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From: "Ned Jimmerson" <>
Subject: Re: [DNA] Comet set fire to Northern Hemisphere 13000 years ago?
Date: Wed, 23 May 2007 11:22:43 -0500
References: <c9e.d3f422f.3385b1af@aol.com>


Sadly what you describe is too often the case in public schools all over the
U.S. even in our closest town population 403 where the hard sciences and
advanced math are required of college bound students the abysmal lack of
decent teachers is the basic problem. the last year I was on the local
school board. we wanted a physics teacher very badly. there were a total of
6 B.A. level physics teaching degrees granted in the entire state of
Minnesota that year. that was 1996. and this is supposedly one of the best
educated States. the basic problem is why would a bright person with school
loans to repay go into teaching at a starting salary of under $30,000 per
year when with the same education they can nearly double that income in
private industry. I don't even want to express my feelings on the nine moth
school calendar.
as Pogo said years ago, we have met the enemy and they is us., enjoy the
day, Ned jimmerson.
----- Original Message -----
From: <>
To: <>
Sent: Wednesday, May 23, 2007 10:03 AM
Subject: Re: [DNA] Comet set fire to Northern Hemisphere 13000 years ago?


>> From: John Cartmell <>
>> Subject: Re: [DNA] Comet set fire to Northern Hemisphere 13000 years
>> ago?
>> To:
>> Message-ID: <>
>> Content-Type: text/plain
>
>> On 22 May, Diana Gale Matthiesen <> wrote:
>>> Physics wasn't required in my high school, either. Our education
>>> system
> is
>>> failing on all fronts.
>
>> As an outsider to the US educational system I wonder what happened to
>> the
>> shock in 1957 that supposedly revolutionised science education in the
>> US.
>
>> I realise it's off-topic here but the importance of the US in this field
> (and
>> this discussion list) may make relevant the science/educational
>> background
> of
>> so many participants. Is the situation as bad as it's painted - or are
> those
>> examples exceptions?
>> In comparison in the UK whilst some teaching may be bad, and some kids
>> not
>> want to learn, a whole range of science (including physics, chemistry,
>> biology, and earth science) is on the curriculum and all schools cover
>> that
>> curriculum - or are severely censured and required to improve.
> ----
> Yes, education in the US is as bad as it is painted. I will give you an
> example
> of the worst case scenario of public education:
>
> My oldest daughter teaches both physics and chemistry at an inner city Los
> Angeles charter school made up mostly of illegal aliens. She was taking
> a
> year
> off when she was recruited to be a teacher, so she decided to try it out.
> She
> actually has a degree in engineering and a strong science background.
> But,
> she had no teaching credential, had not yet taken the teaching exams and
> was the only one available to actually start the entire physics program.
> There
> are credentialing requirements, but the government has no choice but to
> ignore the requirements, because nobody else is willing or able to do the
> job.
> Most people with her background would have a better paying job in
> industry.
>
> Since that time she has been teaching out of a church because the school
> that was
> being built inside of a warehouse was not finished. Because of needless
> delays,
> the open house is finally this weekend in June. This school was supposed
> to
> have been opened back in August. My daughter has had no laboratory in
> which
> to teach the kids. Right now, when she designs a physics experiment, she
> resorts to using toys that she digs up from the children's nursery at the
> church.
> She also has to retrieve pizza cartons out of the garbage to make ramps
> for
> toy cars. There is money for supplies, but no space to store supplies, so
> she
> just has to be resourceful.
>
> Most kids in Los Angeles do not even take physics, much less pass
> physics.
> It is not because of a lack of funding; it is partly because there are no
> qualified
> physics teachers. What do you expect when physics is not even required to
> get a diploma here? Students need hours and hours of basic math tutoring
> anyway, so why bother with physics?
>
> In order to get a high school diploma here, the only requirement the kids
> need is
> to pass the California exit exam which is geared toward 8th graders. By
> the
> way,
> public schools in the US include kindergarten, then 1st through 12th
> grade.
> After that we have public junior colleges that teach remedial reading and
> math so that people can actually get jobs. Sad, but true.
>
> I am sure it is not this bad all over the US, but you can see the trickle
> down
> effect of poor education and management.
>
> Kathy J.
>
>
>
>
> ************************************** See what's free at
> http://www.aol.com.
>
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