1600-h/IMG_1426%25255B4%25255D.jpg"><img alt="IMG_1426" border="0" height="271" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiniHrvlsUDyUewFwZLw2kvXIljbQbDXVHXdVFoVwDFMNgKS1OmciXJLgy1ReNhFEchieqJndvBLnBgiEI9JLj1yf5OLuCnBVQsN3PmumEEYaFkw32xeRdOWdyI5D11i1g1ZQYM1QVZTNuI/?imgmax=800" style="background-image: none; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: block; float: none; margin-left: auto; border-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; border-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px" title="IMG_1426" width="404"></p> <p align="right"></a><em>(Don’t worry we didn’t let her drive home!)</em></p>

Hy-Vee 5K

If you didn’t see my post from Saturday , I’ll catch you up! I ran my first 5k in 18 months…the first one post baby! It was a challenge, but...

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A Meditation on Mad Men

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiulYFo28OW1tBY_IVKxjB-qWe3NA4qPh1StowVMqi4rVkm9blrZcV0vKtOedm_2NS3UybQgrD1rZR4T6PiRF-IW4JSX8T14coVm6idaMP3CARqEAMEXeXTR-KPyXN-dHAyy1H8z6oPlLHr/s1600/Draper+panoramic+shot.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiulYFo28OW1tBY_IVKxjB-qWe3NA4qPh1StowVMqi4rVkm9blrZcV0vKtOedm_2NS3UybQgrD1rZR4T6PiRF-IW4JSX8T14coVm6idaMP3CARqEAMEXeXTR-KPyXN-dHAyy1H8z6oPlLHr/s1600/Draper+panoramic+shot.jpg" /></a></span></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> "...<span style="font-size: large;">n</span>ostalgia. It's delicate...but potent...in Greek, nostalgia literally means 'the pain from an old wound.' It's a twinge in your heart, far more powerful than memory alone."</span></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Sterling Cooper's creative director Don Draper is pitching his promotional concept to Kodak, a prospective client, for its new product, a wheel-like slide projector. As images of his own young family flash by, one by one, on a projection screen, he continues his inspired dream-spinning:</span></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">"This device isn't a spaceship. It's a time machine. It goes backwards, forwards. It takes us to a place where we ache to go again."</span></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"></span><br /><a name='more'></a><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">With these words, words that also echo an aspect of <i>Mad Men</i>'s emotional appeal,  the client and everyone else inside the hushed room is in the palm of Draper's hand; he concludes:</span></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">"It's not called 'the Wheel." It's called a 'Carousel.' It lets us travel the way a child travels. Around and around, and back home again...to a place where we know we are loved."</span></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">The carousel whirl that is AMC's <i>Mad Men</i> sweeps the viewer along on the labyrinthine journey of Don Draper, preternaturally savvy and eloquent Madison Avenue dreamweaver, as he and those close to him navigate the dark and white nights of their own souls and that of 1960s America.</span></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiloupOY3TtoEOP2u5zrqpvbOnLgIJnRphIU_gMdrvRmSI6G9J4q4jvtuYfZ4TqMhPohGF0Ufq_0Ah8hFnf1vr0KR6MxPuBVIs5Spjr6al5N3Z7gFXiCJoCBxObDArxyIJj-mRLecb6c7ub/s1600/Wheel+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiloupOY3TtoEOP2u5zrqpvbOnLgIJnRphIU_gMdrvRmSI6G9J4q4jvtuYfZ4TqMhPohGF0Ufq_0Ah8hFnf1vr0KR6MxPuBVIs5Spjr6al5N3Z7gFXiCJoCBxObDArxyIJj-mRLecb6c7ub/s400/Wheel+1.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><i><a href="http://youtu.be/suRDUFpsHus" style="color: #cc0000;">Click here</a> to watch Don Draper's entire 'Carousel' pitch</i></span></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"></span></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: left;"><br /><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: large;">I</span>n an early episode, Betty Draper, Don's then-wife, stares at him as he lies sleeping and wonders aloud, "Who <i>are </i>you?"  Betty's late father, Gene, didn't like his son-in-law at all and, in another episode, complains of him, "He has no people. You can't trust a person like that..." Season 4 opened with the question, "Who is Don Draper?" posed to Draper over lunch by a reporter from <i>Advertising Age</i>. Series loyalists learned early on that Draper was once a neglected farm boy whose impoverished family moved from the Midwest to Pennsylvania coal country. While serving in the Korean war he saw a way out of his nowhere-man future and seized the opportunity. In just a few years he would be a rising star on Madison Avenue with the trophy wife, children, Cadillac and suburban Ossining house to certify his status.</span><br /><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJsL2fA7dTfL_BvjEfe1fsuBnd5C6YnqzF0Ox4FfiEIsjgbbu7SKate573sYFsMR48AoRuPT0a5VAY4kFVONat2LVcYn7jdarNJtv_Ybaag0YNn3zuKDqPjPLWMEJApnXrPXjqYhPEGyd_/s1600/don-and-betty.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJsL2fA7dTfL_BvjEfe1fsuBnd5C6YnqzF0Ox4FfiEIsjgbbu7SKate573sYFsMR48AoRuPT0a5VAY4kFVONat2LVcYn7jdarNJtv_Ybaag0YNn3zuKDqPjPLWMEJApnXrPXjqYhPEGyd_/s400/don-and-betty.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Don and Betty Draper at home </span></td></tr></tbody></table><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: large;">D</span>raper's mysterious past and meteoric ascent have inspired comparisons to another iconic fictional character, Jay Gatsby of F. Scott Fitzgerald's <i>The Great Gatsby</i>. It was of Gatsby that Fitzgerald's narrator, Nick, would say, "If personality is an unbroken series of successful gestures, then there was something gorgeous about him..." Gatsby, born James Gatz in an upper Midwestern backwater, was based on a character out of ancient fiction named Trimalchio. A freed Roman slave who became wealthy and powerful and was intent on winning over the 1st century <span lang="EN">crème de la crème, Trimalchio hosted an elaborate but tasteless feast about which the elite laughed behind his back. Gatsby, who made his fortune through confidence schemes and shady connections, was rich but naive, and his grand soirees were attended but scorned by New York's finest.</span></span></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoO9uEVXWfGBA3eJREtp_XL3oBlYNtPwyEArNpjAWfvm-0Ufx0Mkz_jHLDuw0u4R4AwaHDhsLZYnn5tnSa5qwFBdsUsboOn__MK2Rrtn-LfWwkpEOh_suMROgrNCFrCmn0A5dmyjdXhr7p/s1600/Mad+Men+Don+Cool.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="206" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoO9uEVXWfGBA3eJREtp_XL3oBlYNtPwyEArNpjAWfvm-0Ufx0Mkz_jHLDuw0u4R4AwaHDhsLZYnn5tnSa5qwFBdsUsboOn__MK2Rrtn-LfWwkpEOh_suMROgrNCFrCmn0A5dmyjdXhr7p/s320/Mad+Men+Don+Cool.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A man in full</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="EN">Though, like Gatsby, Don Draper is an arriviste who was once "a penniless young man without a past," no one is laughing at him. By 1960, when <i>Mad Men</i> picks up, the talented and charismatic Mr. Draper has sparked awe and envy throughout the world of advertising. No, at this point, Don Draper is perceived less like the ill-fated Gatsby and perhaps more like a more fortunate young man who fled his roots and re-made himself: Archie Leach of Bristol, England, who made his name in America and of his reinvented self said, "Everyone wants to be Cary Grant. Even I want to be Cary Grant."</span></span></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"></span><br /><div><span style="font-size: small;">Despite his great success, Draper lives in barely contained turmoil. He wrestles with personal demons and chafes under mounting pressures at work and at home. The very time in which he lives is a jittery age - it is the height of ‘the cold war’ and American culture is in the midst of rapid change.</span><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR2oIu1zF77fI8U9tnyceOxjYILRHwUkXU0L6sSI_Qz3T4ht65XwO3_jYFiG1Ve-bkVtiTaLV61J5FWM5qyCuS_OFHZc-Q5za72oKYlMiD5QzFCPvCe3ZdoZ8TbiU3RhrxVgtPdQLWvrEu/s1600/cuban+missile+crisis+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="217" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR2oIu1zF77fI8U9tnyceOxjYILRHwUkXU0L6sSI_Qz3T4ht65XwO3_jYFiG1Ve-bkVtiTaLV61J5FWM5qyCuS_OFHZc-Q5za72oKYlMiD5QzFCPvCe3ZdoZ8TbiU3RhrxVgtPdQLWvrEu/s320/cuban+missile+crisis+2.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Soviet missiles in Cuba</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-size: small;"></span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"></span></div><span lang="EN" style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: large;">I</span>t was at just about this time, in 1959, that developmental psychologist/psychoanalyst Erik Erikson coined the term ‘identity crisis,’ a condition of disorientation or role confusion that results from conflicting internal and external experiences, pressures and expectations that can lead to acute anxiety. Though Erikson originally viewed 'identity crisis' as primarily an adolescent experience, its definition expanded to include crises that occur during major life transitions as well as within social structures.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: small;">Not too many years earlier, in 1950, sociologist David Riesman had written what became, and remains, the best-selling book ever in the U.S. on sociology. <i>The Lonely Crowd</i> examined America’s social character and described the country’s shift from 19^th century ‘inner-direction’ (behavior internalized early through parents and community) to mid-20^th century ‘other-direction’ (responsiveness to peer groups and the media). Riesman’s theories spoke to concerns of the time regarding the conformity that accompanied the sweeping spread of suburban culture. It was Riesman’s view that the confidence and unity that followed World War II were in part an attempt to deflect cultural despair, and his term ‘the lonely crowd’ entered the mainstream as a description of alienation within an affluent society.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><span lang="EN" style="font-size: small;">America, perhaps in its adolescence at mid-century and reeling under the weight of too much power, wealth and responsibility too soon, was entering a period of increasing uncertainty and anxiety as the 1960s unfolded. Clearly Don Draper, with his double life and murky past, is guarded and isolated, and most in his professional and personal orbit are perplexed by the changing, often frightening times.</span><br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHruSDBawoOdyQDmUbsrqxFasWdKpkIyxwJYb1WpIM4lO0Rz8jcGtzpIPeYV-ka4fCkgcnLM9_BdEjnG6QpR5FrxzxXWmMjFs7H0CZYn9bYoqWF2GpN8XSm8iX1lZ1zEP1sJGCucnWUIhZ/s1600/JFK+assassination+episode.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="235" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHruSDBawoOdyQDmUbsrqxFasWdKpkIyxwJYb1WpIM4lO0Rz8jcGtzpIPeYV-ka4fCkgcnLM9_BdEjnG6QpR5FrxzxXWmMjFs7H0CZYn9bYoqWF2GpN8XSm8iX1lZ1zEP1sJGCucnWUIhZ/s400/JFK+assassination+episode.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">November 22, 1963 at Sterling Cooper</td></tr></tbody></table></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/2K8Q3cqGs7I" width="420"></iframe></span></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Walter Cronkite reporting for CBS News, November 22, 1963</span></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span><br /><span lang="EN" style="font-size: small;"><i><span style="font-size: large;">M</span>ad Men</i> creator Matthew Weiner has said that it was during his tenure as a writer on the sitcom <i>Becker</i> that an idea occurred to him for a show set in the ‘60s about someone like himself, “who… had everything and was miserable.” </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6l1CGaRk6cd28e6bepBaRgP4PV425TsNtB_5mi1zGMUXABO4DXzqJf-RAKNWgnsaKf59oOJKd5X2AEOszKmCXTwzuXh8aFiOfnk3wQ2mFhTxHa9-BWfgHpRDzomF_mTxiIcm8VhRJkXWV/s1600/Smoke+1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="209" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6l1CGaRk6cd28e6bepBaRgP4PV425TsNtB_5mi1zGMUXABO4DXzqJf-RAKNWgnsaKf59oOJKd5X2AEOszKmCXTwzuXh8aFiOfnk3wQ2mFhTxHa9-BWfgHpRDzomF_mTxiIcm8VhRJkXWV/s320/Smoke+1.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Smoke Gets in Your Eyes</i></td></tr></tbody></table><span lang="EN" style="font-size: small;">As Weiner focused on writing the story of a character he thought of as a man who has sold out in some ways but is still trying to find himself, he hired a researcher to investigate the 1960s in detail. According to Weiner, the very first piece of research he received was about the crisis in cigarette advertising in 1960. And so it followed that when we first catch sight of Don Draper in the series opener it is 1960 and he is alone at a table in a cocktail lounge quizzing a black waiter about his brand of cigarettes - <i>Old Gold</i>. Draper is struggling to come up with an ad concept for Sterling Draper’s biggest account, <i>Lucky Strike</i>. The noisy, smoke-filled room is dim and in the background a recording of Don Cherry singing “Band of Gold” plays. The episode tracks the sharp, charming and handsome Mr. Draper through the evening and into a night spent with his commercial artist girlfriend, his next day at the office and his trip home after work to – surprise! – his wife and children in the suburbs.</span><br /><br />Since then Don Draper and his family and his colleagues at Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce (formerly Sterling Cooper) have grappled with the wildly unpredictable 1960s as best they can. Having witnessed everything on the national scene from historic space flights and assassination to the explosion of the civil rights movement and the beginnings of women’s movement, they are at the same time dealing with upheaval in their personal lives.</div><br /><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">The 1960s are accurately reflected and exquisitely replicated in <i>Mad Men</i>, and immersion in that glittering and chaotic decade is mesmerizing. But it is the series’ finely drawn, palpably authentic characters, credible story lines and archetypal themes that provide its greatest appeal. </span><i><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Mad Men</span></i><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">, to borrow a phrase from Don Draper's Kodak presentation, affords that "rare occasion when the public can be engaged on a level beyond flash." </span></span><br /><span lang="EN" style="font-size: small;"></span><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/ngf2zHq4FEI" width="560"></iframe></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Season 5 begins...</span></div>

Mad Men The Lady Eve (author) A Meditation on Mad Men

 "... n ostalgia. It's delicate...but potent...in Greek, nostalgia literally means 'the pain from an old wound.' It's a...

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AFRICA THE FORGOTTEN AND UNDERESTIMATED CONTINENT

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/></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: red; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">AUSTRALIA: OUT OF AFRICA ……AND BACK IN</span></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">By Tim Harcourt via The Globalist<span style="mso-no-proof: yes;"></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Throughout the 1980s and into the 1990s, the world's interest in Africa seemed to revolve around famine relief and anti-apartheid rallies. A lot has changed since then, writes Australian economist Tim Harcourt. Now — and for decades to come — the world's interest in Africa is likely to revolve around its growing economic advantages<span></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">W</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">hen South Africa emerged from the apartheid era in the mid-1990s, it was common to hear a plea to the world not to forget Africa simply because the apartheid battle was finished. Back then, "not forgetting Africa" largely meant international aid. And not just from Western governments, but charitable endeavors such as Bob Geldof's Live Aid concerts in 1985. </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">The implication was that these type of events and other aid programs were the main way in which the West could productively interact with the African continent. Fortunately, this postcolonial (and slightly patronizing) view is proving to be completely outmoded. </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: red; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">SEVEN ECONOMIES IN SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA ARE EXPECTED TO BE AMONG THE TEN FASTEST GROWING ECONOMIES IN THE WORLD</span></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">In 2012, sub-Saharan Africa is rapidly coming of age as an economic region and as an investment destination. The so-called "frontier" markets of today's Africa will be the emerging markets of tomorrow. </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Over the next five years, according to the IMF, seven economies in sub-Saharan Africa are expected to be among the ten fastest growing economies in the world. In 2011, the economy of Ghana grew by 13.7%, while Ethiopia's grew by 8.5%. Elsewhere, the Mozambique economy grew by 7.5%, Nigeria and Zambia by 6.8%, and the Democratic Republic of Congo by 6.5%. </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Australia is one country that understands what this means, and the opportunity it presents. Perth is full of mining companies — around 20 or so — that are listed on the Australian Securities Exchange but have the majority of their operations in Africa. There are around 200 Australian mining companies with operations in Africa, and they are involved in projects valued in excess of $45 billion. </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Outside of mining, there are 4,000 or more Australian companies exporting to Africa. Over the last five years, there has been an estimated doubling of Australian companies doing business in Africa, and Australia has a strong presence there in infrastructure, professional services and education. </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">When I was a young official at the Australian Council of Trade Unions, I remember attending a summit in South Africa on economic cooperation among Indian Ocean countries. This was in 1995, just after South Africa had been welcomed back into the international fold. It all seemed very idealistic, but not particularly real, to imagine the Indian Ocean as something that could unite rather than divide the people and economies of Africa and Australia. </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: red; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">RESOURCE BOOMS</span></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">But now, more than a decade and a half later, so much has happened and changed. There has been a strong flow of information, people and money across the Indian Ocean. Despite its expanse, the Indian Ocean is no longer a barrier — it's a connection. Two-way trade is reaching $5 billion a year, and has been on an upward trajectory for several years. </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">At the heart of all this are people of all races. In this regard, Australia has a particular affinity for South Africa. As immigrant societies, many South Africans and Australians share family ties, and South Africans are becoming an influential immigrant group in Australia. Both countries have small, open economies, are geographically isolated from major world markets, and have large, export-oriented resource sectors. </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: red; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">AFRICA IS FORECAST TO EMERGE AS THE FASTEST-GROWING REGION IN THE WORLD OVER THE NEXT 20 YEARS</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: #0b5394; line-height: normal;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">This augurs well for the future, both for Africa and Australia. Africa is forecast to emerge as the fastest-growing region in the world over the next 20 years. To realize this growth, it will have to nurture a number of key competitive advantages: the world's richest mineral and energy deposits, the most arable land, and what is predicted to be the youngest population in the world by 2050. </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Australia's current prosperity is largely due to its own resource boom. By mid-century, that boom may well have extended to Africa and helped drive a huge wave of supplementary development, raising living and education standards throughout the continent. </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Austrade, the federal government's agency for international trade, has recently expanded its African network by opening offices in Ghana and Kenya. Far from "forgetting Africa," the continent will be looming large on more than just Australia's investment radar in the coming decades. And if we can keep economies open for multilateral investment, this will present an opportunity for everyone</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div>

AFRICA THE FORGOTTEN AND UNDERESTIMATED CONTINENT

AUSTRALIA: OUT OF AFRICA ……AND BACK IN By Tim Harcourt via The Globalist Throughout the 1980s and into the 1990s, the world's interest ...

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