Naunet

Thank you very much, Haylden. But no! Don't hide! Everyone here is super accepting, and I think it's almost every artist's habit to think they're not as good as others might consider. Certainly don't call your own work "scrub art"; I can guarantee it's not true. I won't force you to post it, but please don't feel like you need to hide it from people! On another note, I'm back from my business trip and thus able to get to work on any commissions people might be willing to throw my way. The situation is still dire for my friend. Please help me help her. D:

As someone who more often than not completely ignores the mechanic of classes when it comes to designing RP characters... yeah, I definitely wouldn't look askance at someone roleplaying a blacksmith who didn't have the BSM class leveled. I know a lot of people like to use in-game classes as a base from which to spring forth. Personally, I just craft a character. Sometimes that lets me pull from certain flavors of a class more than others, sometimes not at all.

Thank you for the suggestion. I've updated the OP and my thread title.

SO! [edit] Nevermind, I suppose.

I'm curious what games these are, because I've never seen an MMO completely lock character creation on a server, regardless of its population.

What level of darkness would you wish?

Terrifying! Would really appreciate it if, once someone's capable, someone could explain (under spoiler tag if you must!) any plot shifts. I want to make sure I keep my RP present!

At the end of the day, it comes down to a disagreement over the value of the method. I've explained - and many mathematicians have explained - why the math methods taught in Common Core standards are miles beyond others in terms of imparting a deep understanding of the subject. A kid having trouble adjusting to a new way of thinking is not a bad thing and is to be expected, and given time that kid will adjust and be better off for it. The 9x trick mentioned earlier is just that - a trick. It doesn't actually give you an understanding of the reasons behind why multiplication works the way it is. It is nothing more than a tool to assist in memorization. And the entire point of the Common Core standards is to pull away from memorization and move closer to a curriculum based on critical thinking. When I teach my 6th graders a new concept, I sure as heck care about how they get to their answers. Faulty reasoning can lead to some serious misconceptions later down the line, and the best way to avoid that is making sure the base understanding is as sound as possible.

I love these so much. The colors in that elezen one are particularly on point.

The method itself is not the problem. Diverse teaching strategies doesn't mean teach to a different curriculum, just to approach the method in a different way. Perhaps writing out the steps does nothing for one student (there are many kids who have varying levels of dysgraphia that often, sadly, goes undiagnosed though it can be countered given time), but perhaps manipulating tiles to illustrate the method makes things suddenly clear. You're taking issue with the wrong part of the equation, so to speak.

It's self-awareness. The idea is that once kids make the connection (and the writing down part may be necessary for a lot of kids to get it - just not all, which is where the alternative teaching strategies and having a diversified approach comes in), they will be better equipped to confidently apply the theory to much more complex problems. If they don't understand the methods thoroughly, there's a high likelihood that they will misapply methods to problems where it isn't appropriate (this is something that actually happens). It's absolutely sound. It's also entirely possible to teach to the Common Core math standard in ways other than physically writing out a diagram, and I can guarantee you that teachers who know their stuff will do exactly that. The idea that kids learn differently is not something that teachers are ignorant of, and the Common Core standards do not dictate a single way of teaching. They simply lay out the systems needed to uplift student understanding to a level higher than what they were at previously.

Math problems/tests have never just graded on the correct answer in all of my years of schooling. Showing your work and doing that work properly was half if not more of the points given to the question. @Kage: Your math equations are incorrect. (5-3) + 8 = 10, not 13. The process involved would be adding whatever number you need from 8 to get to 10 (2), and then subtracting that from 5 (gets you 3), which you would then add to 10. Looks more like 8 + (10-8) + (5-(10-8)) = 13. Your example with what cashiers do with counting change is rather a good one. But honestly, there is nothing "bad" about the problem in your linked image. Students are having trouble transitioning from raw memorization (a rather depthless "understanding") to the new method, which is both understandable and expected. The backlash has been unnecessarily exacerbated by adults who refuse to accept that maybe the way they learned things was not the best and are determined to keep their kids in the dark. It's honestly rather disturbing to me that a lot of the argument against Common Core standards boils down to, "I didn't need to know this, so neither does my kid." What a stagnant view of education! Education is a science, and as such the techniques used to deliver it will change over time - just as our understanding of the world changes over time. Everyone would be much better off if they accepted that fact. Honestly, the guy with a BS in Electronics Engineering who couldn't understand that rather simple homework problem was likely suffering from his own stubbornness and preconceived notions of how things should work. I'm a teacher, so I don't really like calling people "stupid" (at least when it comes to how they understand things), but he was rather blind. Might there be places to fine-tune the standards? Are there areas that need improvement? Certainly. Many schools are not providing teachers with adequate training to deliver instruction up to the new standards, which is a huge problem. If the teacher (who likely was not themselves instructed in this manner) can't deliver the content properly, then it's folly to think a student will be able to take it in. In order to ensure a successful transition, we must equip teachers with the proper tools - the lesson plans, specific methods, and alternative strategies (this is a BIG one). Schools where effort has gone to doing this have seen great success in elevating students' understanding and ability in the updated subjects. I encourage you to read this article about how the math standards in the Common Core came to be; hopefully you find it enlightening.

I meant more the whole physically drawing out the number line thing. But yes, even I do the "subtract multiples of 10/100/1x to get closer to the answer" thing in my head a lot.

A bunch of people who think teaching math concepts to young kids is the same as solving a math problem when you are an adult... If you look at the data, math scores have soared where Common Core strategies have been used, because the techniques actually show the kids why 727-316=111, instead of arriving at the answer seemingly magically and just memorizing math tables. Knowing the why of solving a problem is absolutely vital to applying critical thinking to future problems. The US's emphasis on memorizing calculation tables is one of the reasons we kind of suck at math nationally. When I'm instructing my 6th graders on the concept of solar radiation, convection, and conduction, I have to first get them to visualize radiation as waves. If I just skip to "convection is the movement of air in response to differences in temperature and density", they're not going to learn anything, and they're definitely not going to be able to apply the concepts to other ideas. It's rather disingenuous to claim that the strategy used by a young kid when first learning to grasp subtraction will be used in its entirety ten, fifteen, twenty years later in that kid's life. This is an instruction tool, not an ultimate way to do things. As a teacher myself, I see the massive inherent value in these strategies.

Telling people not to share their feelings with others on a forum is rather silly.

Add WS to the list of "everyone gets their own for practically free". But... SE's stupidity on housing is an entirely different, if perhaps tangentially related discussion. Moral of the story: Their servers are crap and they're either ignorant of it or they're under some weird impression that because they're Final Fantasy, they can make people suffer unnecessary restrictions. Of course the number of people who encourage others to actually pay SE money for the privilege of SE greatly inconveniencing them (read: pay to transfer server to get on the one you want) is rather staggering, so...

That's it, I'm out. Nope. Honestly? This is the wisest decision. SE won't choose to get non-paleolithic lobby servers unless people refuse to give them extra money for making it almost impossible to make a character.

But it's not really a country though, they call it a Garlean Province which is only part of a country. It could very well be a country annexed by the Garlean Empire (which is quite large).

K'deiki had taken her leave of the cooking silently after a time, leaving K'ile and Li to bond on their own. She smiled to herself as she shuffled her way to the Elders' tent. That Tia was right about one thing - even if he didn't win and had no real chance of winning this challenge, the simple act of it would lift the spirits of her family, give them a sense of normalcy. The challenge of Tia to Nunh had in history been a time of celebrating their family's strengths, of emboldening the youth and securing a powerful future. It was not something that Nunhs dreaded, but rather embraced as an opportunity to demonstrate their worthiness and love for family. This could be healing for them all and a time to show their newest family members the soul of the Hipparion tribe. And no one had ever minded the feast and show, least of all K'deiki. K'jhanhi and K'takka greeted her in their own ways when she returned to their tent. They both had begun preparations of their own for the challenge - it was tradition for the elders to give blessing to the fight after the display of the feast, as an acknowledgment of the mutual benefit such challenges brought to the tribe. K'yohko and K'ile would both receive the blessings of the elders and the spirits to strengthen and steel them for the struggle. Collecting and preparing the necessary materials - a paste of herbs used to paint the faces of the fighters, a string of bone beads used in prayer, the ceremonial shawls all three of the elders would wear - was an amicable activity for the three of them. When they all exited the tent, even K'takka looked a bit stronger than before and there was some energy to K'jhanhi's stiff steps. They greeted huntresses who passed, the young women paying brief but sincere respects before hurrying off to prepare themselves. The bonfire flickered and stretched towards the stars as the elders approached to await the Nunh and his challenger.

Clearly different government structures, yes.

The village is in Doma, but the village isn't Doma. You can double-check the text here. That seems pretty clear to me then. They even refer to it as a province (which implies a region much larger than just one city).

Pretty much this. It's just SE being cheap as hell, which given their game's success, you'd think they'd invest in some tech that would allow potential players to better access the game...

- Before dialogue, to indicate a slow response for some reason - At the end of dialogue, usually when a character trails off with an incomplete thought - In the middle of dialogue for various pacing reasons I think that about covers my use of ellipses.

Antimony learned rudimentary writing from the tribal shaman that preceded her, primarily where it applied to certain rituals. This literacy was limited, but it helped her be not completely lost when she arrived in Limsa; from there she self-taught into something more refined.

Antimony's fighting style: ... Yup. About right.