The Current State of Mathematics Education In This Country

You probably already know that the current state of mathematics education in this country is very bad. What you may not know is exactly how bad. Harvard recently released to the news media the results of a study about mathematics. Their findings: (1) the US currently ranks 31st out of 56 countries, and (2) only 6% of our high school students take higher level math courses. Another statistic you may not have heard (except from me) is that the failure rate for first year Algebra students is a deplorable 50%. That statistic has direct bearing on the Harvard results; and, as if these statistics aren't bad enough, you need to understand that the 50% failure rate was true in 1972 when I started teaching and it is still true today. Doesn't this just make you want to shout "Why isn't anyone doing anything about this?"
In reality, mathematics educators, education specialists (seems like an oxymoron, doesn't it?), and universities have been trying for over 40 years to make positive changes. During my lifetime I have experienced, to varying degrees, at least six different methodological changes. (1) I grew up using the "skill and drill" of the old days. This method produced temporarily strong basic skills but very weak application or understanding; and without the latter, the former fades quickly. (2) In 1972, I started teaching just after the pendulum swing to "New Math." All math books started with a chapter on set theory, out went rote memory, and in came understanding. In theory, if students understood the why of mathematics, then they would create the skills on their own. Of course, none of that happened, and mathematical understanding actually decreased. It is now universally agreed upon that "New Math" was a miserable failure. Fortunately for me, I was raising a family during most of those years and didn't have to teach it very long; but I often wish that we could apologize to the students of the 70's and early 80's. "New Math" caused you more harm than good. That shouldn't have happened.
Since the final death of "New Math" in the early 80's, there has been no overriding mathematical philosophy for the country. Instead, different states--even individual school districts--have been searching for that perfect solution. (3) Some school districts returned to "skill and drill" by adopting the Saxon method. Of course, the problems that existed with "skill and drill" the first time still existed. Returning to a method that was unsuccessful before is not logical. Math people should know better. (4) In 1983, the University of Chicago conducted a great deal of research into why Algebra students were failing in large numbers. Then they created an entirely different approach to teaching mathematics. In 1988, I was very fortunate to have been working in Colorado Springs when my district (Air Academy School District #20) adopted the UCSMP (University of Chicago School Mathematics Project) textbook series. UCSMP was truly revolutionary and inspired. To learn more about how it came to be and how it was different, read my article "Frustrated With Everyday Mathematics/UCSMP? Why Is It So Different?" For the first time ever I saw large numbers of students improve both their basic skills and their understanding of mathematics. UCSMP continues to this day in various parts of the country, although the extreme difference in approach coupled with the fact that our society is now highly mobile have caused major difficulties, especially for parents. For UCSMP to have a positive impact on the country, it would have to be adopted by all schools. And we all know that will never happen.
Two other approaches bouncing around the country are (5) Project-based and (6) Activity-based programs. Project-based programs give classes a "situation" and that situation is worked on for weeks or months. The Pit and the Pendulum is the project I have heard the most about. This approach works well with certain students, but you haven't read anything about startling success because that hasn't happened. Activity-based programs are similar to project-based programs except for length of time spent on the activity. The activities might last a day or a week, and then change to another activity. In both of these methods, the math skills are taught as they are encountered in the situation. Classroom management issues arise with both of these methods. And, again, you aren't hearing shouts of joy over the positive benefits to mathematical understanding.
In addition to the philosophical changes, there have been many smaller changes in teaching techniques and classroom changes. Some still exist in some places, but most have been replaced with the newest and improved techniques. Cooperative learning was all the rage for a time and it is still a useful technique. I have lost count of how many of these teaching fads have come and gone over the past 40 years. You will notice, however, that the failure rate remains unchanged. So where are things now? Floundering. While school districts and states are bouncing around trying to find that magical solution, No Child Left Behind is slowly but surely destroying what little enthusiasm for learning still exists. No Child Left Behind may very well be the final death knell for mathematics education in this country.

Good News If You're Considering a Career As a Court Reporter

With the tough times of today's economy, many people are considering a career change or a field with plenty of job opportunities and chances for advancements. If this is the case, a career as a court reporting professional may be just the answer you are looking for. Court reporters, or stenographers are in high demand, earn a competitive salary, and have plenty of opportunities to advance with extra training and certification. This makes this career an excellent choice.
If you are interested in obtaining a career as a stenographer, there are several different options you have. But you must first pass the Court Reporting exams. To prepare you for these exams, you will need to take courses at a school or enroll in a program at a community college or major university.
There are different licenses that a court reporter can hold and most states require you to obtain at least one. To obtain your license, you'll have to demonstrate that you can accurately complete the skills you learned in your education and training. The type of license you'll need varies depending on what kind of court reporter you have trained to become. Obtaining your degree as a court reporter will take approximately two to four years. In a court reporting program you will learn many of the skills that you will need to be successful in your career such as typing skills, courtroom language and terms, how to use a stenotype machine to transcribe what is said in the courtroom, and computer skills.
Once you've finished your formal training, there's still quite a bit of on-the-job education you'll need in order to be successful in your career. As much as you might have practiced during your schooling, there's nothing quite like going into a courtroom and trying to keep up with the fast pace of everything that's going on. Because this is such a demanding job, you're bound to make a few mistakes here and there. Learning how to handle these mistakes and improve your accuracy is something that your education can't always prepare you for, but is definitely one of the requirements most desired by prospective employers. When you're learning to be a court reporter, you need to be very observant and see firsthand how things are done in the courtroom. A good way to gain experience is to contact someone at the courthouse and get them to take you inside so that you can watch the proceedings. You could even talk to the reporter on the case and ask for tips on how to do the job more efficiently. This will also be beneficial when you are finished with your program because you will have established contacts that may help you in obtaining a job.
Becoming a stenographer requires a lot of skill, dedication, and education, in order to be successful. Good candidates must have strong typing skills, good grammar, and an interest in the legal system. If you're interested in becoming a court reporter, you might find it helpful to shadow someone in the field before beginning your training program.

A Middle Aged Mother and Her Search For Education

Did you know that scholarships are available for mothers in any situation?
These scholarships exist to help women earn a degree and get a good job. Getting a degree, heck even a single semester of college, is extremely expensive.
Are you ready to take the plunge?
If you are considering education, are you ready to take action? Do you dream of a higher paying job? An education makes a higher paying job possible.
Whatever your situation, the costs of living make paying for education difficult. I believe many women would like an education but are unable to afford one because of other responsibilities.
Don't depend on others to support yourself. As you grow up you learn how depending on anyone else for our own well being is usually a mistake. Depending on yourself makes you strong and stable, the kind of person everyone should be. These scholarships help you to graduate and get a high paying job for yourself.
Making the right decision right now could improve your life.
Raising kids is very expensive. Not to mention all of the other costs we must take on. At some point you make the decision to move your life in the right direction, often that is a college diploma.
So we have the situation where the good jobs require a degree, but without a higher paying job now you can't afford to get that degree. What should you do?
Here is the good news...
Plenty of scholarships exist for mothers looking to cover the costs of education for themselves or their children!

To apply for this grant...
Take just a couple minutes and apply for this $10,000 scholarship right now! If you are a mother than this is definitely a worthwhile couple of minutes for you!

New Roles For the Manufacturing Marketer

Marketing communications is going through a major shift. If you're an industrial marketer, you're probably more keenly aware of this than most. The shift is from traditional marketing methods (print advertising in trade journals; industrial P/R through trade journals; trade shows; direct marketing through the mail; hospitality events, etc.) to Internet based marketing tactics such as strategic website optimization; social media marketing; blogging; email marketing; online article and news release marketing; webinars and podcasts; and even video marketing through sites like YouTube.
People still go to both offline AND online sources for information, research, vendor sourcing, and networking. This makes an industrial marketer's job more challenging, and not just because you have to stretch your marketing dollars across a broader range of tactics. Convincing execs to give the thumbs up to less proven methods can be difficult.
If you can relate to this, it may be time to create allies and evangelists in other departments, including your bosses, if you want support for your online initiatives. If marketing is your world, you are probably more educated than those around you about the shift from offline to online marketing tactics. You also have a deeper understanding of the need to reach your target audience at as many "touch points" as possible in order to build brand awareness and credibility and achieve "top of mind" status. If you want to help your company keep a foot in both marketing worlds, you now have two more titles added to your job description: marketing educator and evangelist.
Gain more acceptance for a marketing plan that includes less conventional methods for connecting with customers and prospects by involving people from other departments in your initiatives. By doing so, you'll not only help to educate them but you'll also tap into a wealth of knowledge about your company's products or services that is rarely volunteered. Here are some examples:
1) Production / operation managers in your company can talk all day long about what you manufacture. Enlist their help in producing a short series of videos that you can post on your website, YouTube, and other social media sites. As you meet and work with them on the project, you will have teachable moments when you can communicate the impact that this kind of communication can have in terms of positioning your company as an "expert;" driving more traffic to your website; and improving your search engine rankings.
2) Spend a few days in the field calling on customers and prospects with some of your key sales staff. Take along a camera or video or voice recorder. This will enable you to do two things: 1 - document conversations with established, HAPPY customers that can be crafted into testimonials for your website, Twitter, LinkedIn, and other SM sites and 2 - hear firsthand how your sales team overcomes a prospect's objections or responds to their greatest challenges and then ties your products / services back to their solutions. If you have a voice recorder, you've got some good raw material for blog postings, tweets, even LinkedIn group discussion topics. (Of course it goes without saying that you need to request permission to video or voice record ANYONE.) Soliciting the help of your sales team makes them feel part of the marketing process and gives you opportunities to again - discuss the impact of various online marketing tactics.
3) If your company has engineers on staff, they are a goldmine of information for online marketing. Most engineers are more than willing to write a technical paper covering their area of expertise. Perhaps you could even convince them to do a series of papers dealing with the basics of a multi-step design process. Technical papers can be used for both off and online marketing efforts, so you'll get double duty out of these! Article marketing can be one of the most effective ways of building quality backlinks to your website. If your engineers aren't camera shy, they can also be great resources for webinars, podcasts, and even short videos explaining a certain technical design consideration. The key is to get them involved and while doing so, explain the importance of what they're doing to your online marketing efforts.
4) Educating executive management may be your greatest challenge. Busy VP's and CEO's may be hard to enlist for online marketing initiatives unless they've already started to buy in to the concept. A couple of ideas for including them in online marketing are: short video messages for YouTube and website posts; a blog written in their pen name (this will require you to interview them regularly for blog content); LinkedIn and Twitter accounts in their name (again, more writing for you, so you have to gauge whether or not this is feasible from a time standpoint.) The more they are involved in your online marketing efforts, the more support you'll receive.
It's human nature to want to belong to a group with common goals and to contribute to worthwhile endeavors. The job of the new industrial marketer is to make the world of online marketing a worthwhile endeavor that your whole company will want to rally around. That's why today, it's essential for you to not only implement the marketing strategies, but to also educate and build a community of online marketing evangelists within your organization. You're still being a marketer; but along with your company's products and services you're also marketing a paradigm shift. So much more fulfilling, don't you think?

Internet Marketing and Promotion News

The latest news revolves around Internet marketing. The traditional four "P's " of marketing now with three added for "services" marketing have all revised themselves and included the Internet as a powerful medium and marketing tool and discusses the way it has revolutionized the very function of sales and marketing. Earlier, product, price, place and promotion; the four P's of standard marketing is augmented by people, physical evidence and process concentrated on the core marketing activities ranging from the various internal to external strategies. But today, Internet marketing and promotion has earned all the accolades.
Year 2009 has passed and has bequeathed serious responsibility of economic reforms to the year 2010. Though it has laid a strong foundation on which the year 2010 can visualize a steady growth, yet it is imperative to understand the customers, reach them appropriately and strategize according to them. Due to the increase in e-business, it is wise to research and develop products based on the marketing strategy outside- in rather than inside-out.
Internet promotion is one of the most widely used concepts today, where customers are reached and targeted to the point where services or products can be customized to the best. As the Internet has gained a phenomenal presence in industry, education, mass-communication, social and political segments, promotional campaigns along the Internet medium are proving to be extremely rewarding. Be it online reservations, online admissions, online payments, the Internet has made every transaction extremely comfortable and convenient. Thus if people are not moving out, there is no use of billboards; if people are not reading newspapers, there is no use of print advertisements; if people are not listening to radio, there is no need to go on air.
Internet marketing promotion in news is just because of the increased acceptance of the marketing tool amongst masses, whose power branding and marketing gurus have well realized. Thus it is no wonder if companies stop advertising elsewhere in the near future and concentrate only on this small, yet significant medium.

Prepare Yourself For Vocational Education

Vocational education is a preparation for the skilled jobs, this is the preparation based on manual and practical activities. The learner directly participates and develops expertise in a particular group of techniques or technology and sometimes referred as technical education.
In Philippines, Vocational/Technical Schools and their curriculum were accredited and approved by Technical Education Skills and Development Authority (TESDA). Schools affiliated by TESDA offers a short course that will last for 3 months and for 2 years. Upon the graduation, the students take the licensure examination from TESDA to obtain a certificate or diploma. Some courses for this are automotive technology, electronic technology, nursing aide, hotel and restaurant management, computer technology, drafting. Short courses may choose from housekeeping, culinary, food and beverages, welders, etc. Before, these vocational courses associated with the activities of lower social classes. But not for now, as Vocational Education has been developed and opened a lot of potential jobs and opportunities locally and abroad.
Nowadays, we are experiencing and battling on crisis. Many companies had been closed due to recession. Thousands of people lost their jobs. Even the OFW's are affected. Vocational trainings and education had been the answer for them to start a new career. Government released a scholarship program for out-of-school youth and for the students that cannot continue their college. This scholarship has been the demand of many parents. Many believe that diploma and certificate from short courses can be use in advantage and for competencies.
As a matter of fact, if you will try to search a job online, you will notice that there are wide list of skilled jobs vacancies on certain job sites. Countries like Australia, UK, Canada, Middle-East's countries are in high demands for skilled workers. The problem for this, is most of the skilled workers can't afford the high placement fees and papers processing of the job agencies. Good news, that there's a few that offers a salary deduction. The other thing is you can search for a job site that will give you the information of the employers, through this, you can apply directly.
Preparing yourself for skilled workers opportunities means a better chance of rewarding and well-paying career that you can be proud of.

Anti-Drug Education

Illegal street drugs, their use and abuse, arguably, can be considered the nation's (if not the world's) number one societal problem. So what can we, each one of us, do to assist in the slow-down and prevention of druggie influence in our lives? And what is the singular thing that we must do to stop the drug culture from its selfish goal of foisting its dangers upon our youngsters and other friends? We know we must slow down and prevent the growing abuse of such drugs as marijuana, ecstasy, meth, heroin, PCP (angel dust), and LSD, to list only a few.
Marijuana, alone, contains 400 chemicals in its smoke, 60 of which are proven to cause cancer. Two things happen to a pot smoker: 1) There is an immediate burn-up of vitamins and minerals in the body, and 2) The nervous system changes and the nerves in the body go numb. Unless treated, these unhealthy body and mental conditions remain a lifelong problem.
The key goal is EDUCATION.
We can spread the word about the tragic effects of street drugs upon the mind and bodies of all who use them. The first thing we need to confront is to take ownership of the problem. We need to realize that the problem of the presence of drugs in our society is OUR problem. It is not confined only to the "other guy," such as school teachers and administrators, hospital personnel, or those in troublesome, run-down neighborhoods. Each one of us has to face the reality that "It's my problem" and what can I do to help, even in some small way?"
There is a valid analogy here between today's problem of curbing the growing use of illicit drugs in our society and curbing the unchallenged habits of excessive smoking that existed some 25 to 30 years ago. As the bad habit of excessive smoking was more and more challenged (in other words, as more people got behind the fight against smoking), the decline of smoking began to take hold. And as we look back and analyze the progress we have made in the anti-smoking campaigns over these past 25 to 30 years, we can say with pride, "We did it, we all did it. Each in our own way." We confronted the problem head-on. We did not allow ourselves to think "it's not my problem, it's the problems of the schools, the hospitals, the police stations, and the courts across the nation."
The good news is that we can readily and easily educate, and re-educate, right from our own homes, businesses, clubs, churches, or charities at a very low cost to each one of us? Society's goal must be to fight against drug trafficking, which leads to lives of despair, depression, violence, incarceration, and even murder and suicide. "It can't happen to me," we say. The statistical fact is that there is no community in America in which drugs are not a pervasive problem.
Almost all drugs affect the mind. When a person thinks of something, he gets a mental image picture of it. A person on drugs no longer sees those pictures quickly and clearly. Instead he becomes stupid, blank, and irresponsible. He becomes "wooden," unfeeling, and unable to do things. He believes things that are false.