Super Bowl Ads

From: itnetwork.us

Guess I should be talking about the Super Bowl at some point.

Freakanomics (one of my favorite web sites) and the NFL teamed up to produce a video about what Super Bowl ads are worth.  I'll be playing this in my class on Tuesday.

The Commish

"60 Minutes" had another great segment on the business of sports Sunday, this time with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell.

My students and I discussed whether they would be interested in having Goodell's job.  Most didn't--too much responsibility, and I'd have to agree.  Working for one boss can be enough; I can't imagine having 32 of them.

It was nice to point out that Goodell started out as an NFL intern and worked his way to the top.  So many of my students don't want to do internships because they want to get paid for every job.  Guess what, kiddos?  That's not the way the sports and entertainment industries work.

Workin' It, EduBlogs!

From: my blog

I had started using EduBlogs at the beginning of the school year with the intent of having my Sports Marketing I students use to write their own blogs, instead of just commenting on mine.  That didn't work out the way I hoped--I never even got student blogging off the ground last semester.

This semester, I jumped right in and had my Sports Marketing II students try their hand at blogging during our first week of class.  The result so far:  phenomenal!  I thought it would take my charges about 2-3 weeks before they got the hang of blogging, but they're even quicker studies than I thought.  It was definitely one of those moments that only teachers get.

What went right?  Several things:

• These students had read a year's worth of blogs from me last year, so they were at least familiar with the concept.
• I have a small class (10 students), so it's easier to ride herd on them and get them started.  Don't think they would get blogging this quick if I had to explain it to 25.
• Nearly all of the students in the class are super sports fans, and are very eager to share their opinions, which is great for an online discussion.

Out of Your Hands

I just noticed that I hadn't posted in five days.  Guess the start of a semester will do that to you.

Saw an interesting video today at my monthly technology facilitator meeting about sexting.  There a lots of stories out there about teens and naked photos gone wrong--I warn my students at the beginning of every semester about the dangers of doing stupid stuff online.  Sadly, I saw that one of my former students (whom I had three times) has a raunchy Twitter bio.  What can I say?

90 Down, 90 To Go

From: mytutorblog.org


We just finished our fall semester on Friday.  I'm not a big fan of being evaluated by the results of my final exams (of course), but since I have a chance to reflect:

• The percentage of students who reached proficiency in my Sports Marketing class was 70%
• Ways to get that number higher
• Have students put together a PowerPoint with pictures of terms
• Have students answer the review questions without the answers
• Incorporate review material into current events
• Ask for help!