Along Came a Spider: News on the Web [August 2005 Archive]
Gifted Educations Loses One of Its Greatest Pioneers
It is with great sorrow that we announce the passing on of Dr. Julian Stanley, one of the pioneers in gifted education, on August 12. He was 87.
Dr Stanley began his professional life as a quantitative psychologist, coming to the field of gifted education in 1969 when he was introduced to a gifted math student being underserved in a local school district. Dr. Stanley quickly came to an understanding of the magnitude of the problem, and thus was SMPY born: a program designed to provide objective assessment of the abilities of gifted math students and to provide them with individualized acceleration they needed to make use of their talents.
Dr. Stanley's work has advanced the cause of gifted education enormously and he will be greatly missed.
For more information on his life, work, and memorial, please visit:
www.jhu.edu/cty/about/stanley.html
The "Nature" of Intelligence?
In Australia, researchers have recently made what may be a leap in understanding the origins of differences in intellectual ability: the discovery of two regions of the human genome that seem to show direct links to different areas of intelligence as measured by existing tests. While previous research has suggested that between 40-80% of the variation in intelligence can be attributed to genetic factors, this is the first study that has identified specific sites on chromosomes that correlate with mental abilities.
www.qimr.edu.au/news/index.html
Putting the Joy Back Into Reading
If your students don't enjoy reading, it might not be their fault. This article points out that the textbooks selected for English classes almost seem designed to take the joy out of reading—the "tomes" may be physically weighty, but in intellectual terms they're too light to be of interest, especially to stronger readers:
www.usatoday.com/printedition/news/20050804/welshlede.art.htm
Math Gizmos!
This exciting new website gives talented math students the opportunity to play with math problems in new and fascinating ways! Look at math from a different angle or check out the blogsite, The Buzz, which has comments and opinions on math learning:
www.explorelearning.com/index.cfm
They Know What They Want—Mostly
A new study in Britain shows that students' personal expectations for their education seem to line up well with their actual achievement. A decade ago, researcher asked students whether they would leave school at sixteen (the minimum age for compulsory schooling. Two-thirds of those who stay they would have done so, and 80% of those who intended to remain likewise fulfilled their goals:
education.guardian.co.uk/schools/story/0,5500,1541756,00.html
Connecting with College
A number of colleges are now enabling gifted younger students to make the most of their offerings, by providing online classes with course credit to talented high school students. The programs vary in structure and cost and are offered by such prestigious institutions as Stanford, Johns Hopkins, and Duke. The programs can be a win-win situation, providing gifted students with an outlet for their abilities and giving colleges a ready pool of talented students with proven records come admissions time:
www.post-gazette.com/pg/05231/556731.stm
She Wants Her "Mummy"
At Stanford University, the mummy of a young Egyptian girl is providing a treasure trove of information for researchers. The girl, nicknamed Sherit, or "little one" is being analyzed using powerful imaging techniques not previously available to provide the most detailed image of a mummy ever taken. Younger scholars may also be interested in the information it provides about someone their own age from 3000 years ago: for instance, young Sherit probably would have needed braces if she'd lived in our time!
dsc.discovery.com/news/briefs/20050801/childmummy.html
AP Gets an Overhaul
Concerned about the quality of your child's AP courses? Worry no more—the College Board had recently announced its intention to give a comprehensive review to AP courses, and those that don't stand up to scrutiny won't be allowed to retain AP status. Watered-down courses, say analysts, don't just diminish the name of "AP"; they're a detriment to the students, since lack of preparation will show through when it comes time to take the standardized AP exams:
www.detnews.com/2005/schools/0508/08/A01-272865.htm
Lab Rats or Lab—Oh, Rats!
According to a report by the privately funded National Research Council, lab science at the high school level isn't what it should be. Some of the main problems were a lack of clear goals and teachers who were ill-prepared to guide the students through the labwork process. And good lab science is more important than ever: it can give students a better grasp of the roles and rules of the sciences, as well as turning on future inventors and researchers to their fields:
www.usatoday.com/tech/science/2005-08-08-schoollabs_x.htm
Homework Help Site Means Just That
Dr. Robert Stewart, known to fans as the Dr. Bob in "Ask Dr. Bob" is always happy to help students with legitimate requests—but he doesn't mind drawing the line when "helping" with an assignment clearly means doing it: email him with something that's clearly an attempt to get him to do your homework for you, and he'll send you right to a website that will help you do it yourself. It's not just grade-school students making use of his knowledge: Dr. Bob has been "asked" by any number of college students and fellow researchers:
oceanworld.tamu.edu/home/ask_dr_bob.htm
Read an article about the good doctor here:
www.cnn.com/2005/TECH/08/18/homework.helpers.ap/index.html
The Science of Magic
Those of you well versed in history know that prior to the Enlightenment period and the development of the scientific method, "magic" and "science" were one and the same. Now three genetics counselors at the Royal Children's Hospital in Australia are reconnecting the two through the wonders of—who else?—Harry Potter. The apparent heritability of magical powers gives them a wonderful jumping off point for discussing Mendelian inheritance patterns—and a much more interesting one than the classic pea plants!
www.forbes.com/technology/2005/08/15/genes-education-harry-potter-cx_mh_0815harry.html
IB for Everybody . . .?
In New York City, the Baccalaureate School for Global Education is taking equity to new levels, providing an International Baccalaureate curriculum for all its students, including those who would not normally take IB classes. Some of the students are unsure of what they're getting into, but that's at least part of the design of its principal and founder, whose mission is to offer IB options to all children in the neighborhood, including the average and below-average-achieving ones. What the results of this experiment will be, only time can tell:
www.csmonitor.com/2005/0726/p12s01-legn.htm
Riding the Crest of Brain Research
In many ways, compared to the rest of the sciences, the study of the human mind and brain is in its infancy. New developments in brain research are announced often, and many teachers are looking for ways to integrate the cutting edge of this science into their classroom—without falling victim to scientific dead ends. The Education Update by the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development takes a look at how some teachers are putting science to work for them—and how you can too:
www.ascd.org/portal/site/ascd
Bringing Science to the "Table"
The Business Roundtable, a group composed of CEOs of major US corporations, recently announced an educational initiative that should have math and science teachers singing their praises: they want to increase support for math and science education in America. Their goals include providing more classroom support and resources to math and science teachers, and doubling the number of US students who take bachelor's degrees in the sciences and math:
www.boston.com/news/education/k_12/articles/2005/07/26/business_groups_focus_on_math_science
Critical Literacy or Cultural Heritage?
This editorial in The Australian explores the differences between the Australian system of teaching language arts, which holds that all texts have meaning and provides a politically-correct overview of materials, and the methods used in America and the UK, in which the focus is on traditional texts considered "classics."
www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,16045679%255E7583,00.html
The Ubiquitous Internet
According to a new report, the internet has become central to teenage life today—but only certain uses of it. Email, for example, is considered passe by the younger crowd, and text-messaging or "IM'ing" is the favorite way to communicate. The use of the internet has sparked apparent changes in social norms as well; for example, many teenagers consider it acceptable to break up with a boyfriend or girlfriend via IM:
www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/living/people/teens/12243322.htm
New Forum for EFL Teachers
A new online group, English Foreign Language Teachers United, is offering an opportunity for EFL teachers to share ideas, thoughts, and information about their work with one another. The site's founder, a long time English teacher, hopes the site will contribute to the growing dialogue about EFL teachers' working conditions and opportunities:
education.guardian.co.uk/tefl/teaching/story/0,15085,1538862,00.html
Disabilities Add to the Difficulty of College
According to a new study, disabled students are less likely than their peers to attend four-year colleges, although the rates vary by the nature of the disability—students with hearing and vision problems, for example, are just as likely to engage in post-secondary education as non-disabled students. One possible connection: students with disabilities were less likely than their peers to be expected to seek higher education:
www.insidehighered.com/news/2005/07/29/disabled
Intelligent Design Gets Political Boost
President Bush recently came out with a statement supporting the teaching of so-called "intelligent design" in schools alongside Darwin's theory of evolution. Critics say that intelligent design is no more than the latest effort to slide religion, specifically Christian Creationism, into public schools:
www.boston.com/news/education/k_12/articles/2005/08/02/bush_endorses_intelligent_design
Where in the World Is . . .?
This article by a geography teacher outlines the importance for students of knowing where in the world they—and others—are. The article discusses ways of making geography interesting, as by looking at the politics of mapmaking and other aspects of geopolitics that students may never have considered:
www.csmonitor.com/2005/0802/p13s01-bogn.html
"Gross Anatomy" Makes Learning Fun
A new museum exhibit designed by an animation company specializing in same is making science interesting to students- by grossing them out! "Grossology: The Impolite Science of the Human Body" offers all kinds of disgusting facts about our bodies calculated to appeal to younger (and young at heart) students:
www.usatoday.com/news/health/2005-08-02-gross-exhibit_x.htm
Educating the Whole Child
While many feel that the focus on education today is on the basics—reading and math—a growing number of education stakeholders feel that we also need to concentrate on other areas of students' development, such as social and ethical issues. This issue of the ASCD's Education Update looks at the role that social context plays in educating students as whole people, not merely lesson-learners:
www.ascd.org/portal/site/ascd
