Tough guys don't do math. Tough guys fry chicken for a living.

RIP Jaime Escalante, now you have a ticket to see the show.
Thank you!

Claudia: You're worried that we'll screw up royally tomorrow, aren't you?
Jaime Escalante: Tomorrow's another day. I'm worried you're gonna screw up the rest of your lives.

Jaime Escalante: Do you want me to do it for you?
Pancho: Yes.
Jaime Escalante: You're supposed to say no.

Jaime Escalante: You know the times tables?
Thug: I know the ones, the twos...the threes (shows him The Finger)
Jaime Escalante: (whispering) Ahhh The Fingerman ehh? I am The Fingerman too; you know what I can do? I can multiply by nine. Three times nine? (starts counting with his fingers) one... two... three, what do you got? (shows fingers) twenty seven; six times nine, one... two... three... four... five... six, what do you got? (shows fingers again) fifty four; how about something more difficult? How about eight times nine? one... two... three... four... five... six... seven... eight, what do you got? (shows fingers a third time) seventy two.

Widespread Cheating on Georgia's CRCT

This article provides a list of all the schools that were flagged because more than 25% of classrooms had answer sheets with wrong-to-right changes in excess of three standard deviations above the norm. Forty-three Atlanta Public Schools are on the list.

Exceeding three standard deviations is expected to happen only in 0.15% of the cases, so the state has clearly set an extremely conservative rule in order to avoid unfairly tainting any school's reputation. The odds of hitting this rule without there being cheating in at least some of that 25% of classrooms is literally infinitesimal (so small as to be unmeasurable).

And even more astounding, there are schools on the list where 80%+ of classrooms exceeded this amount. ALL FOUR of these were within the Atlanta Public Schools system.

* Frank L Stanton Elementary, 83.3%

* Peyton Forest Elementary, 86.1%

* Gideons Elementary, 88.4%

* Parks Middle, 89.5%

With school rates this insanely high it strains credibility that these were individual teachers acting alone, and with 58% of all elementary schools in Atlanta Public Schools implicated it strains credibility that these were individual principals acting alone. Numbers like this can only point to the top of the system's administration. Either the superintendent Beverly Hall was in on it or she is a blithering idiot of monumental proportions. Either way, she has to go. Now!

Talk about bad judgement

Selling candy didn't raise much money last year, so a Goldsboro middle school tried selling grades. However, the fundraiser came to an abrupt halt today after a story in The News & Observer raised concerns about the practice of selling grades. Wayne County school administrators stopped the fundraiser, issuing a statement this morning. "Yesterday afternoon, the district administration met with [Rosewood Middle School principal] Mrs. Shepherd and directed the the following actions be taken: (1) the fundraiser will be immediately stopped; (2) no extra grade credit will be issued that may have resulted from donations; and (3) beginning November 12, all donations will be returned." A $20 donation to Rosewood Middle School would have gotten a student 20 test points - 10 extra points on two tests of the student's choosing. That could raise a B to an A, or a failing grade to a D.

Is our teachers learning?

The Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education is releasing the results Tuesday. They say that only 27% of the more than 600 candidates who took the state elementary school teacher’s licensing exam passed. Education Commissioner Mitchell Chester was not surprised by the results. He told the Boston Globe that these results indicate that many students are not receiving an adequate math education. Tom Scott, executive director of the Massachusetts Association of School Superintendents, says "The high failure rate puts a shining light on a deficiency in teacher-prep programs."

Zeros Aren't Permitted

What can I possibly say? Just read for yourselves.

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&rlz=1G1GGLQ_ENUS308&q=zeros+aren%27t+permitted&btnG=Search

Two Education Pieces in Today's AJC

I was a curious student early in high school, anxious to learn more about the world. But I had to hold back to wait for slower learners. All children should have the option of getting a good education. But an education that is watered down so it can be taught to all kids produces graduates with a minimal education. I’m not curious anymore. Will I now be just another drone who graduates from UGA with honors because I am a good test taker? Will this skill be beneficial to this country’s future? If so, I will do well.

Today’s students are a “lost generation," unfortunately lost in the hard glare of technology, blinded by the promise of cyber salvation on a distracted globe. What I used to take for granted — an engaged core of students who could think, read and write—has morphed into an assembly line of packaged minds fresh off the factory farm of iPod, “American Idol” and Facebook, a vast herd of electronic sheep stuffed with fast facts and establishment filler.

Obama's College Proposal

http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2009/02/25/obama

On grading...

“Shouldn’t effort count for something?” We all know students who attend every class and turn in every assignment yet still do poorly, sometimes because they don’t test well or because they didn’t have the prerequisites to succeed in the course. Such students may not deserve to fail, but should they earn an A for their effort? And what about the students who are so far ahead of their peers that they can goof off in class, blow off homework and yet ace the midterm and final. Do they merit an A? Shouldn’t a student earn credit for showing up on time, for being respectful of the teacher and peers and for trying, even when the results fall short?

I once taught a cocky 20-year-old who’d been suspended from his prestigious university and ended up in my evening class at a community college in Florida, where the average student was about 60. The young man had already taken a similar course at his former school, so he was disgruntled to be repeating the same material and sitting next to classmates wearing orthotics. His displeasure showed. I gave him the A, but it hurt. On the other side of the grading equation, I’ve taught diligent students who respected their classmates, arrived early, stayed late, but flubbed the tests, usually because they entered college without the necessary fundamentals.

The author somehow misses the obviousness of an idea that she actually includes in her text. Shouldn't grades represent what you know? How did we get away from the idea that a grade represents what you have mastered of the subject matter at hand, nothing more and nothing less?

Sweating the small stuff

The Weekly Standard recently reviewed this book; a great read for anybody interested in seeing what actually works. The book also explains why we see more of what doesn't work instead of what does work...

The three legs of the education establishment tripod--teacher unions, education schools, and the district bureaucracy--are all unlikely to embrace key elements that make paternalistic schools work. Requiring teachers to work longer days and years would violate union contracts. So would allowing principals to handpick teachers (who may or may not be certified), evaluate and pay instructors based on their effectiveness, and fire those who are not successful in the classroom. Frequent testing, teacher-directed instruction, and flunking students who fail to meet academic standards are all unpopular at schools of education. District bureaucrats, meanwhile, are loath to grant individual schools the freedom to do things differently.

Is college too much to ask?

Charles Murray (of The Bell Curve fame): While half of our high school graduates march off to four-year colleges each year, only about 10% meet the intellectual benchmark suggested by College Board data - at least an 1180 on the SAT math and verbal tests - to master traditional college-level work. Murray contends that it’s cruel to steer kids to college when most lack the intellectual chops to handle it and will flounder. America holds a romanticized view of education, he says, and propagates a fairy tale, unsubstantiated by the hard truths of inborn abilities, that students are limited only by their ambition and will. Murray claims that the most schools can do is cause children who are intellectually below average - by definition about half of all kids - to be a little less below average. Even the best teachers under the best conditions cannot overcome the limits set by a child’s own cognitive abilities. “The 9-year-old who has trouble sounding out simple words and his classmate who is reading ‘A Tale of Two Cities’ for fun sit in the same classroom day after miserable day, the one so frustrated by tasks he cannot do and the other so bored that both are near tears.”

In countering Murray, Anthony Carnevale (director of Georgetown's Center on Education and the Workforce) attacked his major premise, “that there is something in each of us that is innate and fixed, that doesn’t change over time. … It is true that cognitive ability affects people’s prospect in life, but it’s also true that people’s prospects affect cognitive ability.” In looking at high-scoring first-graders across incomes, Carnevale says 75% of the more affluent kids will still test high in fifth grade, compared to only 45% of the poorer students. That gap is not created by some inherent deficit in the children, he says, but to the quality of the educational opportunities afforded the two groups.

http://www.ajc.com/search/content/opinion/stories/2008/12/15/learned.html

Carnevale (like most researchers looking at similar results) completely miss the point. They are confusing cause and effect. The largest factor influencing the facts that the affluent parents are affluent and the poor parents are poor is the cognitive ability of the parents, which IS hereditary. Therefore, the primary reason that financially disadvantaged students underperform is NOT financial; that is simply a side effect of the fact that they are below average on the cognitive ability scale.

WSJ Editorial on Alternative Certification

Like all unions, teachers unions have a vested interest in restricting the labor supply to reduce job competition. Traditional state certification rules help to limit the supply of "certified" teachers. But a new study suggests that such requirements also hinder student learning. Harvard researchers Paul Peterson and Daniel Nadler compared states that have genuine alternative certification with those that have it in name only. And they found that between 2003 and 2007 students in states with a real alternative pathway to teaching gained more on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (a federal standardized test) than did students in other states.

Obama's Education Transition Advisor

Linda Darling-Hammond, a Stanford University education professor and one of Obama’s advisors, will head the Education Department transition team that is tasked with drafting policy for the incoming administration. Darling-Hammond is a self-described advocate of “progressive” education, the methods of which she believes are “grounded in a deep sense of curricular intentions, arise from compelling questions, and include rigorous intellectual challenges such as critical thinking and problem solving across disciplines.” The best progressive educators “engage in a dialectic between the subject and the student” and in so doing, the student “is constantly moved to a broader and more thoughtful place in the curriculum.”

What can your humble servant possibly add to that towering monument of edu-speak?

88% of DC 8th-graders can't read

Well, not really, although that is the sensationalist headline that CNN used. If you actually watch the news clip the actual statistic is that only 12% of eighth graders are proficient at the eighth grade level per NAEP exams (and only 8% in math). Isn't that bad enough without a misleading headline?

http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/us/2008/09/07/bolduan.fixing.dc.schools.cnn

Fake Diploma Mill Degrees

http://spotlight.encarta.msn.com/Features/

One fact from the article jumped out at me.

"The number of fake doctorates sold each year is in the range of 50,000 to 60,000," states John Bear, author of "Bear's Guide to Earning Degrees by Distance Learning." "The number of real Ph.D.s awarded is around 40,000."

Bear goes on to say "In America right now, more than half of all the Ph.D.s are fake." but that is not correct. I assume he meant more than half of all PhDs issued each year are fake.

Wall Street Looks Abroad

Senior executives at some of the largest U.S. corporations say stringent immigration policies are hurting New York's ability to compete with other financial centers. Investment bank officials say visa issues have forced them to move jobs to other countries. "New York's ability to compete with London, which has much more open immigration, or with the emerging financial capitals in Asia and the Middle East, depends on mobility of talent," said Kathryn Wylde, president of Partnership for New York City.

Source: NYT

Now even Wall Street claims it can't find talent, another chink in our educational armor.

Georgia Tech employee stole $350,000 in grant funds

Discussion of Physics Education Major

Same idea, for the physics ed major now...

Requirement: A minimum of 25 hours, selected from the following list:
AST 3033 Recent Advances in Astronomy and Cosmology
ISC 3121 Science, Technology, and Society
PHY 2048C General Physics A
PHY 2049C General Physics B
PHY 3101 Intermediate Modern Physics
PHY 3221 Intermediate Mechanics
MAP 2302 Differential Equations or MAP 3305 Engineering Mathematics
PHY 3424 Optics
PHY 3802L Intermediate Laboratory
PHY 4040C Physics of the 20th Century
PHY 4323 Intermediate Electricity and Magnetism
PHZ 3113 Mathematical Physics

Of course, this looks quite reasonable on paper. The somewhat low 25 credit requirement is due to the fact that the major wants to accommodate introductory chemistry and biology sequences. But the first problem is that General Physics eats up 10 of the 25 credits. Then physics ed majors stay away from classes that physics majors take, so you end up with the following very unreasonable collection of courses:

PHY 2048C-2049C General Physics A&B (10)
PHY 3424 Optics (3)
AST 3033 Recent Advances in Astronomy and Cosmology (3)
ISC 3121 Science, Technology, and Society (3)
PHY 3101 Intermediate Modern Physics (3)
PHY 3802L Intermediate Laboratory (3)

Here's how I would toughen this up...

1) Given how often biology, chemistry and physics teachers end up teaching each others' classes, I agree that the 25 credit limit is appropriate and will work within its confines

However...

2) Physics majors have to take General Physics as a lower division prerequisite; I see no reason why physics ed majors could not do the same.

3) Drop the AST and ISC courses. No question. There's simply no room for this. Drop the Physics of the 20th Century course too; it doesn't count for physics majors - too fluffy.

4) This removes the elective nature of the existing list. Modern Physics, Intermediate Mechanics, Differential Equations / Engineering Mathematics, Intermediate Electricity & Magnetism, Mathematical Physics and Optics should all be required. But since this is just six courses, I have actually opened up space for two electives.

So we end up with the following eminently reasonable collection of courses:

PHY 2048C-2049C General Physics A&B (prerequisite)
PHY 3424 Optics (3)
PHY 3101 Intermediate Modern Physics (3)
PHY 3221 Intermediate Mechanics (3)
MAP 2302 Differential Equations or MAP 3305 Engineering Mathematics (3)
PHY 4323 Intermediate Electricity and Magnetism (3)
PHZ 3113 Mathematical Physics (3)
Two electives selected from courses that satisfy physics major requirements (6)

And I've even saved a credit. My proposed program requires 24 credits instead of 25.

Discussion of Math Education Major

Trying to resurrect this blog...

When I argue that, at almost every college in the country, the math ed major is unnecessarily weak relative to the math major, the response I get is always that because of all the education courses required, there is not enough space left within the confines of a 120 credit degree to fit in all the courses that a math major usually takes. Fine, I will leave aside my opinion that the education courses are not anywhere near as valuable as the math courses they displace. I will work strictly within the confines of this restriction.

Let's look at one school's BS in math ed...

Subject Matter Specialization: Thirty semester hours of mathematics at the 3000 level or above including 3 semester hours in geometry, 6 semester hours in probability or statistics, and 3 semester hours in linear or abstract algebra.

This sounds rigorous, until you start dissecting it. First of all, the calculus sequence is somewhat oddly numbered 3000-level, so there's 12 credits right there. Then 6 credits of introductory statistics (also numbered 3000-level), 3 credits of linear algebra, 3 credits of geometry and 3 credits of history of mathematics, and you're at 27 credits without taking a single substantive upper-level college math class. One class (introduction to advanced mathematics is customary) and you're done.

Let's see if this can be improved...

1) First of all, math majors are expected to complete Calculus I-II-III and Linear Algebra as part of their lower division preparation. Since the math ed major does not require any lower division prerequisites, it should be possible for them to fit these courses into their first 60 credits the same as math majors. I've just freed up 15 credits.

2) Instead of the introductory statistics sequence designed for social science majors, I would require the Mathematical Statistics sequence that math majors are required to take. No change in the total number of credits, but I've just toughened up this requirement.

3) Geometry is fine as is. History of math is a little fluffy for my taste, but it is required by the state. No changes.

4) I would definitely add differential equations, which is a lower division prerequisite for the math major.

5) I would also require Advanced Calculus and Algebraic Structures. Together with introduction to advanced mathematics and mathematical statistics, this will give all math ed majors exposure to at least the common core required of all math majors.

To summarize, we started with the following course selection...

Calculus I-II-III (12)
Linear Algebra (3)
Introduction to advanced mathematics (3)
Geometry (3)
History of mathematics (3)
Introductory Statistical Methods (6)

And we've ended up with

Calculus I-II-III (prerequisite)
Linear Algebra (prerequisite)
Introduction to advanced mathematics (3)
Geometry (3)
History of mathematics (3)
Mathematical Statistics (6)
Differential Equations (3)
Advanced Calculus (3)
Algebraic Structures (3)
Two electives selected from courses that satisfy math major requirements (6)

Quite a difference, n'est pas? And all without removing a single education class.

Additional Data

Here's an updated graph of the percentage of temporary visa holders in mathematics, physical science and engineering graduate programs. In 2005 (the most recent year for which data is available), the percentages were 42% for physical sciences, 44% for mathematics and 54% for engineering. These numbers reflect a slight drop from their peaks in 2001-2 due to a reduced number of visas in the wake of the 9/11 attacks.






For those who want all the gory details, they can be found at the NSF website.

Restarting a conversation from October 2004

It should be deeply troubling that admissions for students from countries which have previously been enthusiastic consumers of American education is up (apparently in double-digit percentage increases), especially in fields where American student participation has already declined dramatically, and in which international student participation already exceeds 50%.

It is facile and [dis]ingenuous to claim that this is a problem related to a lack of competitiveness on the part of American students. The real issue is whether the departments in question have been compromised to the extent that they no longer function for the populations that they were built to educate. Ohio University’s experience over the last two years indicates that such a compromised culture flourished for over two decades in its graduate mechanical engineering department — allowing international students to plagiarize with impunity and thus “outcompete” US citizens. Ohio is not alone and the problems detailed there may be spreading.

Realistically, American students really have very few other options to fulfill their educational needs. Degrees taken in most other nations (with the exceptions of the UK, Canada, and Australia) are usually not considered equivalent to US degrees in the US job market, and most nations are not particularly open to the notion of welcoming immigrant labor. There is also a certain amount of resentment and hostility generally directed at Americans abroad primarily owing to political issues — even in nations that are presumably allies — and it would be foolish to assume that this does not have a negative impact on those subjected to it.

There are other substantive issues involved, including the indiscriminate dissemination and loss of intellectual property, the exploitation of graduate programs to provide means and opportunity for international espionage, and the probability of successful integration of people from countries where ethnicity and religion are conflated with national identity. There are issues of representation and not-so-subtle racism — is it sound for a nation to enroll large numbers of people from a given nation (e.g. India) when it has substantial minority populations that are underserved (i.e. Hispanic, African-American, or better yet, Native American)? Not least is the issue of whether a nation has a duty to at least try to ensure the productive employment of its citizens, and whether large-scale international participation interferes with that duty.

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