Wednesday, September 30, 2009

What's sophisticated about elementary mathematics?

The current issue of American Educator includes a very interesting article about mathematics teaching in the elementary grades. The article is entitled What's Sophisticated about Elementary Mathematics? Plenty—That's Why Elementary Schools Need Math Teachers, and it is written by Hung-Hsi Wu, who is professor emeritus of mathematics at UC Berkeley. I should probably say a lot more about him, because his list of merits is impressive, but I will leave it to you to find out more.

It appears to be a rather common impression that teaching elementary mathematics is ... well, rather elementary. I mean, the mathematics is quite simple, so how hard can it be? In this article, Wu provides a very nice introduction to how challenging it can actually be. In the introductory part of the article, he claims: "The fact is, there's a lot more to teaching math than teaching how to do calculations." In the article, he provides examples of how hard it can actually be to teach something as "elementary" as place value and fractions.

I am tempted to quote more or less the entire article, because so many interesting issues are presented here, but I will not. I am, however, going to recommend that you take the time and read this excellent article. If you are somewhat interested in teaching mathematics, I am sure you will find this interesting!

Thanks a lot to Assistant Editor Jennifer Dubin for telling me about this article, by the way! I appreciate it :-)

What's sophisticated about elementary mathematics?

The current issue of American Educator includes a very interesting article about mathematics teaching in the elementary grades. The article is entitled What's Sophisticated about Elementary Mathematics? Plenty—That's Why Elementary Schools Need Math Teachers, and it is written by Hung-Hsi Wu, who is professor emeritus of mathematics at UC Berkeley. I should probably say a lot more about him, because his list of merits is impressive, but I will leave it to you to find out more.

It appears to be a rather common impression that teaching elementary mathematics is ... well, rather elementary. I mean, the mathematics is quite simple, so how hard can it be? In this article, Wu provides a very nice introduction to how challenging it can actually be. In the introductory part of the article, he claims: "The fact is, there's a lot more to teaching math than teaching how to do calculations." In the article, he provides examples of how hard it can actually be to teach something as "elementary" as place value and fractions.

I am tempted to quote more or less the entire article, because so many interesting issues are presented here, but I will not. I am, however, going to recommend that you take the time and read this excellent article. If you are somewhat interested in teaching mathematics, I am sure you will find this interesting!

Thanks a lot to Assistant Editor Jennifer Dubin for telling me about this article, by the way! I appreciate it :-)

Developing school mathematics textbooks in China

Yeping li, Jianyue Zhang and Tingting Ma have written an article entitled Approaches and practices in developing school mathematics textbooks in China. This article was published online in ZDM a couple of days ago. This article gives a very interesting overview of how Chinese textbooks are developed, but it also provides nice insights into how mathematics teaching has developed (or is developing) in China. Here is the abstract of this article:
In this study, we aim to examine and discuss approaches and practices in developing mathematics textbooks in China, with a special focus on the development of secondary school mathematics textbook in the context of recent school mathematics reform. Textbook development in China has its own history. This study reveals some common practices and approaches developed and used in selecting, presenting and organizing content in mathematics textbooks over the years. With the recent curriculum reform taking place in China, we also discuss some new developments in compiling and publishing high school mathematics textbooks. Implications obtained from Chinese practices in textbook development are then discussed in a broad context.



Developing school mathematics textbooks in China

Yeping li, Jianyue Zhang and Tingting Ma have written an article entitled Approaches and practices in developing school mathematics textbooks in China. This article was published online in ZDM a couple of days ago. This article gives a very interesting overview of how Chinese textbooks are developed, but it also provides nice insights into how mathematics teaching has developed (or is developing) in China. Here is the abstract of this article:
In this study, we aim to examine and discuss approaches and practices in developing mathematics textbooks in China, with a special focus on the development of secondary school mathematics textbook in the context of recent school mathematics reform. Textbook development in China has its own history. This study reveals some common practices and approaches developed and used in selecting, presenting and organizing content in mathematics textbooks over the years. With the recent curriculum reform taking place in China, we also discuss some new developments in compiling and publishing high school mathematics textbooks. Implications obtained from Chinese practices in textbook development are then discussed in a broad context.



The productive notion of mathematics laboratories

Michela Maschietto and Luc Trouche have written an article called Mathematics learning and tools from theoretical, historical and practical points of view: the productive notion of mathematics laboratories. The article was published online in ZDM on Monday. Although they start with a glimpse from a babylonian clay tablet, their main focus is on the development of tools and use of tools in the last century. In the main part of their article, they have a strong focus on the so-called mathematics laboratories. Here is the abstract of their article:
In our research work, we have looked at the way in which artefacts become, for teachers as well as for students, instruments of their mathematical activity. The issues related to the use of tools and technologies in mathematical education are now widely considered. A look to history highlights the different ways in which the same questions have been studied at different times and in different places. This suggests that the contribution of artefacts to mathematics learning should be considered in terms of various contexts. Our “visits” to these contexts will be guided by the coordination of two main theoretical frameworks, the instrumental approach and the semiotic mediation approach from the perspective of mathematics laboratory. This journey through history and schooling represents a good occasion to address some questions: Are there “good” contexts in which to develop mathematical instruments? Are there “good” teaching practices which assist students’ instrumental geneses and construct mathematical meanings? How is it possible to promote such teaching practices? Some study cases are discussed.



The productive notion of mathematics laboratories

Michela Maschietto and Luc Trouche have written an article called Mathematics learning and tools from theoretical, historical and practical points of view: the productive notion of mathematics laboratories. The article was published online in ZDM on Monday. Although they start with a glimpse from a babylonian clay tablet, their main focus is on the development of tools and use of tools in the last century. In the main part of their article, they have a strong focus on the so-called mathematics laboratories. Here is the abstract of their article:
In our research work, we have looked at the way in which artefacts become, for teachers as well as for students, instruments of their mathematical activity. The issues related to the use of tools and technologies in mathematical education are now widely considered. A look to history highlights the different ways in which the same questions have been studied at different times and in different places. This suggests that the contribution of artefacts to mathematics learning should be considered in terms of various contexts. Our “visits” to these contexts will be guided by the coordination of two main theoretical frameworks, the instrumental approach and the semiotic mediation approach from the perspective of mathematics laboratory. This journey through history and schooling represents a good occasion to address some questions: Are there “good” contexts in which to develop mathematical instruments? Are there “good” teaching practices which assist students’ instrumental geneses and construct mathematical meanings? How is it possible to promote such teaching practices? Some study cases are discussed.



Larnin'

I kept meaning to send something to Mr. D, but never did - so now that I have a sec, here's a lesson I'm doing this week in my early American history class:

Background:
  • We are in the middle of studying early American societies, and have just finished learning about Mississippian (mound builders) and TaĆ­no societies
  • This lesson introduces students to early Mesoamerican societies (Maya, Mixtec, Zapotec, Olmec, Aztec)
Instructions:
  • The students will visit the website of ImageBase (http://www.famsf.org/fam/about/imagebase/index.asp)
  • I have assigned several students to each Mesoamerican society (Maya, Mixtec, etc.) In the "Search" box at ImageBase, the students in the Maya group will enter "Maya," which will generate images of artifacts.
  • The students will choose one artifact to analyze.
  • The students will complete a worksheet that will help them analyze their artifact. The point of the analysis is for students to understand what "stuff," or material culture, can teach us about the people that used it.
  • Once they finish the analysis, they will bring what they've learned and "jigsaw" it with the other students. Next steps include a more general discussion of those societies, trade networks, etc.
Discussion:
I've found that this type of activity is great for kids with language processing difficulties and English language learners. If I'm delivering content day after day through English-language documents, films, and discussions, it's nice to take a break and have students learn history by examining an artifact.

Part II: Final thoughts played to a tune of desperation



Instead of delving into the testimony from each of the witnesses who testified on Panel I and Panel II at the House Judiciary Subcommittee hearing last week, I want to focus on a few points from the written testimony that highlight the severity of this situation. Moreover, an eloquent post by a new connection, Mr. Blair, on my previous piece about this hearing warrants attention in the second part of this discussion. Based upon the significance of his comments vis-a-vis  my own initial and now settled thoughts about this hearing, it precludes me from carrying out the analysis I had planned on doing. In a word, Mr. Blair's comments made me realize the pointlessness of providing the reader with a point by point discussion on the content of each person's testimony.  Nevertheless, here's a quick list of the witnesses who testified (for those of you who wish to read their written testimony, their names serve as hyperlinks to those documents):

Panel I


Panel II
(b) Rafael I. Pardo, Associate Professor of Law Seattle University School of Law
(d) Brett Weiss, Joseph, Greenwald & Laake, P.A. 


Ms. Asher and Mr. Weiss were the strongest witnesses. Both were poised and able to relay the most disturbing information, along with substantial statistics, to the Subcommittee (the empty chairs on that end, by the way, was disheartening).  One of the most disturbing pieces of evidence came from Mr. Weiss's testimonial document. Prior to reading this document, I had - naively - assumed that one could escape private student loan debt through death. It seems in certain instances that that isn't even a way out! In a portion of his document that discusses the way in which courts have similar "restrictive standards to co-borrowers" (this topic of co-signers also came up, and it clearly overwhelmed Congressman Cohen), Mr.Weiss explained, "We recently heard a particularly poignant experience from a co-borrower looking for solutions:"


"Heather from St. Petersburg, FL (in her own words)


I co-signed for my boyfriend's loans so that he could go to school to become a pilot. When he signed up with the school, they only had 2 banks they wants us to to get loans through (Wachovia or Sallie Mae and only one that was accessible from their web site (Wachovia) were he was supposed to sign up for the loan. So he ended getting a private loan from Wachovia (which is backed by TERI) instead of a federal loan, although I am not sure what the difference is. Unfortunately, he passed away a couple of weeks before his training was complete. Now the loan deferment period is coming to an end and obviously they want their money. I've done outreach to see what my options are and it's not looking very promising  . . . They also sent a letter, addressed to him, stating that the loans don't offer a death discharge [my emphasis] . . . . I understand that I am responsible for paying these loans since I did co-sign for them, it just doesn't make sense for me to pay the entire loan amount when I got nothing from didn't even get to go for a ride!"

 

I realize it's hyperbolic to claim that one cannot escape their loans via death. But why is it not possible for a company like this one to at least re-negotiate the terms of this debt? It's also amazing that a company can be so brazenly cruel and send a letter addressed to the widow's dead husband. 

There are also examples of how they criticize people for having had children. Again, Mr. Weiss's document explains this type of situation. A borrower seeking to reclaim some semblance of a life was accused of being reckless for making a personal decision to have a family. Weiss continues:

"Creditors have presented a wide range of aggressive arguments to discredit borrowers' testimony about hardship. In one recent case, creditors aggressively questioned a woman about why she had children [my emphasis] after she took out student loans if she was not going to be able to afford both children and loans. In this case, the creditor's counsel got the borrower to acknowledge that she had borne all of her children after she took out the loans. He then asked her if her children had been 'planned' to which she responded that she was Catholic. Counsel then dropped the subject until closing argument, at that time referring to her religious choice. Counsel said that 'you have to make the decision to have a family in light of what you can afford."

I won't even get into the story about an aspirant who can't take a vow of poverty until she's paid off her student loan debt! (Rest assured, supporters, I've already been in touch with Ms. Torres - the aspirant - and told her about the Forgive Student Loan Debt Movement).

Why have so many people in this country been put in such a shameful financial situation? Why are so many of them struggling to just make ends meet? Even worse, why does it seem that no one seems to give a damn?


I have some other questions I'd liked answered:


(a) Why did the House wait until after the proverbial train had left the station to hold a student loan bankruptcy hearing?

(b) It is is my understanding too that the Senate is trying to keep Senator Sherrod Brown's debt swap bill from being considered. Why is that?
(c) Why are both of these bills just about putting a cap on the riches the lenders receive, and aren't doing a damned thing to address the existing debt problems from which we're all struggling? 
(d) Finally, I wrote on behalf of one particular student who was clearly misled by her university. 

When she stepped foot on her campus as a freshman with a clean academic record, the Financial Aid Office had her take out the wrong loans. I'm almost certain of it. I wrote to Sec. Arne Duncan, to the Attorney General of her state, to President Obama, etc. I haven't heard one thing. Nothing. I think that her case alone warrants some sort of official investigation into possible wrongdoing at the school she attended. So why hasn't anyone responded? Why are we all being forgotten here? Have we not raised our voices enough? Where's that so-called "change" we can believe in?


The little that has been done on the Hill is too little and perhaps too late for millions of Americans struggling with student loan debt. Some of the Representatives who happened to attend this hearing struck me as . . . to put it bluntly . . . painfully out of touch, and so unaware of what it means to be a struggling professional today that they made me dream of being in a place of power that would allow me to draft legislation that would actually mean something for people who are caught in this student lending crisis . . . It also made me think about the stark division between baby boomers and the generations who have come after them. (Mind you, I'm speaking thematically by the way. I'm aware that there are a large number of people who are described as baby boomers who support our cause).


I will defer to the eloquence of Mr. Blair to make this final point. After I posted the first part of this discussion, Mr. Blair wrote in response: 

"Excellent report, and very encouraging. Thank you!

I believe very much in your statement regarding advanced degrees hurting ex-grad students in the current job market.
 

In America large corporations thru small businesses value people that they can subjugate 
more than they do people who possess critical thinking skills. Companies want someone 
who is programmable, not someone who wants to learn and excel, or improve the organization for which they work. This attitude is contrary to best management practices (see learning organizations - Peter M. Senge).

We (recent graduate students - irrespective of age [my emphasis]) paid to gain those skills which are abrasive to incumbent baby-boomers who want nothing more than to retire fat and happy, just like they were planning to retire before they lost all their money in risky investments. But now they must "work" longer to retire at the same level they had planned. Now the baby-boomers are in fierce competition with themselves, and others outside of their demographic, to 1. keep their jobs, 2. do as little work as possible, 3. make as much money as possible before they retire.
 

So, our generation(s) must now bear the weight of having to compete with a glut of older workers who are in many ways obsolete in their productivity by default of an unwillingness to learn from younger people who they may consider to be a threat to their positions of authority (and perceived  superiority). We must also pay back our over speculated student debt.
 

We recent graduates of more advanced degrees who are younger seek innovation and efficiency out of a real economic necessity; to pay back our student loans in a timely equitable manner. We also seek the leverage to take our own risks with our own ventures, just like the baby-boomers have. Right now with a disproportionate burden of debt we cannot pay off more quickly we do not have the freedom to organize and innovate, particularly for start-up type ventures. This hurts America. We need the leverage to take risks to innovate. Right now we can only follow orders; orders which are leading us in a direction of dilution, without a clear vision for the future. Let them put our money back into our mouths where it belongs. We've over-speculated on the value of our student loans because of promises of a chance of higher wages which are less likely to obtain."

While I am inclined to believe that what we're seeing is a type of internecine warfare between those in the middle-class, Mr. Blair's remarks about a generational struggle have persuaded me to rethink my original beliefs (i.e., that the crisis resembles an internal type of class struggle). Regardless of theoretical speculation and which one makes more sense, we're all finding ourselves in a desperate collective situation. When you begin to receive emails from college grads telling you, "Thanks for your help! I have a college degree and just went on food stamps today!" you know this problem is serious and that it's not going away. 

Try as they might to ignore us and this serious issue, the student lending crisis is here to stay. Allowing for private loans to be discharged in bankruptcy is, as Mr. Applebaum put bluntly, "like putting a band aid on a gunshot wound." 



National Archives and Footnote.com Announce New Digital Holocaust Collection

Collection includes Holocaust-related photos and records available online for first time

Washington DC and Lindon, UT –September 29, 2009

The National Archives and Records Administration and Footnote.com today announced the release of the internet’s largest Interactive Holocaust Collection. For the first time ever, over one million Holocaust-related records – including millions of names and 26,000 photos from the National Archives– will be available online. The collection can be viewed at: http://www.footnote.com/holocaust/ .

“We cannot afford to forget this period in our history,” said Dr. Michael Kurtz, Assistant Archivist of the United States and author of America and the Return of Nazi Contraband: The Recovery of Europe's Cultural Treasures. “Working with Footnote, these records will become more widely accessible, and will help people now and in the future learn more about the events and impact of the Holocaust.”

Included among the National Archives records available online at Footnote.com are:

  • Concentration camp registers and documents from Dachau, Mauthausen, Auschwitz, and Flossenburg

  • The “Ardelia Hall Collection” of records relating to the Nazi looting of Jewish possessions, including looted art

  • Captured German records including deportation and death lists from concentration camps
    Nuremberg War Crimes Trial proceedings

Access to the collection will be available for free on Footnote.com through the month of October.

Read full article

tugas statistik q...

OLEH LUSTYYAH ULFA
NRP 2408100064
Pengertian Probabilitas
Sebuah contoh sederhana adalah jika sebuah koin dilempar, maka akan sulit untuk memastikan bahwa muka gambar atau muka angka yang berada di atas. Jika terkait dengan suatu perusahaan, maka akan sulit untuk memprediksikan apakah tahun depan akan mengalami keuntungan atau kerugian. Jika terkait dengan suatu ujian, juga akan sulit untuk memastikan apakah lulus atau gagal dan lain sebagainya. Semua peristiwa tersebut berada dalam “ketidakpastian” atau Uncertainty. Dengan demikian, probabilitas atau peluang merupakan “derajat kepastian” untuk terjadinya suatu peristiwa yang diukur dengan angka pecahan antara nol sampai dengan satu, dimana peristiwa tersebut terjadi secara acak atau random. Atau probabilitas bisa dikatakan sebagai nilai kemungkinan terjadinya suatu kejadian. Probabilitas bernilai 0-1. Artinya bila mendekati angka 1 maka kejadian tersebut akan semakin besar berpeluang untuk terjadi. Probabilitas suatu kejadian A terjadi dilambangkan dengan notasi P(A), p(A), atau Pr(A). Sebaliknya, probabilitas [bukan A] atau komplemen A, atau probabilitas suatu kejadian A tidak akan terjadi, adalah 1-P(A).
Ada 2 pendekatan didalam ilmu probabilitas :
1. Pendekatan Objektif : Probabilitas klasik, Probabilitas suatu kejadian ditentukan dengan mengobservasi berapa kali suatu kejadian terjadi .
2. Pendekatan Subjektif.
Probabilitas dibagi menjadi 2 berdasarkan kejadiannya:
1.Probabilitas marginal merupakan suatu probabilitas dimana kejadiannya bersifat independen dan nilainya didapat berdasarkan event (kejadian) tertentu, tanpa dipengaruhi oleh variabel yang lainnya. Jika X dan Y merupakan dua peristiwa yang independen, maka probabilitas untuk terjadinya kedua peristiwa tersebut adalah : P(X ∩ Y) = P(X) x P(Y).
2.Sedangkan probabilitas kondisional (Bersyarat) dihitung berdasarkan kejadiannya yang bersifat dependen dan nilainya didapat dari suatu event yang akan terjadi bila suatu event yang lainnya sudah terjadi, atau dengan kata lain ada variabel lain yang mempengaruhinya. Jika peristiwa X dan Y merupakan peristiwa dependen (probabilitas bahwa Y akan terjadi jika diketahui bahwa X telah terjadi) maka dapat dirumuskan : P(X ∩ Y) = P(X) x P(Y/X).
Aturan Probabilitas
1.Aturan penjumlahan atau kaidah aditif
Aturan ini berlaku untuk pafuan atau gabungan beberapa kejadian.
Bila A dan B adalah dua kejadian sembarang maka:
P(A
Bila A dan B terpisah maka
B)
2. Aturan Perkalian atau kaidah multiplikatif,yang memungkinkan menghitung peluang terjadinya dua kejadian sekaligus.
Bila dalam suatu percobaan kejadian A dan B keduanya dapat terjadi sekaligus, maka:
P

Teorema Bayes
Teorema Bayes : P(A|B) = P(A,B) : P(B) ; Berlaku jika : a. 2 kejadian berurutan. b. 2 kejadian dependen.
Bila dituliskan:
P(Br|A) =
Untuk r = 1, 2, 3,...k
Permutasi dan Kombinasi
1.Permutasi merupakan susunan dari suatu himpunan obyek yang dapat dibentuk yang memperhatikan urutan.
Masalah penyusunan kepanitiaan yang terdiri dari Ketua, Sekretaris dan Bendahara dimana urutan dipertimbangkan merupakan salah satu contoh permutasi. Jika terdapat 3 orang (misalnya Amir, Budi dan Cindy) yang akan dipilih untuk menduduki posisi tersebut, maka dengan menggunakan Prinsip Perkalian kita dapat menentukan banyaknya susunan panitia yang mungkin, yaitu:Pertama menentukan Ketua, yang dapat dilakukan dalam 3 cara.Begitu Ketua ditentukan, Sekretaris dapat ditentukan dalam 2 cara.Setelah Ketua dan Sekretaris ditentukan, Bendahara dapat ditentukan dalam 1 cara.Sehingga banyaknya susunan panitia yang mungkin adalah 3:2:1 = 6.
Adapun rumus dari permutasi yaitu:

=

2.Kombinasi merupakan susunan dari suatu himpunan obyek yang dapat dibentuk tanpa memperhatikan urutan.
menentukan kombinasi-3 dari 5 huruf yang
berbeda, misalnya ABCDE.
Karena r = 3 dan n = 5 maka kombinasi-3 dari 5 huruf ABCDE adalah
C(5; 3) =
=
=
=
= 10

Jadi banyaknya kombinasi-3 dari 5 huruf ABCDE adalah 10.

Adapun rumus Kombinasi yaitu:
=

Live By The Sword, Die By The Sword?

The problem with Jay Mathews' defense ("Measuring Progress At Shaw With More Than Numbers") of a Washington, DC school principal who did not demonstrate student learning gains at his school after one year is that the principal operates within an accountability system that demands such a result. In this case, both Mathews -- and DC Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee, as described in Mathews' WP column -- are right not to have lowered the boom on Brian Betts, principal of the DC's Shaw Middle School at Garnet-Patterson, based on a single year's worth of test scores.
The state superintendent of education's Web site says Shaw dropped from 38.6 to 30.5 in the percentage of students scoring at least proficient in reading, and from 32.7 to 29.2 in math.

But those were not the numbers Rhee read to Betts over the phone.

Only 17 percent of Shaw's 2009 students had attended the school in 2008, distorting the official test score comparisons. Rhee instead recited the 2008 and 2009 scores of the 44 students who had been there both years. It didn't help much.

The students' decline in reading was somewhat smaller; it went from 34.5 to 29.7. Their math proficiency increased a bit, from 26.2 to 29.5. But Shaw is still short of the 30 percent mark, far below where Rhee and Betts want to be....

Despite the sniping at Rhee, the best teachers I know think that what happened at Shaw is a standard part of the upgrading process. I have watched Betts, his staff, students and parents for a year. The improvement of poor-performing schools has been the focus of my reporting for nearly three decades. The Shaw people are doing nearly everything that the most successful school turnaround artists have done.

They have raised expectations for students. They have recruited energetic teachers who believe in the potential of impoverished students. They have organized themselves into a team that compares notes on youngsters. They regularly review what has been learned, what some critics dismiss as "teaching to the test." They consider it an important part of their jobs.

That's how it's done, usually with a strong and engaging principal like Betts.

Mathews' take -- including consideration of contextual factors, such as the fact that only 17% of the school's students had attended the prior year and the contention that school turnaround requires more than a single year -- is how the education world should work. Embrace the complexity of learning and trying to measure it! To do so would disallow the use of single-year changes in test scores for making high-stakes decisions about schools and individual school personnel. It would also remove the unrealistic pressure on school turnarounds to bear fruit in a single year. Test scores would be used responsibly in combination with other data and evidence to paint a fuller picture about individual school contexts and inform judgments about school leadership and student success.

But Michelle Rhee and other education reform advocates have publicly argued that student performance as measured by test scores is basically the be all and end all. According to this Washington Post story ("Testing Tactics Helped Fuel D.C. School Gains"), Rhee supports strengthening No Child Left Behind to "emphasize year-to-year academic growth." Such a stance creates a problem for such reformers when they are leading a district and staking their leadership on uncomplicated test score gains. Others will assess their leadership and judge their success by this measure -- an ill-advised one in its simplest form.

I would argue that, in addition to doing the right thing (as happened in this instance), reform advocates and school leaders like Rhee also have a responsibility to say and advocate for the right thing. They have a responsibility to be honest about the complexity of student learning and the inability of student assessments to accurate capture all of the nuance going on within schools and classrooms. While the reformers' challenge of the adult-focused policies of the educational status quo is often warranted, some reforms -- accountability, chief among them -- have been taken too far. Student learning, school leadership and teaching cannot be measured and judged good or bad based on a single set of test scores. Test scores must be part of the consideration -- and supporting systems such as accountability, compensation and evaluation must be informed by such data -- but they should not single-handedly define success or failure.

The complexity as presented by Mathews in his article -- and, more importantly, by existing research (such as by Robert Linn, Aaron Pallas, Tim Sass, and embedded within Sunny Ladd's RttT comments) about year-to-year comparisons of both overall test scores and test score gains -- strongly suggests that educational accountability systems should be designed more thoughtfully than they have been to date, but unfortunately that does not seem to be the direction that policymaking is headed at either the federal or state levels. Part of being more thoughtful is moving away from NCLB-style adequate yearly progress and toward a value-added approach, but thoughtfulness also requires not making high-stakes decisions based exclusively on volatile student data. Do I hear "multiple measures"? Sure, but Sherman Dorn offers some provocative thoughts on this subject in a 2007 blog post.

With regard to educational accountability, policymakers first should do their homework -- and then they clearly have more work to do in creating a better system and undoing parts of the existing system that aren't evidence-based and accomplish only in simplifying a truly complex art: learning.

-------------------

For those of you that have gotten this far, there's a related post on the New America Foundation's Ed Money Watch blog discussing a new GAO report that analyzes state spending on student assessment tests -- $640 million in 2007-08.
The increasing cost of developing and scoring assessments has also led many states to implement simpler and more cost-effective multiple choice tests instead of open response tests. In fact, although five states have changed their assessments to include more open response items in both reading and math since 2002, 11 and 13 states have removed open items from their reading and math tests, respectively over the same time period.... This reliance on multiple choice tests has forced states to limit the content and complexity of what they test. In fact, some states develop academic standards for testing separately from standards for instruction, which are often un-testable in a multiple choice system. As a result, state NCLB assessments tend to test and measure memorization of facts and basic skills rather than complex cognitive abilities.
------------

And here's a new story hot off the presses from Education Week. It discusses serious questions raised about New York City's school grading system.

Eighty-four percent of the city’s 1,058 public elementary and middle schools received an A on the city’s report cards this year, compared with 38 percent in 2008, while 13 percent received a B, city officials announced this month.

“It tells us virtually nothing about the actual performance of schools,” Aaron M. Pallas, a professor of sociology and education at Teachers College, Columbia University, said of the city’s grades.

Diane Ravitch, an education historian at New York University, was even sharper: She declared the school grades “bogus” in a Sept. 9 opinion piece for the Daily News of New York, saying the city’s report card system “makes a mockery of accountability.”

But Andrew J. Jacob, a spokesman for the New York City Department of Education, defended the ratings, even as he said the district’s demands on schools would continue to rise next year....

The city employs a complex methodology to devise its overall letter grades, with the primary driver being results from statewide assessments in reading and mathematics, which have also encountered considerable skepticism lately.

The city’s grades are based on three categories: student progress on state tests from one year to the next, which accounts for 60 percent; student performance for the most recent school year, which accounts for 25 percent; and school environment, which makes up 15 percent.

Mr. Pallas of Teachers College argues that one key flaw with the city’s rating system is that it depends heavily on a what he deems a “wholly unreliable” measure of student growth on test scores from year to year that fails to account adequately for statistical error.


Monday, September 28, 2009

Teacher Residency Requirements

Apart from being marginally good local politics to require city employees (including teachers) to live within city boundaries, why would an urban district create barriers that make it more difficult to attract the highly effective teachers that it needs?

Ask Chicago and Milwaukee. (Boston, too, has a residency requirement for city employees, but it excludes teachers.) Any others out there we should be aware of?

From the Chicago Tribune (9/11/2009):
The city, for its part, maintains that teachers should be contributing to the tax base that funds their schools, among other reasons.
From the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel (1/24/2008):
The residency rule has been controversial for years. Some say it is unfair and MPS needs good teachers too much to restrict the pool of possible teachers. Others say it doesn't actually have much effect on who teaches overall and it's good for the city to have employees live within the city line. Efforts in the state Legislature to repeal the residency rule recently have not succeeded.

Tuition Tax Credits

The right is always bleating about the need to have pilot programs that test their market-based approaches to educational reform. How’s this for a test?

http://emptywheel.firedoglake.com/2009/09/27/the-fraud-of-gop-tax-and-school-choice-policy-shown-in-arizona/
The state's Private School Tuition Tax Credits program covers the cost of private education, often for children whose parents could afford to pay it themselves - while allowing affluent families to reduce the amount of income tax they pay into the state's general fund. . . . [read on]

Tuition Tax Credits

The right is always bleating about the need to have pilot programs that test their market-based approaches to educational reform. How’s this for a test?

http://emptywheel.firedoglake.com/2009/09/27/the-fraud-of-gop-tax-and-school-choice-policy-shown-in-arizona/
The state's Private School Tuition Tax Credits program covers the cost of private education, often for children whose parents could afford to pay it themselves - while allowing affluent families to reduce the amount of income tax they pay into the state's general fund. . . . [read on]

Sunday, September 27, 2009

I’m currently taking a doctoral level course on education and economics. At our first meeting, the professor (whose PhD is in Economics) noted that the past two decades have seen the increasing influence of economic theory on education policy, with a sharply rising curve in the 21st century. I asked him why he thought that was and he gave me a great (and honest) answer: Economists have better theories. Economic theories have been honed for decades, even centuries, and economists have vastly better and more convincing quantitative tools to measure outputs. Besides, he said, economists think they’re right and tend to be aggressive.            Teacher in a Strange Land, January 2007.

Last year, the nation’s most famous economist, Alan Greenspan, admitted that he may have been "partially" wrong in trusting banks to protect their shareholders. Those sharp quantitative tools and rock-solid economic theories crumbled in the face of rampant self-interest. And we've been paying the price in lost trust ever since.
Benjamin Barber, in an eloquent blog on Huffington Post, traces the economic collapse back to lack of trust:
Trust is a crucial form of social capital, a recognition of the common ground on which we stand as citizens. It is the glue that holds rival producers and consumers together and lets them do the business that would otherwise do them in. Whereas the whole point of the market is competition - selfishness and narcissism as self-conscious instruments of market calculation.
Although it was bad loans and greedy bankers and stupid hedge fund managers and ignorant investors who made the mess, it has been four decades of de-democratization that has done the real damage. A hemorrhaging of social capital that nobody noticed because government was supposed to be the problem and markets the solution.

Democracy's real product is trust. As the war on government became a war on democracy it drew down the well of social capital and eroded trust, causing citizens to lose faith in each other and their common power to govern themselves.

Social capital and trust. Can we apply these lessons to our public schools and the barely-breathing ideal of democratic equality in education before they completely implode, too? When people who have resources and power move their own children into sheltered schools—schools they trust—and then use their personal bully pulpit to demean and erode public education, the ultimate outcomes harm us all. It’s not just about my children. It’s about everyone’s children, because we’ll be living on this planet with all of these children for the rest of our lives. And eventually, they’ll be running the show.

One of my favorite books is Trust in Schools: A Core Resource for Improvement by Anthony Bryk and Barbara Schneider. Bryk and Schneider, in a series of case studies done in Chicago in 2002, provide convincing data showing significant increases in student achievement—measured by every economist’s favorite tool, standardized tests—when multi-directional trust is present. When teachers trust principals, when parents have confidence in teachers and administrators, when teachers feel free to take risks in improving their practice—student learning and school operations improve. It’s as simple as that.

Our national values are spread out before us for re-examination. Individual gain vs. public good? Free markets vs. effective regulation? Me and mine vs. you and yours.
I’m currently taking a doctoral level course on education and economics. At our first meeting, the professor (whose PhD is in Economics) noted that the past two decades have seen the increasing influence of economic theory on education policy, with a sharply rising curve in the 21st century. I asked him why he thought that was and he gave me a great (and honest) answer: Economists have better theories. Economic theories have been honed for decades, even centuries, and economists have vastly better and more convincing quantitative tools to measure outputs. Besides, he said, economists think they’re right and tend to be aggressive.            Teacher in a Strange Land, January 2007.

Last year, the nation’s most famous economist, Alan Greenspan, admitted that he may have been "partially" wrong in trusting banks to protect their shareholders. Those sharp quantitative tools and rock-solid economic theories crumbled in the face of rampant self-interest. And we've been paying the price in lost trust ever since.
Benjamin Barber, in an eloquent blog on Huffington Post, traces the economic collapse back to lack of trust:
Trust is a crucial form of social capital, a recognition of the common ground on which we stand as citizens. It is the glue that holds rival producers and consumers together and lets them do the business that would otherwise do them in. Whereas the whole point of the market is competition - selfishness and narcissism as self-conscious instruments of market calculation.
Although it was bad loans and greedy bankers and stupid hedge fund managers and ignorant investors who made the mess, it has been four decades of de-democratization that has done the real damage. A hemorrhaging of social capital that nobody noticed because government was supposed to be the problem and markets the solution.

Democracy's real product is trust. As the war on government became a war on democracy it drew down the well of social capital and eroded trust, causing citizens to lose faith in each other and their common power to govern themselves.

Social capital and trust. Can we apply these lessons to our public schools and the barely-breathing ideal of democratic equality in education before they completely implode, too? When people who have resources and power move their own children into sheltered schools—schools they trust—and then use their personal bully pulpit to demean and erode public education, the ultimate outcomes harm us all. It’s not just about my children. It’s about everyone’s children, because we’ll be living on this planet with all of these children for the rest of our lives. And eventually, they’ll be running the show.

One of my favorite books is Trust in Schools: A Core Resource for Improvement by Anthony Bryk and Barbara Schneider. Bryk and Schneider, in a series of case studies done in Chicago in 2002, provide convincing data showing significant increases in student achievement—measured by every economist’s favorite tool, standardized tests—when multi-directional trust is present. When teachers trust principals, when parents have confidence in teachers and administrators, when teachers feel free to take risks in improving their practice—student learning and school operations improve. It’s as simple as that.

Our national values are spread out before us for re-examination. Individual gain vs. public good? Free markets vs. effective regulation? Me and mine vs. you and yours.

Making it Easier to Get Aid

Efforts are underway to simplify the complex, byzantine system we've created to administer financial aid, and it's about time. Streamlining the process holds promise-- take a look at the recent H&R Block study if you have any doubt. Where policymakers are starting, by reducing the complexity of the application, is a good place to begin, but we could do more. There are some basic facts about individual decision-making which are neglected in the design of the current system-- and remedying those oversights could go a long way towards enhancing participation.

I don't want to argue over who figured out first that humans aren't highly rational beings. Maybe it was the behavioral economists, maybe the psychologists, maybe the sociologists. In any case, it's clear that we tend towards inertia, confusion over too many choices, and that we're highly influenced by what those around us do. And as Richard Thaler and Cass Sunstein nicely articulate, the right kind of policy "nudge" can get us moving in a better direction.

In today's New York Times, Thaler makes a strong case for changing the organ donation system from an "opt in" model to an "opt out" one. He cites evidence that in countries where people have to go out of their way to decline to donate their organs, a far greater percentage choose to donate. For example, in Germany, the opt-in system results in a positive donor consent rate of just 12%-- in Austria, the opt-out system has the opposite effect-- 99% of adults donate.

Thaler also highlights the benefits of a system where some kind of choice is required-- where it's impossible to skip the step of making a decision. So in Illinois, you have to decide whether or not to donate when you signup for your driver's license-- and 60% of people decide "yes."

The benefits are clear-- plenty of people need organs, and this is a way to make sure more get them,without resorting to a scary open-market system where we need people to sell and buy organs.

I think this could work for financial aid. Right now we have a system that leaves many eligible students out-- simply because they do not fill out the required form-- the FAFSA. We can fix this. Instead of having students submit a separate financial aid application in addition to their college application, why not require it? If students want to decline to apply, make that the decision that needs to be reached-- rather than the other way around. Right now you have students being admitted to college who forgot to apply for aid-- let's flip that, and make sure the processes are integrated, and the only ones not considered for aid are the ones who took actions not to be considered.

This model would require ramping up aid counseling, for sure, to make certain that students who wanted to apply could figure out the process. Hopefully, with the simplification of the FAFSA pending, this will become less burdensome. But it ought to pay off in the end-- getting more eligible students access to the dollars they are entitled to. Money left on the table is money wasted-- and if we can identify a fairly simple, elegant solution to the problem then heck, shouldn't we try?

A PERE-LACHAISE FOR PETS



It's touching and worth visiting at least once: the animal version of the famous PĆØre-Lachaise cemetery.

Located on a charming reattached island in the Seine at AsniĆØres, a Paris suburb, it's one of the world's first pet cemeteries in modern times. Like PĆØre-Lachaise, which is a veritable outdoor museum of 19th century mausoleums,  le cimetiĆØre animalier d'AsniĆØres is filled with extravagantly sculpted tombs and effigies of loved ones. Except here the loved ones are pets of every kind, including a lion and a race horse. 

The most famous animal buried here is the original Rin-Tin-Tin, which brings to mind Oscar Wilde's quip that "when good Americans die, they go to Paris. . ."



Established in 1899 at the insistence of feminist, journalist and animal lover Marguerite Durand, the cemetery, classified as a historic monument, has a magnificent Art Nouveau entry designed by the celebrated architect EugĆØne Petit.




Don't miss the cats: a local association tends to the care and feeding of a sizable population of stray cats that have taken up residence in the cemetery. A shelter has been built just for them.

 
4 pont de Clichy
92600 AsniĆØress-sur-Seine

Hours: Closed Mondays. March 16 thru Oct 15,  10 a.m. - 6 p.m.;
Oct 16 thru March 15, 10 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.


Restaurant recommendation of trusted friends: Le Van Gogh.  Named in homage to the artist and opened the year of his death, the restaurant is situated on the banks of the Seine, at one of  Van Gogh's favorite vantage points for painting landscapes. Fresh fish and seafood. Port Van Gogh at Pont de Clichy. http://www.levangogh.com

Text & photos ©2009 P.B. Lecron


Committee to Reeducate the Public

Good example to use when kids ask "why study history." From TPM, a new Kreep out to undermine a Democrat using bald-faced lies.

Youtube


certainly familiar your ears to hear this website ->> youtube,. who had never seen the videos from youtube? you can enjoy videos from youtube and you do not need to be a member or in other words create an account on youtube.
youtube was born in the year 2005. was formerly an internet service, which displays the personal video recording every person, who wants to display the video. and now youtube has become very popular and get competition from everywhere.

there are three panels on the top of the youtube site. Home, Videos, and Channels.
Home:
the front page when you open youtube. in here we can see some new videos.
Videos:
show some youtube videos, choose a few categories that you are looking for videos. here are a few selection options.
Channels:
pages to display video on a particular selection. for example, because the common name of the artist, other types of video and others.

youtube can not be downloaded from its website. to download videos on youtube, can take advantage of services "www.youtubecatcher.com" or youtube downloader software.

Saturday, September 26, 2009

School overcrowding and rising class sizes: who is to blame?

In response to questions and complaints about increased class sizes and overcrowding at schools all over the city, DOE officials commonly have blamed parents, for insisting on sending their kids to popular schools.

Yet their refusal to take responsibility for the problem, though typical, belies the reality: that the vast majority of K-8 students attend their local zoned neighborhood schools, and DOE completely controls how many students are assigned each high school through through OSEPO (the Office of School Enrollment, Planning and Operations).

So what are some of the real sources of the increased overcrowding?

1- The administration's disinterest and disinvestment in keeping class sizes low. Despite a state law requiring NYC to reduce class size in all grades, there are now 1600 fewer classroom teachers, and 10,000 more out-of-classroom staff since the Mayor took control of our schools, including many more highly paid administrators, and 2,000 additional school secretaries. Moreover, numerous audits and reports from the State Comptroller, the City Comptroller, and the State Education Department have found fault with the city's failure to spend state funds specifically targeted to class size reduction according to the intent of the law.

2-As described in numerous reports, their failure to adequately plan and build new schools for communities that have seen increased enrollment, especially in the younger grades. (For the latest reports from the City Comptroller and the Manhattan Borough President, see here and here.) This has also led to a significant increase in the percentage of students attending overcrowded schools, as well as more Kindergarten students being forced to attend schools outside their neighborhood schools.

3. At the high school level, the growing number of new small schools have caused our large comprehensive high schools to be increasingly flooded by students excluded from the small schools, which have capped enrollment and class sizes at lower levels. The reality is that different high school (and sometimes middle school) principals have different deals with the Department of Education, with many selective smaller schools (and charter schools housed in DOE buildings) allowed to cap enrollment at lower levels so that they can keep class sizes under 25, while other principals are inundated with so many students it is difficult for them to keep to the union contractual limits of 34.

The increased number of small schools jammed into existing school buildings has also directly contributed to more overcrowding overall, as each new small school and charter school eats up classroom space with more administrative and cluster rooms. More than one fourth of all NYC principals report that the insertion of new schools or programs into their buildings have led to more overcrowding in their schools.

4. Large budget cuts imposed at the school level by the city in recent years, including this fall, have made it harder for principals to keep sufficient teachers on staff , while the salaries of Tweed bureaucrats and consultants continues to grow apace.

All of these phenomena result directly from the flawed priorities, policies and budgetary decisions made by this administration. The DOE's attempt to blame parents for the resulting overcrowding is yet another way in which the accountability promised by mayoral control has failed to materialize.

IJSME, October 2009

IJSME, October 2009

Addition and subtraction of three-digit numbers

Aiso Heinze, Franziska Marschick and Frank Lipowsky have written an article that was published in the recent issue of ZDM. The article is entitled Addition and subtraction of three-digit numbers: adaptive strategy use and the influence of instruction in German third grade. Here is the abstract of their article:
Empirical findings show that many students do not achieve the level of a flexible and adaptive use of arithmetic computation strategies during the primary school years. Accordingly, educators suggest a reform-based instruction to improve students’ learning opportunities. In a study with 245 German third graders learning by textbooks with different instructional approaches, we investigate accuracy and adaptivity of students’ strategy use when adding and subtracting three-digit numbers. The findings indicate that students often choose efficient strategies provided they know any appropriate strategies for a given problem. The proportion of appropriate and efficient strategies students use differs with respect to the instructional approach of their textbooks. Learning with an investigative approach, more students use appropriate strategies, whereas children following a problem-solving approach show a higher competence in adaptive strategy choice. Based on these results, we hypothesize that different instructional approaches have different advantages and disadvantages regarding the teaching and learning of adaptive strategy use.



Addition and subtraction of three-digit numbers

Aiso Heinze, Franziska Marschick and Frank Lipowsky have written an article that was published in the recent issue of ZDM. The article is entitled Addition and subtraction of three-digit numbers: adaptive strategy use and the influence of instruction in German third grade. Here is the abstract of their article:
Empirical findings show that many students do not achieve the level of a flexible and adaptive use of arithmetic computation strategies during the primary school years. Accordingly, educators suggest a reform-based instruction to improve students’ learning opportunities. In a study with 245 German third graders learning by textbooks with different instructional approaches, we investigate accuracy and adaptivity of students’ strategy use when adding and subtracting three-digit numbers. The findings indicate that students often choose efficient strategies provided they know any appropriate strategies for a given problem. The proportion of appropriate and efficient strategies students use differs with respect to the instructional approach of their textbooks. Learning with an investigative approach, more students use appropriate strategies, whereas children following a problem-solving approach show a higher competence in adaptive strategy choice. Based on these results, we hypothesize that different instructional approaches have different advantages and disadvantages regarding the teaching and learning of adaptive strategy use.



Flexible and adaptive use of strategies and representations

Aiso Heinze, Jon R. Star and Lieven Verschaffel have written an article entitled Flexible and adaptive use of strategies and representations in mathematics education. The article was published in ZDM, Volume 41, Number 5 on Wednesday. Here is the abstract of their article:
The flexible and adaptive use of strategies and representations is part of a cognitive variability, which enables individuals to solve problems quickly and accurately. The development of these abilities is not simply based on growing experience; instead, we can assume that their acquisition is based on complex cognitive processes. How these processes can be described and how these can be fostered through instructional environments are research questions, which are yet to be answered satisfactorily. This special issue on flexible and adaptive use of strategies and representations in mathematics education encompasses contributions of several authors working in this particular field. They present recent research on flexible and adaptive use of strategies or representations based on theoretical and empirical perspectives. Two commentary articles discuss the presented results against the background of existing theories.



Flexible and adaptive use of strategies and representations

Aiso Heinze, Jon R. Star and Lieven Verschaffel have written an article entitled Flexible and adaptive use of strategies and representations in mathematics education. The article was published in ZDM, Volume 41, Number 5 on Wednesday. Here is the abstract of their article:
The flexible and adaptive use of strategies and representations is part of a cognitive variability, which enables individuals to solve problems quickly and accurately. The development of these abilities is not simply based on growing experience; instead, we can assume that their acquisition is based on complex cognitive processes. How these processes can be described and how these can be fostered through instructional environments are research questions, which are yet to be answered satisfactorily. This special issue on flexible and adaptive use of strategies and representations in mathematics education encompasses contributions of several authors working in this particular field. They present recent research on flexible and adaptive use of strategies or representations based on theoretical and empirical perspectives. Two commentary articles discuss the presented results against the background of existing theories.



Friday, September 25, 2009

Chancellor's Regs and School Changes for Vote at November PEP


Six public notices were released by DOE tonight for votes on the agenda for the November 12th PEP meeting. Three are Chancellor's regulations and three are changes in school configuration / utilization.

Links to all are below and on the PEP web site
here It looks like we have a location for the November meeting as well: PS 128 in Queens, located at 69-10 65th Drive, Queens, NY 11379

Text below from the DOE site:

PUBLIC COMMENT

The following regulations have been posted for the 45 day public comment period. The Panel will vote on the regulations listed below at the November 12, 2009 Panel meeting. The meeting will take place at 6:00 PM at PS 128 in Queens, located at 69-10 65th Drive, Queens, NY 11379.

  1. Public Notice: C-30 Regulation Governing the Selection, Assignment and Appointment of Principals and Assistant Principals

    a. C-30 Regulation Governing the Selection, Assignment and Appointment of Principals and Assistant Principals

  2. Public Notice: C-37 Selection of Community Superintendents

    a. C-37 Selection of Community Superintendents

  3. Public Notice: A-190 Regulation on Significant changes in School Utilization

    a. A-190 Regulation on Significant Changes in School Utilization

  4. Public Notice: A-501 Regulation on Promotion Standards

    a. A-501 Regulation on Promotion Standards

PUBLIC COMMENT

The following educational impact statements have been posted for the 45 day public comment period. The Panel will vote on the statements listed below at the November 12, 2009 Panel meeting. The meeting will take place at 6:00 PM at PS 128 in Queens, located at 69-10 65th Drive, Queens, NY 11379.

  1. Public Notice: PS 46M

    a. Educational Impact Statement for PS 46M

  2. Public Notice: Greenwich Village Middle School

    a. Educational Impact Statement for Greenwich Village Middle School

  3. Public Notice: Mott Hall V (12X242)

    a. Educational Impact Statement for Mott Hall V (12X242)

Thanks but no thanks, Harry Wong

Recently I've been re-reading a few pages of the Wongs' The First Days of School each day over breakfast. The book has a lot of great suggestions for classroom setup and management. But I think it's corresponded with a steadily dwindling confidence in my effectiveness as a teacher. When the Wongs say "Effective teachers do ..." one thing and "Ineffective teachers do ..." another, I generally fall in the ineffective category.

What I need to do is read more things like this, remind myself that kids actually do learn in my class, and try not to hold myself to impossible standards. There has to be some middle ground between "effective teachers" and "ineffective teachers."

Plus, I'm sorry Mr. Wong, but you would never get away with a name like that in high school.

Part I: House Judiciary Subcommittee Hearing on discharging private loan debt through bankruptcy

Rubbing elbows/Wearing a new hat: Why we must take this to the Hill and how I've become the FSLDM fundraiser!


The House Judiciary Subcommittee held a hearing a few days ago about the possibility of introducing legislation that would allow borrowers to discharge private loan debt in bankruptcy. As many of you were already aware, your fierce advocate was in attendance. Being there as the Promotional Writer and Director of Marketing was critical for FSLDM. It's just one of the many reasons why I'm urging everyone to donate money to help the cause. In order to get this movement off the internet and onto the Hill, we need more  resources that will allow me to be present for hearings like this one. (And just to respond to any potential critics, I have been paying out of pocket to be a part of these events, and I'm struggling to make ends meet as a result of my student loan debt, too. In addition, I am seeking other forms of funding, i.e., corporate sponsorship and grants).

In any event, it was a successful day for raising awareness about our cause. The first panel had one witness, Congressman Danny K. Davis (D-7th District of Illinois). After he testified, I caught him leaving the room. He was with Dr. Jill Hunter-Williams. Dr. Hunter-Williams is a Legislative Director and the main contact in his office for issues relating to Higher Education and the student loan crisis. (I'll provide analysis and a description of Davis's testimony in the second part of this discussion). Congressman Davis was polite, but we did not talk long. Nevertheless, it was long enough for me to let him know who I was representing ("a group of over 229,000 supporters," I said proudly).

There were several other connections I made. Most notably - because of political ties - was my talk with Lauren Asher, the President of The Institute for College Access and Success (aka TICAS.org). Ms. Asher testified as a witness on the second panel, and tried to persuade the Subcommittee to understand how there are many people struggling to pay their private student loans. I've sent letters to Ms. Asher on behalf of a few students, who I believe were grossly misled by their Financial Aid Offices. While she and I discussed those specific situations briefly, we spent more time discussing the larger problems related to the student lending crisis.

TICAS.org is a critical group with which to be in contact for three reasons:

(a) First, the founder of TICAS is Robert Shireman, who is now the Deputy Undersecretary of Education. In this role he is the senior adviser to Sec. Arne Duncan. That means TICAS has a direct line into the Obama Administration. (This reason alone was why I needed to attend in order to introduce myself to Ms. Asher. She knew I was coming as result of my success in reaching out to her colleague a few weeks ago).

(b) "The Project on Student Loan Debt" is one area of focus for their organization. They are therefore sympathetic to our cause and its supporters.

(c) Also, Ms. Asher if frequently cited in articles about student loan debt (here, here, and here , and those are just a few examples out of many more where she's quoted as a reliable media source). Unlike the College Board, they were not previously lenders and do not have any earlier or current ties to Sallie Mae.

FSLDM has a different take on how the student lending crisis ought to be solved, and Ms. Asher and I spoke frankly about that fact. However, our motivations are based upon a shared objective: TICAS and FSLDM both have an sincere interest in the well-being of students and graduates.(Incidentally, Ms. Asher is gracious and warm, as are her colleagues who attended the hearing with her. Indeed, all of them were enormously polite, friendly, and professional).

In addition to speaking with Ms. Asher, I also introduced myself  - and our group - to two people who work in the Division of Affordable Higher Education at U.S. PIRG. PIRG is another good ally, and I look forward to building stronger relationships with this organization. But . . . and at the risk of sounding like a harp  (!!), we desperately need donations for me to continue fostering these relationships and finding new points of contact. 

There were also several student organizations in attendance, and I was able to meet Ms. Tiffany Munsell, the National Chair for the National Black Law Students Association, and Angela Peoples, who is the Legislative Director for United States Student Association. Our concerns intersect, and we were able to discuss possible ways of building an interconnected coalition of sorts.

While these individuals and their organizations may have different aims, we all agree that:

(1) There is a student lending crisis, and it can't be ignored
(2) Something needs to be done ASAP to help student borrowers drowning in student loan debt

All of these interactions were productive, and made me realize yet again that we are not the only ones concerned about the well-being of students and graduates. While our Facebook Page, "Cancel Student Loan Debt to Stimulate the Economy, this blog, and Robert's website all demonstrate how many people are struggling with student loan debt, face-to-face interaction with like-minded individuals goes a long way. It inspires me to continue fighting, and reminds me that this problem is not contained within the technological boundaries of the internet. We were able to share similar stories, those troubling tales of countless people who can't find jobs, have resorted to taking the degrees they've obtained off their resume just to find a low-wage job, and so forth. Nixing advanced degrees is an emotionally difficult thing to do. After all, if you have a J.D., or a Master's, etc., you worked very hard to earn that degree. The last thing you wish to do is scratch it off your CV. But many are realizing that these degrees are hurting them in this current job market. That in and of itself demonstrates what a disastrous situation we are in.

What's even more emotionally hard? Declaring bankruptcy. The subcommittee members who treated such a decision as being easy and easily done are clearly unaware of just how difficult it is to do such a thing. (For most people there is a lot of anguish that goes along with making that type of decision). There also was an indication that a few of them perceive students through a rather distorted lens. Those who were against measures that would make private student loan debt dischargeable in bankruptcy have a problematic understanding of American college students. First, they seem to assume that they are all a bunch of young whipper-snappers. While the majority of students attending higher education institutions may be between the ages of 18-22, it's a well known fact that the non-traditional student population is growing by leaps and bounds. If I were to speak directly with some of the members on the House Judiciary Subcommittee, I would suggest - funnily! funnily! - that they stop believing Animal House is somehow representative of the way college students live (i.e., just to party and raise hell). The image of an irresponsible beer-swilling student is in many ways flat wrong. Of course it would be absurd to argue that students do not have parties, drink, etc. (some do these things far too regularly than others). But it's also important to be reminded of the fact that many college students are responsible, have at least 1 job if not 2 (so they can cover basic needs), and study hard.


Finally, a few people have been writing me messages via Facebook, urging me to change the way I have been speaking about bankruptcy vis-a-vis this present discussion. One person encouraged me to describe it as a "fresh start." I refuse to use that type of language. In fact, that is the worst rhetoric I could use. Why? Because those politicians who would be wary of such legislation, i.e., that would enable students to include private student loans in bankruptcy, would see that type of assertion as a way to justify their opposing stance.

Next up . . . more specifics on who testified, what they said, and why bankruptcy is a bad option and does not equal a fresh start.

Stay tuned.