Educational Items of Interest

From the UW website:

The learning of science and math is a civil rights issue, and schools should give students broad participation in those areas as early as possible, says Philip Bell, a UW associate professor of learning sciences.

Bell will deliver the College of Education's Fall Lecture, titled Pathways to Excellence and Equity in Science, Math and Engineering Learning, from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 28, in the UW Tower auditorium. Admission is free, and a post-lecture reception will be held from 8:30 to 9 p.m.

People learn about science and math in a wide range of settings -- classrooms, homes, online communities. As such, Bell says, education needs to be understood as taking place across a wide range of associated institutions -- schools, families and after-school clubs.

Bell directs the ethnographic and design-based research of the Everyday Science and Technology Group. He has a background in human cognition and development, science education, electrical engineering and computer science. He has also developed Web-based learning platforms, designed and studied K-12 science curricula and currently conducts ethnographies of children's learning across social settings.

To register for this event, visit online at www.UWalum.com or call 206-543-0540.

Also from Woodland Park Zoo:

Veterinary Career Day (in conjunction with WSU), Saturday, November 15 from 9:30-12:30


Woodland Park Zoo's Animal Health professionals are teaming up with professors from one of the top veterinary schools in the country, Washington State University College of Veterinary Medicine, for this educational event. These professionals will provide you with firsthand knowledge of what it takes to be a veterinarian, while offering a detailed look at exciting career options and trends in veterinary medicine. Hear exciting stories from the field from the zoo's Director of Animal Health, Dr. Darin Collins, and his recent experiences in Indonesia. This informative program will be followed by a private animal-health focused zoo tour.
This event is for students ages 15 - 22 and their parents.
Space is limited. RSVP by Friday, November 7th: rsvp@zoo.org or by calling Susan Okazaki 206.548.2442.

Comments

dan dempsey said…
Yes .. Math education is a civil rights issue.

That is exactly why I was wondering why the SPS had not been sued for their last decade of widening Math achievement gap.

Then the school board and Ms. Santorno decided to ignore all the data about what a poor choice Everyday Math was for those on the low end of the achievement gap and adopted Everyday Math anyway.

2005 IOWA test scores for percentile scores at grades 3 and 6 showed the following in WA Districts that use Everyday Math:

Math percentile drops by over 10 points from grade 3 to grade 6 in the EDM districts.

By ethnicity percents
Black & Hispanic < 10%
scores dropped 10 points

Black & Hispanic between 10% & 20%
scores dropped 10 points

Black and Hispanic populations of greater than 20% for those districts the average drop was 15.5 points.

The above drops are district averages for entire districts using EDM.

So the board picked a poor program that serves Black and Hispanic Children poorly. A program that requires large professional development costs and has very expensive consumables that need to be replaced annually.

Who is held accountable??

Looks like no one from here.

How about a Civil Rights lawsuit?

or a least a response from the SPS about their ongoing k-8 math disaster.

Is the motto
Spend more and Achieve less?
10/24/08, 3:57 PM
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