First Blog

In a NYC study it appears that smaller schools have a higher graduation rates that the large megaschools.  Research has found that 70% of students from small schools graduated on time, while just 61% of the students who were turned away managed to earn diplomas in four years. Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/education/city-small-schools-better-on-time-graduation-rates-report-article-1.1436692#ixzz2dAnomes6 However, large schools are far more efficient in terms of facilities, because they are less costly (per student) to operate and maintain.  So, what can be done in light of this striking new discovery?  The simple answer is to turn the large mega-schools into smaller institutions.  This can be achieved by simply creating many schools within the large one.  A norm for centuries within universities with their colleges of disciplines, but for varying majors, it does create local communities within a large setting.  Here is the proposal.  Every high school with more th

Everyone is interested in reality.  Philosophers have devoted barrels of ink on this subject.  Yet, there remains no consensus on what it is, who perceives what, and whether we perceive was actually is.   Here are a couple of thoughts from an amateur. A. When I look out the window, I see reality in the houses, trees, and grass around me.  Occasionally, I'll see birds, and more rarely a rabbit.  That is really real - at least to me. B. When I look at the TV, I see a reality limited by the number of pixels given by my cable service, by the images transmitted, and by the colors I perceive.  A good TV gives an even better reality. C. Here I sit at my computer, with a wood floor reflecting the image from the TV screen.  I can just barely make out the images, sometimes not at all.   Yet, this is the "floor" reality presented.  Not a good one. This reflected reality makes me wonder what reality really is.  Are we only seeing reflections or shadows (Plato) or distortions an

How to kill a tree For centuries, probably millennia, farmers and others have needed to kill trees, and remove them for planting or fields.   How to do this?   There are many solutions, depending on the culture and mechanics of the age.    First note, as mighty the oak tree may be, it is really quite fragile. a)       Chain and axe-type solutions form the bedrock of our modern thinking.   Wipe it out; tow it away. b)       Chop off the bark.   The tree dies naturally c)        Deprive the tree of water.   Introduce new species that absorb all water.   d)       Introduce a new growth nearby to compete with the tree. e)       Burn it away.   This, the solution of our ancient cousins, was the substitute for having no power equipment.   f)        Feed it the wrong food, though well intended. g)       Restrict clearing fires. h)       Change or disturb the soil surrounding the tree. Many of these measures take years for their killing effect.    The bottom line is

The Truth about Truth Look truth up.   Use Google or any of the countless tomes on truth.  Truth is one of the biggest subjects in all of philosophy.  It is one of the most important words in any language one can apply to a given statement.  It confers understanding, authority,  and consensus.  Truth is a power word; probably none is stronger.  Get your colleague to agree with the truth, not logic or righteousness, of your case, and you have a follower.   ---------------------------------------------------------------------- We have updated this report with the addition of new forms of truth.  The sad truth is that new truth forms are coming every day.  See, https://used-ideas.blogspot.com/2019/12/the-truth-about-truth-2019.html ---------------------------------------------------------------------- You will find dozens of variations and philosophies of truth.   It implies an elusiveness of definition as it varies according to situations.   So many shadings exist, it

The secret is out!  Google and other email service providers track, store, and analyze your email.  They claim that the service is free, and they have every right to monitor and analyze your emails.  Yes?  When you do searches  or even read your email, you see on your screen promotions that not surprisingly address your personal concerns.   It goes even further, in that they maintain permanent records of your email.  This implies corporate secrets, family secrets, and even government secrets are available to third parties, and particularly those to whom they market such information.  It has even been discovered that IRS officials have been using these services for official work.  Previously we reported on a number of high-level scandals involving the emails  of some officials and their various peccadilloes.  But now the range of activities seems to extend to e v e r y single person. Example.  If I was the president of Corporation A and I wanted to know what the president of Corpora

See: http://disted6.math.tamu.edu/newsletter/newsletters_new/2013_5_01.pdf This is a thorny problem plagued with cost, convenience, and quality issues, all on the same page, all with advocates for and against.  Webinars, MOOCs, editorials, and commentaries all speak to this advent. One point is truly significant.  If a student cannot learn independently, and this means cannot read or listen for content at minimum, learning online is impossible.  The sole caveat is that the online course is so seductive that it will compel the student to learn regardless of any previous disposition. This, the seduction, is the brass ring for online learning.  The set of tools needed toward this end is not well understood.   This set of tools is an amalgamation of technological, psychological, probably sociological, and pedagogical methods.  We know very few expert at all. But... What is needed from the very beginning of a student's learning is reading and language skills.  Moreover,

An easy case can be made that current testing methods, particularly high-stakes testing is flawed.  It does not account for the (a) current mental state of the student, (b) offers test questions inaccurately stated or unclear, (c) measures only a small fraction of the material studied, and (d) places undue stress upon the students.  All true, true, true.  The alternatives to each of these objections create their own problems. In the following let us exclude the issues of inaccuracy and clarity.  Each of them have the same issue which denies their suggested solution.  Each solution is prohibitively expensive.  Each involves a lot of higher level intervention in the examination of student work. Each involves a larger examination to more fairly cover expected outcomes. Specifically, every test creates stress.  Think back to the time when you passed your driver's licensing road test.  Whew! This is what you said when it was over and you passed.  This is the case with tests of all t