--------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 265 EDUCATOR Ref: DAE00009 Date: 06/09/96 From: MATT SMITH Time: 05:02pm \/To: DAN TRIPLETT (Read 4 times) Subj: Re: The Amazing Human Mind DT> Interesting article and I agree with your conclusion. It is DT> important DT> to note that this same computer that Kasporv defeated would probably DT> defeat approximately 95% of the chess players in the world today. So what? If you're using this statement to "prove" the superiority of technology over the human mind in complex reasoning, I could "prove" the reverse by saying Bobby Fischer could beat 95% of living chessplayers. I never expected Deep Blue to win the match. I always expected that Kasparov's ability to learn Deep Blue's "style" (and Deep Blue's lack of the reverse), together with the fact that Deep Blue's designers had Kasparov's published games to study and the machine couldn't learn any more quickly about his "style", would decide the outcome. --- Simplex BBS (v1.07.00Beta [DOS]) * Origin: NighthawkBBS, Burlington NC 910-228-7002 HST Dual (1:3644/6) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 265 EDUCATOR Ref: DAF00000 Date: 06/10/96 From: MELVIN BILLIK Time: 05:58pm \/To: RON MCDERMOTT (Read 4 times) Subj: CLASS SIZE OVER-RATED -> MB>Now, there still is a correlation, especially for lower track -> MB>classes. These classes tend to have students with shorter -> attention MB>spans who need more individual attention. Admittedly, -> as that class size MB>increases, you get a much higher probability -> of that good "chemistry" MB>deteriorating! -> MB>Any thoughts? -> -> Only that the larger the class may be, the more likely it is -> that the chemistry is going to a problem; especially when we -> are looking at heterogeneous groupings.... Ron: As you can see, that's what I said! It's really a big problem in homogeneous groups, when that group is very low ability! Mel --- Platinum Xpress/Wildcat! v1.2j * Origin: MEG*A*BITE : CD-ROM Drives for Sysops! (1:239/675) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 265 EDUCATOR Ref: DAF00001 Date: 06/09/96 From: DONNA RANSDELL Time: 05:25pm \/To: LEONA PAYNE (Read 3 times) Subj: School Uniforms > Ooh, sorry this is so old. Found an old packet. No problem. > Amazing. A female employee now could probably win a > lawsuit against the school for forcing females to wear skirts, nylons & Probably, though most folks in that particular sector of society feel that a lot of the lawsuits are frivolous. It just would have gone all the way to the church board (the school was run by the church board) if the principal hadn't used sound judgment. > (legs.) If men > have a substantially different dress code (_&_ they > are allowed to wear pants & don't have to wear heels, even if they do have > to wear neckties,) then it is discriminatory & someone's head > is going to roll once a judge got a look at it. Private school or no > private school. Maybe. But then again, they may look at the contract one signs (and that is included). Yes, the men were required to wear long pants (no shorts), a collared shirt and necktie. > I used to work in a private school that decreed that > male teachers had to wear neckties from October to April. One in Here it was all during the school year. In El Cajon, it can easily reach 110 during September and October, May and June. > paper clips. It looked really stupid, but _no_ one in > administration ever said one word to him about it. Heh heh.... -donna --- GEcho 1.00 * Origin: I touch the future; I teach. (1:202/211) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 265 EDUCATOR Ref: DAF00002 Date: 06/09/96 From: DONNA RANSDELL Time: 05:27pm \/To: LEONA PAYNE (Read 3 times) Subj: School Uniforms > I played in PARENTS a little last year & we wrote each > other a few times then. I remember....and I think on the same subject? (grin) You were just beginning to have school uniforms at the school you teach at? > Just wait, you might have a public school in San Diego > sometime soon with uniforms. Our principal, who was instrumental in > implementing a mandatory uniform dress code in the Phx junior high > where I teach, has just resigned his position in order to return to San > Diego. I know he's been interviewing over there; you lucky > folks are getting a heck of a great guy. Lots of luck to him, then. School positions are really hard to come by, here. I was just given another "sorry, can't use you" by a private school here; it's very discouraging! Already the SDUSD has discussed uniforms. Poway has toughened up on dress codes, particularly on the middle school and high school levels. -donna --- GEcho 1.00 * Origin: I touch the future; I teach. (1:202/211) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 265 EDUCATOR Ref: DAF00003 Date: 06/09/96 From: DONNA RANSDELL Time: 05:30pm \/To: MELVIN BILLIK (Read 4 times) Subj: CLASS SIZE OVER-RATED > I keep seeing references to class size. > And lord help us if the class size is near 30! > spans who need more individual attention. Admittedly, > as that class size increases, you get a much higher probability of that > good "chemistry" deteriorating! > Any thoughts? Yes....it appears that most of us that were discussing class size might have been referring to the elementary school level. It's difficult enough to teach one child to read; multiply that by 32 and it makes the job much tougher. The smaller the class, the more time you have to spend with each child. -donna --- GEcho 1.00 * Origin: I touch the future; I teach. (1:202/211) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 265 EDUCATOR Ref: DAF00004 Date: 06/10/96 From: MATT SMITH Time: 10:17pm \/To: SHEILA KING (Read 4 times) Subj: Re: Technology in the Classroom? SK> -> While I see no problem with HS and junior-high kids using SK> -> calculators SK> -> in math and science class, I question the "cost-effectiveness" SK> (for SK> -> want of a better term) in using computers in most math and science SK> -> classes through the HS level and maybe through the college level. SK> SK> This was one of the objections of the persons I corresponded with. He SK> felt that we could teach more cheaply with other materials. SK> There are some things that we can do on the computer, some amazing SK> visualization aids for geometry, analytical math, and sciences, that SK> simply cannot be demonstrated as well through other means. If we can SK> help more kids be successful in these disciplines through the use of SK> computers, then the cost may be justified. If and only if the teacher is trained and the software is available. SK> -> For "analyzing" the results of most all HS and even college SK> chemistry SK> -> experiments, the student could do the work with (or even without!) SK> a SK> -> calculator faster than he could program a computer to do the job. SK> SK> There is no longer any need for a student to write a program in order SK> to SK> do calculations on a computer. Surely you have heard of the common SK> application programs called "spreadsheets"? For most undergrad chem experiments, a four-function calculator is just as fast. --- Simplex BBS (v1.07.00Beta [DOS]) * Origin: NighthawkBBS, Burlington NC 910-228-7002 HST Dual (1:3644/6) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 265 EDUCATOR Ref: DAF00005 Date: 06/10/96 From: MATT SMITH Time: 10:24pm \/To: SHEILA KING (Read 4 times) Subj: Re: National Curriculum SK> I doubt you have enough familiarity with the GED test to make such SK> statements. I know that I have had 10th graders who were mediocre SK> students drop out from school and pass that test. (Thankfully, only a SK> few isolated examples.) If they were able to take and pass that test SK> without completing 10th grade, and clearly were they to have SK> completed SK> school through 12th grade would have meant they would have had SK> additional preparation and knowledge, North Carolina's HS competency test required for HS graduation is pegged at the 10th-grade level anyhow...you don't need trig or even Algebra II to pass it. And math is typically the college subject that washes out more college students than anything else, due to the sequential nature of the subject. Most college students having math-related problems are struggling with an inadequate command of 7th-8th grade math, not anything normally taught between 10th and 12th grades. And most of the class day between 10th and 12th grade isn't spent on any subject that is necessary to succeed in college. Even if a college freshman never took American History, 11th grade literature, chemistry, or biology, he can do fine in college if he can hack the math and has basic literacy skills normally taught in elementary and junior high. --- Simplex BBS (v1.07.00Beta [DOS]) * Origin: NighthawkBBS, Burlington NC 910-228-7002 HST Dual (1:3644/6) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 265 EDUCATOR Ref: DAF00006 Date: 06/10/96 From: MATT SMITH Time: 10:27pm \/To: MELVIN BILLIK (Read 5 times) Subj: Re: RACIAL PROBLEMS MB> -> How stupid can a big-city public school system be as to have MB> -> assemblies encouraging racial division in a school system where MB> -> racial disturbances have happened for two decades? MB> MB> Good point. MB> I remember when I just started teaching in 1968-69 in New MB> York. We had lots of racial problems. They attempted to have MB> an assembly to promote racial harmony. MB> They had an unknown speaker, never checked him out. MB> He ended up talking about how the whites have kept the blacks down MB> for decades, etc. etc. etc. MB> Needless to say, the aim of promoting racial harmony was MB> lost amid the riot that followed. The state police had to be called Pittsburgh has had 25 years of racial troubles in the city schools, all in a city with few real racial problems otherwise. The red flags were all over the place about the likely result of the assembly they had. --- Simplex BBS (v1.07.00Beta [DOS]) * Origin: NighthawkBBS, Burlington NC 910-228-7002 HST Dual (1:3644/6) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 265 EDUCATOR Ref: DAF00007 Date: 06/10/96 From: MATT SMITH Time: 10:30pm \/To: RON MCDERMOTT (Read 4 times) Subj: Re: RACIAL PROBLEMS RM> MS>Racial tensions that began over a student's swastika tattoo RM> MS>grew later in the morning (6/4) as a result of an RM> "African-American RM> MS>heritage assembly" in which black students were encouraged to RM> MS>participate in the exclusion of white students. RM> RM> If it was a "black only" assembly, it's a tough call; is it RM> better to drag white students to an assembly for which they RM> may have little interest, or to divide the school community RM> arbitrarily, or does it even make any sense to set a RM> precedent for white-only, black-only, asian-only, jewish- RM> only, etc, assemblies? The _encouraged_ division was a big mistake. Public schools just cannot afford to run separate feelgood days for each ethnic group in town in a city like Pittsburgh that is full of different groups...even if no trouble results. RM> MS>The official school-district press statement made no mention RM> MS>of racial tensions as a cause of the riot, but students did. RM> RM> This suggests that at least SOME of this is not from a news RM> article? The post was citing the statements made by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and a smaller paper there. --- Simplex BBS (v1.07.00Beta [DOS]) * Origin: NighthawkBBS, Burlington NC 910-228-7002 HST Dual (1:3644/6) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 265 EDUCATOR Ref: DAF00008 Date: 06/10/96 From: MATT SMITH Time: 10:33pm \/To: RON MCDERMOTT (Read 4 times) Subj: Re: PROBLEMS RM> LP>Is there something you could plant in your yard to encourage RM> LP>the moose to leave? RM> RM> MS>He can ask any Eskimo up there about some of the neat traps they RM> MS>use to kill wolves! RM> RM> Two comments: Firstly, wolves tend to be shot or poisoned, I know, but I'm not going to give out the _method_ of quasi-"poison" trap on an echo where it might be read by kids! --- Simplex BBS (v1.07.00Beta [DOS]) * Origin: NighthawkBBS, Burlington NC 910-228-7002 HST Dual (1:3644/6)