How's your Latin? or Plane Geometry?

In case you were wondering: Harvard Entrance Exam circa 1899

Help Desk question: Can parents affect a curriculum change at a school?

I'm looking for success stories of parents affecting the math program taught in an elementary school.
I'd like to provide some encouragement to a commenter on my blog, who asked:

How does one get their school district to consider changing over to Singapore Math?

Most of the schools I have worked with have had teacher-led math curriculum initiatives. Does anyone have examples of parent-initiated changes to share?

Tiger Mothering on the Daily Show

In case you missed it. Enjoy and don't forget your chopsticks.

The Daily Show - Tiger Mothering
Tags: Daily Show Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,The Daily Show on Facebook

OK allows disabled students vouchers for private schools

Getting the vouchers, though is a "whole nuther ball of wax".

From Jay. P. Greene's blog post: Violators of OK’s Special Ed Voucher Law Get Good Mocking

Homeschooling by the Numbers

Via Pat'sBlog who saw it at Maria Miller's "Homeschool Math Blog.

(Click to enlarge)

Via: DegreeSearch.org

Any thoughts on the accuracy of these figures?

Did you celebrate National SAT Day?

Because according to this new SAT blog by Sol Lederman it was yesterday, June 23rd. He quotes Wikipedia:

The first administration of the SAT occurred on June 23, 1926, when it was known as the Scholastic Aptitude Test.^[19][20] This test, prepared by a committee headed by Princeton psychologist Carl Campbell Brigham, had sections of definitions, arithmetic, classification, artificial language, antonyms, number series, analogies, logical inference, and paragraph reading. It was administered to over 8,000 students at over 300 test centers. Men composed 60% of the test-takers. Slightly over a quarter of males and females applied to Yale University and Smith College.^[20] The test was paced rather quickly, test-takers being given only a little over 90 minutes to answer 315 questions.^[19]

I'm guessing that there were no SAT tutors then.

The brain hurts most when being expanded...

Professor Wu at the beginning of MSMI2010 ...

...and at the end of MSMI2010.


That's the result of 40 hours of extreme fraction action.

Notice how giddy and hard working the attendees are after 5 days!

Better sign up now for next year's institute on Geometry.

NJ adopts Common Core Standards

From an email I received from The NJ Coalition for World-Class Math:

Dear Group:

 

Well, it's over.

 

Yesterday, the NJ State Board of Education adopted the Common Core Standards in Math and English-Language Arts yesterday.  They never offered the public a chance to provide testimony on the final standards prior to adoption.

More info here:

NJ adopts new federal standards for math, language arts | dailyrecord.com | Daily Record

 

Critics: NJ rushing to adopt new math, language arts standards | dailyrecord.com | Daily Record

Mandatory bubbling session for AP students

While we were at the High School last week, viewing the 10th grade IB students' personal projects (year-long self-discovery projects), I noticed this sign in the commons. For those not familiar with standardized tests, this is a MANDATORY session on how to correctly bubble in the answers on the AP exams.

Really.

Why do we insist on teaching fractions like we teach poetry?

...asks professor Hung-Hsi Wu of Berkeley at last week's NCTM (National Council of Teachers of Mathematics) Conference. Once you learn algebra, precision is most desirable, mathematics can not be taught in an ambiguous manner. He brings Mark Twain, Shakespeare and Keats into an informative and, for me, entertaining conference session.  (At one point, he turned the definition of multiplication of fractions into free form verse!) From his presentation:

Consider Hamlet's comment on Denmark after his father's death:
'Tis an unweeded garden
That grows to seed; things rank and gross in nature
Possess it merely.

Compare it with the definition of 3/4 :
Take a pizza (or a fraction bar) and divided it into 4 equal parts. Take 3 parts.

My favorite quote from his presentation came after working to understand the product formula (is there an official name for this?): a/b x c/d = ac/bd. He said something along the lines of:

"You've worked so hard to understand, don't you need a treat? Here's the standard algorithm. You can almost use it mindlessly."

At which point people in the audience started snickering & guffawing. Wu continued:

"We drive mindlessly. Do we consider the internal combustion engine when we do so?"

He insists that computation is a part of mathematics:

Analogies and metaphors have a place in mathematics. They can be very helpful in the understanding of precise concepts and reasoning. However, it is a mistake to allow them to replace precise concepts and reasoning.

Let us hope that fractions will be taught with less poetry, but with more emphasis on

precise definitions, and
precise reasoning

Want to enjoy the whole presentation in your own home? Point your browser to: http://math.berkeley.edu/~wu/NCTM2010.pdf

One school's take on teacher certification

VickyS asked in another thread: "In my state, and I assume most others, you don't need state licensure to teach in a private schools. Are those teachers any less effective for it?

Here's one example that answers Vicky's question with a resounding "No!" Ridgeview Classical School is continually ranked in the US News & World Report as a top charter school in the country. One year, they were #15 overall. Their previous principal, Dr. Terrence Moore, (currently an Assistant Professor of History at Hillsdale College in Michigan) wrote frequently about teacher certification and the value of ed. schools. (And classical education, and phonics, and Core Knowledge...) He recommends two books for people seeking information on schools of education: Rita Kramer’s Ed School Follies and, even better, George Orwell’s Animal Farm.

From his article, Association of Teacher Qualification and Certification is a False One:

When I taught history at the university level, I noticed an extreme division in my classes. The history majors reveled in the subject, did all the reading, and had significant things to say in class. The ed-school students sat at the back of the class, had little to say, showed little sign of enjoying or mastering the material, and usually skimmed by with a C minus. Which group is more qualified to teach history to the nation’s children?

His thesis from A Monopoly on ’Relating to Children’?: Teacher Certification Further Refuted:

Certified teachers do not have a monopoly on being able to relate to kids but are very often the people least able to do so.

Ouch! The Ridgeview Classical School is well-known locally for seeking out non-certified teachers in the school. In fact, anyone seeking a teaching position in Fort Collins should consider the current open positions at Ridgeview:

(All emphases are mine)

Special Education Teacher

...The candidate does not need to have a degree in special education to be considered for this position. Any interested candidate who has a strong background in liberal arts, science, or brain-based fields will be considered, as long as there is a commitment to obtain appropriate CDE licensure. It is necessary that the candidate maintains high academic standards for all students regardless of background or learning differences. The special education teacher must demonstrate the ability to teach students (K – 12), who need additional supports and services beyond the scope of the classroom setting, and is also expected to participate in the identification process for students who struggle academically or behaviorally. Candidates should have experience in different kinds of classroom settings.

Humanities Teacher

Ridgeview is looking for a versatile teacher who can teach literature, Latin, and history (especially American) to students from upper elementary to high school. Applicants should have degrees in at least two of those subjects or be able to demonstrate their versatility in other ways. A teaching certificate is not a requirement. Teachers are expected to be content experts in their field. Applicants should be able to demonstrate excellent classroom control and considerable experience in teaching students of different ages.

Mathematics

Ridgeview seeks a math teacher for the middle and high school. Applicants should be expert mathematicians with a degree in their field and the ability to communicate their expertise to their students. Teaching certification is not required for this position. Applicants should be able to teach a wide variety of math classes from pre-algebra to high-level math electives.

Nonjudgmental arenas for discovery

I'd love to know who the education writer is at the Onion.

"At Montessori, we believe dentistry is more than just the medical practice of treating tooth and gum disorders," school director Dr. Howard Bundt told reporters Tuesday. "It's about fostering creativity. It's about promoting self-expression and individuality. It's about looking at a decayed and rotten nerve pulp and drawing your own unique conclusions."

"In fact, here at Montessori, dentistry is whatever our students want it to be," Bundt continued.

If you feel yourself getting ill, just remember, the article is satire. It's supposed to be humorous.