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December 2003 Newsletter |
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Dates to Remember Dec 4*6 - NSTA Convention Reno, NV Dec 8-12 – Finals Week!!
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Shannon White - Publicity/Newsletter Well it is the end of the semester and we are almost ready to pull our hair out, or at least I am. With the end of the semster comes much stress for most students. While everyone else in the nation is worried about getting their Christmas shopping done we are slaving away over our books. It somehow doesn’t seen right. So this year we decided to make the week before finals a little less stressful, and we are doing it with chocolate and free stuff! Everyone needs to go by Dr.Adams’ office some time this week and pick up 5-10 stress reliefs bags to hand out to students around campus. It’s a great way to get our organizations name out on campus and it makes you feel all warm and fussy inside to give a special treat to those who need it. The bags may contain candy, gum, suckers, Little Debbie snack cakes, pens, pensils or vouchers for free food from local sponsors. So don’t forget this week to pick them up and get an extra one for yourself, because we know you have been stressed too. I was unable to attend the November meeting, but I heard everyone had something to say about internships. Stacy Sauceda a NSU-NSTA member spoke to us about what being a full intern is like. She is at Tahlequah with 10th -12th grade in Zoology and honors Biology. Jennifer Russell, NSU-NSTA’s Vice-President, also shared her experiences from her pre-II internship at Tahlequah High Scool in Honors Chemistry. Thank you Stacy and Jennifer for sharing your experiences! Well, everyone have a safe and happy break. Kiss all of your loved ones, eat lots of good food and get lots of presents. See you in January! ☼ |
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TOUGHER CURRICULUM
HAS IMPROVED SCORES IN OTHER STATES Taking on a rigorous course load now could improve life
in the future for Kentucky high school students. The State Scholars Initiative helped improve high school
math and science scores in Arkansas and Texas, and Kentucky educators hope
the program will work here. Fayette County Superintendent Ken James announced
yesterday at Southern Middle School that Fayette County would join Pike,
Jessamine, Kenton and Daviess counties in the launch of the Kentucky Scholars
Program. Next spring, eighth- and ninth-graders will sit with their
counselors to determine which courses they need to take to meet the program's
requirements. The Kentucky Scholars course of study focuses on more
difficult math and science subjects and requires students to study one
foreign language for two years. Eighth- and ninth-graders will be linked with business
and community leaders through the program as they consider which courses they
will take in high school. The program is strictly voluntary, and a lot of the
requirements have not been worked out yet. James said the program would
probably be very similar to that of Arkansas, requiring a 95-percent
attendance rate from ninth grade until graduation and no grade lower than a
C. After graduation, Kentucky Scholars will be recognized
for completing a more demanding curriculum with awards and special
ceremonies. James said the tougher courses will offer students an
opportunity to fine-tune their skills before college. Scholars in Texas and
Arkansas both reported higher scores on the ACT and SAT college entrance
exams. Studies have shown that taking tougher courses in high
school improves students' chances of getting college degrees. James said the
program improves students' understanding of the work force. "I think the students will realize what taking a
rigorous course load will mean to them," James said. "Not a lot of
kids get to trigonometry, but of those who do, 62.9 percent go on to get a
bachelor's degree." The program was made possible through a $300,000 federal
grant awarded to the Partnership for Kentucky Schools. Polly Marquette, a spokeswoman for Partnership for
Kentucky Schools, said the next step would be reaching out to get local
businesses involved. Businesses could offer students summer internships and
mentoring. Marquette hopes to have one business volunteer for every 50
students. Alan Stein, president of the Lexington Legends minor
league baseball team, said his organization would definitely be involved in
the program. "All of us have the responsibility and opportunity
to make our community better," Stein said. "If you succeed now and
challenge yourself, you can be better and so will the business
community." James said he hopes more businesses get involved because
the program offers everyone "much to look forward to." Reach Delano Massey at (859) 231-1455; 1-800-950-6397, Ext. 1455; or dmassey1@herald-leader.com. |
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New Science Curriculum Aims to Curb 'Animal
Rights' Influence (CNSNews.com) - A new science-based educational curriculum has been launched to
help elementary and middle school students appreciate the role of science in
their lives and to counter the animal rights-based curriculum known as humane
education. Benford's group is introducing a science-based
curriculum for 4th through 8th graders in 42 Ohio schools this fall. The
curriculum, which introduces students to scientific topics such as animal
laboratory testing, diseases, health, food safety and the development of
vaccines. The humane education curriculum's emphasis on
animal rights and welfare has prompted the Humane Society of the United
States and the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals to
support a new taxpayer-funded Humane Education Learning Charter School, which
received approval earlier this month in California's San Juan Unified School
District. The planned charter elementary school in
California will encourage students to "examine [their] cultural
assumptions regarding the inherent value of different species and nature"
and help them to "explore [their] responsibility toward earth and other
human and non-human beings," according to the California-based New
World Vision Institute, one of the supporters of the school's curriculum. OSERA's
curriculum advocates for animal laboratory testing and opposes animal rights,
placing it at odds with much of what humane education teaches. |
NSF Directs $216.3M Toward Math, Science Education
Improvement
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2003-2004 Year
Officers |