ACE Spectrum

Alpha: Jose Hernández ACE Poetry Contest Winners Announced

Posted by Martha Sessums on May 1, 2018 in Uncategorized | 0 comments

By Riley, ACE Poetry Contest Mascot, Alpha Public Schools

I’m howling for the ACE Poetry Contest winners from Alpha: Jose Hernández. These are grades 5 – 8 and, like all the Alpha schools, participate in a blended learning model. This means a combo of learning with teachers and other students, plus learning using software programs on a computer screen. It’s very powerful, and successful, I hear. Yet these poems reflect the need to look up from the screen and see the world.

(I suspect Astronaut Hernández would agree. He has seen the world from outer space.)

 

1st Place
Our Technology
By Perla Vargas

In the beginning of time,
We did not have things like today
We did not have computers, we did not have phones, we did not have screen.
Nor did we have factories or machines.
Today, we have that.
Here and there.
Technology everywhere.
On the streets, in our houses, in fields.
EVERYWHERE.
It’s like it has taken over
Our families.
Our friends.
Our people.
Are we being controlled by technology?
Maybe yes,
Maybe no.
Do you have an opinion?
THE END.

 

2nd Place
Technology
By Victoria Neri

You see it here and there it’s basically everywhere.

At school you have it and many people can’t live without it.

Technology! This is our future we use it a lot. We play and we learn with it.

This is our new life, but I hope that we don’t get too attached.

For if we do will we ever get out and explore the real world? Will we ever really enjoy true life?

Or shall we live in a virtual world, a world which isn’t even true.

For technology is just a fake world.

Who knows who you’re playing with it?

Doesn’t seem to matter though.

Will I be heard or will you ignore me just looking at your device. Will this world ever be so true or will I be the only one.

The only one who has seen beauty in our world.

 

3rd Place
Technology Taking Over Your Mind
By Andres Garcia

Tap, tap, tap on your little device.
Do you wish to hear my little advice.
Look up, not down.
Take a walk into town.
Put your phone away, you won’t need it for today.
Appreciate the green for plants, blue for the ocean, and yellow for the flowers.
Mother Nature won’t mind if you take a look at her creation.
Tap, tap, tap listen to my advice and put away your enemy of your eyes.

 

Awesome poems. Awesome poets. Treats for everyone.

 

From Pitching Stories to Investigative Journalism, Guest Speakers Share Knowledge with the KALW Audio Academy

Posted by Martha Sessums on Apr 30, 2018 in Uncategorized | 0 comments

By Ben Trefny, News Director, KALW Public Radio

The studios of KALW were filled with more than their usual share of talented audio journalists over the last few weeks, as we invited four guest speakers to talk with our Audio Academy fellows.

Adizah Eghan, a producer with Snap Judgement, Skyped in on Monday, April 16.

Victoria Mauleon, an editor on The California Report, came by on Tuesday, April 17.

Marlon Bishop, who works with Latino USA, spoke with us on Wednesday, April 18.

Home

Bob Carlson, host of Unfictional, shared his time on Thursday, April 19.

We also had a great in-house conversation with the KALW team that produced Persistent Poison: Living with Lead Poisoning. If you haven’t heard it, please take a listen! It’s public service journalism at its finest, and very possibly life-changing for the people who listen and take action to protect themselves and the people around them.

Audio Academy mentor Lisa Morehouse edited that project, and two other mentors worked as reporters. Those were Marissa Ortega-Welch and Angela Johnston, who is an Audio Academy graduate herself (’14) and now works as our energy and environment reporter. She taught Audio Academy Fellows a seminar this week on investigative journalism.

Here’s some insight from Angela into how those classes went:

This week in the Audio Academy seminars we focused on investigative reporting techniques, specifically filing public records requests. There’s this stereotype that filing FOIA or public records requests is something that only investigative reporters do, that they take a lot of time, and are only needed for groundbreaking, ‘holding power accountable’ types of stories. However, it’s actually really simple to file a public records request, and as we learned, it’s possible to go deeper and gather more information for any type of story – ones about history, chocolate, or court language interpreters.

Each fellow took the story they were currently working on and brainstormed how they wanted to go further to get information that wasn’t already out there. Together, we walked through the steps of writing filing a FOIA or public records request. Amber Miles requested truck driver fatigue reports from Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. Lilia Vega requested medical records on a forced-sterilization patient she is profiling and medical board complaints on the doctor who did the most sterilizations from the California Department of Developmental Services and the California State Medical Board. To strengthen their reporting on a show about chocolate, Zeina Nasr and Asal Esanipour requested data from the USDA on the number and names of cacao bean importers in the US. They also requested a list of every single food business registered in California with the word “chocolate” in their name. For her story on the need for Mam language interpreters, Marisol Medina Cadena asked the California Courts and the Alameda County Courts for all public requests for Mayan language interpreters in court over the past 10 years.

Hopefully, everyone will get data or records back soon. Then, the next step will be learning how to interpret and work it into their stories!

Winning Poets of ACE Poetry Contest Announced from Alpha’s Cornerstone Academy

Posted by Martha Sessums on Apr 27, 2018 in Uncategorized | 0 comments

By Riley, ACE Poetry Contest Mascot, Alpha Public Schools

Arf! Arf! I’m barking to announce the first of the ACE Poetry Contest winners. These are students from Cornerstone Academy Preparatory School , and they have some great poems. Check ’em out.

1st place:
“Lights” by Cindy Le (6th grade)

7:00pm
A spark of light runs through the cord.
Lights on.
The screen brightens once more.

I enter my world. Full of madness.
Making my mark on every Key I
Touch.

The browser opened. Forget about school.
I can read the news. School, they read the
Facts, but no other opinions in fact.

They teach us accordingly about things we need to know,
But did you forget? The media teaches us too.

I’m busy, you know. I got problems, with numbers.
Numbers, that’s right. I plan, strengthen every night.

1. 10:00pm
   Books! Books on the shelf.
   Filled with letters, adjectives, and nouns.
   I’ll pass, I rather read my comics on my virtual
   Shelf.

12:00am
I feel shot.
My eyes bleeding.
Adios.

Lights Off

2nd place:
“T.E.C.H.N.O.L.O.G.Y.” by Julyssa Castorena-Sanchez (5th grade)

Terrible, mean words
Everyone laughed at her
Cyber bullying is NOT funny
Have a heart and hear me out
Never should this have happened
Obviously it should be stopped
Letting this go on would be horrific
Only the problem is, nobody ever stops it
Get smart and think twice before speaking
Your words could make someone’s day or ruin someone’s life, so make the right choice

3rd place:
“Opposites Do Attract” by Jessica Trinh (7th grade)

The world of science
The denying of things
Oh how amazing it can be!
Technology at its best
Solving our problems every minute,
Every second
But, what does technology do?
Kills our brains, hurts our eyes,
The blinding light at its power
But it’s more than just that, alright?
A friend, a source, its mysterious sides
Tempting us into a hole full of surprises
Oh all the things to explore, just waiting for us…

Congratulations Cindy, Julyssa and Jessica. Your poems are the treat for the day. Thank you.

(Well, a beef nibble would be a nice treat for today too….)