Recently found … 04/28/2010

  • tags: powerpoint, communication, tools, presentations

    • “PowerPoint makes us stupid,”
    • “It’s dangerous because it can create the illusion of understanding and the illusion of control,” General McMaster said in a telephone interview afterward. “Some problems in the world are not bullet-izable.”
    • behind all the PowerPoint jokes are serious concerns that the program stifles discussion, critical thinking and thoughtful decision-making. Not least, it ties up junior officers — referred to as PowerPoint Rangers — in the daily preparation of slides
    • As recounted in the book “Fiasco” by Thomas E. Ricks (Penguin Press, 2006), Lt. Gen. David D. McKiernan, who led the allied ground forces in the 2003 invasion of Iraq, grew frustrated when he could not get Gen. Tommy R. Franks, the commander at the time of American forces in the Persian Gulf region, to issue orders that stated explicitly how he wanted the invasion conducted, and why. Instead, General Franks just passed on to General McKiernan the vague PowerPoint slides that he had already shown to Donald H. Rumsfeld, the defense secretary at the time.
  • tags: no_tag

    • this produced the first Google Book Settlement in 2008, out of which Google Books was born. Google Books was a much expanded vision from Google Book Search, and with some exceptions it gave the company a retroactive license to digitize any book registered in the United States before 2009, and any book published before 2009 in the UK, Australia, and Canada. Yes, you read that right. In exchange for hundreds of millions of dollars in settlement money, Google can now digitize pretty much any book published in the English-speaking world before 2009. Due to various complaints, a new version of the GBS was produced in 2009 (often called GBS 2.0), and that version adds a lot of interesting kinks to the situation.
    • GBS 2.0 has not yet been approved

Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.

Google Search Stories

By now, everyone’s probably seen this charming video:

Of course, Google now makes it unbelievably easy to create search stories by plugging in some search terms, selecting music, and voilá! What a great project to do with kids – quick and simple story-telling, 21st century style (and a great way to teach inference!)

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Recently found … 04/27/2010

Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.

School principals, register for your school’s free AMERICA The Story of US DVD*

America The Story of US – premiering on HISTORY™ April 25 at 9pm/8c – is a six week event that provides a fascinating look at the stories of the people, events, and innovations that forged our nation. It will provide you with an unprecedented opportunity to bring our nation’s history to life for your students. This 12-hour series will be supported by educational materials tied to curriculum standards and is copyright cleared for Fair Use in the classroom by instructors or pupils in the course of face-to-face teaching activities.

* HISTORY is offering America The Story of US on DVD to every school in the United States. School must be an accredited public, private or home school, grades K-12 and college. In order to receive your school’s DVD, your school principal (grades K-12) or Dean of Students (college) should fill out the request form below. HISTORY strictly limits each school to one request. DVD requests must be made prior to July 1, 2010. DVDs will be mailed around August 2010, and free shipping is included in this offer.

Sign up here.

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Philadelphia Math+Science Partnership – Schleicher on PISA data

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Andreas Schleicher, Education Policy Advisor of the Secretary General, Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)
Why learning outcomes matter and what it takes to deliver world class standards
-no longer about improvement by international standards … but the best performing systems
-pace of change as reflected by countries now passing us in terms of college graduates (remained stagnant while other countries have progressed)
-so far, increase in knowledge workers has not resulted in change to type of work
know what you are looking for …
-years of schooling no longer impacts country‘s growth
-but what are we measuring by “years of schooling”
-it’s not just quantity o education but what people learn to do
-steep decline in demand for routine cognitive skills … and those are the skills easiest to reach and assess
PISA tries to assess students with novel tasks – those they haven’t seen before
-sharp increase in demand for nonroutine interactive skills
PISA shows us way behind rest of world (measure 15 year olds in science extrapolate and apply)
-not just about poor kids; suburban schools do better, but not much
-many countries do well on both equity and performance (example, Finland) – all schools perform equally well despite huge income disparity – NOT the us
-student performance on PISA strong indicator of future success; what you do in school really matters and it’s hard to undo poor education
Poland raised 25 PISA points in 6 years … what impact would that have? major economic impact (trillions of dollars); getting to Finlands level: $260 trillion
improving outcomes …
-does spending $ on education result in better education? it’s important … but more important Is systems ability o get resources where they need to go
how to spend $?
-pay teachers well (Korea)
-keep class sizes small
other than $?
-high ambitious and universal standards
-rigor, focus and coherence
-strong support
-clear standards but lots of local discretion at school level
-accountability and intervention in inverse proportion to success; schools with clear standards and local autonomy do better
public schools often do better
-from prescribed forms of teaching to more personalized learning
implications …
-good performance is possible in short amount of time
Q&A
is us poor performance due to so much local control
-control at school level important, but must have clear standards – need a strong national framework
is new data (after 2006) showing same trend?
-Singapore and other countries will be included
-don’t know trend yet, but predict that better systems will get better
is public policy a factor?
-yes – coherent policies are a facet of stron systems
reading data?
-data is similar, but us a bit better in reading
ww don’t know what kid will need to know in the future
-that’s why PISA doesn’t test content as much as applications and extrapolations
-can students translate math an science into real world
better systems allow teachers to develop their own curriculum based on a set of student outcomes
priorities?
-national common core
-focus on low performing schools to get resource they need
-make teaching a more attractive career – not about money, but a career path (that’s the hard part)
student engagement?
-part of the PISA measurement – very important
-need to see learning opportunities
how do high performing countries’ assessments line up with PISA
-northern Europe, very well
-us … not much difference between TIMMS and PISA
-other countries, highly disparate: Russia, Norway teacher unions?
-in many countries, unions have become true professional organizations – makes teaching more of a career path
%age of students tested ?
-most countries the same
in us, students take less science …
-highly variable across countries
Panel:
Dennis DeTurck (Penn)
-change in curriculum and outcomes beyond simple memorization -“abillity beyond the inclination to serve”
-university responsibility
Pamela Brown (CAO of Phila SD)
-data reinforces what Dr Ackerman has been reccommending for Philadelphia
-grad rate is under 60%
-only 8% of Philly grads go on to graduate from 4 year institutions
-need higher rigor in non AP or IB classes
-pockets of excellence – that need to be replicated across the system for all students
-have raised the bar beyond AYP by setting performance targets measures by multiple criteria; schools at high levels are “vanguard” schools and enjoy more autonomy
-professional development linked to appraisal system
-extanding school day, week, year for many schools
Philip Hopkins (Select Greater Phila)
-companies want collaborative and nonroutine workers who know how to learn – but also with a certain level of content knowledge
-create opportunities in urban centers
-applaud common core standards; high focus on modeling -support keystone exams – important to know via a criterion referenced test how students are doing
-must keep in mind appropriate testing
-need high quality teachers; appropriate  staff development
-must deal with transition costs of moving to higher standards
-Paul Roemer quote about quality of public institutions

Andreas Schleicher, Education Policy Advisor of the Secretary General, Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)

Why learning outcomes matter and what it takes to deliver world class standards

-no longer about improvement by international standards … but the best performing systems

-pace of change as reflected by countries now passing us in terms of college graduates (remained stagnant while other countries have progressed)

-so far, increase in knowledge workers has not resulted in change to type of work

know what you are looking for …

-years of schooling no longer impacts country’s growth

-but what are we measuring by “years of schooling”?

-it’s not just quantity o education but what people learn to do

-steep decline in demand for routine cognitive skills … and those are the skills easiest to reach and assess

PISA tries to assess students with novel tasks – those they haven’t seen before

-sharp increase in demand for nonroutine interactive skills

PISA shows us way behind rest of world (measure 15 year olds in science extrapolate and apply)

-not just about poor kids; suburban schools do better, but not much

-many countries do well on both equity and performance (example, Finland) – all schools perform equally well despite huge income disparity – NOT the US

-student performance on PISA strong indicator of future success; what you do in school really matters and it’s hard to undo poor education

Poland raised 25 PISA points in 6 years … what impact would that have? major economic impact (trillions of dollars); getting to Finlands level: $260 trillion

improving outcomes …

-does spending $ on education result in better education? it’s important … but more important Is systems ability o get resources where they need to go

how to spend $?

-pay teachers well (Korea)

-keep class sizes small

other than $?

-high ambitious and universal standards

-rigor, focus and coherence

-strong support

-clear standards but lots of local discretion at school level

-accountability and intervention in inverse proportion to success; schools with clear standards and local autonomy do better

-public schools often do better

-from prescribed forms of teaching to more personalized learning

implications …

-good performance is possible in short amount of time

Q&A

is US poor performance due to so much local control?

-control at school level important, but must have clear standards – need a strong national framework

is new data (after 2006) showing same trend?

-Singapore and other countries will be included

-don’t know trend yet, but predict that better systems will get better

is public policy a factor?

-yes – coherent policies are a facet of strong systems

reading data?

-data is similar, but US a bit better in reading

we don’t know what kids will need to know in the future

-that’s why PISA doesn’t test content as much as applications and extrapolations

-can students translate math an science into real world?

better systems allow teachers to develop their own curriculum based on a set of student outcomes

priorities?

-national common core

-focus on low performing schools to get resource they need

-make teaching a more attractive career – not about money, but a career path (that’s the hard part)

student engagement?

-part of the PISA measurement – very important

-need to see learning opportunities

how do high performing countries’ assessments line up with PISA?

-northern Europe, very well

-US … not much difference between TIMMS and PISA

-other countries, highly disparate: Russia, Norway

role of teacher unions?

-in many countries, unions have become true professional organizations – makes teaching more of a career path

%age of students tested ?

-most countries the same

in US, students take less science …

-highly variable across countries

Panel:

Dennis DeTurck (Penn)

-change in curriculum and outcomes beyond simple memorization -“abillity beyond the inclination to serve”

-university responsibility

Pamela Brown (CAO of Phila SD)

-data reinforces what Dr. Ackerman has been reccommending for Philadelphia

-grad rate is under 60%; only 8% of Philly grads go on to graduate from 4 year institutions

-need higher rigor in non AP / IB classes

-pockets of excellence that need to be replicated across the system for all students

-have raised the bar beyond AYP by setting performance targets measures by multiple criteria; schools at high levels are “vanguard” schools and enjoy more autonomy

-professional development linked to appraisal system

-extanding school day, week, year for many schools

Philip Hopkins (Select Greater Phila)

-companies want collaborative and nonroutine workers who know how to learn – but also with a certain level of content knowledge

-create opportunities in urban centers

-applaud common core standards; high focus on modeling -support keystone exams – important to know via a criterion referenced test how students are doing

-must keep in mind appropriate testing

-need high quality teachers; appropriate  staff development

-must deal with transition costs of moving to higher standards

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A little curriculum humor to start the week …

From the Boston Globe

Learn This, America! The Final Report of the Commission to Crush the Strains of Weakness, Socialism, and Unpatriotic Thought in our Schools

After an exhaustive review of the educational materials for K-12 students throughout the United States, we were shocked to discover factual inaccuracies and ideological biases marring what is being taught to our children in subjects ranging from mathematics to grammar.

Read it here.

Recently found … 04/24/2010

  • Proposals to reauthorize No Child Left Behind seek to ensure “equitable” access to effective teachers. The U.S. Department of Education’s Race to the Top fund rewards state plans for “ensuring equitable distribution of effective teachers and principals” and for “ambitious yet achievable annual targets to increase the number and percentage of highly effective teachers…in high-poverty schools.” These objectives pose a number of challenging questions. How readily can we identify effective teachers? And, perhaps most crucially, what are promising strategies for seeking to increase the number of effective teachers in high-poverty schools and communities? Addressing these questions are two of the leading authorities on the topic: Education Trust chief Kati Haycock and Stanford University and Hoover Institution economist Eric Hanushek.

    tags: teaching, professional development, teachers

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Recently found … 04/23/2010

Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.

More about PA’s Keystone Exams …

Today, from PDE:

The following Keystone Exam Assessment Anchors and Eligible Content documents are now posted on the Standards Aligned System (SAS) website at THIS LINK:

The following Keystone Exam Assessment Anchors and Eligible Content documents are now posted on the Standards Aligned System (SAS) website at the link provided below:
–  Algebra I
–  Algebra II
–  Geometry
–  Literature
–  English Composition
–  Biology
–  Chemistry
http://www.pdesas.org/Standard/AnchorsDownloads

Teacher Preparedness for Math – New Research from Univ of Michigan

first study related to teacher preparedness in math
elem and middle teachers have poor preparation to teach math
48 states adopting more rigorous standards in math (common core) – and teachers will not be prepared to teach more demanding curriculum
TIMSS 2003 show US students behind in 8th grade math
TEDS-M studie pre-service teahers in many countries – gave them a common assessment
what do future teachers know?
-elem teachers similar to many countries (middle)
-middle teachers behind teachers in other countries whose students do better on TIMMS; avg performance 150 points behind Taiwan, 100 points behind Russia and Switzerland
-no difference between public and private schools
-strong parallel between teacher knowledge and student performance
Middle School Certification is the problem
-determined by state
-3 methods:
-secondary
-middle
-k to 8
there are serious differences between these levels of preparation; those prepared in secondary pograms result in higher student performance
weaknesses in pre-service course taking in US – 10% less math-specific courses
top achieving countries pre-service teachers take more high level courses (not at elem level, but at middle school)
k-12 – curricular differences result in dramatic performance differences in student performance
large variation in teacher preparedness programs in the US (both elem and middle)
how to break the cycle …
weakness of teachers begins in grade 1; we have a weak k12 math curriculum; go on to be weak hs teachers; go on to weak pre-service programs
problem with who chooses to go on to become math teachers – they were formerly weak k12 math students
we need to recruit pre-service teachers from higher performing k12 math students
recommendations:
-common core curriculum based on common core standards
-states must redefine policies for teaher certification
-colleges and universities must revise programs
-recruit high achieving k12 math students to become teachers
-consider common core for teacher preparation
-require math specialization down to elementary level
William Schmidt
Michigan State University
first study related to teacher preparedness in math
elem and middle teachers have poor preparation to teach math
48 states adopting more rigorous standards in math (common core) – and teachers will not be prepared to teach more demanding curriculum
TIMSS 2003 show US students behind in 8th grade math
TEDS-M studie pre-service teahers in many countries – gave them a common assessment
what do future teachers know?
-elem teachers similar to many countries (middle)
-middle teachers behind teachers in other countries whose students do better on TIMMS; avg performance 150 points behind Taiwan, 100 points behind Russia and Switzerland
-no difference between public and private schools
-strong parallel between teacher knowledge and student performance
Middle School Certification is the problem
-determined by state
-3 methods:
-secondary
-middle
-k to 8
there are serious differences between these levels of preparation; those prepared in secondary pograms result in higher student performance
weaknesses in pre-service course taking in US – 10% less math-specific courses
top achieving countries pre-service teachers take more high level courses (not at elem level, but at middle school)
k-12 – curricular differences result in dramatic performance differences in student performance
large variation in teacher preparedness programs in the US (both elem and middle)
how to break the cycle …
weakness of teachers begins in grade 1; we have a weak k12 math curriculum; go on to be weak hs teachers; go on to weak pre-service programs
problem with who chooses to go on to become math teachers – they were formerly weak k12 math students
we need to recruit pre-service teachers from higher performing k12 math students
recommendations:
-common core curriculum based on common core standards
-states must redefine policies for teaher certification
-colleges and universities must revise programs
-recruit high achieving k12 math students to become teachers
-consider common core for teacher preparation
-require math specialization down to elementary level
Gene Wilhoit
Council of Chiel State School Officers
we should stop chasing multiple agendas – for example, the problem is not at the elementary level
linear algebra and calculus must be part of middle school teaher preparation common core is essential
common standards will pressure the systems need to recruit high level math and science grads into teaching; this will be complicated by coming massive retirements in teacher force; cannot afford to lower standards just to get teachers in classrooms
need full commitments from universities to make dramatic changes
should re-license teachers at state level
professional development needed for teachers in middle schools
there is merit to a national approach rather than 50 different solutions
we should look to the models that graduate students at a world class level
Richard Stephens
Boeing Corporation
think of education as a systems issue; education first starts at home
2nd element is well prepared teachers; teachers need more than knowledge, they need to push application so that students can use their knowledge in the workforce
kids are only in school 20% of their wakin hours – must also think about broader educational elements in terns if media and activities
shouldn’t think about beating up teachers, but how to support them
Questions:
AFT …. course titles vs actual content: high achieving countries don’t just teach content, but pedagogy
did they study for-profit teacher prep programs, alternative routes: currently studying
science magazine…. is it about high level courses, or is it that people who take those courses have more of an affinity for math; ie is it about courses or recruitment: need more analysis before making that kind of decision but clearly both have to be considered; elementary teachers generally don’t like math, middle school is a more complicated issue
math professor …. middle school teachers don’t need calculus, they need more science and teach an integrated approach: in Germany, pre service requires two majors and they often combine a math and science (they have no problems with teacher shortage as a result)
as # of teachers go down …. possibility that teacher standards would be reduced; instead we need multiple pathway into teaching BUT still need high levels of certification from state level
importance of application …. if there was a measure of achievement had elements of creativity, would US do better in international comparisons: no data support other counntries do better on regurgitation of facts vs application of math knowledge; it’s hard to be creative if you don’t have substantive knowledge to support those efforts
what is surprising about the results: performance of elem teachers is similar to other counntries, US is not particulaly bad – it has been assumed that elem teachers create the problem that middle school inherits; most astounding is the wide variation of teacher preparedness
center for alternative certification …. is there a thought about looking at how instruction is delivered: what is best place for our resources? need to consider both recruitment and preparation
curriculum … common core will help to redesign courses so that kids have more experiences with application and engagement
we don’t have an American genetic weakness in math – it’s a societal problem that adults don’t prioritize mathematical knowledge (it’s okay to say “I’m bad at math”)
this has something to do with media – “bad people” are mathematicians (big bang theory tv show) – need to change perception and that starts at school
curricularly, high level courses help wigh lower level understandings; concept, understanding, concept understanding teacher compensation? how to attract high level people to the profession? in Taiwan, only 20% of grads get teaching job – math teachers make similar salaries to oher professions – whereas in US the gap is huge state legislators? state school officers must take primary role to educate legislators – probably through state commission

stream of consciousness notes from today’s press conference … sorry for typos (blame the iphone):

William Schmidt, Michigan State University

first research study related to teacher preparedness in math

elem and middle teachers have poor preparation to teach math

48 states adopting more rigorous standards in math (common core) – and teachers will not be prepared to teach more demanding curriculum

TIMSS 2003 show US students behind in 8th grade math

TEDS-M studie pre-service teahers in many countries – gave them a common assessment

what do future teachers know?

-elem teachers similar to many countries (middle)

-middle teachers behind teachers in other countries whose students do better on TIMMS; avg performance 150 points behind Taiwan, 100 points behind Russia and Switzerland

-no difference between public and private schools

-strong parallel between teacher knowledge and student performance

Middle School Certification is the problem

-determined by state

-3 methods:

-secondary

-middle

-k to 8

there are serious differences between these levels of preparation; those prepared in secondary pograms result in higher student performance

weaknesses in pre-service course taking in US – 10% less math-specific courses

top achieving countries pre-service teachers take more high level courses (not at elem level, but at middle school)

k-12 – curricular differences result in dramatic performance differences in student performance

large variation in teacher preparedness programs in the US (both elem and middle)

how to break the cycle …

weakness of teachers begins in grade 1; we have a weak k12 math curriculum; go on to be weak hs teachers; go on to weak pre-service programs

problem with who chooses to go on to become math teachers – they were formerly weak k12 math students

we need to recruit pre-service teachers from higher performing k12 math students

recommendations:

-common core curriculum based on common core standards

-states must redefine policies for teaher certification

-colleges and universities must revise programs

-recruit high achieving k12 math students to become teachers

-consider common core for teacher preparation

-require math specialization down to elementary level

Gene Wilhoit, Council of Chiel State School Officers

we should stop chasing multiple agendas – for example, the problem is not at the elementary level

linear algebra and calculus must be part of middle school teaher preparation common core is essential

common standards will pressure the systems need to recruit high level math and science grads into teaching; this will be complicated by coming massive retirements in teacher force; cannot afford to lower standards just to get teachers in classrooms

need full commitments from universities to make dramatic changes

should re-license teachers at state level

professional development needed for teachers in middle schools

there is merit to a national approach rather than 50 different solutions

we should look to the models that graduate students at a world class level

Richard Stephens, Boeing Corporation

think of education as a systems issue; education first starts at home

2nd element is well prepared teachers; teachers need more than knowledge, they need to push application so that students can use their knowledge in the workforce

kids are only in school 20% of their wakin hours – must also think about broader educational elements in terns if media and activities

shouldn’t think about beating up teachers, but how to support them

Questions:

AFT …. course titles vs actual content: high achieving countries don’t just teach content, but pedagogy

did they study for-profit teacher prep programs, alternative routes: currently studying

science magazine…. is it about high level courses, or is it that people who take those courses have more of an affinity for math; ie is it about courses or recruitment: need more analysis before making that kind of decision but clearly both have to be considered; elementary teachers generally don’t like math, middle school is a more complicated issue

math professor …. middle school teachers don’t need calculus, they need more science and teach an integrated approach: in Germany, pre service requires two majors and they often combine a math and science (they have no problems with teacher shortage as a result)

as # of teachers go down …. possibility that teacher standards would be reduced; instead we need multiple pathway into teaching BUT still need high levels of certification from state level

importance of application …. if there was a measure of achievement had elements of creativity, would US do better in international comparisons: no data support other counntries do better on regurgitation of facts vs application of math knowledge; it’s hard to be creative if you don’t have substantive knowledge to support those efforts

what is surprising about the results: performance of elem teachers is similar to other counntries, US is not particulaly bad – it has been assumed that elem teachers create the problem that middle school inherits; most astounding is the wide variation of teacher preparedness

center for alternative certification …. is there a thought about looking at how instruction is delivered: what is best place for our resources? need to consider both recruitment and preparation

curriculum … common core will help to redesign courses so that kids have more experiences with application and engagement

we don’t have an American genetic weakness in math – it’s a societal problem that adults don’t prioritize mathematical knowledge (it’s okay to say “I’m bad at math”)

this has something to do with media – “bad people” are mathematicians (big bang theory tv show) – need to change perception and that starts at school

curricularly, high level courses help wigh lower level understandings; concept, understanding, concept understanding teacher compensation? how to attract high level people to the profession? in Taiwan, only 20% of grads get teaching job – math teachers make similar salaries to oher professions – whereas in US the gap is huge state legislators? state school officers must take primary role to educate legislators – probably through state commission