Excellence in the Classroom report gets cool reception from teachers

March 7, 2007

A business group advising Texas Gov. Rick Perry released their report, Excellence in the Classroom, earlier this month, in time to affect legislation in the hopper in Austin at the Texas Lege. The report gets attention simply because Sandy Kress is a part of the reporting team — Kress is a former chair of the Dallas Independent School District Board, and was advisor to President George W. Bush during the push for the No Child Left Behind Act.

On one hand, the report advocates modest spending boosts for “good” teachers. On the other hand, it’s ambiguous in its call for tougher classroom standards, and most of the recommendations that have any teeth will bite teachers in the classroom.

Teacher groups coolly greeted the report, according to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram:

The ideas in “Excellence in the Classroom” generally got a thumbs-down from area educators.

“The problem is, business councils expect kids to be just like parts,” said Larry Shaw, executive director of the United Educators Association of Texas. “If I’m a farmer and I get a crop I don’t like, I reject it. Nobody lets us reject the kids that we get. We take them where they are, and we do the best that we can with them.”

Karen Moxley is a teacher at Cross Timbers Middle School in Grapevine and president of the local chapter of the Texas State Teachers Association. She is critical of the report.

“Children and lives aren’t products. They’re really lovely, wonderful, messy things that have their peaks and valleys,” Moxley said. “We can’t control that. It’s grossly unfair to say that teachers are the only solution.”

A key quote from the report, used by Kress in his press advance, cites Erik Hanushek’s claim that students lagging behind can catch up with just five years with an effective teacher. The problem is, of course, that effective teachers tend to quit after five years, because the rest of the system is so fouled up.

More later.

Tip of the old scrub brush to TexasEd, “Do As I Say – It’s Not About the Money.”

Leave a Comment » | Education, Education reform, Teacher Pay, Teaching, Technology | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell

108th Carnival of Education

February 28, 2007

Aristotle instructing Alexander, image from British Museum

 

Aristotle teaching Alexander.

Dr. Homeslice hosts the midway this week, the 108th run for the mortar boards.

Rich stuff. Good teachers in need of a union. Bad teachers. Flights of fancy. Coming down to Earth.

Is your contribution there?

Leave a Comment » | Economics, Education, Education blogs, Education reform, Teacher Pay, Technology, Technology in the classroom | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell

107th Carnival of Education

February 23, 2007

More than 50 entries, at History is Elementary. If you’re not reading that blog anyway, you ought to. Go see.

St. John of Kenty, or St. John Cantius, patron saint of teachers

St. John of Kenty, or St. John Cantius

Patron saint of teachers

Leave a Comment » | Education, Education blogs, Education reform, History blogs, Teaching, Technology, Technology in the classroom | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell

Seymour Papert recuperating at home

February 2, 2007

MIT’s Media Lab last updated Seymour Papert’s condition on January 10 — it said he’d been moved to a rehabilitation facility closer to his home, in Bangor, Maine. Vietnamese publications, including VietnamNet Bridge, report he’s home now (Vietnam was where he was struck by a motorbike in early December).

Prof Papert’s family said that he had been discharged from the hospital in Boston in the U.S. He is now still undergoing treatment at home. Luckily enough, he will not have any after-effects after the head trauma and now he can speak.

The $100 laptop idea, the XO Computer, steams on.

Leave a Comment » | Classroom technology, Education, Pedagogy, Technology, Technology in the classroom, XO laptops | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell

$100 laptop idea rolls on

January 5, 2007

One of its architects, Seymour Papert, lies in a Boston hospital (but out of intensive care) recovering from a head injury suffered in a collision with a motorbike in Hanoi in early December, but the idea of equipping tens of millions of students around the world with inexpensive, wireless-ready laptop computers continues to roll towards implementation.

The Christian Science Monitor carries an editorial more full of hope than opinion, on January 5, 2007, about the computer project. The laptops have been dubbed “XO.”

For billions of parents who earn only a few dollars a day, paying for a child’s education – books, etc. – often gets neglected. Many simple solutions that break that cycle of poverty have been tried and have failed. Now another one is on the horizon: a “$100 laptop.”

While noting past errors in sending technology to the third world, the Monitor cites some numbers from implementation that are quite dramatic, if accurate: Read the rest of this entry »

2 Comments | Classroom technology, Education, On-line education, On-line learning, Public education, Teaching, Technology, Technology in the classroom, XO laptops | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell

Olla podrida

December 29, 2006

Olla podrida is a local, Spanish term for a Mulligan stew, for olio, etc.

Founding fathers and illegal immigrants — A new blog on the migration debate, cleverly titled Migration Debate, highlights a New York Times opposite-editorial page piece that details how many of our “founding fathers” took advantage of illegal immigration, or immigrated illegally themselves.  William Hogeland wrote the piece, whom some of you will recognize as the author of The Whiskey Rebellion:  George Washington, Alexander Hamilton and the Frontier Rebels who challenged America’s newfound sovereignty. (Scribner, 2006)

Google’s amazing powers:   Bad time to be speechless:  Over at 31fps, Google.com/maps magical powers are explained:  The author finds a store on Google maps, clicks a button, and Google first calls his phone, and then calls the store — go Google, and leave the dialing to Google.  Star Trek wasn’t this good.  Just be sure you’re over being speechless when the party at the other end answers.

Amazing cosmos:  Phil Plait at Bad Astronomy lists his top 10 images from outer space for 2006.  #1 is a doozy, but be sure you read the explanation Phil offers.

Fashionable extinction:  Microecos explains how fashion wiped out a beautiful, unique bird, the huia, in New Zealand, a century ago.   It’s a reminder of how stupid humans can be — a good exercise is in there somewhere for geography classes, or a general lecture on the effects of colonization.

Leave a Comment » | Astronomy, Books, Economics, Education, Freedom - Economic, Freedom - Political, Geography - Physical, George Washington, Maps, Natural history, Technology | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell

Seymour Papert: Hope – eyes open

December 28, 2006

Brief note from MIT’s Media Lab:

Wednesday, December 27

While still in Intensive Care, Seymour is making progress every day. He has opened his eyes and sees the people around him, but has not yet spoken. He is also able to move his arms, legs, and head. His doctors hope that he will be able to be moved out of Intensive Care soon, but for now, is still not receiving visitors.

Earlier coverage, noting his December 7 collision with a motorbike in Hanoi, here.

One may still leave an electronic flower for a get-well bouquet to be delivered to Papert.

Seymour Papert, MIT photo

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Posted by Ed Darrell

Thinking outside the bathtub: Here, read this!

December 26, 2006

How did I find KnowHR? I don’t remember now. I do remember that it featured a very interesting post on presentations, one of the areas of pet peeves of mine, especially as they related to bad PowerPoint presentations offered to teachers for use in the classroom — or worse, offered by teachers in the classroom.

We corresponded briefly on turning-point “presentations” in history (Go see, here, here, and here).

“HR” in that blog’s title stands for “human resources,” I’m guessing — they lean toward corporate human resources issues. That’s a long way from history and teaching history, for some people. Sadly, it’s a long way for many administrators and other leaders who could use some HR tips about how to get history taught better . . . but I digress.

KnowHR recently featured a “z-list.” It’s a list of blogs that you probably ought to look at from time to time, high quality blogs with material you can use — but blogs you won’t get to in the normal course of your business. It was tagged with a meme: Pass the list along, and add a couple of other very worthy blogs at the end. I’m passing it along, below the fold. Read the rest of this entry »

1 Comment | Creativity, Education blogs, Teaching, Technology, Weblogs | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell

A hard drive in 1956

December 21, 2006

What is this? What am I driving at?

1956 hard drive

Go take a look at Gaya, Ruang & Kepelbagaian.

1 Comment | History, Technology | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell

Still in coma, Papert to be flown to U.S.

December 16, 2006

Seymour Papert remains in a coma following surgery for a head injury suffered when he was struck by a motorcycle in Hanoi. Latest news is that he was to be flown to the U.S. on Saturday, December 16. Papert, a professor at MIT, is known as a creative thinker in technology and education. He is credited with the $100 laptop idea.

Ironically, he was discussing computer models of Hanoi’s out-of-control traffic at the time he was struck, according to his colleague Uri Wilensky of Northwestern University.

Update Sunday morning: The Boston Globe has a longer story on Papert’s contributions and how his work could help understand Hanoi’s traffic difficulties.

Update December 22: This group came up with the idea of sending the largest virtual bouquet ever to Dr. Papert. You may join to send a virtual flower; instructions are here: http://www.flowersforseymour.com/en/index.php.

Leave a Comment » | Classroom technology, Education, Technology, Technology in the classroom | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell

School reform over: Try something new

December 15, 2006

If we continue to get education wrong, a new report argues, America’s decline will follow.  So, the report urges radical changes in U.S. education.

The report of the New Commission on Skills of the American Workforce departs from other recent reports in a number of interesting ways, including advocating a national system of teachers, with higher pay.  It urges abandoning requirements for four years of high school, moving instead to a more European model where students may leave after 10 years for junior college.  It is titled Tough Choices or Tough Times, published by Jossey-Bass for $19.95.

An earlier commission in 1990 issued a report titled  High Skills or Low Wages.  The new report continues in that vein, warning that international competition and automation threaten all low skill jobs in the U.S.

This commission was assembled with funding from the Gates Foundation and other sources.

Some details are available in The New York Times.   A longer, much different view in in the Chicago Tribune.  From the Tribune’s summary of how testing would allow 10th graders to get out of high school early:

How the testing would work

PASS

In 10th grade, students would take a rigorous test.

With a passing grade, the student and parents would choose between two options:

OPTION 1: Stay in high school for junior and senior years to prepare for elite 4-year university or to enter state university with college credit.

OPTION 2: Enroll at community college with possibility of moving on to 4-year university.

FAIL

If the student fails, he or she would stay in high school to take remedial courses and retake test until he/she passes it.

The executive summary is available here in 28 pages.  The report is the cover story for the December 18 edition of Time magazine.  You’ll probably see it in your local newspaper today.

More to come, surely.

3 Comments | Curricula, Education, Education reform, Education spending, Teacher Pay, Technology, Technology in the classroom | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell

Seymour Papert gravely injured

December 9, 2006

Details here, at Andy Carvin’s Waste of Bandwidth.

Seymour Papert is one of those Renaissance people whose very existence seems to brighten the world, and in this case, the world of education. He has made significant contributions to thinking about the use of computers in education, including the famous $100 laptop ideas.

Hope and/or pray for the best.

Other sources:

Seymour Papert

1 Comment | Teaching, Technology, Technology in the classroom | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell

Tools for teachers: Make your own Google map

December 3, 2006

Almost inevitably I want a map different from those provided by the text and all my ancillary and auxilliary sources. It’s maddening for a non-cartographer. So, I can see uses for custom map-making tools.

You can figure out what to do with this, if you have a computer and access to project it to a class — or if you send your class out on the ‘net to work: Maplib.

Tip of the old scrub brush to If:book. Be sure to check there for examples.

Leave a Comment » | Education, Geography - Physical, Maps, Teaching, Technology, Technology in the classroom | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell

Death of books, and history on video

December 3, 2006

In the Eisenhower administration some wise person noted that through history, libraries have been essential to civilization. In that wisdom-tinged era, the federal government started a program to establish in every county in the U.S. a library which would contain practical information on farming, industry, health care, and government and philosophy, so that in the event a nuclear exchange wiped out great libraries in Chicago, New York, Philadelphia, Washington and Los Angeles, among other places, the knowledge and wisdom needed to rebuild America would be available to people easily, locally.

It was a good idea, I think, but chiefly because of the side effect of putting good information close to people, even without nuclear destruction. I wonder whether we have strayed.

Today, libraries abandon books in favor of electronic media, film and on-line applications at a prodigious rate. Million-book libraries, once the hallmark of a good university, now represent dated data and a backwater center of scholarship, to many.

Libraries missed the first video wave. Thinking they were about books and not television presentation of information, libraries missed the opportunity to attract customers for videos. Instead, here in the U.S. a company named Blockbuster did badly (by my estimation) the promulgation and protection of culture, for profit, that libraries should have done for free. Determined not to miss the next evolution or revolution in media, libraries now plan to adopt new media when possible, and store information in new electronic formats.

In the U.S., college libraries turn to coffee bars and advanced internet access to attract students to . . . where the stacks used to be. (audio story from NPR’s Saturday Edition)

In the Netherlands, libraries plan to archive local video productions and photographs, and to digitize the data to make it more widely available. Plans are to spend 173 million euro (more than $230 million U.S. at today’s exchange rate), to archive 285,000 hours of film, video and radio recordings, and nearly 3 million photos.

Will civilization survive?

Tip of the old scrub brush to If:book, from the Institute for the Future of the Book.

Leave a Comment » | Books, History, Libraries, Public libraries, Technology | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell

“Man dancing”: Checking the facts

December 2, 2006

If you haven’t seen it, you may be in a minority that includes mostly people without internet access.

The story behind it is rather innocent and charming. Matt Harding, a young American computer programmer working in Australia, decided to spend a year touring the world. Somewhere along the line he got the idea to shoot video of himself dancing in various places. He posted in on YouTube. A chewing gum company saw the thing, and for reasons known only to public relations freaks and geniuses, called Matt to do it again, with better production quality, for a bit of publicity. So there are two videos of Matt Harding dancing, in exotic and interesting places.

Especially if this is new to you, you’re skeptical. Good. Kempton’s Blog was similarly skeptical, and did some research on the video, and on Matt.

Is there a lesson plan in here for history and other social studies? I think so. This can go directly to the issue of how we know what we know, and what are primary and secondary sources for history, as tested in Texas’s Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS).

There are several ways to use these videos, when I sit down to think about them for a moment, listed below the fold. Read the rest of this entry »

1 Comment | Brain learning, Classroom technology, Current History, Geography - Physical, Geography - Political, History video sources, Lesson plans, TAKS, Technology, Technology in the classroom | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell

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