My thoughts about Education Humanities, Technology and Digital Culture. Interested on social media tools in educational contexts and
gamification in education.
Johannes Gutenberg, bornJohann Gensfleisch zur Laden zum Gutenberg on the 14th century, Mainz in Germany, was a Germancraftsman and inventor who originated a method of printing from movable type. This revolutionary technology made the knowledge found in books both affordable and accessible to the common person for the first time in history.
An artist's visualization of Johannes Gutenberg in his workshop
"Johannes Gutenberg has influenced the development of humankind like no other. He was a visionary, skilled engineer, businessman and perfectionist. As the brilliant inventor of printing with moveable type, he triggered a media revolution which continues today.
Every book, every printed text, every digital message stems from his ideas."
Gutenberg was the son of a patrician of Mainz. What little information exists about him, other than that he had acquired skill in metalwork, comes from documents of financial transactions.
Exiled from Mainz in the course of a bitter struggle between the guilds of that city and the patricians, Gutenberg moved to Strassburg (now Strasbourg, France) probably between 1428 and 1430. Records put his presence there from 1434 to 1444. He engaged in such crafts as gem cutting, and he also taught a number of pupils.
Theodoor Galle after a drawing by Jan van der Straet, c. 1550
By the late 1430s, historians believe Gutenberg began to develop a more efficient text printing device in an attempt to pay off debts from a failed mirror business. The machine he invented (essentially a retrofitted winepress) replaced the hand-carved wooden letter and graphic blocks of traditional printers for easily-cast metal type, which were then dipped in proprietary ink to print entire pages at once.
Gutenberg’s next eureka moment came in 1450 with his invention’s first successful print: a Latin book on speech-making. From here, Gutenberg was off to the races as he innovated labor by hiring an assembly-line team to produce books quicker than ever! A testament to the power of human creativity, the Gutenberg press printed up to 3,600 pages on an average workday, fueling the first large-scale production of books in Europe.
By the 16th century, an estimated 200 million books were in print thanks to Gutenberg invention, which gave birth to a new era of mass communication and a new branch of media: the press.
Today, Gutenberg’s legacy lives on with Project Gutenberg, an online library with over 60,000 free books.
Education:
Project Gutenberg is a open access library of over 60,000 free eBooks. Students can choose among free epub and Kindle eBooks, download them or read them online.
They will find the world’s great literature here, with a focus on older works. If they click on “Bookshelves” they can browse by genres.
Check out “Best Books Ever Listing” under “B.” Or search the catalog.
No fee or registration!
No special apps needed!
Other resources:
Invite your students in-person lessons or distance learning to watch the video Discover how Johannes Gutenberg's printing press increased the literacy and education of the public on Britannica by Prof. Hellmut E. Lehmann-Haupt, author of Gutenberg and the Master of the Playing Cards.
And now let's write about the posts of Mars. The world continues to be affected by pandemic restrictions. In so many countries schools are still closed. Millions of students don't have access to in-person lessons. In Portugal, in-person classes reopen next Monday, Secondary schools and Universities.
As my usual readers know, I write in English, French and Portuguese.
Here are the most popular posts of the last month:
There are measures to deal with coronavirus outbreaks in place across European countries and other continents.
Many involve the reintroduction of restrictions that had been eased after initial lockdowns. Other reopen little by little.
Here in Portugal, kindergarten and Primary schools reopened last 15 March.k-12 reopened last 5 April. High junior schools and universities will reopen next Monday, 19 April. Teachers continue to be vaccinated and students Covid-19 tests.
We were under a fifth national lockdown. Finally, students will have in-person lessons after three months remote learning.
“The glassy pear tree leaves and blooms, they brush
the descending blue; that blue is all in a rush
with richness; the racing lambs too have fair their fling.” (...)
Gerard Manley Hopkin
On a Spring morning it's a poem we can repeat that makes spring seem more intensely itself.
Spring is back! Today 20 March is the first day of Spring 2021. Also known as the vernal equinox. It may still be frosty around Portugal, but Spring is officially about to start.
This year, the vernal (or Spring) equinox takes place today, Saturday, March 20, 09:37 (GMT). It's Spring equinox which, in the astronomical system of seasons, is the first day of Spring.
This year's Google Doodle celebrating Spring 2021 depicts an animated hedgehog. Unlike the traditional sharp spines on it back, the animated hedgehog featured on the Google doodle carries vibrant flowers, buds, and leaves to represent blossoming spring.
Origin of the word Vernal:
The word "vernal” comes from the Latin vernalis word for spring, while equinox literally means "equal night" (equi means equal and nox means night) as both night and day last for an equal amount of time.
The astronomical event marks the start of Spring in the northern hemisphere, which means longer days are on the way and people around the world will celebrate fresh starts.
What is an equinox:
We use the equinox to mark the change of seasons, as the balance of light shifts to make for longer days or nights.
The 2021 vernal equinox arrived on March 20 at 09:37 GMT. In the Northern Hemisphere, we’re enjoying earlier sunrises, later sunsets, softer winds, sprouting plants. Meanwhile, the opposite season, later sunrises, earlier sunset, chillier winds, dry and falling leaves, south of the equator.
An equinox is the moment when the barrier between night and day (called the solar terminator) is perpendicular to the equator – i.e., when the sun is shining directly on the side of the planet.
At the March equinox, the subsolar point – the border of the sun’s light – hits the equator, then moves northward. In September, at the autumnal equinox, it moves south. On the equinox, the length of daytime and nighttime is roughly the same all over the planet.
The vernal equinox marks the start of spring and a time for new beginnings, birth and fresh starts.
credits: Unknown
via Google Images
Education:
Spring time, equinoxes, traditions? No! You have all you need to your lesson.
Invite your students in remote learning to do some research about the several themes around Spring time. Literature and Science are welcome. Why not History, Geography and Music?
In the midst of a pandemic, economic recession, and social unrest, your students’ lives may have changed drastically since the day the school shut down.
Teachers must pay attention. Possible barriers to students engagement during distance learning appears. Stress and trauma - Covid-19, lockdown - can interrupt cognitive processing, reduce students’ executive functioning skills, and disrupt emotional regulation. All of that makes it difficult to learn, think, and engage meaningfully.
If students aren’t comfortable with the system you’re using, they might avoid it. It takes time to establish norms and practices with a new system, when it involves technology.
Engaging students during distance learning may be difficult, but it’s not impossible. Ready to dive deeper?
“The glassy pear tree leaves and blooms, they brush
the descending blue; that blue is all in a rush
with richness; the racing lambs too have fair their fling.”
(...)
Gerard Manley Hopkin
On a spring morning it is a poem we can recite that makes spring seem more intensely itself.
Spring is back! Today 20 March is the first day of Spring 2018. Also known as the vernal equinox. It may still be frosty around Portugal, but spring is officially about to start. This year, the vernal (or spring) equinox takes place today, Tuesday, March 20, 04:15 (GMT). It's spring equinox which, in the astronomical system of seasons, is the first day of spring.
I feel very happy ! Today is the 1st day of Spring and International Day of Happiness! Wow! Must be happy, right? Two wonderful days in one!
Of course Google could not forget to celebrate the 1st day of spring with one of its famous doodles. I love doodles, you know that !
"This year’s seasonal Doodle series protagonist, Quinn, is strumming a pleasant tune to coax a mysterious creature out of hiding. With a mild breeze and beautiful flowers, would it be, could it be, spring?"
The Doodle welcomes the spring equinox, a celestial event which marks the beginning of spring in many cultures.
This date is when day and night are around the same length, each lasting around 12 hours. It usually takes place on 19, 20 or 21 March every year.
Just following the equinox, the southern hemisphere will gradually begin to tilt away from the sun’s rays and usher in the cool, crisp autumn weather. So the opposite occurs, as autumn begins at the same time. Origin of the word Vernal;
The word "vernal” comes from the Latin vernalis word for spring, while equinox literally means "equal night" (equi means equal and nox means night) as both night and day last for an equal amount of time.
The astronomical event marks the start of spring in the northern hemisphere, which means longer days are on the way and people around the world will celebrate fresh starts.
The equinox happened 4.15pm (GMT). An equinox is the moment when the barrier between night and day (called the solar terminator) is perpendicular to the equator – i.e., when the sun is shining directly on the side of the planet.
At the March equinox, the subsolar point – the border of the sun’s light – hits the equator, then moves northward. In September, at the autumnal equinox, it moves south. On the equinox, the length of daytime and nighttime is roughly the same all over the planet.
The vernal equinox marks the start of spring and a time for new beginnings, birth and fresh starts.
Traditions:
You know Stonehenge. On the summer and winter solstices and spring and autumn equinoxes, Stonehenge is open to visitors (and the local Druids) who want to witness the sunrise over the stones.
Stonehengeone of the wonders of the world and the best-known prehistoric monument in Europe, will be open from the start of the equinox to allow Druids and Pagans to gather and see the sun rise above the ancient stones.
Druids and Pagans will celebrate the ancient Saxon goddess Eostre, a Germanic goddess of spring who symbolizes fertility and new beginnings. Similar to the symbols observed at Easter, like eggs, rabbits, new bulbs of flowers, and seedlings bursting forth from the earth, many Pagans embrace these symbols to represent the fertility of spring and incorporate them into rituals, altars, and celebratory feasts.
The word Ostara is just one of the names applied to the celebration of the spring equinox on March 20.
Of course, it's also the same time as the Christian Easter celebration, and in the Jewish faith, Passover takes place as well. For early Pagans in the Germanic countries, this was a time to celebrate planting and the new crop season.
Celebration of equinox in Portugal
créditos: Peregrino da Luz/ Templos do Sol
via YouTube
A number of festivals take place around this time all over the world, dating back to ancient times.
The link with the vernal equinox is clear as it coincided with pagan celebrations of rebirth and renewal.
The vernal celebration exists in Portugal from Ancestry.
The Mayan calendar is famed for its spring equinox rituals at the stone-stepped pyramid at Chichen Itza, Mexico which was later significantly influenced by the Toltec civilization.
The pyramid, where human sacrifices once took place, is made in a way that a “snake of sunlight” moves down the steps on the day of the equinox.
The day arc of the sun, every hour, during the equinox as seen on the celestial dome, from the pole.
There is a difference between astronomical seasons and meteorological seasons.
Astronomical seasons refer to the position of Earth's orbit in relation to the sun taking into account equinoxes and solstices.
Meteorological seasons are instead based on the annual temperature cycle and measure the meteorological state as well as coinciding with the calendar to determine a clear transition between the seasons.
Since the astronomical seasons vary in length, the start date of a new season can fall on different days each year.
This makes it difficult to compare seasons between different years and resulted in the introduction of the meteorological calendar.
This splits the calendar into four seasons of approximately the same length. The astronomical seasons run approximately three weeks later than those of the meteorological calendar.
But let's read EarthSky explanations about equinoxes.
Education:
Do you need more interesting facts to share with your students ? Spring time, equinoxes, traditions? No! You have all you need to your lesson.
Students may do some research about the several themes around Spring time. Of course, the most important is science.
Spring at the park
credits: unknown
via Google Images
But literature can be very interesting as well. Select a small number of literary texts from different civilizations to include into your lessons about spring equinox.
On the spring morning, g outside a park near your school and invite your students to recite a poem they choose.
Curricula: Sciences; Languages.
Level : Primary; Secondary Education.
Teachers must adapt the activities to the level they are teaching.
