Computers for Youth works with low-income schools to put computers in the homes of sixth-grade students and bring parents into the learning mission.
- By Jennifer Demski
- 03/07/11
Students in large urban school districts are lagging behind the nation in their grasp of natural sciences, according to a special report on science education in 17 of America's urban districts. Experts involved in the report placed part of the blame on the lack of any clear or meaningful national science strategy, though several other factors, they acknowledged, contributed to the disparity.
- By Scott Aronowitz
- 02/28/11
Texas Instruments has launched a new version of its TI-Nspire handheld, offering 16-bit, 320 x 240 color screens in its TI-Nspire CX and TI-Nspire CAS models. The company also released a new version of its TI-Nspire software.
Vernier, a company that specializes in scientific data collection solutions, has released four new scientific testing devices for use in school science programs.
This summer Lady Bird Johnson Middle School, part of Irving Independent School District in Texas, will go online with a new 582 kilowatt solar installation. The move is part of a plan to make the school the largest "net zero middle school in the United States," according to the district.
Robotics teams are catching on with students, igniting their passion for technology, engineering, and fever-pitched competition.
- By John K. Waters
- 02/08/11
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt's SkillsTutor division has launched a new version of its digital math program that aligns with Common Core State Standards.
School Specialty Literacy and Intervention has introduced an online software application aimed at helping students in grades 4 through 8 who struggle to master vocabulary specific to the subject areas of science and social studies.
- By Scott Aronowitz
- 02/03/11
The results are in for the latest National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP) in science, and those results are grim, especially at the 12th grade, where 40 percent of students failed to attain even a "basic" level of proficiency. The test also revealed an enormous gap between the lowest- and highest-performing ethnic groups, as well as smaller but still significant gaps in achievement between males and females.
The latest science results from the "Nation's Report Card" have set a new baseline for student science achievement in the United States, and that baseline is low--"unacceptable," according to Francis Eberle, executive director for the National Science Teacher's Association. THE Journal discussed the latest national assessment results with Eberle, whose organization today issued a call to bolster resources for science education to avoid producing a "scientifically illiterate workforce."