Mrs. Hamrick’s Counselor Corner

• Parents’ Guide to Teen Social Networking Chat Transcript:  Does your child have a Facebook or MySpace account? Does he or she text constantly? These methods of social networking sites are increasingly becoming one of the primary ways our kids are communicating with one another these days.  With all the talk of online predators and cyberbullying, how can parents help kids keep the Internet a constructive and safe place? Read a recent chat session with Anne Collier and Larry Magid, co-authors of MySpace Unraveled: A Parents’ Guide to Teen Social Networking and co-directors of ConnectSafely, regarding any issues or concerns pertaining to your teenagers and their online social lives.

• Internet Safety Technical Task Force The Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University today released the final report of the Internet Safety Technical Task Force, a group of 29 leading Internet businesses, non-profit organizations, academics, and technology companies that joined together for a year-long investigation of tools and technologies to create a safer environment on the Internet for youth. The Task Force was created in February 2008 in accordance with the Joint Statement on Key Principles of Social Networking Safety announced in January 2008 by the Attorneys General Multi-State Working Group on Social Networking and MySpace. The report was delivered to the 52 Attorneys General in December, 2008.  To read the final report, including the executive summary, as well as reaction statements from members of the Task Force, visit: http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/pubrelease/isttf/

• Internet Evolution: Future of the Internet III Press release for a December 2008 “survey of experts by the Pew Internet & American Life Project that asked respondents to assess predictions about technology and its roles in the year 2020.” Includes summary and full text of the report, which found that experts predict the “mobile device will be the primary connection tool to the internet … in 2020.” Also includes links to previous “Future of the Internet” and other related reports.http://www.pewinternet.org/PPF/r/270/report_display.asp

• Free Online Book – Daniel Solove, an authority on information privacy law, offers a fascinating account of how the Internet is transforming gossip, the way we shame others, and our ability to protect our own reputations. Focusing on blogs, Internet communities, cyber mobs, and other current trends, he shows that, ironically, the unconstrained flow of information on the Internet may impede opportunities for self-development and freedom. Longstanding notions of privacy need review, the author contends: unless we establish a balance among privacy, free speech, and anonymity, we may discover that the freedom of the Internet makes us less free.  http://docs.law.gwu.edu/facweb/dsolove/Future-of-Reputation/text.htm

I have a couple of resources that I want to share with the Kell community.  I have known about these for a little while now and have really been wanting to get the word out about what I’ve found.  There are so many things out there on the internet to help you find scholarships and these are two of my favorite.

The first is a podcast.  Before I tell you the podcast that I just love, I need to make sure you know what a podcast is.  A podcast is basically a downloadable radio-type program that you can listen to about a particular topic on your computer, IPod, or MP3 player.  I bet you didn’t know that there were literally hundreds of thousands (maybe more) of podcasts floating around the web??  Anyone who has an internet connection, a microphone, and something to say (whether informative, irrelevant, silly, or extremely important) can make one.  They are called “podcasts” as a combination of the words “IPod” and “broadcast.”  However, you do not need an IPod to listen to a podcast – your computer will do just fine.  I, personally, like to download them to my own IPod and listen to them if I happen to be somewhere and need to kill a little time or am driving somewhere in my car.  I’ve found lots of other relevant “education-type” podcasts, too - SAT Prep, college admissions, AP prep materials, grammer tips, foreign language tutorials, history lessons, etc.  There are podcasts that cover things like cooking lessons, skateboarding tips, new music, knitting news, YouTube videos, worldwide news, audiobooks, politics, sitcoms, and more.  If there’s something you’re interested in, there’s probably a podcast for that.

How do you find podcasts?  If you have ITunes, this is an easy way to search for and download podcasts and get continuous updates.  You can download ITunes for free at www.itunes.com and, again, you don’t need an IPod to have this program.  If you are totally confused, just come see me – I’ll give you a first-rate lesson on podcasts.  I personally have many.

Now, the particular podcast I am referring to is called the Financial Aid Podcast, and  you can just go to  http://www.financialaidpodcast.com/ to download each episode.  It is sponsored by the Student Loan Network, a provider of loans and other financial services.  The host is Christopher Penn, the CTO of this particular company.  On this 15-minute daily broadcast (didja know that there was that much information about financial aid??), he gives a multitude of information about financial aid news, scholarship updates, FAFSA tips, answers to listener questions, and, oh, so much more.  Just today (Tax day) he gave tips on filing your income taxes, an update on a new funding policy at Yale for their medical school, a scholarship update, and gave a tip on how to use Google to search for specific types of scholarships.  He even advertised that Dunkin Donuts is giving away a free donut with a coffee purchase today!  (Wish I had known that this morning on the way to work!  But, I digress).  On Fridays, he offers his Friday Freebies.  Lots, lots, lots of financial aid information.  And he does this, yes, every day.  He’s a financial aid freak.

The second resource is an electronic book written by the same above-named Christopher Penn.  You can find it at http://www.studentscholarshipsearch.com/ebook/ and download it PDF style.  In this book, he shares his “secret” methods of searching for scholarships.  He also discusses the FAFSA, loans, financial aid offices, avoiding scams, etc, etc., etc.  I, personally, would love to put a copy into everyone of my juniors’ and seniors’ hands but I’m not sure that we have the monetary resources to print and give out that much paper. 

The website that the book is found on is also a scholarship search site, http://www.studentscholarshipsearch.com/ (the same link w/ ebook removed…).  You can register for a financial aid newsletter and get even more info. 

Now, please realize that this company is out there to ultimately make money through their loan services and this is one of their avenues for getting their name out, but they do so by offering these awesome free resources.  Take advantage and get yourself some financial aid (and let me know what you think!!!)