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Interview With Lawrence Goldstone, Author Of The Anatomy of Deception
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The Fruit Hunters: A Story of Nature, Obsession, Commerce, and Adventure
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Interview With Joseph Boyden, Author of Through Black Spruce
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Interview with Nino Ricci, Governor-General Award-Winning Author
Since 1 March, at least nine American universities have received anonymous donations totaling over $45 million. The catch is: the school had to promise not to try to find out the benefactor’s identity. It is not clear whether the source is an individual, a group with similar interest or an organization. Some of the schools even went so far as to contact the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the Department of Homeland Security to verify that the money was not ill-gotten.
The unknown supporter also stipulated that the majority of the money should go to student scholarships, while the rest can fund research, equipment and operating expenses. Read more…
Not only is cursive writing being taught less in schools today, but there has also been a shift from writing attractively to just writing efficiently. In the United States, there is some debate as to whether teaching cursive is necessary at all, as most homework tends to be typed anyway. Read more…
To mark the 200th anniversary of the birthday of Braille inventor and namesake Louis Braille, former British home secretary David Blunkett tells about his experiences as a blind child learning the language:
Picture a little boy of four. He arrives at school - boarding school - for the first time. Worried, sometimes even frightened, but determined not to cry.
Picture then a little boy with a contraption in front of him on his desk the following morning. A stylus (to him, a pin with a wooden knob on the top) in which he’s expected not only to press downwards to make what he considers to be a “hole” in thick paper, but the daunting prospect of being told that he’s going to operate from right to left.
That little four-year-old was, of course, me. And yes, I was expected, along with all my fellow pupils, to use an old-fashioned Braille writing frame which had the six-dot system invented by Louis Braille, born on 4 January 1809, to produce the alphabet and much more.
The reason why it was necessary to write from right to left was that, in those days, without the sophistication firstly of mechanical and then of electronic Braille production, the dots had to be pressed downwards and, when turned over, would provide a mirror image.
It was therefore not only necessary to write from right to left, but also to reverse the actual letters so that with the exception of letters like A and C, other parts of the alphabet had to be reversed. D had to be written as an F. In Braille, this is exactly the mirror image - and therefore came out on the opposite side exactly as you’d read it left to right.
If all this sounds complicated, it damn well was!
Not that it’s a popular practice, but if you’re applying to college and you have a Facebook, MySpace, or some other kind of public profile, be careful - your school-to-be could check to make sure you’re the kind of person they want representing their school. For the most part, these schools don’t have time to be checking every student’s profile, but if they receive a tip about something questionable, they might check it out. Of course, you can easily prevent this by A) changing your settings to private, where only your friends can access your profile, or B) not putting anything stupid on there in the first place. But where’s the fun in that? Read more…
BETHESDA, Md., Sept. 6 /PRNewswire/ — With two weeks to go until the annual National School Backpack Awareness Day, occupational therapy practitioners across the United States are gearing up to help students “Pack It Light, Wear It Right!” The event, sponsored by the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA), is set for Wednesday, September 19, 2007.Occupational therapy practitioners, researchers, and students are holding events across the United States to educate students on the proper way to wear a backpack and how much weight to carry. More than 40 million students in the United States carry backpacks. According to one study, 6 out of 10 students ages 9-20 reported chronic back pain related to backpacks.
AOTA has published ten tips to avoid backpack-related health problems:
1. Never let a child carry more than 15% of his or her body weight. This
means a child who weighs 100 pounds shouldn't wear a backpack heavier
than 15 pounds.
2. Load heaviest items closest to the child's back and arrange books and
materials to prevent them from sliding.
3. Always wear both shoulder straps. Wearing only one strap can cause a
child to lean to one side, curving the spine and causing pain or
discomfort.
4. Select a pack with well-padded shoulder straps. Too much pressure on
shoulders and necks can cause pain and tingling.
5. Adjust the shoulder straps so that the pack fits snugly to the child's
back. The bottom of the pack should rest in the curve of the lower
back, never more than four inches below the child's waistline.
6. Wear the waist belt, if the backpack has one, to help distribute the
pack's weight more evenly.
7. Check what your child carries to school and brings home to make sure
the items are necessary to the day's activities.
8. If the backpack is too heavy, consider using a book bag on wheels if
your child's school allows it.
9. Choose the right size pack for your child's back as well as one with
enough room for necessary school items.
10. If a student is experiencing back pain or neck soreness, consult your
doctor or occupational therapist.
Teaching proper backpack ergonomics is just one of the many ways occupational therapy practitioners can help students stay healthy and succeed in school. Occupational therapists also have expertise in correcting handwriting problems, helping children learn social skills, and teaching students effective and efficient ways to learn in school. These health care professionals work with students in every school district in the country.
To find out more about National School Backpack Awareness Day, visit http://www.promoteot.org/AI_BackpackAwareness.html . Contact the AOTA press office to connect with a local backpack event in your area.
DALLAS, Aug. 1 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — By the time today’s high school students are graduating from college, 6.3 million jobs will require science, engineering or technical training — 24 percent more than just a few years ago(1). These statistics show that today’s middle and high school students will need a strong math background to be competitive in the job market. Yet only 20 percent of the workforce possesses the skills required by 60 percent of all new jobs early this century(2).Math teacher and former president of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) Gail Burrill says families can make a difference in whether or not teens gain the math skills that are critical for their future success. She offers the following advice for parents to help their children succeed.
1. Math is important regardless of what teens want to be in life.
People with strong math backgrounds are more likely to be employed and
earn more, even if they have not gone to college. Math is also an
important skill for people in all stages of life to make decisions
about such issues as public initiatives, health or property management.
Without taking a challenging math curriculum throughout high school,
teens' career options will be seriously limited. Getting a strong
foundation when children are younger allows them to succeed in math
through their school years and beyond.
2. Support for math education starts at home.
Whether or not you enjoy math yourself, children need encouragement to
learn that hard work and persistence are important for success. Be sure
they attend school on a regular basis. Be positive and inquisitive --
ask how things are going in class, encourage your children to work hard
and help them find solutions for their difficulties. By becoming
involved in your students' education and expressing your expectations,
your children learn that their math education is a priority.
3. Provide resources when math gets tough.
Math can sometimes be tough for even the best students, so make sure
your student has the right tools for success. For example, research
shows that students do better in math when they use a graphing
calculator at home and in class, like the TI-84 Plus Silver Edition
from Texas Instruments. For additional help with class work, check with
your student's teacher to see if your school provides resources that
can help, such as a resource hotline, organized study group, tutoring
program, after-school program or even extra credit work. If not, check
to see if your state education department or state mathematics
organization offers some support.
4. Find ways to show them that math is important in everyone's lives and
interests.
Showing students how to relate math to the "real world" will help them
to understand why it's important. Figuring out the remaining cell phone
minutes on their monthly plan, how to balance their first check book or
how to calculate their grades all requires math skills. Sit down with
your kids when you do math-related activities to demonstrate how it
affects us on a daily basis. If students know that math can make their
lives easier every day, they are more likely to want to learn.
5. Ensure that they take four years of high-quality math in high school.
All students should be enrolled in challenging, high-quality math
courses. If your student is entering high school in the next few years,
plan to work with a counselor to create a strategy that allows your
child to take a challenging math course every year as part of an
academic program that can open doors for career options. Review your
child's course schedule for the next year and be sure he or she is in
the right place in the math sequence to graduate prepared for
post-secondary study.
About Gail Burrill
Gail Burrill is a Mathematics Specialist in the Division of Science and Mathematics Education at Michigan State University and serves as a senior math advisor for Texas Instruments. She was a secondary teacher and department chair in suburban Milwaukee, Wisconsin, for over 25 years and has served as president of NCTM and as Director of the Mathematical Sciences Education Board. Her honors include the Presidential Award for Excellence in Teaching Mathematics and the Wisconsin Distinguished Educator Award. She was elected a fellow of the American Statistical Association and awarded an honorary doctorate degree from Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology. She directs the Secondary School Teachers Program for the Institute of Advanced Study’s Park City Mathematics Institute and the Institute’s International Seminar and serves on numerous boards and committees in an advisory capacity including the Council for Opportunity in Education STEM Advisory Committee. Burrill is a published author of books and articles on teaching and learning statistics, and she has spoken nationally and internationally on issues in teaching and learning mathematics.
About Texas Instruments
Education Technology, a business of Texas Instruments, provides a wide range of advanced tools connecting the classroom experience with real-world applications and enabling students and teachers to explore mathematics and science interactively. Designed with leading educators and researchers, Texas Instruments educational technology and services are tested against recognized third-party research on effective instruction and improved student learning. Such research shows that use of graphing calculators and wireless classroom networks in the classroom helps teachers implement instructional strategies that lead to student collaboration, higher student interest, engagement and achievement in mathematics(3). For more than 15 years, TI has worked closely with educators and administrators to develop student-focused curricular and supplemental classroom materials, and it supports the world’s largest professional development organization for the appropriate use of educational technology. More information is available at http://education.ti.com.
