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Triangle Coalition Electronic Bulletin
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This Week's Topics:
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| Triangle Coalition member, the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA), has announced that it has been awarded a 2-year, $3 million grant from the GE Foundation, the philanthropic organization of General Electric Company. The grant will be used to support the continued development of the NSTA Learning Center and assist teachers in GE-supported school districts to increase their science content knowledge and strengthen their teaching skills. The Learning Center is a web portal that contains thousands of standards-based learning resources for science teachers -- including SciPacks, on-demand learning experiences that engage teachers through interactive simulations, embedded questions, and pedagogical implications for the classroom. In support of this program, NSTA will serve as the science advisor to the GE Foundation, and will work with the Foundation to facilitate the planning and implementation of actions most critical to improving the science program in each participating school district. NSTA will also provide GE Foundation staff with an independent assessment of each districts’ progress. Currently there are five school districts participating in the Developing Futures program. These districts are located in Louisville, KY; Cincinnati, OH; Stamford, CT; Erie, PA; and Atlanta, GA. “Like NSTA, the GE Foundation is committed to elevating the quality of science education in the U.S.,” said Kelli Wells, director of U.S. education, GE Foundation. “We are excited to be partnering with NSTA to provide science educators in GE-supported school districts and around the country access to high-quality science content that specifically addresses individual needs and professional development requirements.” The National Science Teachers Association is the largest professional organization in the world promoting excellence and innovation in science teaching and learning for all. NSTA's current membership includes more than 57,000 science teachers, science supervisors, administrators, scientists, business, and industry representatives, and others involved in science education. The GE Foundation works to strengthen educational access, equity, and quality for disadvantaged youth globally, and supports GE employee and retiree giving and involvement in GE communities around the world. In 2007, the GE family of businesses, employees, retirees, and the GE Foundation contributed more than $210 million to community and educational programs, including $93 million from the GE Foundation. For more information, visit www.gefoundation.com. . |
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The Smaller Learning Communities (SLC) program was established in response to growing national concerns about students too often lost and alienated in large, impersonal high schools, as well as concerns about school safety and low levels of achievement and graduation for many students. Authorized under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, the SLC program was designed to provide local educational agencies with funds to plan, implement, or expand SLCs in large high schools of 1,000 students or more. The SLC legislation allows local educational agencies to implement the most suitable structure or combination of structures and strategies to meet their needs. . |
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| Triangle Coalition member, the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM), recently presented Frank K. Lester, Jr. and Robert E. Reys with this year’s Mathematics Education Trust (MET) Lifetime Achievement Awards for Distinguished Service to Mathematics Education. The two outstanding American educators were selected to receive this honor in recognition of their lifetime of accomplishments in leadership, teaching, and service to mathematics education. Frank Lester, Jr., is internationally known for his research on mathematical problem-solving instruction and his work in mathematics learning, teaching, and curriculum. In 2007, Lester edited the Second Handbook of Research on Mathematics Teaching and Learning, which is an update of the groundbreaking original handbook published in 1992 by the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM). Robert Reys has made many contributions to the mathematics education community, most notably his studies of number sense, calculator use, and estimation in elementary school mathematics. Reys has nearly 200 articles published in scholarly journals and has written or edited more than 30 books. In addition, Reys has served the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) as general editor of five yearbooks and coeditor of a sixth. 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 pre-kindergarten through grade 12. The Council’s "Principles and Standards for School Mathematics" includes guidelines for excellence in mathematics education. Its "Curriculum Focal Points for Pre-kindergarten through Grade 8 Mathematics: A Quest for Coherence," released in 2006, identifies the most important mathematical topics for each grade level. More details are at www.nctm.org. . |
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NASA Deputy Administrator Shana Dale recently announced the launch of NASA Education TV (NASA eTV), a partnership with the National Institute of Aerospace (NIA) to produce new educational television programs for distribution on NASA Television and the Internet. NASA eTV aims to engage young people in the excitement and challenges the future holds for America's space program. Designed for grades K-12 and young adults, the short video snippets will be available on demand through the Internet during the 2008 and 2009 school years. This will allow teachers with unlimited options in the timing, sequence, and pacing of the video content for greater instructional flow control. . |
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| Teach For America has announced that it will place more than 3,700 new teachers this fall in low-income communities across the country, the largest incoming corps in the organization’s 18-year history by nearly 30 percent. The 2008 corps was selected from a record 24,718 applicants, many of whom graduated from America’s most selective universities. Teach For America corps members commit two years to teach in urban and rural public schools and become lifelong leaders in the pursuit of educational equity. In low-income communities nationwide -- where 9-year-olds are, on average, three grade levels behind, and only one in 10 students will graduate from college -- public schools urgently need enterprising teachers and leaders committed to giving all students the education they deserve. Teach For America recruits on more than 400 college campuses, seeking applicants from all academic majors, career interests, and backgrounds who demonstrate a record of outstanding achievement, persistence in the face of challenges, and a strong focus on achieving results. Teach For America attracted a significant percentage of graduates from the nation's top universities. At more than 90 colleges and universities, more than 5 percent of the senior class applied, including 16 percent at Spelman College, 11 percent at Morehouse College and Yale University, 10 percent at Georgetown University, 9 percent at Harvard University, and 7 percent at the University of Michigan. In addition to expanding the ranks of quality teachers for the next two years, this increase in corps members will also have a long-term effect, as Teach For America's alumni are proving to be a powerful force in reforming public education. According to the latest alumni survey, two-thirds of Teach For America alumni are still working or studying full-time in education, including 4,000 classroom teachers. More than 300 Teach For America alumni serve as school principals or superintendents. For more information, visit www.teachforamerica.org. . |
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TCEB Sponsors
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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