Talk about the power of knowledge: a five-year-old boy who was with his father when he suffered an aneurysm and stroke was able to call for help then identify their location by using his ABC’s. He spelled the name of the store they had pulled in front of when his father started to get sick. Help arrived in time. Watch his adorable interview here.
Picture from Wikimedia Commons
Five links that made us think this week:
While Rhode Island was busy becoming the 10th state to allow same-sex marriage, the Senate was too busy to include binational same-sex couples in the new Immigration Bill. Despite the criticism this omission has received, and the efforts of some to create an amendment to include same-sex couples, President Obama reportedly said he would sign the Bill as is. Accepting a Bill that leaves the LGBT community unprotected makes me wonder whether we all really have the same unalienable rights?
Photo by Drama Queen via WikiCommons
Five links that made us think this week:
Remember those science fairs at school where you had to stand in front of your entire classroom (and their parents) and explain everyone how earthquakes happened? Well if you thought that was intimidating, the White House Science Fair might not be for you. Check out these kids doing some incredibly smart science experiments in front of the President himself. They get an A+ for bravery!
Photo by Unknown via WikiCommons
Five links that made us think this week.
April is National Poetry Month and TFA alum, Emily Southerton is asking students across the country to talk about what poetry means to them as part of her Poet Warriors Project. Take a moment to read through their inspiring work, and if you are a teacher, encourage your students to submit their own thoughts to the blog.
Put away your #2 pencils and your highlighters! Last week, we talked about proposed new technology that will grade essays electronically. This week, an article in the New York Times discussed how some professors are using technology and e-books to determine if students are doing their reading homework or not. Technology can be both useful and overused in the classroom, but the innovation with which people are thinking about education is exciting.
Photo from Wikimedia Commons
Five links that made us think this week:
The NRA released a 225-page report on Tuesday defending its proposition that more guns in school leads to more safety. Asa Hutchinson, former Republican congressman of Arkansas, was paid by the NRA to present the report at a news conference with “unusually heavy security.” (Hutchinson even brought along a bomb-sniffing Lab.) The report asserts that if more schools provide weapons to their police officers, security guards, and even staff members, it will increase the security at schools and will lower the response time in the case of a shooting. Because if there’s one thing we need right now is more people with guns, specially more people with guns at school.
Photo by army.mil via WikiCommons
Five links that made us think this week:
Just when I thought I was ok at math, I’m reminded it’s all relative. Google researcher Niel Fraser recently visited schools in Vietnam and learned that Vietnamese students in the 5th grade perform at the same level as U.S. students in 11th grade. Vietnamese students in the 11th grade are able to solve math equations that Google would use as their top three hardest questions for an interview. After observing the advancements and discipline among Vietnamese students, Fraser believes that “the state of American computer science education is striking in comparison.” I wonder what innovations in science, math, and engineering are we missing out on if we’re not giving everyone access to a top-rate education like in Vietnam?
Photo by Alessio Damato via WikiCommons
Five links that made us think this week.
I attended a large public high school where our school’s police officer was always on hand. I rarely had any personal interaction with him beyond the passing “hello” in the hallways, but this article got me thinking about the role he played in my high school experience and how officers across the country can be used in positive (or negative) ways around the schools they protect.
If you have any doubt as to the ability of our nation’s children to be the STEM innovators and problem solvers of the future this article will put it to rest. The projects these Intel Science Talent Search finalists are working on are truly exceptional. Across the country, kids have the ideas and the potential to do what these remarkable students are doing. We need to provide the education and resources to help them grow.
At Teach For America, we’re constantly thinking about kids, but if you’re like me, we often forget it’s OK to act like one too. This week I’m remembering to take moment to destress with some kid-inspired activities or one of these relaxation techniques from around the globe.
Photo by Effeietsanders via Wikimedia Commons
Today’s special edition of the Friday Five is focused on spreading awareness of the collateral damage to education caused by the war in Syria. Today’s story is the children of Syria.
While some students in the U.S. go to air-conditioned schools, eat organic lunches, and work on electronic books, there are students in Syria who haven’t been to school for over two years since the Syrian War began. UNICEF released a report on Tuesday to help spread awareness about the damage the war is doing to the education system in Syria. Here were some of the findings:
Photo by James Gordon via WikiCommons
Five links that made us think this week:
Hollywood actress Roma Downey and TV show producer Mark Burnett recently wrote an article for The Wall Street Journal “mandating” the teaching of the Bible in public schools. Downey and Burnett compare the teaching of the Bible to the teaching of the U.S. Constitution and the periodic table. They claim the Western world wouldn’t have Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, Harvard University, and even singer Bono “if there were no Bible.” Sound a little odd? Despite these claims having no real substantial evidence (really, I’m pretty sure Bono would still be singing with or without the Bible), they do make a good argument: “The foundations of knowledge of the ancient world—which informs the understanding of the modern world—are biblical in origin.” I wonder, is it possible to educate young students about the Bible while protecting freedom of belief?
Photo by Jaud via WikiCommons
Five links that made us think this week.
Times are a-changin, not just at the Vatican, but also at Teach For America! The Board of Directors named CEO and Founder Wendy Kopp as board chair, succeeding Walter Isaacson, who will become chair emeritus after more than seven years of service. Kopp will continue her role as founding CEO of Teach For All. The board appointed Matt Kramer and Elisa Villanueva Beard co-CEOs of Teach For America, effective March 1. Villanueva Beard has already gotten some twitter love this week (just in time for Valentine's Day!) for becoming one of the few Latina CEOs in the country. Others took to the blogosphere to thank Kopp for her legacy. Here’s to the exciting org evolution!
For all you stargazers, it looks like something odd is happening in outer space. This morning, a meteorite weighing around 10 metric tons hit Russia’s Ural Mountains. Onlookers captured video footage of the meteorite streaking across the sky and exploding. Unfortunately, it wasn’t just a spectacle. Almost 1,000 people ended up seeking medical attention, some got injured from broken glasses, and around 3,000 buildings suffered damages. Many are wondering if this meteorite presages the Olympic-swimming-pool-sized asteroid passing near Earth later today, but scientists believe this is just a “cosmic coincidence.” Hmmm.
Photo by C m handler via WikiCommons
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