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Triangle Coalition Electronic Bulletin
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This Week's Topics:
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| The theme for this year's National Council of Teachers Of Mathematics' (NCTM) Annual Meeting and Exposition is "Becoming Certain about Uncertainty." Scheduled for April 9-12 in Salt Lake City, the event will offer more than 740 sessions and workshops, covering all levels, pre-K–grade 12. Presentations will be given by educators from throughout the United States and as far away as Queensland, Australia and Santiago, Chile on topics ranging from developing algebraic thinking to linking research to practice, and high-stakes testing to learning math through children's games. In addition, more than 230 mathematics education exhibitors will showcase their latest products and services. Of special interest on Friday is a strand aimed at meeting the specific needs of the new teacher. Nearly 50 percent of new teachers quit within the first five years, and the turnover in math is the highest of all subject areas at 16.4 percent. Keeping the next generation of math teachers is essential if we are to fill the 280,000 new positions in math and science that are projected by 2015. Triangle Coalition member, the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, is a public voice of mathematics education, providing vision, leadership, and professional development to support teachers in ensuring mathematics learning of the highest quality for all students. With more than 100,000 members and 230 Affiliates, NCTM is the world's largest organization dedicated to improving mathematics education in prekindergarten through grade 12. The Council's "Principles and Standards for School Mathematics" includes guidelines for excellence in mathematics education. Its "Curriculum Focal Points for Prekindergarten through Grade 8 Mathematics," released in 2006, identifies the most important mathematical topics for each grade level. Find out more at www.nctm.org. . |
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The Siemens Foundation has announced the winners of the 2008 Siemens Teacher Scholarships, the third year of collaboration between the Thurgood Marshall College Fund (TMCF), the United Negro College Fund (UNCF), and the Siemens Foundation. The program encourages students at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) that plan to pursue teaching careers in science and math. It also provides them with an interactive classroom experience through the Siemens Foundation's Siemens Science Day program, which has reached 36,000 students nationwide with the help of Siemens employees in the past two years. Through Siemens Science Day, Siemens Teacher Scholarship winners are sharing their passion for science with elementary school students and leading experiments developed by Scholastic. "We believe it is important not only to encourage future science and math teachers with scholarships, but to also give them an early opportunity to enter the classroom and experience the joy of discovery with elementary students," said Jeniffer Harper-Taylor, Vice President of the Siemens Foundation. "By providing the tools and resources to students who have expressed a genuine interest in teaching math and science, we get a step closer to increasing the number of teachers and role models for our next generation of leaders," she said. . |
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| NASA is inviting members of the general public from around the world to suggest a new name for the Gamma-ray Large Area Space Telescope, otherwise known as GLAST, before it launches in mid-2008. GLAST is designed to probe the most violent events and exotic objects in the cosmos from gamma-ray bursts to black holes and beyond. The telescope's key scientific objectives include: * Exploring the most extreme environments in the Universe, where nature harnesses energies far beyond anything possible on Earth, * Searching for signs of new laws of physics and what composes the mysterious dark matter, * Understanding how black holes accelerate immense jets of material to nearly light speed, * Cracking the mysteries of stupendously powerful explosions known as gamma-ray bursts, and * Answering long-standing questions about solar flares, pulsars, and the origin of cosmic rays. Suggestions for the mission's new name may be an acronym, but that is not a requirement. Any suggestions for naming the telescope after a scientist may only include names of deceased scientists whose names are not already used for other NASA missions. The period for accepting names closes on March 31, 2008. Participants must include a statement of 25 words or less about why their suggestion would be a strong name for the mission. To submit a suggestion for the mission name, click here. More details about the mission are online. Additional details about the educational programs of Triangle Coalition member, NASA, are available online. . |
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Vernier Software & Technology has announced a new release of Logger Pro 3.6 software that allows students to use the visual learning software to visualize, investigate, and understand real-world scientific data. "If we can get younger students excited about science inquiry, we will help develop thoughtful, progressive scientists for the next generation," said David Vernier, co-founder of Vernier and a former physics teacher. Logger Pro offers many features, including the ability to collect data from more than 60 sensors and capture videos or pictures from Logitech web cameras or the Bodelin ProScope. Logger Pro is compatible with the Vernier LabQuest, computers, TI graphing calculators and Palm OS handhelds. In addition, science students can collect data with Ohaus balances, spectrometers, or global positioning systems (GPS). They can also enter data for analysis from a keyboard. . |
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| Pi Day will be observed in the U.S. tomorrow on March 14 -- 3/14 -- in recognition of the value of Pi. Pi is an irrational number meaning it will continue infinitely without repeating. With the use of computers, Pi has been calculated to over 1 trillion digits past the decimal. The symbol for Pi was first used in 1737 by William Jones, but was popular after it was adopted by the Swiss mathematician Leonhard Euler in 1737. Celebrations begin at approximately 1:59 p.m. as a further reminder of Pi's approximate value, 3.14159. Pi Day is celebrated in a variety of ways. Parties are held at K-12 schools and at mathematics departments in educational institutions. Harvard's Math department, for instance, has a Pi recitation contest as well as a Pi eating contest. Mathematics or science clubs often gather to consider the role that the number Pi has played in their lives and to imagine the world without Pi. The Pi celebration continues every day online. For example, Teach Pi is a center for teaching ideas and resources, including engaging tributes to Pi. Also, at www.piday.org, there are a variety of educational resources relating to Pi. If Pi isn't your specialty, you can consider preparing early for upcoming square root days: March 3, 2009 (3/3/09) and April 4, 2016 (4/4/16).
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| The next "Education News Parents Can Use" broadcast on March 18 at 8:00-9:00 EST will feature the work of the National Mathematics Advisory Panel, highlighting the panel's final report which was released today. The report is available online and outlines how the panel's findings will lead to more effective math instruction for all students. For nearly two years, with a clear focus on the preparation of students for entry into and success in algebra, panel members have examined the scientific evidence in five core areas: conceptual knowledge and skills, learning processes, instructional practices and materials, assessments, and teachers and teacher education. In a related vein, the broadcast will also spotlight what the U.S. Department of Education and other partners are doing to promote math and science literacy under the President's American Competitiveness Initiative and showcase the work of high-performing schools from across the U.S. that are excelling in math education. More details about the National Mathematics Advisory Panel are online. "Education News Parents Can Use" airs live via satellite on the third Tuesday of each month during the school year, and offers parents and anyone else with an interest in education vital information about getting involved in children's learning. The broadcasts feature viewer call-ins and brief segments including one-on-one interviews, "how-to" demonstrations, video and graphics, and brief conversations with parents, educators, community and business leaders, and education experts. More details about "Education News Parents Can Use" are online. . |
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TCEB Sponsors
This issue of the TCEB is made possible by grants from: To find out how your organization can sponsor the TCEB or support the Triangle Coalition in other ways, visit www.trianglecoalition.org/support.htm __________________________________________________________________________ |
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