Confronting the Inequality Juggernaut: A Q&A With Jonathan Kozol

We are facing a dramatic and dangerous situation in our country with school segregation at the K-12 level. Have a look at this dialog with Jonathan Kozol a champion of education desegregation in America.

Confronting the Inequality Juggernaut: A Q&A With Jonathan Kozol

At the college level the problem becomes obscured as many of the problems in high school stop students to continue to college but under the surface there are many issues to be addressed that have been caused by the lack of a consistent, integrated education that allows the student to mature in a way that he/she sees the relevance of their studies to "the real world" that they live in. In many cases schooling is not part of the "real world" that they live so it is hard to make the connection and to have a nurturing relationship with others.

Jonathan Kozol

Great teacher involved with children of diverse backgrounds. Have a look at this video

Igniting the Fire (and Tending the Flame): Teachers on Works That Inspire

One of the main differences that I see between a pre-college teacher and a college professor is the fact that "teachers" will be focused on teaching while professors might have a focus on their individual research. But of course if you have any teacher with an interest beyond the classroom that inspires students that will help the teacher to be effective and engaging. In the following article this point is emphasized Igniting the Fire (and Tending the Flame): Teachers on Works That Inspire

Summer offers the opportunity to recharge and reflect—and for many teachers, it's the ideal time to gather helpful resources. With that in mind, I asked accomplished teachers in the Teacher Leaders Network to share the literary, cinematic, and musical works that sustain them (and help inspire their students). —Braden Welborn

So What Do They Really Know? - Stenhouse Publishers

So What Do They Really Know? - Stenhouse Publishers

Assessing student performance and the way in which teaching and teachers in particular affect the learning process is and has been a major issue in education. There is deep divide between what the student perceives and what is really happening as later on many things will become aware to the student. Life experiences during time will help the student realize what has been learned at the time and how his views have been modified and matured over time.

Teaching Science

Do we learn science in the same way that we lean anything else?
At first sight it looks like what ever it is we learn, we learn it in the same way. It will only depend on our motivation and in the opportunities provided by the teaching environment. It will depend on our personality and in the relationship of the student with the topic. As we look at how can these opportunities be created and reinforced one has to focus institutions that have been well known to produce scientist of great caliber. One thing we can notice regarding the possible difference between teaching science and non-science topics is the use of laboratory time. Experimentation or better labeled demonstration is an integral part of any science course. Even those sciences such as geology were field trips are part of the course and plays the role of physical observation of phenomena similar to what is done in a laboratory.
There is one place where one can start looking at what kind of environment is nurturing of the learning process by looking at what makes a teacher successful. This article by Dr. Dennis Plies is a good place to start: Dr, Dennis Plies Sabbatical Report In this publication Dr. Plies states that three qualities of a good learning environment are (1) The professor is overflowing with his passion for the subject, (2) He cares about our learning, and (3) The class is interactive. I would add that the reason the class is interactive is due to the individual student recognizing that there is a relationship of the topic with his/her own life!

Good Summer reading

Roger Penrose: The Road to Reality.
Jennifer A. Elliot: An Introduction to Sustainable Development.
Victor Stenger: The New Atheim.
As I'm reading this books I will be reflecting on some of the ideas that I am getting around these readings. So far it has been very productive and interesting to say the least as I reflect on the nature of time. Kind of a coincidence that Scientific America is publishing an article in the latest issue (June 2010) about the idea that time is an illusion. In his article Craig Callender (Philosophy Professor at the University of California, San Diego) postulate a fairly static universe thus getting to the conclusion that time really doesn't exist being a mere illusion.

Useful Chemistry: Dangerous Data: Lessons from my Cheminfo Retrieval Class

Dangerous data can get into scientific papers easily do to pressure to publish added to the excess amount of data available from unreliable sources. Have a look at this post:
Useful Chemistry: Dangerous Data: Lessons from my Cheminfo Retrieval Class