Core Plus Mathematics Project. Sad isn't it? And if you're school is doing it, you don't have a prayer of changing it. Unless you get as mad as heck and start yelling at the idiots who don't realize it's rat poo.
Blog on Asian American, education, cars, politics, videos, and anything else fun I run across.
Wednesday, February 28, 2007
Asian Week Apologizes for racist columnist
This popped up in my gmail suggestion bar. They put my YouTube column on hold ... for THIS guy??? And I thought I was far out. They've probably already taken the columns down.
AsianWeek newspaper apologises for publishing contributor's 'Why I Hate Blacks' column
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/nation/20070228-0020-hatecolumn.html
By Terence Chea
ASSOCIATED PRESS
12:20 a.m. February 28, 2007
SAN FRANCISCO – An editor of a weekly newspaper calling itself “The Voice of Asian America” apologized after Asian-American leaders condemned a column titled “Why I Hate Blacks.”
In the piece, which appeared in the Feb. 23 edition of San Francisco-based AsianWeek, contributor Kenneth Eng lists reasons why he supports discrimination against blacks – including because “they are the only race that has been enslaved for 300 years.”
Advertisement
Leaders at the Asian American Justice Center, Chinese for Affirmative Action, Coalition for Asian Pacific Americans and other groups began circulating a petition denouncing the column as “irresponsible journalism, blatantly racist, replete with stereotypes, and deeply hurtful to African Americans.”
“It certainly does not speak for the vast majority of Asian Americans,” Stewart Kwoh, who heads the Asian Pacific American Legal Center in Los Angeles, said Tuesday. “This kind of inflammatory (column) really can hurt and damage relations with the broader African-American community.”
The petition calls on AsianWeek to cut ties with Eng, issue an apology, print an editorial refuting the column, and fire or demote the editors who published it.
AsianWeek, with a circulation of 48,505, issued a statement apologizing for “any harm or hurt this has caused the African American community.”
The newspaper plans to hold a news conference with NAACP leaders in San Francisco on Wednesday to discuss how the Asian and black communities “can be different and yet get along and work together,” said Ted Fang, the paper's editor-at-large.
“The newspaper is sorry that this got published, and I am personally sorry that this got published,” Fang told The Associated Press. “The views in that opinion piece do not in any way reflect the views of AsianWeek.”
The paper plans to review its policies to “understand how this happened and make sure it doesn't happen again,” Fang said, calling the decision to publish Eng's piece a “mistake.”
Fang's family publishes AsianWeek, along with a local newspaper called the Independent, and owned the San Francisco Examiner between 2000 and 2004.
Kenneth Eng, who has described himself as an “Asian Supremacist,” has written several columns for AsianWeek since November, including pieces titled “Proof That Whites Inherently Hate Us” and “Why I Hate Asians.”
Eng is in his early 20s and a graduate of New York University, according to a biography on a Web site promoting his science fiction writing.
A telephone listing for Eng could not immediately be located.
Mayor Gavin Newsom said in a statement that the column had “no place in a city that is known around the world for civil rights and equality for all people. I am deeply concerned, both for the opinions expressed in the column and the fact that these opinions were published in a local newspaper.”
Supervisor Sophie Maxwell, one of the city's top black officials, has co-sponsored a city resolution condemning the article and AsianWeek's decision to publish it. But she doesn't believe Eng's column will hurt relations between blacks and Asians in San Francisco.
“This man clearly is very ignorant of African-American history and his own history, and he's very angry,” said Maxwell, who represents a district with large black and Asian populations.
AsianWeek newspaper apologises for publishing contributor's 'Why I Hate Blacks' column
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/nation/20070228-0020-hatecolumn.html
By Terence Chea
ASSOCIATED PRESS
12:20 a.m. February 28, 2007
SAN FRANCISCO – An editor of a weekly newspaper calling itself “The Voice of Asian America” apologized after Asian-American leaders condemned a column titled “Why I Hate Blacks.”
In the piece, which appeared in the Feb. 23 edition of San Francisco-based AsianWeek, contributor Kenneth Eng lists reasons why he supports discrimination against blacks – including because “they are the only race that has been enslaved for 300 years.”
Advertisement
Leaders at the Asian American Justice Center, Chinese for Affirmative Action, Coalition for Asian Pacific Americans and other groups began circulating a petition denouncing the column as “irresponsible journalism, blatantly racist, replete with stereotypes, and deeply hurtful to African Americans.”
“It certainly does not speak for the vast majority of Asian Americans,” Stewart Kwoh, who heads the Asian Pacific American Legal Center in Los Angeles, said Tuesday. “This kind of inflammatory (column) really can hurt and damage relations with the broader African-American community.”
The petition calls on AsianWeek to cut ties with Eng, issue an apology, print an editorial refuting the column, and fire or demote the editors who published it.
AsianWeek, with a circulation of 48,505, issued a statement apologizing for “any harm or hurt this has caused the African American community.”
The newspaper plans to hold a news conference with NAACP leaders in San Francisco on Wednesday to discuss how the Asian and black communities “can be different and yet get along and work together,” said Ted Fang, the paper's editor-at-large.
“The newspaper is sorry that this got published, and I am personally sorry that this got published,” Fang told The Associated Press. “The views in that opinion piece do not in any way reflect the views of AsianWeek.”
The paper plans to review its policies to “understand how this happened and make sure it doesn't happen again,” Fang said, calling the decision to publish Eng's piece a “mistake.”
Fang's family publishes AsianWeek, along with a local newspaper called the Independent, and owned the San Francisco Examiner between 2000 and 2004.
Kenneth Eng, who has described himself as an “Asian Supremacist,” has written several columns for AsianWeek since November, including pieces titled “Proof That Whites Inherently Hate Us” and “Why I Hate Asians.”
Eng is in his early 20s and a graduate of New York University, according to a biography on a Web site promoting his science fiction writing.
A telephone listing for Eng could not immediately be located.
Mayor Gavin Newsom said in a statement that the column had “no place in a city that is known around the world for civil rights and equality for all people. I am deeply concerned, both for the opinions expressed in the column and the fact that these opinions were published in a local newspaper.”
Supervisor Sophie Maxwell, one of the city's top black officials, has co-sponsored a city resolution condemning the article and AsianWeek's decision to publish it. But she doesn't believe Eng's column will hurt relations between blacks and Asians in San Francisco.
“This man clearly is very ignorant of African-American history and his own history, and he's very angry,” said Maxwell, who represents a district with large black and Asian populations.
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
Test Scoring Cheering Rallies by Race
This is freaking brilliant. Not.
Concord, CA. high school tries to close achievement gap through Message List
http://www.contracostatimes.com/mld/cctimes/16792877.htm
Academic pep talks are color coded
By Shirley Dang
CONTRA COSTA TIMES
With schools under increasing pressure to improve test scores, Mount
Diablo High School has resorted to a new way to motivate students: by
race.
The Concord campus on Friday held separate assemblies for students of
different ethnicities to talk about last year's test results and the
upcoming slew of state exams this spring.
Jazz music and pictures of Martin Luther King greeted African-American
students, whereas Filipino, Asian and Pacific Islander students saw
flags of their foreign homelands on the walls. Latinos and white
students each attended their own events, too, complete with statistics
showing results for all ethnicities and grade level.
"They started off by saying jokingly, 'What up, white people,'" said
freshman Megan Wiley, 14. Teachers flashed last year's test scores and
told the white crowd of students to do better for the sake of their
people.
"They got into, 'You should be proud of your race,'" Wiley said. "It
was just weird."
Several parents later told the Times that the meetings smacked of
segregation resurrected.
"Why did they have to divide the students by race?" said Filipino
parent Claddy Dennis, mother of freshman Schenlly Dennis. "In this
country, everybody is supposed to be treated equally. It sounds like
racism to me."
Principal Bev Hansen said she held the student assemblies by ethnicity
this year and last year to avoid one group harassing another based on
their test scores. The 1,600-student campus, one of the most
ethnically diverse high schools in the Mt. Diablo school district, is
roughly half Latino, 30 percent white and 15 percent black, with Asian
nationalities rounding out the mix.
Last year, the school improved its academic performance index score,
largely based on test scores, to 613 out of 1,000. Among the races,
Asians scored highest. Whites earned a 667. African-Americans scored a
580, whereas Latinos earned a 571.
"I don't want students being teased," Hansen said.
Ultimately, however, Hansen said she did not know why parents seemed
so concerned. The state has reported scores based on race for years.
The school assemblies simply reflected those same categories in
reporting the numbers to students, she said.
"In this country, race is a very uncomfortable topic, and it's time we
got over it," Hansen said.
Jack Jennings, president of the National Center on Education Policy, a
leading education research group, called the racially divided meetings
potentially illegal and dangerous.
"It's segregation by race, whatever the motivation," Jennings said,
noting that he had never heard before of a school or district doing
such a thing.
He described the assemblies as a unique byproduct of the intense focus
on testing.
Under the federal No Child Left Behind Act, schools, school districts
and states must report and are accountable for scores in reading and
math for specific races, English learners, special-education students
and economically disadvantaged students. All statistically significant
groups must show continuous test score improvement.
"It shows that there's so much pressure to raise test scores that
teachers and administrators are trying to do anything they can,"
Jennings said. "Sometimes what they choose is not very wise."
Last spring, California High School in the San Ramon Valley pulled
Latino and black students in for pretesting pep talks but not white
students. The principal apologized after parents flooded the mayor's
office with complaints.
Mount Diablo sophomore Hector Rivera, 15, said he enjoyed the speakers
at his Latino student assembly.
"The way they were speaking, it was intended to make people feel
good," Rivera said. "I guess it was to inspire everybody, like you can
do better."
Hispanic students made a 50-point gain on the state's 1,000-point
achievement scale. White students improved by 46 points, whereas
English learners posted the greatest rise, more than 80 points.
"There's nothing negative about these assemblies," said school
secretary Arnetta Jones, who is African-American and helped organize
the assembly for African-American students. "It wasn't, in any way, to
put people down."
African-American students raised their score on the state academic
performance index by 61 points. "We showed an incredible amount of
improvement on our test scores," Jones said.
The event also celebrated black culture, Jones said. Two students
performed a dance with choreography by African-American dance
visionary Alvin Ailey. A black pastor from Bay Point delivered a
message. One student read a poem that is the mantra of a black
fraternity from UC Berkeley.
"That kind of set the tone," Jones said.
However, some African-American students interpreted the school's
messages differently.
Freshman Jason Lockett, 14, said he saw the pictures of Martin Luther
King and the words, "Black Power" projected overhead. But the scores,
despite being an increase over last year, still lag other races'.
"It was to compare us and say how much dumber we were than everybody
else," Lockett said.
Principal Hansen said although some students were upset, they deserve
to know the truth about lower test scores.
"We need help in closing the achievement gap," Hansen said. "This is
one tiny step."
Staff writer Eric Louie contributed to this report. Shirley Dang
covers education. Reach her at 925-977-8418 or sdang@....
Concord, CA. high school tries to close achievement gap through Message List
http://www.contracostatimes.com/mld/cctimes/16792877.htm
Academic pep talks are color coded
By Shirley Dang
CONTRA COSTA TIMES
With schools under increasing pressure to improve test scores, Mount
Diablo High School has resorted to a new way to motivate students: by
race.
The Concord campus on Friday held separate assemblies for students of
different ethnicities to talk about last year's test results and the
upcoming slew of state exams this spring.
Jazz music and pictures of Martin Luther King greeted African-American
students, whereas Filipino, Asian and Pacific Islander students saw
flags of their foreign homelands on the walls. Latinos and white
students each attended their own events, too, complete with statistics
showing results for all ethnicities and grade level.
"They started off by saying jokingly, 'What up, white people,'" said
freshman Megan Wiley, 14. Teachers flashed last year's test scores and
told the white crowd of students to do better for the sake of their
people.
"They got into, 'You should be proud of your race,'" Wiley said. "It
was just weird."
Several parents later told the Times that the meetings smacked of
segregation resurrected.
"Why did they have to divide the students by race?" said Filipino
parent Claddy Dennis, mother of freshman Schenlly Dennis. "In this
country, everybody is supposed to be treated equally. It sounds like
racism to me."
Principal Bev Hansen said she held the student assemblies by ethnicity
this year and last year to avoid one group harassing another based on
their test scores. The 1,600-student campus, one of the most
ethnically diverse high schools in the Mt. Diablo school district, is
roughly half Latino, 30 percent white and 15 percent black, with Asian
nationalities rounding out the mix.
Last year, the school improved its academic performance index score,
largely based on test scores, to 613 out of 1,000. Among the races,
Asians scored highest. Whites earned a 667. African-Americans scored a
580, whereas Latinos earned a 571.
"I don't want students being teased," Hansen said.
Ultimately, however, Hansen said she did not know why parents seemed
so concerned. The state has reported scores based on race for years.
The school assemblies simply reflected those same categories in
reporting the numbers to students, she said.
"In this country, race is a very uncomfortable topic, and it's time we
got over it," Hansen said.
Jack Jennings, president of the National Center on Education Policy, a
leading education research group, called the racially divided meetings
potentially illegal and dangerous.
"It's segregation by race, whatever the motivation," Jennings said,
noting that he had never heard before of a school or district doing
such a thing.
He described the assemblies as a unique byproduct of the intense focus
on testing.
Under the federal No Child Left Behind Act, schools, school districts
and states must report and are accountable for scores in reading and
math for specific races, English learners, special-education students
and economically disadvantaged students. All statistically significant
groups must show continuous test score improvement.
"It shows that there's so much pressure to raise test scores that
teachers and administrators are trying to do anything they can,"
Jennings said. "Sometimes what they choose is not very wise."
Last spring, California High School in the San Ramon Valley pulled
Latino and black students in for pretesting pep talks but not white
students. The principal apologized after parents flooded the mayor's
office with complaints.
Mount Diablo sophomore Hector Rivera, 15, said he enjoyed the speakers
at his Latino student assembly.
"The way they were speaking, it was intended to make people feel
good," Rivera said. "I guess it was to inspire everybody, like you can
do better."
Hispanic students made a 50-point gain on the state's 1,000-point
achievement scale. White students improved by 46 points, whereas
English learners posted the greatest rise, more than 80 points.
"There's nothing negative about these assemblies," said school
secretary Arnetta Jones, who is African-American and helped organize
the assembly for African-American students. "It wasn't, in any way, to
put people down."
African-American students raised their score on the state academic
performance index by 61 points. "We showed an incredible amount of
improvement on our test scores," Jones said.
The event also celebrated black culture, Jones said. Two students
performed a dance with choreography by African-American dance
visionary Alvin Ailey. A black pastor from Bay Point delivered a
message. One student read a poem that is the mantra of a black
fraternity from UC Berkeley.
"That kind of set the tone," Jones said.
However, some African-American students interpreted the school's
messages differently.
Freshman Jason Lockett, 14, said he saw the pictures of Martin Luther
King and the words, "Black Power" projected overhead. But the scores,
despite being an increase over last year, still lag other races'.
"It was to compare us and say how much dumber we were than everybody
else," Lockett said.
Principal Hansen said although some students were upset, they deserve
to know the truth about lower test scores.
"We need help in closing the achievement gap," Hansen said. "This is
one tiny step."
Staff writer Eric Louie contributed to this report. Shirley Dang
covers education. Reach her at 925-977-8418 or sdang@....
Monday, February 26, 2007
Home Care Group Worship He Is Lord Offering Baloche
This is what a home care group formerly known as the Kirkland group looks like for worship.
Core Crap Plus Worst High School Integrated Math EVER!
All the college level math your parents never had, and NONE of the math you'll need for college or the SAT. Plus everthing you ever wanted to know about Nike, Cocoa Krispies and KFC. If Maas thought McDougall Littell was bad, THIS IS WORSE. Your school may have this ridiculous math program if it accepted federal dollars to adopt this complete junk.
Posted by a friend of Where's the Math by the Crazy Asian American Dad.
Posted by a friend of Where's the Math by the Crazy Asian American Dad.
Mini Mountain Snowboard Ski Lesson On a Rug Belt
In Bellevue WA, cutting up the rug on a moving belt. Easier than hiking up to Snoqualmie Summit and getting a face full of snow. I dunno about my kids "Dad do we have to go, I gotta do my homework..."
Sunday, February 25, 2007
Veoh review by Arnold Hur
Just caught Veoh in the Seattle Time business pages. Says they want to be a rival to Youtube with p2p movie sharing / stealing technology. Some conclusions after playing with it after a week and posting some of my YouTube and Google Video videos
* There's maybe 1/20 to 1/40 of the content. Search for any song and movie, and chances are it hasn't been posted yet
* Sometimes there's a pause in playing movies
* I think it's trying to show you more movies based on what you've seen.
* If you're POSTING movies, depending on the film, some get MORE on veoh. I can only explain this by the lack of competition for views because Youtube gets a lot more visitors. In general, hard to tell which ones do better on either, but generally numbers on one will be comparable to another, so it's definitely worth putting videos up FIRST on veoh, and then using pro to put up on other sites. Google Video only 3 months ago for my videos were about 1500 views for either site, but now GV is down to 150-250, while yt is up to 1500-2000 per day. I'm surprised Veoh is as strong for newly posted videos (even ones that have been up on YT for a while) as Youtube.
Jesus the River of Love, an audio with static slide got 25 hits first day on Veoh but only a handful on YouTube: This is effectively a world premiere of an average quality worship performance from 2004. I need to track down Brandy's definitive version which was made on a self-published church CD.
Online Videos by Veoh.com
Most popular is I enjoy being a girl which was getting 90 / day on Youtube, got 71 on first day on Veoh:
Online Videos by Veoh.com
I'll need more time to post which specific videos did well.
* Some of the pirated movies available look as good or better than DVD on a laptop when downloaded, and they are full length (or maybe they are TV shows). This, and the ability to download even poor quality video is much better than YouTube.
* Some nice extended length TV shows if not movies , the Madagascar movie I spotted was taken down, but clips and TV shows seem to stay up.
* Gawd there's a bunch of stupid Japanese music TV shows up there.
* There's maybe 1/20 to 1/40 of the content. Search for any song and movie, and chances are it hasn't been posted yet
* Sometimes there's a pause in playing movies
* I think it's trying to show you more movies based on what you've seen.
* If you're POSTING movies, depending on the film, some get MORE on veoh. I can only explain this by the lack of competition for views because Youtube gets a lot more visitors. In general, hard to tell which ones do better on either, but generally numbers on one will be comparable to another, so it's definitely worth putting videos up FIRST on veoh, and then using pro to put up on other sites. Google Video only 3 months ago for my videos were about 1500 views for either site, but now GV is down to 150-250, while yt is up to 1500-2000 per day. I'm surprised Veoh is as strong for newly posted videos (even ones that have been up on YT for a while) as Youtube.
Jesus the River of Love, an audio with static slide got 25 hits first day on Veoh but only a handful on YouTube: This is effectively a world premiere of an average quality worship performance from 2004. I need to track down Brandy's definitive version which was made on a self-published church CD.
Online Videos by Veoh.com
Most popular is I enjoy being a girl which was getting 90 / day on Youtube, got 71 on first day on Veoh:
Online Videos by Veoh.com
I'll need more time to post which specific videos did well.
* Some of the pirated movies available look as good or better than DVD on a laptop when downloaded, and they are full length (or maybe they are TV shows). This, and the ability to download even poor quality video is much better than YouTube.
* Some nice extended length TV shows if not movies , the Madagascar movie I spotted was taken down, but clips and TV shows seem to stay up.
* Gawd there's a bunch of stupid Japanese music TV shows up there.
Saturday, February 24, 2007
Nerds of color evicted from Sorority
Wasn't revenge of the Nerds about a guy's version of this?
http://news.aol.com/topnews/articles/_a/sorority-evictions-raise-issue-of-bias/20070224163909990001?ncid=NWS00010000000001
Updated:2007-02-24 16:52:01
Sorority Evictions Raise Issue of Bias
By SAM DILLON
The New York Times
(Feb. 24) - When a psychology professor at DePauw University here surveyed students, they described one sorority as a group of "daddy's little princesses" and another as "offbeat hippies." The sisters of Delta Zeta were seen as "socially awkward."
...
Delta Zeta's national officers interviewed 35 DePauw members in November, quizzing them about their dedication to recruitment. They judged 23 of the women insufficiently committed and later told them to vacate the sorority house.
The 23 members included every woman who was overweight. They also included the only black, Korean and Vietnamese members. The dozen students allowed to stay were slender and popular with fraternity men -- conventionally pretty women the sorority hoped could attract new recruits. Six of the 12 were so infuriated they quit.
"Virtually everyone who didn't fit a certain sorority member archetype was told to leave," said Kate Holloway, a senior who withdrew from the chapter during its reorganization.
....
Copyright © 2007 The New York Times Company
2007-02-24 16:39:24
http://news.aol.com/topnews/articles/_a/sorority-evictions-raise-issue-of-bias/20070224163909990001?ncid=NWS00010000000001
Updated:2007-02-24 16:52:01
Sorority Evictions Raise Issue of Bias
By SAM DILLON
The New York Times
(Feb. 24) - When a psychology professor at DePauw University here surveyed students, they described one sorority as a group of "daddy's little princesses" and another as "offbeat hippies." The sisters of Delta Zeta were seen as "socially awkward."
...
Delta Zeta's national officers interviewed 35 DePauw members in November, quizzing them about their dedication to recruitment. They judged 23 of the women insufficiently committed and later told them to vacate the sorority house.
The 23 members included every woman who was overweight. They also included the only black, Korean and Vietnamese members. The dozen students allowed to stay were slender and popular with fraternity men -- conventionally pretty women the sorority hoped could attract new recruits. Six of the 12 were so infuriated they quit.
"Virtually everyone who didn't fit a certain sorority member archetype was told to leave," said Kate Holloway, a senior who withdrew from the chapter during its reorganization.
....
Copyright © 2007 The New York Times Company
2007-02-24 16:39:24
Friday, February 23, 2007
Skyland: Ep. 3 The Great Wall
An old friend of the Vector's sends news to Puerto Angel - he may have a lead on Lena and Mahad's mother.
South Park - End of Warcraft1
(South Park, AMV) This is the part where everybody loses, to the Fatguy...
Lego Thriller
Michael Jackson's entire music video "Thriller" done completely in Lego and clay.
Includes not only the song, but all non-musical scenes as well.
The resolution is horrible, but it is the best I could find where the video wasn't glitchy in several other ways (all of them had bad resolution anyway).
Not bad overall, but hardly worth the 13+ minutes to watch it.
Includes not only the song, but all non-musical scenes as well.
The resolution is horrible, but it is the best I could find where the video wasn't glitchy in several other ways (all of them had bad resolution anyway).
Not bad overall, but hardly worth the 13+ minutes to watch it.
Asian-Ams stand out as US students pale in international comparison
"As in the past, one number that stood out Thursday was the performance of Asian students, who perennially out-achieve students of all other ethnic backgrounds in every academic category. Gordon, the Sacramento superintendent, said he noticed that Asian graduates annually have some of the top grade point averages in his district, many of them after only recently immigrating to the United States and learning English."
http://www.sptimes.com/2007/02/22/Worldandnation/Advanced_courses_may_.shtml
Advanced courses may not be all that advanced, some say
Educators say tests show U.S. high schools need a major overhaul.
By THOMAS C. TOBIN
Published February 22, 2007
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ADVERTISEMENT
Breaking News Video
Years of education reforms have failed to lift the performance of U.S. high school students, according to a gloomy set of numbers that stunned educators and brought calls Thursday for more urgency.
In the most recent national test on reading, the nation’s 12th-graders scored lower than they did in 1992. Only 73 percent scored at or above the “basic” level in the National Assessment of Educational Progress, also known as The Nation’s Report Card. That was down from 80 percent in 1992.
Students showed a similar lack of traction in science. Learning gaps between white and minority students were as wide as ever.
“We clearly have a major problem, and it’s not going to be addressed just by some minor changes in our system,’’ said David P. Driscoll, the education commissioner of Massachusetts, which, like Florida, was an early adopter of strict school accountability.
Driscoll complained that American high schools have shorter years and shorter days than competing systems overseas. “Clearly,’’ he said at a news conference arranged by the National Assessment Governing Board, “we need to look at some major changes in the way schools are organized and the way teaching and learning is delivered.’’
Results were not available by state.
The stagnation among high school students contrasts with gains made by younger students, especially those in elementary school. It also has occurred even as high school students are exposed, more than ever, to rigorous courses.
A study of 26,000 transcripts from public and private high school students who graduated in 2005 found that 51 percent took a “mid-level” or “rigorous” curriculum with challenging requirements for math, science and foreign languages. That was up from 30 percent in 1990.
“It’s a disconnect for sure,” said Margaret Spellings, the U.S. Education Secretary, in Tampa Thursday to discuss the federal No Child Left Behind Act. “It does affirm that, by damn, we better pay attention to our high schools.”
For many top educators, the search for causes leads back to classrooms. The chief explanation, they said, is that too many classes are rigorous in name only.
“It’s important what we teach and how it is taught has to be carefully inspected course by course, textbook by textbook, classroom by classroom,’’ said David Gordon, school superintendent in Sacramento, Calif.
He called on teachers and administrators to collaborate in making sure classes are as rigorous as they should be.
“This is difficult, time-consuming work,’’ he said. “But without pulling back the curtain and taking a hard look inside the classroom, nothing is likely to change.’’
Pinellas school superintendent Clayton Wilcox said many districts have begun talking about just such an exercise.
In Pinellas, he said, a two-year-old program to assess students more frequently will help the district detect gaps in teaching.
Wilcox also argued that the trends may not be as disheartening as they appear. Though graduation rates have been flat since the 1970s, he said, a case can be made that the actual number of students getting diplomas is up.
“You have kids (graduating) that never were there before,’’ he said.
What made Thursday’s results more alarming for some was the fact that the students tested were the best the system had to offer — kids who had made it to 12th grade and were ready to graduate. The numbers also included a slight decline among students whose parents graduated from college, another group thought to be high performers.
At the Education Trust in Washington, an advocacy group that rails against the achievement gap, president Kati Haycock said the numbers revealed a broad, systemic failure.
“Students are doing what is asked of them — they are taking more academic courses and getting higher grades — but they aren’t being taught any more than in the past,” she said, calling for more qualified teachers and higher expectations.
As in the past, one number that stood out Thursday was the performance of Asian students, who perennially out-achieve students of all other ethnic backgrounds in every academic category.
Gordon, the Sacramento superintendent, said he noticed that Asian graduates annually have some of the top grade point averages in his district, many of them after only recently immigrating to the United States and learning English.
“What we need to do is have our own American kids, born here, speaking the language from the time they’re born ... to get motivated about something other than their iPod,’’ said Driscoll, the Massachusetts official.
“There has to be a sense of urgency on behalf of everybody,’’ he said. “That includes, by the way, the kids.’’
Times staff writer Letitia Stein contributed to this report.
[Last modified February 22, 2007, 22:20:13]
http://www.sptimes.com/2007/02/22/Worldandnation/Advanced_courses_may_.shtml
Advanced courses may not be all that advanced, some say
Educators say tests show U.S. high schools need a major overhaul.
By THOMAS C. TOBIN
Published February 22, 2007
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ADVERTISEMENT
Breaking News Video
Years of education reforms have failed to lift the performance of U.S. high school students, according to a gloomy set of numbers that stunned educators and brought calls Thursday for more urgency.
In the most recent national test on reading, the nation’s 12th-graders scored lower than they did in 1992. Only 73 percent scored at or above the “basic” level in the National Assessment of Educational Progress, also known as The Nation’s Report Card. That was down from 80 percent in 1992.
Students showed a similar lack of traction in science. Learning gaps between white and minority students were as wide as ever.
“We clearly have a major problem, and it’s not going to be addressed just by some minor changes in our system,’’ said David P. Driscoll, the education commissioner of Massachusetts, which, like Florida, was an early adopter of strict school accountability.
Driscoll complained that American high schools have shorter years and shorter days than competing systems overseas. “Clearly,’’ he said at a news conference arranged by the National Assessment Governing Board, “we need to look at some major changes in the way schools are organized and the way teaching and learning is delivered.’’
Results were not available by state.
The stagnation among high school students contrasts with gains made by younger students, especially those in elementary school. It also has occurred even as high school students are exposed, more than ever, to rigorous courses.
A study of 26,000 transcripts from public and private high school students who graduated in 2005 found that 51 percent took a “mid-level” or “rigorous” curriculum with challenging requirements for math, science and foreign languages. That was up from 30 percent in 1990.
“It’s a disconnect for sure,” said Margaret Spellings, the U.S. Education Secretary, in Tampa Thursday to discuss the federal No Child Left Behind Act. “It does affirm that, by damn, we better pay attention to our high schools.”
For many top educators, the search for causes leads back to classrooms. The chief explanation, they said, is that too many classes are rigorous in name only.
“It’s important what we teach and how it is taught has to be carefully inspected course by course, textbook by textbook, classroom by classroom,’’ said David Gordon, school superintendent in Sacramento, Calif.
He called on teachers and administrators to collaborate in making sure classes are as rigorous as they should be.
“This is difficult, time-consuming work,’’ he said. “But without pulling back the curtain and taking a hard look inside the classroom, nothing is likely to change.’’
Pinellas school superintendent Clayton Wilcox said many districts have begun talking about just such an exercise.
In Pinellas, he said, a two-year-old program to assess students more frequently will help the district detect gaps in teaching.
Wilcox also argued that the trends may not be as disheartening as they appear. Though graduation rates have been flat since the 1970s, he said, a case can be made that the actual number of students getting diplomas is up.
“You have kids (graduating) that never were there before,’’ he said.
What made Thursday’s results more alarming for some was the fact that the students tested were the best the system had to offer — kids who had made it to 12th grade and were ready to graduate. The numbers also included a slight decline among students whose parents graduated from college, another group thought to be high performers.
At the Education Trust in Washington, an advocacy group that rails against the achievement gap, president Kati Haycock said the numbers revealed a broad, systemic failure.
“Students are doing what is asked of them — they are taking more academic courses and getting higher grades — but they aren’t being taught any more than in the past,” she said, calling for more qualified teachers and higher expectations.
As in the past, one number that stood out Thursday was the performance of Asian students, who perennially out-achieve students of all other ethnic backgrounds in every academic category.
Gordon, the Sacramento superintendent, said he noticed that Asian graduates annually have some of the top grade point averages in his district, many of them after only recently immigrating to the United States and learning English.
“What we need to do is have our own American kids, born here, speaking the language from the time they’re born ... to get motivated about something other than their iPod,’’ said Driscoll, the Massachusetts official.
“There has to be a sense of urgency on behalf of everybody,’’ he said. “That includes, by the way, the kids.’’
Times staff writer Letitia Stein contributed to this report.
[Last modified February 22, 2007, 22:20:13]
Dinosaurs Live with Man. This guy proves it.
Where did the races come from? From the bible. Yeah, really.
Lincoln comments on the new Taurus
What if Abraham Lincoln came back and told Ford what he really thought?
Man, what have to guys done to Ford and Lincoln. I mean, Lincoln used to be a great presidential ride (JFK: yeah, though did it have to be a convertible??) It was a leader only a decade ago and now it's an also-ran joke. You guys know know how to kill every best selling nameplate you have. What have to done to the Focus? A freaking restyle when everybody else as redone their platform? You've got world class Mazda 3 that you could rebadge as a Tracer or Bobcat, and the European Focus! Did any company regain leadership by cutting costs? Econoline E-series is in the top 20 seller, but has anything been done to it? Ranger, what's the point in killing off another top seller after Taurus and Windstar? Can't they reconfigure a Ranger out of an explorer or something? They make a terrific new truck in Thailand, and a killer sport-ute why not bring that over?
What's been done for the Crown Victoria/ Town Car? Sure the 500/Taurus is a bigger slower Volvo, but how many Volvos do Americans buy? Do you think the taxi cabs or cops will ever buy those cars? Bring over the Australian Falcon, and sell it as a Mercury Cougar and Ford Thunderbird. Sell the longer aussie LTD and Fairlane as a fleet police and taxi vehicle, and continental. It's got more horsepower and it's shorter, and you'll keep the Australian factories working, since the market over there is in decline.
And who's idea was it to engineer the Freestyle (now that's a dumb name) when the Mazda CX-9 is a much better vehicle? Why do the Edge and Cx-7 have completely different bodies? Who was the idiot who though renaming the Windstar (which everybody heard of ) to the Freestar would increase excitement and sales when the Toronto paper said it would be the Ford Fiasco and consumers would be confused? Any wonder it died off in two years, especially since the facelift was completely outclassed by all 3 new japanese and 2 new Korean full-length minivans? Didn't anybody know that the Chevy C-name were stupid too (Celebrity? Ugh.)
The Fusion is still a stupid name (though less stupid than Futura). Why not bring back the Torino to compete with the Charger and Malibu?
Who's idea was it to leave Mercury with no cars to appeal to anyone under 50? Mercury used to have compacts and subcompacts back to the Comet and Bobcat - after the retirement of the Tracer, Mystique and Cougar, they had nothing smaller than the Sable to sell.
Who did they think they were kidding with the old aviator? Just like the Versaillees / Granada. At least Toyota changes the body for a lexus.
What's with the MK-whatever name scheme? Who the heck is going to remember any of those letters?
Import the new turbo MPV with lazy boy 2nd row as a Lincoln Villager. Do what chrysler did to plymouth and rebadge everything as a Lincoln, but make the cars nicer than Fords. Give Lincoln an Mx-9. Make a 4 seater Thunderbird , a 4 door continental out of a 4 door Mustang, and a MK? coupe like they used to do, or do a Lincoln-ized 500, but do SOMETHING. Put a V8 in the Taurus 500, god everybody else in the segment has a v8 or a V6 with V8 power.
And the Milan - change it to the Mulan to attract Asians away from Camry's and Accords.
Man, what have to guys done to Ford and Lincoln. I mean, Lincoln used to be a great presidential ride (JFK: yeah, though did it have to be a convertible??) It was a leader only a decade ago and now it's an also-ran joke. You guys know know how to kill every best selling nameplate you have. What have to done to the Focus? A freaking restyle when everybody else as redone their platform? You've got world class Mazda 3 that you could rebadge as a Tracer or Bobcat, and the European Focus! Did any company regain leadership by cutting costs? Econoline E-series is in the top 20 seller, but has anything been done to it? Ranger, what's the point in killing off another top seller after Taurus and Windstar? Can't they reconfigure a Ranger out of an explorer or something? They make a terrific new truck in Thailand, and a killer sport-ute why not bring that over?
What's been done for the Crown Victoria/ Town Car? Sure the 500/Taurus is a bigger slower Volvo, but how many Volvos do Americans buy? Do you think the taxi cabs or cops will ever buy those cars? Bring over the Australian Falcon, and sell it as a Mercury Cougar and Ford Thunderbird. Sell the longer aussie LTD and Fairlane as a fleet police and taxi vehicle, and continental. It's got more horsepower and it's shorter, and you'll keep the Australian factories working, since the market over there is in decline.
And who's idea was it to engineer the Freestyle (now that's a dumb name) when the Mazda CX-9 is a much better vehicle? Why do the Edge and Cx-7 have completely different bodies? Who was the idiot who though renaming the Windstar (which everybody heard of ) to the Freestar would increase excitement and sales when the Toronto paper said it would be the Ford Fiasco and consumers would be confused? Any wonder it died off in two years, especially since the facelift was completely outclassed by all 3 new japanese and 2 new Korean full-length minivans? Didn't anybody know that the Chevy C-name were stupid too (Celebrity? Ugh.)
The Fusion is still a stupid name (though less stupid than Futura). Why not bring back the Torino to compete with the Charger and Malibu?
Who's idea was it to leave Mercury with no cars to appeal to anyone under 50? Mercury used to have compacts and subcompacts back to the Comet and Bobcat - after the retirement of the Tracer, Mystique and Cougar, they had nothing smaller than the Sable to sell.
Who did they think they were kidding with the old aviator? Just like the Versaillees / Granada. At least Toyota changes the body for a lexus.
What's with the MK-whatever name scheme? Who the heck is going to remember any of those letters?
Import the new turbo MPV with lazy boy 2nd row as a Lincoln Villager. Do what chrysler did to plymouth and rebadge everything as a Lincoln, but make the cars nicer than Fords. Give Lincoln an Mx-9. Make a 4 seater Thunderbird , a 4 door continental out of a 4 door Mustang, and a MK? coupe like they used to do, or do a Lincoln-ized 500, but do SOMETHING. Put a V8 in the Taurus 500, god everybody else in the segment has a v8 or a V6 with V8 power.
And the Milan - change it to the Mulan to attract Asians away from Camry's and Accords.
Crap Plus (Core Plus Mathematics Project) Review 2 Thumbs way down
Heads up on Crap-Plus
I grided my loins to peek at the rest of the Crap (Core Plus)textbook they gave my kids. It's sooooo big that the first year issplit up into two books. They only cover the first book, so itsays "algebra" and "triginometry" on the cover. Guess what's notinside? No basic algebra, and they use a TI-83 computer program to doROTATION but they don't introduce sines and cosines? You can't rotatesquat without trig.Trig isn't until the SECOND book. No logs at all.
My 8th and 9thgrader don't have a clue a to what the log of 100 base 10 is. (answeris 2) I haven't explained to them what the SIN key does on acalculator either. (I'll tell them when they get older)They've got markov's something or other, and 15 different kinds ofcorrelations. I'd judge that 99% of people on this list who didn'tget an engineering or statistics major have never seen 85% of thecontent.
An engineering major like me as actually seen translationand rotation done with a matrix, but it's nothing I ever needed toknow before college calculus. None of this stuff will be at allhelpful on the SAT, and you're dead if you don't have a TI-83. Mykids tell me an TI-84 will work, but not any other TI calculatorsince more advanced models don't have the GEO!@#$% program on itanymore that's key to about 75% of the investigations. They covervolume and area (but don't tell you what the formula is....)
There is no arithmetic or algebraic manipulation anywhere, it's allpunch out this sequence on your $120 calculator. We didn't adoptcalculators in our high school until 4 function square rootcalculators fell below $30 in 1976. Now they require $120 calcultorsto learn... nothing at all.This matches the Mathematically correct study where this girl who gotstraight As and all of her classmates were flunked into remedial mathin college, and the neighboring school dumped crap plus right away.Comments were something like we learned how to run everything on theTI-83, and not much else.Fortunately, traditional middle school math is pre-algebra andfirming up arithmetic, but if that UW prof thinks McDougall Littellwas scatter brained, this stuff is the worst.This is the textbook that starts out introducing matrixes with twopages of .... Reebok and Nike. And when you finishthe "investigation" on page 3, you find out you're just filling in a2D table, just like in 4th grade WASL math, and they call it amatrix????
My introduction to matrices was the Matrix ROM on the HP 9830computer which was designed for college-grad engineers. McDougallLittell was doing something similar "Use matrix multiplication tocompute Sally's bake sale proceeds". Who in the !@#$% uses matrixmultiplication to compute receipts????
This is all about bragging about raising standards 10 grade levelsahead when the PROBLEM is why their basic skill levels are 4 gradelevels behind! Core-Plus is designed to be used by ALL 9th graders,from remedial to advanced, so we'll have kids who can't add 12.1 +13.56 trying to explain what matrix you have to multiply to get theidentify matrix, and what key to punch to get there. (What, you don'tknow what TI-83 key to punch??? You don't deserve to pass the WASL!)I'm going to try to do a video review, wish me luck.
I grided my loins to peek at the rest of the Crap (Core Plus)textbook they gave my kids. It's sooooo big that the first year issplit up into two books. They only cover the first book, so itsays "algebra" and "triginometry" on the cover. Guess what's notinside? No basic algebra, and they use a TI-83 computer program to doROTATION but they don't introduce sines and cosines? You can't rotatesquat without trig.Trig isn't until the SECOND book. No logs at all.
My 8th and 9thgrader don't have a clue a to what the log of 100 base 10 is. (answeris 2) I haven't explained to them what the SIN key does on acalculator either. (I'll tell them when they get older)They've got markov's something or other, and 15 different kinds ofcorrelations. I'd judge that 99% of people on this list who didn'tget an engineering or statistics major have never seen 85% of thecontent.
An engineering major like me as actually seen translationand rotation done with a matrix, but it's nothing I ever needed toknow before college calculus. None of this stuff will be at allhelpful on the SAT, and you're dead if you don't have a TI-83. Mykids tell me an TI-84 will work, but not any other TI calculatorsince more advanced models don't have the GEO!@#$% program on itanymore that's key to about 75% of the investigations. They covervolume and area (but don't tell you what the formula is....)
There is no arithmetic or algebraic manipulation anywhere, it's allpunch out this sequence on your $120 calculator. We didn't adoptcalculators in our high school until 4 function square rootcalculators fell below $30 in 1976. Now they require $120 calcultorsto learn... nothing at all.This matches the Mathematically correct study where this girl who gotstraight As and all of her classmates were flunked into remedial mathin college, and the neighboring school dumped crap plus right away.Comments were something like we learned how to run everything on theTI-83, and not much else.Fortunately, traditional middle school math is pre-algebra andfirming up arithmetic, but if that UW prof thinks McDougall Littellwas scatter brained, this stuff is the worst.This is the textbook that starts out introducing matrixes with twopages of .... Reebok and Nike. And when you finishthe "investigation" on page 3, you find out you're just filling in a2D table, just like in 4th grade WASL math, and they call it amatrix????
My introduction to matrices was the Matrix ROM on the HP 9830computer which was designed for college-grad engineers. McDougallLittell was doing something similar "Use matrix multiplication tocompute Sally's bake sale proceeds". Who in the !@#$% uses matrixmultiplication to compute receipts????
This is all about bragging about raising standards 10 grade levelsahead when the PROBLEM is why their basic skill levels are 4 gradelevels behind! Core-Plus is designed to be used by ALL 9th graders,from remedial to advanced, so we'll have kids who can't add 12.1 +13.56 trying to explain what matrix you have to multiply to get theidentify matrix, and what key to punch to get there. (What, you don'tknow what TI-83 key to punch??? You don't deserve to pass the WASL!)I'm going to try to do a video review, wish me luck.
Thursday, February 22, 2007
Star Wars: Main Theme - Piano Version by Abigail
The music of Star Wars consists of the scores written for all six Star Wars films by composer John Williams between 1977 and 1983 for the Original Trilogy, and 1999 and 2005 for the Prequel Trilogy
A Whole New World - Piano Version by Abigail - from Walt Disney movie Aladdin
A Whole New World is the main song from the soundtrack to the 1992 Disney movie Aladdin. It was composed by Alan Menken with lyrics by Tim Rice. The song is a love ballad where Aladdin and Jasmine sing to each other about the new world they're going to discover together.
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
YouTube July 06 - 63M visitors, 6.2M daily, 3B streams, 96M daily
Press Release
comScore Data Confirms Reports of 100 Million Worldwide Daily Video Streams from YouTube.com in July 2006
More than 63 Million People Globally Visited the Site During Same Month
RESTON, VA, October 11, 2006 – comScore Media Metrix, a leader in digital media measurement, today announced the results of an analysis of worldwide video streaming activity from YouTube.com, confirming that an average of 100 million video streams were served per day in July 2006.
In July, more than 63 million people (Age 15+) worldwide visited YouTube.com, 16 million of whom came from the U.S. On a daily basis, the site attracted an average of 6.2 million visitors worldwide, with 1.6 million residing in the U.S. The site also ranked as the 17th most visited property worldwide during the month.
YouTube.com – U.S. and Worldwide Traffic and Streaming Video Activity**
Monthly Unique Visitors (000), Monthly Streams Initiated (MM), Daily Streams Initiated (MM)
comScore Media Metrix, August 2006; comScore Video Metrix, July 2006
YouTube.com
Site Traffic
Streaming Activity
Jul-06
Jul-06
Monthly Unique Visitors (000)
Average Daily Visitors (000)
Monthly Video Streams Initiated (MM)
Average Daily Video Streams Initiated (MM)
U.S.
16,080
1,586
649
21
Worldwide
63,411*
6,205*
2,975
96
*Worldwide Media Metrix data is reported on Persons Age 15+
**Note: Streams are attributed to the property that provides the stream. For example, the YouTube data include streams that occurred on their Web property and on other properties whereby YouTube provided those streams.
While visitation is one metric for measuring a site’s popularity, comScore’s Video Metrix service possesses the unique capability of measuring actual streaming activity. In July 2006, YouTube served nearly 3 billion video streams worldwide, with slightly less than one-quarter of the total activity streamed to U.S. locations. On an average daily basis for the month, 96 million streams were served worldwide, and 21 million in the U.S.
“Several media outlets have reported that YouTube streamed 100 million videos daily in July, and the results of our recent study corroborate this report,” said Gian Fulgoni, Chairman of comScore Networks. “In fact, our daily streaming data show that YouTube.com first surpassed the 100 million threshold on July 17th, which coincides with YouTube’s own announcement that they had reached this impressive mark. Our streaming data covering more recent months will be published shortly, and will show that YouTube’s streaming total now far surpasses 100 million per day.”
http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/business/technology/16614746.htm?source=rss&channel=siliconvalley_technology
According to comScore Networks, YouTube had about 41.5 million U.S. visitors in November, who streamed roughly 773 million videos. During the same period, Viacom's Web sites had about 19 million visitors, who streamed roughly 327 million videos.
Demographic Profile of Visitors to YouTube.comPercent Composition of Unique Visitors & Composition IndexJune 2006Total U.S. - Home, Work, and University Locations
% Composition of Unique Visitors
Composition Index
Gender
Males
56.8
114
Females
43.2
86
Persons - Age
Persons: 12-17
15.0
154
Persons: 18-24
14.4
126
Persons: 25-34
15.3
105
Persons: 35-54
38.1
99
Persons: 55+
11.8
67
Region (US)
West North Central
5.7
65
Mountain
4.9
72
Pacific
21.0
134
New England
5.5
97
Mid Atlantic
17.7
125
South Atlantic
17.1
99
East South Central
3.4
61
West South Central
11.8
118
East North Central
12.9
80
Source: comScore Media Metrix
About comScore NetworkscomScore Networks provides unparalleled insight into consumer behavior and attitudes. This capability is based on a massive, global cross-section of more than two million consumers who have given comScore explicit permission to
comScore Data Confirms Reports of 100 Million Worldwide Daily Video Streams from YouTube.com in July 2006
More than 63 Million People Globally Visited the Site During Same Month
RESTON, VA, October 11, 2006 – comScore Media Metrix, a leader in digital media measurement, today announced the results of an analysis of worldwide video streaming activity from YouTube.com, confirming that an average of 100 million video streams were served per day in July 2006.
In July, more than 63 million people (Age 15+) worldwide visited YouTube.com, 16 million of whom came from the U.S. On a daily basis, the site attracted an average of 6.2 million visitors worldwide, with 1.6 million residing in the U.S. The site also ranked as the 17th most visited property worldwide during the month.
YouTube.com – U.S. and Worldwide Traffic and Streaming Video Activity**
Monthly Unique Visitors (000), Monthly Streams Initiated (MM), Daily Streams Initiated (MM)
comScore Media Metrix, August 2006; comScore Video Metrix, July 2006
YouTube.com
Site Traffic
Streaming Activity
Jul-06
Jul-06
Monthly Unique Visitors (000)
Average Daily Visitors (000)
Monthly Video Streams Initiated (MM)
Average Daily Video Streams Initiated (MM)
U.S.
16,080
1,586
649
21
Worldwide
63,411*
6,205*
2,975
96
*Worldwide Media Metrix data is reported on Persons Age 15+
**Note: Streams are attributed to the property that provides the stream. For example, the YouTube data include streams that occurred on their Web property and on other properties whereby YouTube provided those streams.
While visitation is one metric for measuring a site’s popularity, comScore’s Video Metrix service possesses the unique capability of measuring actual streaming activity. In July 2006, YouTube served nearly 3 billion video streams worldwide, with slightly less than one-quarter of the total activity streamed to U.S. locations. On an average daily basis for the month, 96 million streams were served worldwide, and 21 million in the U.S.
“Several media outlets have reported that YouTube streamed 100 million videos daily in July, and the results of our recent study corroborate this report,” said Gian Fulgoni, Chairman of comScore Networks. “In fact, our daily streaming data show that YouTube.com first surpassed the 100 million threshold on July 17th, which coincides with YouTube’s own announcement that they had reached this impressive mark. Our streaming data covering more recent months will be published shortly, and will show that YouTube’s streaming total now far surpasses 100 million per day.”
http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/business/technology/16614746.htm?source=rss&channel=siliconvalley_technology
According to comScore Networks, YouTube had about 41.5 million U.S. visitors in November, who streamed roughly 773 million videos. During the same period, Viacom's Web sites had about 19 million visitors, who streamed roughly 327 million videos.
Demographic Profile of Visitors to YouTube.comPercent Composition of Unique Visitors & Composition IndexJune 2006Total U.S. - Home, Work, and University Locations
% Composition of Unique Visitors
Composition Index
Gender
Males
56.8
114
Females
43.2
86
Persons - Age
Persons: 12-17
15.0
154
Persons: 18-24
14.4
126
Persons: 25-34
15.3
105
Persons: 35-54
38.1
99
Persons: 55+
11.8
67
Region (US)
West North Central
5.7
65
Mountain
4.9
72
Pacific
21.0
134
New England
5.5
97
Mid Atlantic
17.7
125
South Atlantic
17.1
99
East South Central
3.4
61
West South Central
11.8
118
East North Central
12.9
80
Source: comScore Media Metrix
About comScore NetworkscomScore Networks provides unparalleled insight into consumer behavior and attitudes. This capability is based on a massive, global cross-section of more than two million consumers who have given comScore explicit permission to
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
Monday, February 19, 2007
texas/chinese wedding with sedan chair
We didn't have those in Boston for my wedding. Did you built that thing? Or did you go to SedanChairRUs.com?
Say No To "Accountability" It's OBE for college
Say No To Outcomes Based College
"Accountability" and "exit exam" is just another word for OBE. Does everybody else recognize this? This is also headed for the workplace under "performance based everything". You replace competition in a market with a test that fails everybody. Planned economy is the same thing. Does ANYBODY know what SAT score says that you qualify for a bachelor's degree?
Austin American-Statesman
A senior federal official calls governor's plan for more aid, incentives and
accountability 'a bold step.' Gov. Rick Perry's proposal to increase
financial aid, require exit exams and hold colleges and universities
financially accountable for students' performance has been given a strong
endorsement by a top federal education official.
"Accountability" and "exit exam" is just another word for OBE. Does everybody else recognize this? This is also headed for the workplace under "performance based everything". You replace competition in a market with a test that fails everybody. Planned economy is the same thing. Does ANYBODY know what SAT score says that you qualify for a bachelor's degree?
Austin American-Statesman
A senior federal official calls governor's plan for more aid, incentives and
accountability 'a bold step.' Gov. Rick Perry's proposal to increase
financial aid, require exit exams and hold colleges and universities
financially accountable for students' performance has been given a strong
endorsement by a top federal education official.
Saturday, February 17, 2007
Back to Basics in Seattle School - Fuzzy math on its way out but not without a fight
http://archives.seattletimes.nwsource.com/cgi-bin/texis.cgi/web/vortex/display?slug=math06m&date=20061006&query=chinese+new+year+seattle+teacherI just found this searching for Chinese New Years, of all places.
Gung hay fat choy, or whatever that is.
My family tradition "It was Chinese New Years last week, wasn't it?"
Friday, October 06, 2006
Educators take different routes to get back to the basics in math
By Linda Shaw
"Ready, set, start," Atkinson says, and they're off. For the next three minutes, students work steadily and silently while Atkinson watches the time.
Later, the North Beach Elementary room buzzes with conversation as students work with small, brightly colored blocks for a math lesson on area. But the timed exercise, which they do every morning, is the kind of practice that some argue is too rare in Washington classrooms.
One of their solutions to the state's math problems: Bring back more drills.
"I know people hate the 'drill and kill,' but I call it skill-building," said M.J. McDermott, a North Beach parent and meteorologist for KCPQ-TV. "You kind of have to get through the work to get the fluency."
Everyone agrees students need to learn the basics in math. The influential National Council of Teachers of Mathematics reinforced that view last month by repeating what its leaders say they've always said: Fourth-graders should multiply whole numbers fluently. Second-graders should quickly recall the sum of two plus five.
-- end excerpt --
Gung hay fat choy, or whatever that is.
My family tradition "It was Chinese New Years last week, wasn't it?"
Friday, October 06, 2006
Educators take different routes to get back to the basics in math
By Linda Shaw
"Ready, set, start," Atkinson says, and they're off. For the next three minutes, students work steadily and silently while Atkinson watches the time.
Later, the North Beach Elementary room buzzes with conversation as students work with small, brightly colored blocks for a math lesson on area. But the timed exercise, which they do every morning, is the kind of practice that some argue is too rare in Washington classrooms.
One of their solutions to the state's math problems: Bring back more drills.
"I know people hate the 'drill and kill,' but I call it skill-building," said M.J. McDermott, a North Beach parent and meteorologist for KCPQ-TV. "You kind of have to get through the work to get the fluency."
Everyone agrees students need to learn the basics in math. The influential National Council of Teachers of Mathematics reinforced that view last month by repeating what its leaders say they've always said: Fourth-graders should multiply whole numbers fluently. Second-graders should quickly recall the sum of two plus five.
-- end excerpt --
Harvard adds yet another female president - Half of Ivy League are already women
"But many women expressed
fear that all the references to half of the Ivy League being
led by women would convey a false impression that gender
equity in higher education had been "solved," while they
consider that decidedly not to be the case."
Yes sounds like to me they've hired a president primarily as a woman feminist - columnists are still citing Sommer's statement that women have different goals than men without considering whether or not he might have made a correct statement.
What Harvard's Choice Means
http://insidehighered.com/news/2007/02/12/harvard
The night before Drew Gilpin Faust was formally named president of
Harvard University, women involved in efforts to promote female
leaders in academe happened to be gathering in Washington for
workshops and networking sessions held in conjunction with the
annual meeting of the American Council on Education. During a
fund-raising pitch at a dinner, women were reminded that the
programs they support might just help someone who could become
"the next president of Harvard."
-- end of excerpt --
fear that all the references to half of the Ivy League being
led by women would convey a false impression that gender
equity in higher education had been "solved," while they
consider that decidedly not to be the case."
Yes sounds like to me they've hired a president primarily as a woman feminist - columnists are still citing Sommer's statement that women have different goals than men without considering whether or not he might have made a correct statement.
What Harvard's Choice Means
http://insidehighered.com/news/2007/02/12/harvard
The night before Drew Gilpin Faust was formally named president of
Harvard University, women involved in efforts to promote female
leaders in academe happened to be gathering in Washington for
workshops and networking sessions held in conjunction with the
annual meeting of the American Council on Education. During a
fund-raising pitch at a dinner, women were reminded that the
programs they support might just help someone who could become
"the next president of Harvard."
-- end of excerpt --
Bilingual Ed threatens Philipines development in call centers
Education introduced a bilingual program to teach in local dialects based on studies that children learned better in a native language
*Erosion of English Skills Threatens Growth in Philippines
http://select.nytimes.com/search/restricted/article?res=F10C1FFC385A0C778EDDA80994DE404482
By CARLOS CONDE
Published: November 24, 2006
Angeli Boteros speaks English like an American teenager. A
lifetime of watching American television and movies has left her
sentences peppered with the trademark phrases of American youth,
including ''like'' and ''you know.''
Ms. Boteros, 26, is so steeped in American popular culture, and
has such a good accent, that on the phone, she could pass for a
girl from California.
Over the last year, she has been doing exactly that. As a call
center agent at GCom, Ms. Boteros helps customers half a world
away overcome problems with products or services they have
purchased.
''My friends used to tease me because of the way I speak
English,'' Ms. Boteros said at an open-air cafe in this booming
southern Philippine city. ''Not anymore.''
Davao City is one of several areas outside Manila where call
center companies have been venturing, drawn by lower labor costs
and large numbers of available workers.
But there has been concern lately that the industry's growth may
be limited by the deterioration of its main advantage: the English
proficiency of the work force. According to a study conducted by
the European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines, 75 percent of
the more than 400,000 Filipino students that graduate from college
each year have ''substandard English skills.''
- end of excerpt -
*Erosion of English Skills Threatens Growth in Philippines
http://select.nytimes.com/search/restricted/article?res=F10C1FFC385A0C778EDDA80994DE404482
By CARLOS CONDE
Published: November 24, 2006
Angeli Boteros speaks English like an American teenager. A
lifetime of watching American television and movies has left her
sentences peppered with the trademark phrases of American youth,
including ''like'' and ''you know.''
Ms. Boteros, 26, is so steeped in American popular culture, and
has such a good accent, that on the phone, she could pass for a
girl from California.
Over the last year, she has been doing exactly that. As a call
center agent at GCom, Ms. Boteros helps customers half a world
away overcome problems with products or services they have
purchased.
''My friends used to tease me because of the way I speak
English,'' Ms. Boteros said at an open-air cafe in this booming
southern Philippine city. ''Not anymore.''
Davao City is one of several areas outside Manila where call
center companies have been venturing, drawn by lower labor costs
and large numbers of available workers.
But there has been concern lately that the industry's growth may
be limited by the deterioration of its main advantage: the English
proficiency of the work force. According to a study conducted by
the European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines, 75 percent of
the more than 400,000 Filipino students that graduate from college
each year have ''substandard English skills.''
- end of excerpt -
Chinese Out-English the English
Chinese and South Asians outscore the English in England.
Blacks, as in other nations score poorly, but the Gypsy population (a caucasian population) scores worst.
Note - 1994 Seattle tests put Gypsy performance identical to the very high performing white population in that city.
Fri Feb 16, 2007 5:51 pm (PST)
Chinese pupils eclipse all other ethnic groups in English tests
http://education.independent.co.uk/www.independent.co.uk/template/ver/wireFrame/
7.2.17
Chinese pupils are best-performing ethnic group with 86% passing national
curriculum tests
Schoolchildren of Indian origin come second with 85% achieving the same
standard
But only 80% of white British pupils manage to reach a similar level in
the assessment
By Richard Garner, Education Editor
Children of Chinese origin have outperformed every other British
group in English by the age of 11, according to an ethnic breakdown
of exam and test results published yesterday.
They have the best results of all ethnic groups in national
curriculum tests at 11 with 86 per cent reaching the required
standard - compared with 80 per cent of white British children. And
these figures include recent Chinese immigrants who do not have
English as a first language.
Their success is carried through to GCSE level where 65.8 per cent
of Chinese-origin pupils obtain five A*- to C-grade passes
including maths and English - under the Department for Education
and Skills' new measure used to rank schools. Pupils of Indian
origin also outperform the white British with a 59.1 per cent pass
rate, compared to 44.3 per cent for white British pupils.
The figures are revealed in an analysis of last year's GCSE and
national curriculum test results for pupils aged seven, 11 and 14.
More than 1,000 Chinese-origin pupils sat the English national
curriculum test for 11-year-olds last year - while 2,200 sat their
GCSEs. Experts say the culture at home for families of Chinese and
Indian origin families puts more emphasis on the importance of
education.
The figures come amid a wave of angst over British children,
prompted by a Unicef report which claimed that the quality of life
for children in Britain was poor. Family relationships were cited
as one of the main factors blighting childhood.
Parents in families of Chinese origin stress the value of homework
- and many children attend special Saturday schools to improve
their performance.
In A-levels, too, Chinese-origin pupils shine. A recent study by
the Royal Society of Chemistry and Institute of Physics revealed
that Chinese males were four times as likely (and Indian males
three times) to achieve three or more science A-levels. The figures
are similar for girls. "Indian and Chinese students show a strong
preference for science at A-level compared to other ethnic groups,"
said the report.
As a result, they are the most likely ethnic groups to choose to
study science subjects in higher education.
"Chinese pupils of mixed white and Asian heritage, Irish and Indian
pupils consistently achieve above the national average across key
stage one [seven to 11-year-olds], key stage two [11 to
14-year-olds] and key stage three [14 to 16-year-olds]," the
analysis concludes.
Yesterday's analysis also shows that girls outperform boys at all
levels in almost every exam - although the gap has narrowed
slightly. "Overall, the difference in attainment of five or more
A*- to C-grade GCSEs or equivalent by gender has dropped slightly
from last year when it was 10.1 percentage points to 9.6 percentage
points in 2006," it says.
But the biggest gender gap is between black Afro-Caribbean boys and
girls - sparking concerns about the performance of black boys in
schools. Fewer than one in four Afro-Caribbean boys (22.7 per cent)
achieve five top-grade GCSE passes compared with 36 per cent of
boys overall.
The breakdown follows an official report from the DfES, which drew
attention to the exclusion rate for black Afro-Caribbean children -
they were three times as likely to be excluded from school as white
youngsters. Their rate of permanent exclusions was four per 10,000
compared with 1.3 for white pupils. Again, Chinese-origin pupils
had the lowest exclusion rate, with 0.2 per cent. The report said:
"Black pupils are disproportionately denied mainstream education
and the life chances that go with it."
The low performance of black Afro-Caribbean boys has prompted
ministers to launch their "Aiming High" project, seeking to improve
their performance by providing them with mentors.
The first independent analysis of the programme indicated that they
had started to close the gap on their white classmates by doing
better than ever in tests for 14-year-olds - traditionally a marker
for how well they will perform at GCSE. However, at that stage,
they had still failed to narrow the gap at GCSE.
Andrew Adonis, the Schools minister, welcomed the findings. "Big
improvements are being made," he said. But he acknowledged that
there were "challenges ahead" for exclusion rates "and the
stereotyping of black children as underachieving, troublesome or
both". The scheme operates in 100 secondary schools across 25 local
authorities.
The worst performance by an ethnic group came from Gypsy/Roma
pupils, where only 3.9 per cent obtained five top-grade GCSE passes
with maths and English, and travellers of Irish heritage, where the
figure was 11.1 per cent.
The analysis also showed that children from better-off homes
outperformed those pupils who received free school meals: 61 per
cent of those youngsters not in receipt of free school meals
obtained five A*- to C-grade GCSE passes compared with 33 per cent
of those from deprived backgrounds.
Ministers insist that poverty should be no excuse for poor
performance - and point to the success of some inner-city schools
serving deprived communities.
From Beijing to Oxford via Brent
Yinan Wang is an example of the Chinese success story - winning a
place to read material sciences at Corpus Christi College at Oxford
aged just 14.
He won his place just two years after arriving in the UK, barely
able to speak a word of English. He went to one of the UK's largest
comprehensives, Copland Community College in Brent, north-west
London, where he was given English classes.
He was singled out as a specially talented pupil and soon became
fluent in English. Yinan also completed an Open University degree
in maths while at school.
In his A-levels he obtained As in maths, physics and chemistry.
Before attending his comprehensive, he was a pupil at the Number
Eight middle school in Beijing which, according to his former
teacher Andrew Jones - head of chemistry at Copland - is "a mixture
of the Chinese Eton and a top French lyc�e".
Blacks, as in other nations score poorly, but the Gypsy population (a caucasian population) scores worst.
Note - 1994 Seattle tests put Gypsy performance identical to the very high performing white population in that city.
Fri Feb 16, 2007 5:51 pm (PST)
Chinese pupils eclipse all other ethnic groups in English tests
http://education.independent.co.uk/www.independent.co.uk/template/ver/wireFrame/
7.2.17
Chinese pupils are best-performing ethnic group with 86% passing national
curriculum tests
Schoolchildren of Indian origin come second with 85% achieving the same
standard
But only 80% of white British pupils manage to reach a similar level in
the assessment
By Richard Garner, Education Editor
Children of Chinese origin have outperformed every other British
group in English by the age of 11, according to an ethnic breakdown
of exam and test results published yesterday.
They have the best results of all ethnic groups in national
curriculum tests at 11 with 86 per cent reaching the required
standard - compared with 80 per cent of white British children. And
these figures include recent Chinese immigrants who do not have
English as a first language.
Their success is carried through to GCSE level where 65.8 per cent
of Chinese-origin pupils obtain five A*- to C-grade passes
including maths and English - under the Department for Education
and Skills' new measure used to rank schools. Pupils of Indian
origin also outperform the white British with a 59.1 per cent pass
rate, compared to 44.3 per cent for white British pupils.
The figures are revealed in an analysis of last year's GCSE and
national curriculum test results for pupils aged seven, 11 and 14.
More than 1,000 Chinese-origin pupils sat the English national
curriculum test for 11-year-olds last year - while 2,200 sat their
GCSEs. Experts say the culture at home for families of Chinese and
Indian origin families puts more emphasis on the importance of
education.
The figures come amid a wave of angst over British children,
prompted by a Unicef report which claimed that the quality of life
for children in Britain was poor. Family relationships were cited
as one of the main factors blighting childhood.
Parents in families of Chinese origin stress the value of homework
- and many children attend special Saturday schools to improve
their performance.
In A-levels, too, Chinese-origin pupils shine. A recent study by
the Royal Society of Chemistry and Institute of Physics revealed
that Chinese males were four times as likely (and Indian males
three times) to achieve three or more science A-levels. The figures
are similar for girls. "Indian and Chinese students show a strong
preference for science at A-level compared to other ethnic groups,"
said the report.
As a result, they are the most likely ethnic groups to choose to
study science subjects in higher education.
"Chinese pupils of mixed white and Asian heritage, Irish and Indian
pupils consistently achieve above the national average across key
stage one [seven to 11-year-olds], key stage two [11 to
14-year-olds] and key stage three [14 to 16-year-olds]," the
analysis concludes.
Yesterday's analysis also shows that girls outperform boys at all
levels in almost every exam - although the gap has narrowed
slightly. "Overall, the difference in attainment of five or more
A*- to C-grade GCSEs or equivalent by gender has dropped slightly
from last year when it was 10.1 percentage points to 9.6 percentage
points in 2006," it says.
But the biggest gender gap is between black Afro-Caribbean boys and
girls - sparking concerns about the performance of black boys in
schools. Fewer than one in four Afro-Caribbean boys (22.7 per cent)
achieve five top-grade GCSE passes compared with 36 per cent of
boys overall.
The breakdown follows an official report from the DfES, which drew
attention to the exclusion rate for black Afro-Caribbean children -
they were three times as likely to be excluded from school as white
youngsters. Their rate of permanent exclusions was four per 10,000
compared with 1.3 for white pupils. Again, Chinese-origin pupils
had the lowest exclusion rate, with 0.2 per cent. The report said:
"Black pupils are disproportionately denied mainstream education
and the life chances that go with it."
The low performance of black Afro-Caribbean boys has prompted
ministers to launch their "Aiming High" project, seeking to improve
their performance by providing them with mentors.
The first independent analysis of the programme indicated that they
had started to close the gap on their white classmates by doing
better than ever in tests for 14-year-olds - traditionally a marker
for how well they will perform at GCSE. However, at that stage,
they had still failed to narrow the gap at GCSE.
Andrew Adonis, the Schools minister, welcomed the findings. "Big
improvements are being made," he said. But he acknowledged that
there were "challenges ahead" for exclusion rates "and the
stereotyping of black children as underachieving, troublesome or
both". The scheme operates in 100 secondary schools across 25 local
authorities.
The worst performance by an ethnic group came from Gypsy/Roma
pupils, where only 3.9 per cent obtained five top-grade GCSE passes
with maths and English, and travellers of Irish heritage, where the
figure was 11.1 per cent.
The analysis also showed that children from better-off homes
outperformed those pupils who received free school meals: 61 per
cent of those youngsters not in receipt of free school meals
obtained five A*- to C-grade GCSE passes compared with 33 per cent
of those from deprived backgrounds.
Ministers insist that poverty should be no excuse for poor
performance - and point to the success of some inner-city schools
serving deprived communities.
From Beijing to Oxford via Brent
Yinan Wang is an example of the Chinese success story - winning a
place to read material sciences at Corpus Christi College at Oxford
aged just 14.
He won his place just two years after arriving in the UK, barely
able to speak a word of English. He went to one of the UK's largest
comprehensives, Copland Community College in Brent, north-west
London, where he was given English classes.
He was singled out as a specially talented pupil and soon became
fluent in English. Yinan also completed an Open University degree
in maths while at school.
In his A-levels he obtained As in maths, physics and chemistry.
Before attending his comprehensive, he was a pupil at the Number
Eight middle school in Beijing which, according to his former
teacher Andrew Jones - head of chemistry at Copland - is "a mixture
of the Chinese Eton and a top French lyc�e".
Thursday, February 15, 2007
MRAP Mine Resistant Ambush Protected
People are still screaming about all the Humvees that are getting blown up in Iraq that are being used as armoured cars. Now why in the world doesn't the US Military just buy some armoured cars like every other military? You've got the Hummer, then the Striker and Bradley, and nothing inbetween . Those guys in South Africa have been using tall V-hull trucks for ages.
Even in Vietnam, they created armoured trucks, and put shields and extra guns on the M113 to make the ACAV (which they're deploying to Iraq finally, but in tiny numbers) The Humvee isn't an armoured car, and it's still not a very good one even when you tack on armour. We used to, and still make a vehicle that designed precisely to do this sort of thing, get shot at and blown up and come back, it's the Caddilac Commando that the USAF use to use for base security. The latest version is the Textron M1117 AVS, it's designed to stand up to 50 cal armour piercing shot (the Sheridan light tank and M113 could'nt stand up to that), mines, and even RPGs minus a crewman or two. The Army has ordered these --- for Military Police units (?) Now does that make sense that front line soldiers fight in a un or minimally armoured Humvee, but security units BEHIND the lines get an armoured car?? The Navy / Marines are finally evaluating it as one of a number of proposed armoured trucks, but it's the only one with slanted sides.
For the price of a force of Bradleys, M-1s and Strikers, you could buy a bazillion of these.
Even in Vietnam, they created armoured trucks, and put shields and extra guns on the M113 to make the ACAV (which they're deploying to Iraq finally, but in tiny numbers) The Humvee isn't an armoured car, and it's still not a very good one even when you tack on armour. We used to, and still make a vehicle that designed precisely to do this sort of thing, get shot at and blown up and come back, it's the Caddilac Commando that the USAF use to use for base security. The latest version is the Textron M1117 AVS, it's designed to stand up to 50 cal armour piercing shot (the Sheridan light tank and M113 could'nt stand up to that), mines, and even RPGs minus a crewman or two. The Army has ordered these --- for Military Police units (?) Now does that make sense that front line soldiers fight in a un or minimally armoured Humvee, but security units BEHIND the lines get an armoured car?? The Navy / Marines are finally evaluating it as one of a number of proposed armoured trucks, but it's the only one with slanted sides.
For the price of a force of Bradleys, M-1s and Strikers, you could buy a bazillion of these.
Target and UGH Walmart Top Teen Fashion brands
WSJ 2/15/2007 "Bubble Gum at Bergdorfs"
Article says teens crave expensive fashions, but check out most popular labels, according to 2006 Harrison Group / VNU Teen trend report teens 13-18
Percentage of teens who "like" or "love" these brands:
06
76% Target
69% Wal-Mart
62% Levi's
--------------------
46% Tommy Hilfiger
32% Nautica
--------------------
30% Gucci
27% Armani
20% Tiffany's
Looks like Wal-Mart is HUGE. They've got some scary stuff up on their racks.
Article says teens crave expensive fashions, but check out most popular labels, according to 2006 Harrison Group / VNU Teen trend report teens 13-18
Percentage of teens who "like" or "love" these brands:
06
76% Target
69% Wal-Mart
62% Levi's
--------------------
46% Tommy Hilfiger
32% Nautica
--------------------
30% Gucci
27% Armani
20% Tiffany's
Looks like Wal-Mart is HUGE. They've got some scary stuff up on their racks.
Wednesday, February 14, 2007
Tuesday, February 13, 2007
Monday, February 12, 2007
Sunday, February 11, 2007
What Makes You Sink? Apostle Peter on Galilee
This is the only video for Peter on Galilee right now.
Saturday, February 10, 2007
Friday, February 09, 2007
Mike Riley for Seattle Schools? NOOOOOOO!
Mike Riley for Seattle Schools? NOOOOOOO!
Ch13 reports that Seattle is looking at Bellevue's Mike Riley for their new superintendent. Oh God No. That guy is crazy. He made the cover of newsweek for best school district ... based on what? On percentage of kids TAKING advanced placement tests. His idea is to REQUIRE every student to meet HIGH STANDARDS by taking this test to get a high school diploma. AP means proving that you are capable of COLLEGE level academic material. Why in the heck would you require proving you can do college level work just to get a diploma that says you are capable of high school level work? He also told me he didn't see why they couldn't arrange the math curriuculum so that everybody could take calculus. He's also been fighting with parents who hate "Investigations" anti-math standards.
This "let them all have BMWs" attitude is typical of the "trophy student" mentality that has taken over public education. Excellence for all is not excellence, since by defintion, it's the performance of the top few. If everybody is excellent, the word has no meaning. Standards based education is just a rehash of the old Outcome based education, it's the belief that if you just come up with standards and tests to establish what the best kids can do, and then implement a system of carrots and sticks to require EVERYBODY to perform at the same level, we can simply legislate that everybody perform at a new, higher grade level. ARGH!
Olechefske and Stanford were both standards-bots. Then they had a sham selection for their academic officer where all 5 finalists were black women, obviously to make up for replacing a black Stanford with a bald white guy, after we passed the initiative banning selection of people by race. The odds of picking a demographic that is 5% of the population 5 times in a row is less than getting a jackpot on a one-armed bandit, but the Seattle schools wrote me a letter saying that race had nothing to do with the selection. Right.
At least Manhas wasn't a standards-bot, he was an administrator worried about not running schools into the ground, which is exactly what a superintendent should do. Well, I'm offering myself for the job again. I applied for the last melt-down process where every applicant quit, and they turned me down .Where do I apply? I also nominate MJ McDermott. She can't run for office, but with her "Inconvenient Truth About Math", she know what's going on in standardes based education reform which seeks to eliminate math and reading as we know it, not promote the same standards every previous generation was held to.
WASL still sucks.
Ch13 reports that Seattle is looking at Bellevue's Mike Riley for their new superintendent. Oh God No. That guy is crazy. He made the cover of newsweek for best school district ... based on what? On percentage of kids TAKING advanced placement tests. His idea is to REQUIRE every student to meet HIGH STANDARDS by taking this test to get a high school diploma. AP means proving that you are capable of COLLEGE level academic material. Why in the heck would you require proving you can do college level work just to get a diploma that says you are capable of high school level work? He also told me he didn't see why they couldn't arrange the math curriuculum so that everybody could take calculus. He's also been fighting with parents who hate "Investigations" anti-math standards.
This "let them all have BMWs" attitude is typical of the "trophy student" mentality that has taken over public education. Excellence for all is not excellence, since by defintion, it's the performance of the top few. If everybody is excellent, the word has no meaning. Standards based education is just a rehash of the old Outcome based education, it's the belief that if you just come up with standards and tests to establish what the best kids can do, and then implement a system of carrots and sticks to require EVERYBODY to perform at the same level, we can simply legislate that everybody perform at a new, higher grade level. ARGH!
Olechefske and Stanford were both standards-bots. Then they had a sham selection for their academic officer where all 5 finalists were black women, obviously to make up for replacing a black Stanford with a bald white guy, after we passed the initiative banning selection of people by race. The odds of picking a demographic that is 5% of the population 5 times in a row is less than getting a jackpot on a one-armed bandit, but the Seattle schools wrote me a letter saying that race had nothing to do with the selection. Right.
At least Manhas wasn't a standards-bot, he was an administrator worried about not running schools into the ground, which is exactly what a superintendent should do. Well, I'm offering myself for the job again. I applied for the last melt-down process where every applicant quit, and they turned me down .Where do I apply? I also nominate MJ McDermott. She can't run for office, but with her "Inconvenient Truth About Math", she know what's going on in standardes based education reform which seeks to eliminate math and reading as we know it, not promote the same standards every previous generation was held to.
WASL still sucks.
Thursday, February 08, 2007
Wednesday, February 07, 2007
Tuesday, February 06, 2007
Taurus is the new 500? Kill Fusion and bring back Torino too.
Yes, somebody else who thinks Fusion is a stupid name. Bring back the Torino, Starsky and Hutch would approve. That would match Malibu and Charger, and NASCAR where the Torino was such a terror it gave birth to the Daytona and Superbird. If they had done it in 2006, it would also have matched the winter Olympics.
The Taurus was essentially a full-size car, but if they give the name to the 500, bring back the original grill-less taurus nose!
And stick a V8 in the thing for pete's sake, the SHO had one. GM and Chrysler both offer V8s and the Avalon has has many horses anyways.
Ford should also replace the crown vic with those australian cars - they still have falcons, fairmonts, and LTDs and they look AWESOME.
Import the new MPV as a Lincoln to replace the montery.
Whoever decided to redo the old Focus should be shot. You don't become a leader by saving money, you build the best cars. Everybody LOVES the Mazda 3, and the Mazda 6 worked wonders for the Fusion. Junk the Focus and re-badge the Mazda 3 as a Mercury Tracer.
The Taurus was essentially a full-size car, but if they give the name to the 500, bring back the original grill-less taurus nose!
And stick a V8 in the thing for pete's sake, the SHO had one. GM and Chrysler both offer V8s and the Avalon has has many horses anyways.
Ford should also replace the crown vic with those australian cars - they still have falcons, fairmonts, and LTDs and they look AWESOME.
Import the new MPV as a Lincoln to replace the montery.
Whoever decided to redo the old Focus should be shot. You don't become a leader by saving money, you build the best cars. Everybody LOVES the Mazda 3, and the Mazda 6 worked wonders for the Fusion. Junk the Focus and re-badge the Mazda 3 as a Mercury Tracer.
Taurus is the new 500? Kill Fusion and bring back Torino too.
Yes, somebody else who thinks Fusion is a stupid name. Bring back the Torino, Starsky and Hutch would approve. That would match Malibu and Charger, and NASCAR where the Torino was such a terror it gave birth to the Daytona and Superbird. If they had done it in 2006, it would also have matched the winter Olympics.
The Taurus was essentially a full-size car, but if they give the name to the 500, bring back the original grill-less taurus nose!
And stick a V8 in the thing for pete's sake, the SHO had one. GM and Chrysler both offer V8s and the Avalon has has many horses anyways.
Ford should also replace the crown vic with those australian cars - they still have falcons, fairmonts, and LTDs and they look AWESOME.
Import the new MPV as a Lincoln to replace the montery.
Whoever decided to redo the old Focus should be shot. You don't become a leader by saving money, you build the best cars. Everybody LOVES the Mazda 3, and the Mazda 6 worked wonders for the Fusion. Junk the Focus and re-badge the Mazda 3 as a Mercury Tracer.
The Taurus was essentially a full-size car, but if they give the name to the 500, bring back the original grill-less taurus nose!
And stick a V8 in the thing for pete's sake, the SHO had one. GM and Chrysler both offer V8s and the Avalon has has many horses anyways.
Ford should also replace the crown vic with those australian cars - they still have falcons, fairmonts, and LTDs and they look AWESOME.
Import the new MPV as a Lincoln to replace the montery.
Whoever decided to redo the old Focus should be shot. You don't become a leader by saving money, you build the best cars. Everybody LOVES the Mazda 3, and the Mazda 6 worked wonders for the Fusion. Junk the Focus and re-badge the Mazda 3 as a Mercury Tracer.
Monday, February 05, 2007
Sunday, February 04, 2007
Saturday, February 03, 2007
Friday, February 02, 2007
Mi first class with a piano accompaniment!
OMG, somebody responded with violin part to Olga's piano within one day. Amazing.
Seitz Violin Concerto No. 2 Suzuki Piano Only
here's the original. She was doing it for my son for the solo ensemble, so figured why not do one for youtube.
Thursday, February 01, 2007
Survey: Black youth feel alienated
Chicago Tribune / Seattle Times Feb 1, 2007
Black youth are more conservative when it comes to gay rights, abortion compared to whites. Survye charts show blacks compared to whites, and hispanics, but no Asian figures, though included in survey question (are you c. asian)
Survey website:
http://blackyouthproject.uchicago.edu/surveys/byp.shtml
rap music every day
58% black
45% hispanic
23% white
http://chronicle.uchicago.edu/070201/youthstudy.shtml
On social issues, the surveys found that African-American young people are more likely to agree that homosexuality is always wrong (55 percent for blacks, 36 percent for Hispanics and 35 percent for whites). A majority of African-American youth also opposed legalizing same-sex marriages, (58 percent for blacks, 36 percent for Hispanics and 35 percent for whites).
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chicago/chi-0702010149feb01,1,2988114.story?coll=chi-newslocalchicago-hed
The survey was geared toward black attitudes and used a random sample of young people of various backgrounds: 635 blacks, 567 whites, 314 Hispanics and 74 of other races
Black youth are more conservative when it comes to gay rights, abortion compared to whites. Survye charts show blacks compared to whites, and hispanics, but no Asian figures, though included in survey question (are you c. asian)
Survey website:
http://blackyouthproject.uchicago.edu/surveys/byp.shtml
rap music every day
58% black
45% hispanic
23% white
http://chronicle.uchicago.edu/070201/youthstudy.shtml
On social issues, the surveys found that African-American young people are more likely to agree that homosexuality is always wrong (55 percent for blacks, 36 percent for Hispanics and 35 percent for whites). A majority of African-American youth also opposed legalizing same-sex marriages, (58 percent for blacks, 36 percent for Hispanics and 35 percent for whites).
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chicago/chi-0702010149feb01,1,2988114.story?coll=chi-newslocalchicago-hed
The survey was geared toward black attitudes and used a random sample of young people of various backgrounds: 635 blacks, 567 whites, 314 Hispanics and 74 of other races
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