Science Education
jlynch | May 18, 2009From a report released by BIO: The Biotechnology Industry Organization:
On average, only 28% of the high school students taking the ACT , which is a national standardized test for college admission , reached a score indicating college readiness for biology and no state reached even 50%.
Only 52% of 12th graders are at or above a basic level of achievement in the sciences, and for 8th graders only 57% are at a basic level of achievement.
Average scores for 12th graders in the sciences have actually declined from 1996 to 2005 and shown no improvement for 8th graders both on overall and the…
sb admin | May 15, 2009NCSE has announced that two remaining anti-evolution bills have died in committee: Alabama & Missouri.
To recap the year:
Mississippi - dead in committee
Oklahoma - dead in committee
Iowa - dead in committee
New Mexico - dead in committee
Florida - dead in committee
Alabama - dead in committee
Missouri - dead in committee
Texas - in committee
The boys over at the Discovery Institute must be a little down this evening. With a record like that, they are the Detroit Lions of anti-evolutionism.
sb admin | May 15, 2009
Finished grading today, so the Spring semester is finally over. I'm out of here for a few weeks. See you sometime in June.
clock | May 11, 2009Are you up to date on the hot debate in biology regarding how genes influence evolution? Some scientists contend genes are in the driver's seat. Others assign more pull to regulatory factors controlling genetic expression. At noon, Wednesday, May 27, come hear Duke biologist Greg Wray explore the importance of it all in a talk entitled "Hardware or Software: Searching for the Genetic Basis for Biological Diversity."
You may not want to miss this one. After Wray's talk, Pizza Talk embarks on its traditional three-month summer vacation. The next nine-month series debuts in September.
Sigma Xi…
sb admin | May 11, 2009So I'm trying to simplify things in real life as I think I am suffering from information overload (among other things).
First task was to clean up my Facebook friends. From here on, it's family, colleagues and (usually graduate) students. Folks I know only in virtual space are likely to have gotten bumped. Sorry if you were one of those - truly, no offense was intended. I'm willing to follow folks on Twitter though, so feel free to join that way. Just follow me and I'll reciprocate. There's also Friendfeed.
Second task will be to prioritize regarding blogging. That will involve some thinking…
gregladen | May 11, 2009Having totally borked science education in the Lone Star State, the Texas School Board is now winding up to stuff their right wing ideologies into the Social Studies curriculum.
I for one can't wait until Texas leaves the Union so we can put Texas and Turkey in the same category and begin to summarily ignore them. In the mean time, have a look at what they are doing, from the Texas Freedom Network:
The Texas State Board of Education is set to appoint a social studies curriculum "expert" panel that includes absurdly unqualified ideologues who are hostile to public education and argue that…
clock | May 11, 2009
Petnica Science Center has been doing science summer camps for high school graduates and undergrads for 25 years and many of its alumni went on to have good careers in science both in Serbia and abroad:
Petnica Science Center is the biggest and, probably, the oldest independent nonprofit organization for extracurricular science education in SE Europe. Since 1982, Petnica has organized more than 2,500 programs (seminars, workshops, research camps...) for nearly 50,000 students and science teachers in 15 disciplines of science, technology and humanities. Majority of programs are designed for…
clock | May 10, 2009Miss Baker went to the Two Cultures conference in NYC, and there she showed this video of her students:
sb admin | May 10, 2009Turns out that yesterday I posted my 2000th post here at Scienceblogs without even noticing it. Heh!
sb admin | May 10, 2009Back in December 2006 I referred to Francis Beckwith as an ID supporter. This resulted in he informing me that he "has never been much of fan [of] design arguments, ever [and that his] interest in the debate focuses on the jurisprudential questions involving the First Amendment and what could be permissibly taught in public schools under that amendment." At that time I retracted and removed any reference to Beckwith as a supporter. More recently, Beckwith has objected to others referring to him as a creationist and an ID supporter. Tim Sandefur has replied, and now Barbara Forrest has offered…
jlynch | May 9, 2009I spent this morning at a workshop for K-12 biology teachers. The workshop was organized by the School of Life Sciences here at ASU and gave some 20 students to interact with faculty regarding teaching evolution. My presentation was titled "Teaching Evolution One Icon At A Time" and aimed to educate the teachers regarding the Discovery Institute's "teach the strengths and weaknesses of evolution" approach post-Kitzmiller. Slides are below:
sciencewoman | May 7, 2009Remember Bill Nye the Science Guy, that television popularizer of science for kids? Maybe it's time to give him an update and a facelift. That's the goal of Susan the Scientist, a project of Dr. Susan Reslewic, who is launching a new blog, myspace, and youtube presence to (in her words):
teach 'citizen science' to kids and curious adults using music and objects in our local households to conduct simple experiments online. The idea is to make science both hip, simple, and most importantly fun. We hope to build this project and message making this available, free online this coming year.
Here's…
gregladen | May 6, 2009According to Texas Education Expert!
She knows because she looked at some web sites!!!!!!!!! Holy Crap!!!!
clock | May 6, 2009Letting it All Hang Out: The Personal Genome Project
May 19, 2009
6:30-8:30 p.m. with discussion beginning at 7:00 followed by Q&A
Tir Na Nog 218 South Blount Street, Raleigh, 833-7795
Two years ago no one knew what personal genomics was; now it's everywhere. For a few hundred dollars, you can have a peak at part of your own genome. You can theoretically learn your genetic risks for various diseases. And some companies say you can find romance based on your DNA. But what is all this stuff really? What does it actually mean? What will genomic privacy look like in the digital age? The…
sporte | May 6, 2009We always enjoy home science experiments and it was fun the other night to learn about a new experiment we could try with our teenage daughter and an iPhone.
As it turned out, the joke was on us.
My husband is an enthusiastic fan of the iPhone store. Last night, he downloaded this application called "Army Knife."
This application has, I kid you not, the following nine items:
unit converter - these are always helpful, especially if you travel
ultrasonic whistle
protractor
Heart (beats per minute) counter
measuring tape
digital caliper
Two levels
flashlight
emergency SOS light
Some of…
tsmith | May 4, 2009Back to the grind this week unfortunately, but the swine flu/H1N1 story is still developing and still fascinating. The most recent numbers show 286 confirmed US cases in 36 states.
There are many remaining questions on the evolution and epidemiology of this strain--and many pundits sure they know what's going to happen next. Mike takes one of them down--Wendy Orent, who I've blogged about previously. Orent is claiming (based on a black/white version of the evolution of virulence in pathogens) that the spread of this strain is attenuating the virus, and that future outbreaks will be…
gregladen | May 3, 2009The podcast for today's radio discussion with Fellman, Scott and Laden is available.
A bit about the history of the NCSE; cultural relativism in the science education movement; Greg disses bench scientists again; The appeasement question; A phone call from a famous Pharyngulistum; Science standards; Local control. The Minnesota Science Standards. An intelligently designed buffet and the question of "alternative curriculum."
Go listen, and come back and comment.