The one that pops into my head is to have as good a video/ad/cartoon as this for each term, the resource I suggest at the end of my last comment and the list I’ve been gathering subconsciously over the last 3 years.

I thought of the student film project too, Christian. In my original comment, that was a paragraph I cut out in order to focus my thoughts. It’s also one of the things I was thinking of in terms of the time invested. The more we can pack into that assignment, the more it justifies itself. It seems a bit much for students to churn that video out inside of a week, so how much time do we devote to creating that video? Let’s turn that video into a demonstration of understanding for more things and then it pays off. I’m already working on it and I think it’s a solid idea.

Dan, don’t get me wrong. To use your words, this commercial is bad ass. Keep ’em coming because you consume more pop media than I do and you’re helping me with my list. Like I said, I’ll probably start the year with something like this.

Hat tip for the ad..before I decided to teach, I spent 10 years as a policy advocate on energy and enviro issues (wind power companies were among the folks I worked with…) and still fiddle around in the area when I have the time. This is a great, great piece that I have passed along to folks still in the mix full time…see where it landed (again, thanks to you):

http://www.11thhouraction.com/

As for my teaching…oh, this will indeed be used in my govt/world politics classes–I have no problem at all with terrific “gimmicks.”

Lori

It’s like, you’re gonna have to intro it somehow, whether by reading a selection, or explaining it verbally, or something. Just because it isn’t part of an ongoing series, just because it isn’t necessarily a consistent feature (though wouldn’t that be awesome) doesn’t make it a really, really good idea.

I mean, I’m always bringing in random clips or facts or news into my classes to make the math real, to break from routine, to show ’em you can learn even from commercials.

Maybe I’m missing your point. I can’t understand how showing this kind of video – especially at a scant cost of two minutes – could be anything but badass.