Friday, May 22, 2009

Summer Fun 2009

Summer is finally here!!!! Although I will be taking several graduate courses, I will be blogging about interesting topics in regard to the courses I am enrolled in.
I cannot wait to make it down to the shore as well to soak up the sizzling summer sun.
Enjoy!

Memorial Day



Happy Memorial Day!!!!! Enjoy your weekend!

Tuesday, May 5, 2009

Cinco De Mayo!!!!


Cinco de Mayo is a date of great importance for the Mexican and Chicano communities. It marks the victory of the Mexican Army over the French at the Battle of Puebla. Althought the Mexican army was eventually defeated, the "Batalla de Puebla" came to represent a symbol of Mexican unity and patriotism. With this victory, Mexico demonstrated to the world that Mexico and all of Latin America were willing to defend themselves of any foreign intervention. Especially those from imperialist states bent on world conquest.

Cinco de Mayo's history has its roots in the French Occupation of Mexico. The French occupation took shape in the aftermath of the Mexican-American War of 1846-48. With this war, Mexico entered a period of national crisis during the 1850's. Years of not only fighting the Americans but also a Civil War, had left Mexico devastated and bankrupt. On July 17, 1861, President Benito Juarez issued a moratorium in which all foreign debt payments would be suspended for a brief period of two years, with the promise that after this period, payments would resume.
The English, Spanish and French refused to allow president Juarez to do this, and instead decided to invade Mexico and get payments by whatever means necessary. The Spanish and English eventually withdrew, but the French refused to leave. Their intention was to create an Empire in Mexico under Napoleon III. Some have argued that the true French occupation was a response to growing American power and to the Monroe Doctrine (America for the Americans). Napoleon III believed that if the United States was allowed to prosper indescriminantly, it would eventually become a power in and of itself.

In 1862, the French army began its advance. Under General Ignacio Zaragoza, 5,000 ill-equipped Mestizo and Zapotec Indians defeated the French army in what came to be known as the "Batalla de Puebla" on the fifth of May.

In the United States, the "Batalla de Puebla" came to be known as simply "5 de Mayo" and unfortunately, many people wrongly equate it with Mexican Independence which was on September 16, 1810, nearly a fifty year difference. Over, the years Cinco de Mayo has become very commercialized and many people see this holiday as a time for fun and dance. Oddly enough, Cinco de Mayo has become more of Chicano holiday than a Mexican one. Cinco de Mayo is celebrated on a much larger scale here in the United States than it is in Mexico. People of Mexican descent in the United States celebrate this significant day by having parades, mariachi music, folklorico dancing and other types of festive activities.

Monday, May 4, 2009

Peta

I Am A Educator, and I Am a
Check Out All the Celebrity 'Veggie Testimonials' at PETA.org

Final Reflection

This past semester has been an absolute pleasure being a student in Dr. Luongo's graduate class. I have nothing but great things to say in regard to the professor and the class. This was my first online class and I absolutely enjoyed every minute. Having an online course teaches you to be self-discilplined, independent, responsible, and most of all it provides you with confidence. Dr. Luongo has worked wonderfully to keep everyone updated and in the "loop" with our weekly modules, but gave us our independence as well. She has taught us how to be in control of our assignments as well as make us feel confident and comfortable in our academic success.

I particularly enjoyed the educational videos, articles, and websites we examined and read. On a weekly basis we were responsible for: weekly powerpoint presentations which were available on Blackboard to use as a guide for each of the chapters, reading the chapters and handouts, taking quizzes, and blogging about related topics and any other kind of topic we wished to share with our classmates. I also had a blast working on the projects, which allowed us to be creative and incorporate material we were learning.

Dr. Luongo has made this semester a joy and I am proud I was part of her class, she has always been very clear on what she expects and what the class is about and I would recommend her to anyone and would take more of her classes as well...actually I'm keeping my fingers crossed she is teaching more online classes. I think the college should offer more online courses, it really is a great benefit to have.