Saturday, October 31, 2009

Twitter

have you ever heard the name twitter? certainly, yes. Twitter was launched July 2006. twitter is a free, twitter is micro-blogging or it can be said of a social networking like facebook, with a maximum of 140 characters you can write an article. in Indonesia, twitter, less popular than facebook. twitter user can give updates about what they want, whether it's about us, promotion, and so forth. the American twitter is very popular, equivalent to facebook, twitter has become popular because dapaat in sebaga advantage of free promotion is effective, and in business affiliation and need a significant visit.
Following and Follower very popular term in twitter. Followin adding another member to your friends list. Follower, is you follow the other members to be added in the list. find people (in the menu) to search for your friends.

Update Twitter
On the Home page you see an empty field, there you can write what you think. after writing and then click update.
You can also update information via SMS directly via mobile phones. and not have to bother to internet cafe to update twitter.

Vigil for Education at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts




A supporter of the Forgive Student Loan Debt Movement sent me an invitation via Facebook last night. It's a vigil for education at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts (701 Mission Street, San Francisco, CA).
The vigil, being held at 7:30 PM on November 6th, is described as such:

General Assembly attendees and all others interested in rescuing higher education! Please join the Student Senate for a march, rally, and vigil from the Westin St. Francis hotel to the Yerba Buena Gardens the evening of November 6th.

Students will speak about the need to protect and fund education and we will stand in solidarity in the hopes that we can rescue education. Potential attendees include Mayor & candidate for CA Governor Gavin Newsom, as well as other state and local lawmakers.

This will be the culmination of the first ever Community College Week, hosted this year by the City of San Francisco from 2-6 November at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts where they will spend the week showcasing the benefits of California's Community Colleges.


If I were in the area, I would certainly attend. It also got me thinking . . . I propose that we have a nationwide candlelight vigil for all students who will soon be drowning in debt (and don't know it yet), those of us struggling to pay back our loans (with no end in sight), and  for those who will obviously be sucked into this disastrous system. Who's up for a holding vigils in their town?









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Disincentives from Health Reform

Here is my column in tomorrow's NY Times about the marginal tax rates implicit in the health reform bill making its ways through Congress. Let me add a few additional observations on the topic.

1. Here are the CBO numbers on which the article is based. Unfortunately, the Times did not run the table of implicit marginal tax rates that I gave them based on the CBO numbers. But the example I used in the piece (an implicit tax rate of 23 percent) is representative. For lower income levels, the implicit marginal tax rate is even higher. Between $42,000 and $54,000, the implicit marginal tax rate from health reform is 34 percent.

2. When CBO estimates the budgetary cost of such bills, it holds GDP constant. If you think (as I do) that large increases in marginal tax rates tend to depress labor effort and thus GDP, then you should be wary of claims based on CBO scores that the health reform bill is deficit neutral. Lower GDP will mean lower tax revenue and thus a larger budget deficit.

3. How much do people respond to tax rates? Economists differ in their answer to this question. The latest thinking on this topic, by my Harvard colleague Raj Chetty, indicates that the elasticity of taxable income with respect to (1-tax rate) is about one half. So, for example, if a person starts with a marginal tax rate t of 0.3 and health reform raises it to 0.5, the percentage change in 1-t, using the midpoint method, is .2/.6, or 33 percent. With an elasticity of one half, his taxable income will fall by 17 percent. Thus, the economic impacts from these implicit tax hikes are sizable.

4. In my Times piece, I wrote, "None of this necessarily means that health reform is not worth doing. President Obama’s push for reform is premised on the belief that access to good health care should be a right of all Americans — a proposition better judged by political philosophers than economists. But we should not forget the cost of translating that noble aspiration into practical policy."

This passage may seem a bit passive-aggressive, as I appear to be criticizing the bill without really taking a stand. My aim, however, is to emphasize that economics alone cannot settle the debate.

Behind the healthcare debate is the classic tradeoff between equality and efficiency. Consider the following question, which is not about healthcare per se: Would you favor a substantial increase in marginal tax rates for millions of middle and upper income Americans to provide more resources for those toward the bottom of the economic ladder?

Your answer to this question cannot be determined by positive economics without adding in some normative judgments. But your answer should strongly influence your view of the health reform bill. The bill moves us closer to much of Western Europe by favoring equality and paying the price of reduced efficiency from much higher marginal tax rates.

That may be a policy choice Americans want to make. But before buying the merchandise being offered by Congress, I hope we all take a close look at the price tag.

Cheating scandal at Lehman: DOE's response and echoes of the past


Everyone needs to check out this terrific investigative report by GothamSchools about the growing scandal at Lehman high school, in which the principal allegedly invented credits and increased student grades by changing their transcripts after the fact.

Janet Saraceno was appointed to Lehman in the fall of 2008, and given a $25,000 bonus as the city's second "super principal," a program supposed to be reserved for principals who agreed to take on the challenge of a low-performing school -- despite the fact that, as noted at the time, Lehman was already one of the city's higher performing high schools. She was due to receive another $25,000 bonus if she managed to raise graduation rates at the school.

The sort of manipulation that appears to have occurred at Lehman is predicted by Campbell's Law, and is just the tip of the iceberg, considering how widespread these practices have become in recent years among NYC public schools. (See for example, numerous comments from teachers on the NY Times blog about the scandal, and our book, NYC Schools under Bloomberg and Klein: What Parents, Teachers and Policymakers Need to Know.)

Increased teaching to the test, cheating, and grade tampering are all expected results of the DOE accountability system , in which test scores and graduation rates determine a school's grade, whether the staff will receive hefty bonuses, and if the school will be closed-- which in turn determines whether its staff will keep their jobs or be placed on absent teacher reserve.

Regents scores, credit accumulation and graduation rates largely determine a high school's grade in the DOE accountability system. These figures are even easier to manipulate than the state test scores that determine the grades of elementary and middle schools. Why?

Because, incredibly, Regents exams are graded by teachers at their own schools, and principals are allowed to raise both Regents scores and student grades, as long as they inform teachers in writing about these changes.
In this case, the principal of Lehman apparently stepped over this very flexible line, by failing to inform the teachers about the changes made in student transcripts, and not merely raising test scores but also adding credits for courses never taken .
(Graduation rates are also easy to manipulate also by "discharging" or "pushing out" students -- transferring them to GED programs or the like. This raises the graduation rate because all discharged students are excluded from the cohort and never counted as dropouts. A recent report found that the number of NYC students who have been discharged in their first year of high school has doubled in recent years.)

None of this is particularly surprising, but what is is especially disconcerting is the ham-handed response of the administration to these revelations, both initially and since the scandal broke.

According to a message sent by chief press officer David Cantor to our NYC education list serv, Joel Klein learned about these allegations as far back as March of 2009. Yet instead of immediately suspending the principal pending the outcome of investigations, Cantor reports that Klein met with the teachers, referred the case to chief counsel Michael Best, and then:

"Within a few days, I believe--I can get you the dates--Best met with teachers from the school, after which he referred their allegations to the Special Commissioner of Investigation (who in turn referred them to the Office of Special Investigation). "
How aggressively the DOE's Office of Special Investigations pursued this case since that time cannot be known, of course, but the principal cannot have been seriously concerned as she was still changing student transcripts throughout the summer of 2009, according to the records obtained by GothamSchools.

When the story broke this week, Chris Cerf, formerly Deputy Chancellor of DOE and now working for the Bloomberg campaign, responded:

"We cannot comment on any aspects of this, but we certainly do not condone the kinds of things that are alleged. But at the same time, we believe that accountability for student outcomes is a central driver of positive reform and we believe it is critical to hold everybody in the system accountable for student results.”

In other words, accountability has nothing to do with either honesty or transparency, but simply raising test scores. Message to principals: lie, cheat or steal, it hardly matters as long as test scores and graduation rates go up.

Then, DOE announced they would launch an investigation of the teachers who provided GothamSchools with the evidence of grade-tampering. Why? Because, as Cantor wrote, “The privacy of student records is protected by federal law. School staff are not permitted to provide their students’ transcripts to reporters."

As GothamSchools reporter Anna Phillips points out, FERPA, the federal law Cantor was referring to, says that providing transcripts is only forbidden if "personally identifiable information” is transmitted. In this case, student names were all crossed out.

“All I can say is we are going to investigate the release of the student records publicly to the press,” Cantor said.
This scandal is eerily similar to the allegations made by nine veteran teachers in 2004, in which they accused a principal of another large high school in the Bronx, Anthony Rotunno of Kennedy High school, of hiking the Regents scores of 16 students. Two years later, after an extended investigation by DOE's Office of Special Investigations, no report was ever written, not because the allegations were found to be incorrect, but because DOE concluded that Rotunno had the right to change these Regents scores.
Despite articles and columns in the NY Times as elsewhere about the allegations, the only person who ended up punished was Maria Colon, the school's UFT chapter leader, who was charged with faxing student transcripts to a reporter to show that tampering had occurred. Colon was consigned to the rubber room for a year and half for this supposed transgression, before a state hearing officer exonerated her of all charges.

Colon was later "excessed" from the school. According to Randi Weingarten's testimony on before the City Council in 2007, "... the principal excessed every single bilingual social studies teacher in the school in order to get at her."
Meanwhile, Rotunno is still principal at the school.

How well known are economists?



Thanks to Tyler Cowen for the pointer.

How to Test Your Intelligence - IQ Quiz

What is an IQ?

An Intelligence Quotient indicates a person's mental abilities relative to others of approximately the same age. Everyone has hundreds of specific mental abilities--some can be measured accurately and are reliable predictors of academic and financial success.

The term "intelligence" is often used for person with hugh general knowledge. IQ Quiz testing only linguistic and logical-mathematical abilities but should testing musical and naturalist and other intellect. That means, that person who is good artist and dancer is not good in mathematical and logical field. There are eight different forms which must be tested. Those forms are: Verbal-linguistic, Bodily-kinesthetic, Logical-mathematical, Interpersonal, Intrapersonal, Naturalistic, Visual-spatial and Musical form. The best intelligence test should be including all eight forms, but traditional tests include just two forms.


Something like this:

Over 130 - Excellent.
Only 2% of the population reaches this score.


From 120 to 130 - Very good,
8% of the population.


From 110 to 120 - Good,
15% of the population.


From 90 to 110 - Average,
50%, major chunk of the population.


From 80 to 90 - Below Average,
15%.


From 70 to 80 - Low,
8%


Below 70 - Very low,
2%


The whole idea of this testing is that person measure his potential of doing and solve some problems.
But IQ tests have advantages and disadvantages. For example, for person who has higher IQ that can be an indicator of the employer to put him on better job. Or for the College entrance.

But it has and some disadvantages. For example, IQ tests are far from infallible though. Or college student who showed promising scores on their IQ test after give up and do not enroll in University.

And now we have a question: How we can improve our iq?
We can do it through IQ tests. There are many websites available online, that allow you to do IQ test for free.. Like this one which you can do for free.

Start the test:


IQ test-1 | IQ test-2 | IQ test-3

How to Test Your Intelligence - IQ Quiz

What is an IQ?

An Intelligence Quotient indicates a person's mental abilities relative to others of approximately the same age. Everyone has hundreds of specific mental abilities--some can be measured accurately and are reliable predictors of academic and financial success.

The term "intelligence" is often used for person with hugh general knowledge. IQ Quiz testing only linguistic and logical-mathematical abilities but should testing musical and naturalist and other intellect. That means, that person who is good artist and dancer is not good in mathematical and logical field. There are eight different forms which must be tested. Those forms are: Verbal-linguistic, Bodily-kinesthetic, Logical-mathematical, Interpersonal, Intrapersonal, Naturalistic, Visual-spatial and Musical form. The best intelligence test should be including all eight forms, but traditional tests include just two forms.


Something like this:

Over 130 - Excellent.
Only 2% of the population reaches this score.


From 120 to 130 - Very good,
8% of the population.


From 110 to 120 - Good,
15% of the population.


From 90 to 110 - Average,
50%, major chunk of the population.


From 80 to 90 - Below Average,
15%.


From 70 to 80 - Low,
8%


Below 70 - Very low,
2%


The whole idea of this testing is that person measure his potential of doing and solve some problems.
But IQ tests have advantages and disadvantages. For example, for person who has higher IQ that can be an indicator of the employer to put him on better job. Or for the College entrance.

But it has and some disadvantages. For example, IQ tests are far from infallible though. Or college student who showed promising scores on their IQ test after give up and do not enroll in University.

And now we have a question: How we can improve our iq?
We can do it through IQ tests. There are many websites available online, that allow you to do IQ test for free.. Like this one which you can do for free.

Start the test:


IQ test-1 | IQ test-2 | IQ test-3

Friday, October 30, 2009

Frieda S. at PLU

Yesterday Co-Executive Director Delila Simon and I had the pleasure of accompanying Frieda S. to a speaking engagement at Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma. Frieda shared her story of survival during the Holocaust with 30 students who are taking a Holocaust course at the college.

Frieda told of her experiences as a "Mischling" (mixed-race) who was imprisoned in the Theresienstadt camp. The students and myself were amazed by Frieda's descriptions of how she and other prisoners were forced to portray the camp as a comfortable and desirable place when the International Red Cross visited, and the true conditions under which Frieda was forced to live.
To read more about Frieda's incredible experiences, view her short biography here.

Public Schools Better than Charters Says DOE Progress Report Data

A DOE study shows traditional public schools outperform charter schools when compared using Progress Report data. Public schools had larger improvements in state test scores, the measure DOE views as paramount. The Bloomberg administration seems to have been caught in a bind: either they admit charters don't measure up or that the Progress Reports are garbage. So the report was buried on the DOE web site.

The study also shows large gaps in the enrollment of English language learners and students receiving special education services with charters taking far fewer of these students.

State Board of Regents Chancellor Meryl Tisch has been making her list of public high schools to close and replace with charters. She ought to pause and figure out what's really going on with charter schools first.

Daily News has the story here.

Actual report (pdf) here.

UPDATE: The charter school community responds.

In a lengthy defensive statement posted to the web site of the New York Charter Schools Association, NYCSA Policy and Communications Director Peter Murphy attacks the DOE Progress Report study. In the DOE study, charters were compared to traditional public schools using the same controversial approach public school parents have criticized for two years. Year to year changes on state test scores constitute 60% of the A through F letter grade, an approach Murphy dismisses as "woefully lopsided".

Murphy then goes on to criticize the Daily News and me:

...we are presented with a hodgepodge compilation of numbers cherry-picked for an article resulting in a false and misleading comparison between the academic performance of charter and district schools with zero context added. And, all of this comes less than a week before a Mayoral election, no less, enabling one Patrick Sullivan of the City's education policy board his embellished anti-charter talking-point. What a coincidence.

Let's get the facts straight. The report was prepared solely by DOE staff headed by Michael Duffy, the Executive Director of the charter school office. No one "cherry picked" any measures: the measures are exactly those incorporated in the city-wide Progress Reports. And my point was not anti-charter. I was simply pointing out the administration can't say charters are better while the DOE accountability framework says they're worse.

Average Marginal Tax Rate

From Barro and Redlick.

buat Johann pachelbel


Situs ini dipersembahkan ke Johann Pachelbel dan potongan terkenal Kanon (atau Kanon). It is a baroque piece of music which has been interpreted by many people and has become the basis of many modern songs. Ini adalah musik barok yang telah ditafsirkan oleh banyak orang dan telah menjadi dasar dari banyak lagu modern. Quite often, it is found in movie themes, songs and commercials. Cukup sering, itu ditemukan dalam tema-tema film, lagu dan iklan. Some people actually believe it is the root of all modern music (more or less, with a pinch of humour, of course :). Beberapa orang benar-benar percaya itu adalah akar dari semua musik modern (lebih atau kurang, dengan sejumput humor, tentu saja:). The melody of the Canon is easily recognizable, but the listener might not know the name of the composition or its composer. Melodi dari Canon mudah dikenali, tapi pendengar mungkin tidak tahu nama dari komposisi atau penciptanya. Pachelbel's Canon, juga dikenal sebagai Canon dalam D mayor, atau lebih resmi Canon dan Gigue dalam D mayor untuk tiga biola dan Basso continuo (Kanon und Gigue dalam D-Dur für drei Violinen und Basso continuo), adalah yang paling terkenal karya musik dengan Johann Pachelbel. Ini ditulis pada atau sekitar 1680, selama Baroque periode, sebagai bagian dari musik kamar selama tiga biola dan basso continuo, tetapi sejak diatur untuk berbagai ansambel. The Canon was originally paired with a gigue in the same key . Kanon ini awalnya dipasangkan dengan gigue sama dalam kunci.
Lembaran, skor yang ditemukan dan pertama kali diterbitkan pada tahun 1920, dan pertama kali tercatat pada tahun 1940 oleh Arthur Fiedler [1], ini terutama terkenal karena akor dan bermain di pernikahan dan disertakan pada kompilasi musik klasik CD, bersama dengan Baroque terkenal potongan seperti di Air G String oleh JS Bach (BWV 1068). Menjadi sangat populer di akhir 1970-an melalui rekaman terkenal oleh Jean-François Paillard orkestra. Non-asli biola Pizzicato bagian ini juga sering ditambahkan (dalam sebuah string orkestra atau kuartet pengaturan) ketika sebuah piano atau organ pemain tidak digunakan untuk berimprovisasi harmoni atas bass. Sutradara film Amerika Robert Redford menggunakan potongan sebagai tema utama untuk 1980 Academy Award-film pemenang Ordinary People. Johann Pachelbel tinggal 1.653-1.706. Pada 1671, pada usia 18, ia pindah ke Wina (Austria) di mana ia menjadi seorang mahasiswa. Pada 1692 ia pindah ke Nuremberg di mana dia tinggal sampai kematiannya pada tahun 1706. Kanon ini ditulis sekitar 1680 dan itu adalah Mr Pachelbel yang paling terkenal piece. Apa artinya kata "Kanon" berarti itu? Well, it is certainly not a “cannon” (the large gun), as is often suggested. A Canon (or Kanon) is a piece of music characterized by imitation and repetition. Pertama satu instrumen atau vokal memperkenalkan bagian dari melodi. Lalu, setelah beberapa nada, instrumen kedua atau vokal mulai untuk mengulang, atau meniru, melodi pertama, memainkan nada yang sama persis, tetapi dengan waktu tunda. Lebih instrumen atau vokal kemudian dapat ditambahkan, tergantung pada keinginan komposer.
Pachelbel's Canon has a very special meaning for me personally. I listen to it when I'm happy and when I feel sad. It touches my soul and sends shivers down my spine.And it always does, even though I have listened to it thousands of times.

Thursday, October 29, 2009

Nelnet and its two lovers - JP Morgan and Citi



The lawsuit that Lawrence Delevingne discusses here warrants closer attention, and reminds me of other matters that have been overlooked. It's a shame that this article has been ignored. As a result of my other readings recently, I will provide additional analysis on this matter, i.e., the problematic relationship between these institutions with the student lending industry. Stay tuned.

If only this were true ...

State Of Minnesota Too Polite To Ask For Federal Funding | The Onion - America's Finest News Source
"Minnesota should just take the spending money, already," Department of Education Undersecretary Edward McPherson said. "It's not like it's a special handout—all schools were allocated extra money under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. But they refuse to accept their extra federal funding on the grounds that their schools 'don't need to be fancy.'"

"Frankly, they're just being stubborn and I'm not going to stand for it any longer," McPherson said. "They're gonna get some more funding by the end of the year if the federal government has to airdrop in school lunches and forcibly place new teachers in the classrooms with the help of the National Guard."
Sigh. Or should I say, world-weary sigh.

"Becoming Evil: How Ordinary People Commit Genocide and Mass Killing" - What teachers are saying...

Becoming Evil: How Ordinary People Commit Genocide and Mass Killing
by Dr. James Waller

Over 50 educators turned out last week to hear Dr. James Waller speak on the topic of his book at Seattle University. The program was organized by the Holocaust Center in partnership with Seattle University. Here's what a few of the participants had to say:

Everyone should give some attention to James Waller’s work on “the ordinariness of extraordinary evil” and his investigation into how it is possible for ordinary people to commit horrible crimes. It has been common in the past half century to explain events such as the Holocaust by locating them outside of time and history and simply saying that such things are an evil beyond human comprehension. Although that approach may offer a means of coping with such atrocities, it does not help us to understand how they can occur. Waller approaches the problem from a different angle and argues that genocide is not simply the work of monsters but rather the monstrous work of ordinary people. Specifically, he argues that we, as humans, are all capable of such actions, depending on the way we are socialized to understand the world, “the Other,” and the concept of cruelty. Given the reality of ongoing violence against ethnic, religious, and cultural groups that exists in our world today, Waller’s work is critical to gaining an understanding of how such events can literally take place.
- Steve R., Seattle Academy



I read Dr. Waller’s article and here is my response. (I hope I am correct in sending it to you rather than going directly to the blog). I was fascinated by the provocative angle he is approaching the Holocaust from. The notion that it takes ordinary individuals to do horrible things is what can make the topic so engaging for my students. As soon as we see ourselves capable of evil we are no longer capable of dismissing the topic as “something from the past.” I would be interested in developing lessons that help students see how collectivist values, a societies authority orientation and its approach to social dominance relate to their everyday lives. In other words, how the beginnings of “perpetrators” are around us every day.
- Travis F., Kent Meridian



I'm just going to reflect back on a quote offered that evening, by Winston Churhill, I believe. It was, "You may not be interested in war, but war is interested in you." Before I went to the class that night, I noted on Facebook that I was going. I thought to myself that some people may think, "Why in the world is she going to a class about the perpetrators of genocide and mass killing?" Why indeed? There are other workshops through which to earn clock hours. But it's Churhill's quote that gives me an answer, or at least one possible answer, along with others. It's that we all must be interested in "war", because it IS interested in us. Its ripples and crashing waves are all around us and we are so affected, whether we know it or not, spiritually, psychologically, economically, physically. We can not be bystanders, especially in the ever shrinking world, or we are really no different than those who look on in the photographs from the Holocaust. Our starting point is awareness, then building from there.
- Rikke C., Seattle



The lecture was fascinating! I had never thought much about the idea of how or what specifically constituted genocide or the concept the human profile of those who readily participate. Dr. Waller's talk was so interesting and certainly gave me much to ponder. Great inspiration for deeper thinking! More importantly, it provides an interesting topic for secondary-level discussion related to World affairs and conflicts. Thank you for setting this up!
~Judy C., Kent Mountain View Academy
I found James Waller’s lecture on genocide particularly pertinent to my teaching about social justice issues. This year, I’ll be teaching books such as Maus and Cry, the Beloved Country. The fact that, as he quoted Churchill, “the story of the human race is war,” is evident in the books we teach. This event helped me reflect on how I can help students engage in dialogue around issues of violence, all the ways in which humans participate in it, and how that shapes our society in lasting ways.
- Carolyn H., Roosevelt High School, Seattle

Memorializing Victims of T-4 Program: Wenatchee teacher in Germany writes about her students' experiences

By Kathleen Ralf, a teacher at the International School in Stuttgart, Germany. Prior to teaching in Germany, Kathleen taught at Easmont High School in East Wenatchee, WA. Photos by Jens Knickmeier.


This past month, school children from around Stuttgart memorialized the thousands that were gassed at Schloss Grafeneck as part of Germany's T-4 Program. The T-4 program advocated "euthenasia" for people who were physically or mentally disabled.

Kathleen and her 7th grade students participated in the memorial. The students painted a purple line on the pavement, following the route the busses took from Stuttgart to the Schloss.
“From here, all it looked like was a line. A solid, flat, purple line. I didn’t realize how significant it was.” Gabrielle M. (California)

We are all familiar with what happened during the Holocaust, but we often forget that it was not just the Jews who were deported to camps. Much work is being done here in Germany to recognize those forgotten ones of the Final Solution: Jehovah’s Witnesses, Gays and Lesbians, Gypsies, Handicapped and the Mentally Disabled. Today part of our 7th grade class at the International School of Stuttgart got to take part in a memorial project called “Spur der Erinnerung” which means in German “Trace of Memory”.

Between the October of 1939 and December of 1940 over 10,000 physically and mentally disabled were gassed at Schloss Grafeneck as a part of Hitler’s euthanasia program.

Disabled residents in Stuttgart were picked up by bus and then taken through the countryside, 75 kilometers away, to Grafeneck near Tübingen. There they were asked to go into the showers and were then gassed. These citizens served as a test group for a system that would later be adopted by the Reich for use in other camps. Grafeneck was used for only one year and was later closed due to public pressure.

Over the last two days, our students, along with other students from the region, memorialized this act of intolerance by painting a purple line along the pavement from Schloss Grafeneck to Stuttgart Center.
It was cold and looking like rain, but our students were dressed warm and ready to go. They were handed their orange safety vests, paint-brushes, and stencils. They were full of energy and excitement as they coated themselves and the street with purple paint. Nikita Prasad, a student from India remarked “I felt very amazed that we got to paint part of the line but I also felt very sad thinking about these people that suffered and died.”
This was the reaction most students had; they had fun doing this act of memory together but at the same time were struck by the meaning of what they were doing.

“We all hope that when you see that line that we painted you too will also remember.” Claudia O. (Texas).

One of our first year students, Keita S. from Japan, felt this way “The mark of the line has two meanings: One is a hope that we never repeat the Nazi’s dictatorship and the other is the mark which is engraved on people’s hearts.”

For other students painting the line was much more personal, “My grandpa’s sister was handicapped, but her family hid her to when Hitler and the Nazi’s came, so she was saved.” Judith Z. (Germany)
“It is very special to me because my family is from Poland and the Nazi’s killed many Polish people” For Alex M. (Germany) this was special in two ways: a way to remember those in his family that were lost in Poland but also a way to be proud of his home town, Tübingen, for commemorating this tragedy.
“When we washed the paint off our hands and we were obsessed with our wet painted clothes. We didn’t remember. Only when I glanced out the window and saw the line did I remember.” Gabrielle M. (California)

If you would like more information on the Spur der Erinnerung the official website is located at http://www.spur-der-erinnerung.de/.

Is Amazon predatory?

Chapter 17 of my favorite textbook has a section on controversies over antitrust policy, including a discussion of predatory pricing. This topic is in the news again: The American Booksellers Association says Amazon, Wal-Mart, and Target "are using these predatory pricing practices to attempt to win control of the market for hardcover bestsellers" and that this behavior "is damaging to the book industry and harmful to consumers."

Read more about the case here and here.

The so-called predatory price cuts have not spilled over to the sale of textbooks. Is that good news for students (as the Booksellers' argument suggests) or bad news?

More Competition

Steve Landsburg is blogging.

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

We Need Fewer Science Majors Not More

It's an article of faith: the United States needs more native-born students in science and other technical fields. The National Academies' influential Rising Above the Gathering Storm report in 2006 said the nation should "enlarge the pipeline of students who are prepared to enter college and graduate with a degree in science, engineering, or mathematics" to remain competitive. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce had a similar message on the gap in so-called STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) students a year before. President Barack Obama has pushed for more science teachers and training for the same reason.

But a new paper (pdf) contradicts the notion of a shrinking supply of native-born talent in United States. "Those who advocate increasing the supply of STEM talent should cool their ardor a little bit," says one of its authors, B. Lindsay Lowell, a demographer at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C.

The supply has actually remained steady over the past 30 years, the researchers conclude from an analysis of six longitudinal surveys conducted by the U.S. government from 1972 to 2005. However, the highest-performing students in the pipeline are opting out of science and engineering in greater numbers than in the past, suggesting that the threat to American economic competitiveness comes not from inadequate science training in school and college but from a lack incentives that would make science and technology careers attractive.

We Need Fewer Science Majors Not More

It's an article of faith: the United States needs more native-born students in science and other technical fields. The National Academies' influential Rising Above the Gathering Storm report in 2006 said the nation should "enlarge the pipeline of students who are prepared to enter college and graduate with a degree in science, engineering, or mathematics" to remain competitive. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce had a similar message on the gap in so-called STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) students a year before. President Barack Obama has pushed for more science teachers and training for the same reason.

But a new paper (pdf) contradicts the notion of a shrinking supply of native-born talent in United States. "Those who advocate increasing the supply of STEM talent should cool their ardor a little bit," says one of its authors, B. Lindsay Lowell, a demographer at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C.

The supply has actually remained steady over the past 30 years, the researchers conclude from an analysis of six longitudinal surveys conducted by the U.S. government from 1972 to 2005. However, the highest-performing students in the pipeline are opting out of science and engineering in greater numbers than in the past, suggesting that the threat to American economic competitiveness comes not from inadequate science training in school and college but from a lack incentives that would make science and technology careers attractive.

Quick find - great blog!

I just discovered this great blog. It's called "Ivy Leagued and Unemployed," and it's here. My favorite thing so far about Yelena's blog (she's the creator)? The "Hire my friend" posts - brilliant. I am glad I stumbled upon this blog, and wanted to send a shout out to Yelena for responding so quickly to my email. If you're from the Ivies, check it out ASAP!


Specific Learning Disability - Eligibility for Special Education

Eligibility for special education and related services under the category of Specific Learning Disability (SLD) involves perhaps the most complicated rules and analysis of any category under the IDEA. The understanding and acknowledgment of what constitutes a learning disability is changing as awareness, research, and information becomes more prevalent. Not only does research about learning disabilities in general effect the understanding of eligibility, but also research and developments about evaluation procedures and interventions can have an impact.

SLD is the only category under the IDEA that has specific evaluation procedures, beyond the general requirements for special education evaluations, that attach to the determination of eligibility. These specific evaluation procedures will be more thoroughly covered in a subsequent blog post.

IDEA's Definition of SLD Eligibility Under IDEA:

"In general, the term 'specific learning disability' means a disorder in 1 or more of the basic psychological processes involved in understanding or in using language, spoken or written, which disorder may manifest itself in the imperfect ability to listen, think, speak, read, write, spell or do mathematical calculations." 20 U.S.C. section 1401(30).

The team may determine that a child has a specific learning disability IF:

"(1) the child does not achieve adequately for the child's age or to meet State-approved grade-level standards in one or more of the following areas, when provided with learning experiences and instruction appropriate for the child's age or State-approved grade level standards:
(i) oral expression
(ii) listening comprehension
(iii) written expression
(iv) basic reading skill
(v) reading fluency skills
(vi) reading comprehension
(vii) mathematics calculation
(viii) mathematics problem solving

(2) (i) the child does not make sufficient progress to meet age or State-approved grade-level standards in one or more of the areas identified in (1) above when using a process based on the child's response to scientific research-based intervention; or (ii) the child exhibits a pattern of strengths and weaknesses in performance, achievement, or both, relative to age, State-approved grade level standards, or intellectual development, that is determined by the group to be relevant to the identification of a specific learning disability, using appropriate assessments... and

(3) the group determines that its findings are not primarily the result of
(i) a visual, hearing, or motor disability
(ii) mental retardation
(iii) emotional disturbance
(iv) cultural factors
(v) environmental or economic disadvantage; or
(vi) limited English proficiency"

34 C.F.R. section 300.309

Thus, to simplify this, under the IDEA's definition, the determination is going to be based on whether the child is not making adequate or sufficient progress relative to his/her age and to grade level standards, in one of the specified skill areas, even given appropriate learning experiences and instruction or given research-based interventions.

Role of State Laws and Regulations:

Each state individually sets forth guidelines that further explain the process for determining eligibility under the category of SLD. The IDEA states that "a state must adopt... criteria for determining whether a child has a specific learning disability..." 34 C.F.R. section 300.307(a). States are prohibited from requiring the use of the "severe discrepancy" model, must allow the use of a response to intervention model, and may allow the use of other research-based procedures. 34 C.F.R. section 300.307(a). The individual school districts are required to use the criteria adopted by the state.

Discrepancy Model:

Prior to the 2004 changes to the IDEA, the "severe discrepancy model" was the primary method utilized to determine eligibility under the category of SLD.

The severe discrepancy model looks at whether there is a severe/significant discrepancy between a child's intellectual ability and that child's achievement in a specified academic area. Whether a discrepancy is "severe" is determined by the standard used in that district / state, and is typically based upon a difference of 1.5 standard deviations.

For example:

Child is given a general ability measure or IQ test and his/her overall ability / full scale IQ is found to be a 100.

Child is also given a standardized measure of academic achievement, and cluster scores in areas related to reading are found to be broad reading - 80, reading comprehension - 72, basic reading skills - 75.

The difference or discrepancy between ability and achievement in the area of broad reading would be 20 points, in the area of reading comprehension would be 28 points, and in the area of basic reading would be 25 points. On standardized measure wherein 100 is the mean, two and a half standard deviations is 22.5 points, so this child has a "severe discrepancy" in reading comprehension and basic reading skills.

Although states can no longer require the use of a severe discrepancy model, they can still adopt this model, and define it, as one option for school districts to utilize. Therefore, in some areas, the discrepancy model is still widely used.

It is important to note that the discrepancy model relies upon a comparison of the child's achievement academically to his/her own ability level, rather than merely to grade- or age- level expectations. However, even if a state allows for use of the discrepancy model, the state's procedures must be consistent with the definition of an SLD under the IDEA, see above. Under that definition, it is necessary to look at whether the child is achieving adequately / sufficiently to meet age or grade-level standards, not necessarily to meet expectations based upon their own IQ.

Response to Intervention Model:

Response to Intervention (RTI) is still a relatively new model in terms of special education eligibility. The idea behind RTI, though, is based in the finding that students who are provided with appropriate, research-based instructions should learn to read, write, do math, etc. This is similar to the idea behind the requirements of No Child Left Behind that students be provide with research based instructions. Basically, the IDEA's recognition of RTI as an appropriate process to take into consideration when making an eligibility determination is a recognition that there should be a determination that the child has learning difficulties even though he/she has been provided with research-based interventions within the general education setting before he/she is determined to have a disability.

The main components of an RTI program include (1) provision of scientific, research-based instruction and interventions within the general education program; (2) monitoring progress with specific measurement tools that are scientifically based; (3) adjustments to interventions and instruction provided based on the measurement of student progress.

RTI can take into consideration instructional curriculum that is already being used in the classroom, without the need for addition instruction / intervention prior to an eligibility determination. For example, if the District-wide curriculum for reading is a "research-based program," that has built-in periodic progress measurements, the consideration of RTI may look at the student's progress within that instructional program.

The District is not permitted to halt or delay the assessment timelines due to the utilization of the RTI model, as will be discussed more thoroughly in a subsequent blog post.


Stay tuned for Part 2 on this topic, which will cover Consideration of Other Factors, Specific Diagnoses vs. Eligibility, and Issues related to Highly Intelligent Students with SLD.

U.S. Department of Education, FSA Ombudsman

I have written to the Ombudsman on behalf of students and encouraged others to get in touch with this office in the past. If you are having difficulties paying your student loans, I urge you to contact them.
 
Mailing Address
U.S. Department of Education, FSA Ombudsman, 830 First Street, N.E., Washington, D.C. 20202-5144
 
Toll Free Number
877-557-2575
 
Fax
202-275-0549
 
Email
fsaombudsmanoffice@ed.gov

NYC parents: the best and the wisest, but utterly ignored


See Diane Ravitch’s latest and superb column in EdWeek:

John Dewey wrote that what the best and wisest parent wants for his own child is what the community should want for all its children. That's a good starting point. What does the best and wisest parent want for his or her own child? Certainly, that parent would want a school with small classes, which guarantees that her child would get personal attention.
Class size is a pretty good indicator of what most people mean by quality. If you visit the most elite private schools, you can bet that they don't have 32 students in a class. On the Web sites of such schools, one learns that classes are typically 12 to 15 students to a teacher. Such luxury is unheard of in most public schools, with the possible exception of schools in tony suburbs. Many of those who pronounce that class size doesn't matter send their own children to schools with small classes.Another indicator of quality is the presence of the arts. The best and wisest parent would not want his child to go to a school with no teachers of music, art, dance, or other arts. Yet we know that in most of our public schools today, the arts have been sacrificed to make more time for test-prepping.

In this case, the majority of NYC parents are “the best and the wisest.” Over and over again, in the DOE own annual surveys, public school parents say their top priority for their children’s schools is smaller classes, followed by more enrichment. And yet they are completely ignored by an administration whose own children attend schools with just these attributes.

One might add, what private school has merit pay tied to standardized test scores? Or spends millions to create teams of teachers and bureaucrats to engage in “data analysis” supposedly to help “differentiate” instruction, while doing nothing to reduce class size?

What private school has adopted what is likely to be the next priority of the administration, according to Chris Cerf, which is to further “individualize” learning through online computer instruction, rather than give students an opportunity to receive more feedback from actual human beings? As Joel Klein has said, if he gets his way, he will cut the teaching force by another 30 percent.

Not a single private school that I know of would stand for such priorities, and certainly none of the elite schools where the officials determining educational policy for our public schools sent their own children to school.

Mayor Bloomberg: Spence (average class size: 16-18); Chancellor Klein: Miss Porter’s (average class size: 11); Photo Agnostopoulos (DOE’s Chief Operating Officer) Dalton (average class size: 15)

Obama: Sidwell Friends (average class size: 15).

Instead of taking heed of the DOE's own parent surveys, the mayor continually tells parents to butt out when it comes to issues like school overcrowding, and only involve themselves "in the micro issues of their child’s education, like the child’s attendance, behavior and grades."
While supposedly favoring parental "choice" he also has said that parents should have no say in "setting educational policy."
This paternalism also imbues the US Department of Education under Obama, as Diane points out:

Are these the priorities of President Obama's Race to the Top Fund? Absolutely not! The president's Department of Education will dispense nearly $5 billion, not to reduce class sizes, not to expand access to the arts, and not to improve the beauty and functionality of our public schools, but to incentivize the workforce with merit pay; to increase the privatization of struggling schools; and to compel teachers to teach to admittedly poor tests by tying teacher pay to students' test scores. Let's get back to the new federal education agenda. Seeing how little has changed from Bush to Obama in education policy, I want my share of that $5 billion back.

Obama Set To Sign Bill Widening Hate Crime Laws

NPR
By Ari Shapiro

Click here to see a map of hate crime laws by state

At a ceremony in the White House Rose Garden Wednesday afternoon, President Obama plans to sign a bill into law that was more than a decade in the making. It is an update to the federal hate crimes statute that Congress initially passed in 1968.

For the first time, the law that had previously protected people from attacks motivated by race, religion or ethnicity will include gay, lesbian, transgender and disabled people.

Read full story

The Value of Human (?) Capital

A fun story from NPR about how monkeys value skills, as long as those skills are in scarce supply.

Is the efficient markets hypothesis kaput?

No, says Wharton economist Jeremy Siegel.

Tuesday, October 27, 2009

JMTE - October 2009

JMTE - October 2009

ZDM, November 2009

ZDM - The International Journal on Mathematics Education - has published the November issue of 2009 (Volume 41, Number 6). The issue contains the following nine articles:
The article by Karen C. Fuson and Yeping Li is an Open Access article, so that one should be available to all, even non-subscribers :-)

ZDM, November 2009

ZDM - The International Journal on Mathematics Education - has published the November issue of 2009 (Volume 41, Number 6). The issue contains the following nine articles:
The article by Karen C. Fuson and Yeping Li is an Open Access article, so that one should be available to all, even non-subscribers :-)

Tip of the Day: Take the Copy of the Safeguards

As I sit here pouring through IEPs that indicate parents were offered the procedural safeguards and had no questions and having flashbacks to testimony in hearings (apparently asking a question - even if unanswered by a district IEP team member means you participated - but I digress) I thought that it would be great if the actual procedural safeguards were attached to the IEP.

So here's my tip - and I know it means one more piece of paper that you don't want - but take the procedural safeguards and attach them to your copy of the IEP. Or note on the copy the date you received it, what meeting, and who gave it to you (I actually like this option better). Even better if you have the person who gave it to you intial and date it. Why is this important? Well as I sit here pouring over documents that indicate parents had no questions about procedural safeguards and wondering if I can track down a copy from two years ago, I thought how easy it would be if it was already with the document. But why? Well these "safeguards" get updated occasionally (likely when the district gets in trouble about something) so sometimes the copy you can get tomorrow is not the copy they would have given you in December 2007 and maybe, just maybe, it didn't include a safeguard or had wrong information, that has since been corrected. And you never know if that could be helpful.

The Ed Deformer's Monster Mash

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Why Is Learning Another Language So Difficult?

So why exactly is learning a language so difficult to do?

well for one, it is very difficult with learning how to properly pronounce and to speak new languages in the correct dialect. When you are so used to speaking a certain language all your life, learning another language causes you to compare two languages together to learn a new one.

There are many different languages to learn in this world such as learning Chinese, Spanish, Mandarin, Portuguese, French, German, Polish, Russian, Hebrew, Japanese. So you can see that there are lots of languages the human race has put forth for itself. Learning them will take a lot of time and a lot of money depending on how you wish to learn a new language.


You can hire a tutor, take a college course at a school, you can buy an audio translation tape, you can hire a tutor or expert on the particular language you wish to learn, or you can get an English to language translation booklet.

Either way you will still have dedicate hours upon hours to study each day, and to practice with other people of that particular language, or even to practice in from of your friends with the written translations on 3x5 note cards or on a piece of paper, to see if you are saying the correct words with the same meaning in your own English language. Although it can get tough, you can always visit others online to practice with that can help you move toward mastery or at least amateur status.

Want to learn Chinese today! or perhaps another language? join an online community today to meet other students or teachers, Just visit http://www.chinesegreat.com today! and start building relationships with other teachers and students! Joining will bring you one step closer to mastering another wonderful Language!
Author: Rick Zablocki

Why Is Learning Another Language So Difficult?

So why exactly is learning a language so difficult to do?

well for one, it is very difficult with learning how to properly pronounce and to speak new languages in the correct dialect. When you are so used to speaking a certain language all your life, learning another language causes you to compare two languages together to learn a new one.

There are many different languages to learn in this world such as learning Chinese, Spanish, Mandarin, Portuguese, French, German, Polish, Russian, Hebrew, Japanese. So you can see that there are lots of languages the human race has put forth for itself. Learning them will take a lot of time and a lot of money depending on how you wish to learn a new language.


You can hire a tutor, take a college course at a school, you can buy an audio translation tape, you can hire a tutor or expert on the particular language you wish to learn, or you can get an English to language translation booklet.

Either way you will still have dedicate hours upon hours to study each day, and to practice with other people of that particular language, or even to practice in from of your friends with the written translations on 3x5 note cards or on a piece of paper, to see if you are saying the correct words with the same meaning in your own English language. Although it can get tough, you can always visit others online to practice with that can help you move toward mastery or at least amateur status.

Want to learn Chinese today! or perhaps another language? join an online community today to meet other students or teachers, Just visit http://www.chinesegreat.com today! and start building relationships with other teachers and students! Joining will bring you one step closer to mastering another wonderful Language!
Author: Rick Zablocki

Free College Education for Mothers

Going to college even if you are in a tight budget is possible with the help of Obama's new administration. Especially for moms and single moms who think it would be impossible for them to continue their studies due to money issues.

Obama's new program called Moms Returning to School Scholarship has been implemented to help these moms achieve what they have been dreaming - to earn a degree. The government and the Federal Pell grant provided $10,000 worth of scholarship for moms who desire to study again and have a college diploma. This scholarship is given for free unlike student loans that you need to pay it back with the certain interest. As a beneficiary of this grant, you will be given additional money to help you with your school materials and even pay some of your monthly bills.

Most moms knew that by upgrading their education and qualifications, they will be qualified to apply for better and high paying jobs.

When these happen, they will be able to provide a better life to their kids and family. But then, aside from money, they worry about time as well especially for stay home and working moms. Obama's scholarship however made it possible for these moms to study again by allowing them to take online courses at the convenience of their home and at a time you are not busy.

As a mom, you have to show your children that nothing is impossible to reach if you are determined to do so. Especially if there is an opportunity that reaches out for you, go and grab it. Take advantage of the help being offered by this program and start making your dreams come true.

Now, you can start by submitting a completely filled out FASFA form then decide what college you would want to go. Would you like to attend your classes the usual way or prefer to have it online if you can't find time to leave your house and your kids or your job maybe? After doing so, the authorities in charge with the program will be assisting you all through out if you qualify for the grant.
Author: Marlon Jackson

Free College Education for Mothers

Going to college even if you are in a tight budget is possible with the help of Obama's new administration. Especially for moms and single moms who think it would be impossible for them to continue their studies due to money issues.

Obama's new program called Moms Returning to School Scholarship has been implemented to help these moms achieve what they have been dreaming - to earn a degree. The government and the Federal Pell grant provided $10,000 worth of scholarship for moms who desire to study again and have a college diploma. This scholarship is given for free unlike student loans that you need to pay it back with the certain interest. As a beneficiary of this grant, you will be given additional money to help you with your school materials and even pay some of your monthly bills.

Most moms knew that by upgrading their education and qualifications, they will be qualified to apply for better and high paying jobs.

When these happen, they will be able to provide a better life to their kids and family. But then, aside from money, they worry about time as well especially for stay home and working moms. Obama's scholarship however made it possible for these moms to study again by allowing them to take online courses at the convenience of their home and at a time you are not busy.

As a mom, you have to show your children that nothing is impossible to reach if you are determined to do so. Especially if there is an opportunity that reaches out for you, go and grab it. Take advantage of the help being offered by this program and start making your dreams come true.

Now, you can start by submitting a completely filled out FASFA form then decide what college you would want to go. Would you like to attend your classes the usual way or prefer to have it online if you can't find time to leave your house and your kids or your job maybe? After doing so, the authorities in charge with the program will be assisting you all through out if you qualify for the grant.
Author: Marlon Jackson

Join a Heavy Equipment School!

If you had a childhood dream of pursuing a career in the heavy equipment operation industry then don’t be disappointed. There has been a tremendous increase in the demand for trained and skilled heavy equipment operators in the last few years. Many schools and colleges have come up to guide you and help in fulfilling your dream of becoming a professional heavy-duty vehicle operator. These schools train their students on both the basic and complex aspects of operating big machines.

Importance of the programs offered by these schools

These schools focus on some basic areas in order to efficiently train their students. Their goal is to make the students aware of the fundamentals heavy equipment operation. The students are given both theoretical and practical training. At the initial stage the students are taught to operate with smaller easy-to-handle machines. When they become experienced, they are introduced to bigger machines like excavators, cranes, tractors, wheel loaders, and backhoes.

Apart from this, the school also award student who take these programs a certificate that shows that they have completed the technical course. They are given a commercial drivers license as well, as this is required by every professional construction-related machine operator. The training is administered through experienced industry professionals who guide the students by teaching them about the machines and also sharing tips from practical experience.

In this competitive world these programs are very important in order to stay ahead of others. Good training is likely to help you to fetch a secure job and make your career more exciting and challenging. Some schools make arrangements with employers to ensure that their students find jobs after completing the course.

Types of employment opportunities in this field

After completing a heavy equipment training course you can opt for job openings in the following areas:

* Pool contractors
* Sand and gravel pits
* Electrical contractors
* Road contractors
* Underground contractors
* Highway contractors
* Light duty mining operations
* Plumbing contractors
* Residential housing development contractors
* Light duty excavation companies
* Light duty construction companies

A training program will allow you to become familiar with latest advances in the field. Without training you may not get to operate the most sophisticated machines that have been developed. So go ahead and enroll in one of these training programs and soon you'll be handling those mega machines that you've dreamt about all your life.
Author: Winston Jenkins