What would Galileo Say?
For those who are hoping for positive results from the Galileo School for Math & Science in the old East Middle School building in D11, I would suggest that you lower your expectations.
According to the Gazette on 27 September, Daniel Pink, an author who emphasizes feelings over learning, was in attendance at the grand opening of the math and science magnet. He was quoted as saying, "If you can write down the steps and it has a right answer, it's gone." This seems like a very odd comment to make at the opening of a math and science school. Despite opinions to the contrary, math has answers, and coincidently, so does science. Further, both of these fields involve specific processes and steps to analyze data and to determine solutions to problems. If the staff of Galileo believe as Pink believes, this school is doomed to failure.
Pink is the hero of anti-parent politician Mike (hey wife, go steal some signs for me) Merrifield, the Manitou Springs relativist. He believes that the solution to our education woes is to declare that there is no longer any right or wrong and that all that matters is that students feel good about themselves after they spend their days in school being told that feeling good is more important than learning. Or, if one happens to have been a female student at Coronado when Mike was the music teacher, all that mattered was time spent in the music room. Math and science are topics from the past. With calculators, says, Merrifield, there is no reason to put our dear children through the anxiety of having to learn math. Sadly, Merrifield has great sway over D11, so chances are, Galileo staff likely will follow the thinking of Pink, much to the detriment of Galileo students.
In a strange irony, Galileo was well know for pioneering the use of quantitative experiments whose results could be analyzed with mathematical precision. It looks to me as if he thought that math and science were processes that consist of steps and right answers.
There is no doubt that the arts are an important component of a solid education. To declare that math and science are dead, (which, sadly, is a true statement in America's public schools), is to encourage the further dismantling of an education system that continues to threaten the future of this nation.
Let us now turn to the mission statement of the Galileo school to determine how the school staff plans to succeed. The mission, as posted on the D11 Galileo web site, is as follows: “The mission of Galileo School of Math and Science is to establish an integrated, creative, technology-enriched, and individual talents abilities, skills, creativity, and potential of its students while promoting cultural responsiveness. This mission will be accomplished through academically rigorous, standards-based educational programs in the context of discipline, respect, and a high degree of community involvement.”
If you are able to put meaning behind that mission statement, you are probably over-qualified for the school. I suppose D11 never did claim thatGalileo was to be an English literacy or grammar magnet.
If you think the English is bad on the web page, wait until you see the Latin. Under a sub-topic titled “What We Offer” is this paragraph: “Ut lacreet dolore magna aliquam sic semper fi tyrannis erat volutpat. Wisi enim ad minim veniam. Dolore eu sata sfeugiat. Ipsum lorem vei illum sat dolor euis mod tincidunt vei auminiure dolor in esse. Ultaceet dolore magna si napi. Wisi e nim ad minim veniam, quis nos In a tsvulpate velt esse meleste at semper manet sola. UT lacreet dolore magna aliquam sic semp fi tyrannis erat volutpat. Wisi enim ad minim veniam. Dolore eu sata sfeugiat."
Immediately next to this paragraph is another titled: “Where we Deliver.” Under this heading is the exact same paragraph as above. This page can be found at http://www.d11.org/GALILEO/aboutus.htm.
Such high hopes, such an embarrassing start. Typical D11.
According to the Gazette on 27 September, Daniel Pink, an author who emphasizes feelings over learning, was in attendance at the grand opening of the math and science magnet. He was quoted as saying, "If you can write down the steps and it has a right answer, it's gone." This seems like a very odd comment to make at the opening of a math and science school. Despite opinions to the contrary, math has answers, and coincidently, so does science. Further, both of these fields involve specific processes and steps to analyze data and to determine solutions to problems. If the staff of Galileo believe as Pink believes, this school is doomed to failure.
Pink is the hero of anti-parent politician Mike (hey wife, go steal some signs for me) Merrifield, the Manitou Springs relativist. He believes that the solution to our education woes is to declare that there is no longer any right or wrong and that all that matters is that students feel good about themselves after they spend their days in school being told that feeling good is more important than learning. Or, if one happens to have been a female student at Coronado when Mike was the music teacher, all that mattered was time spent in the music room. Math and science are topics from the past. With calculators, says, Merrifield, there is no reason to put our dear children through the anxiety of having to learn math. Sadly, Merrifield has great sway over D11, so chances are, Galileo staff likely will follow the thinking of Pink, much to the detriment of Galileo students.
In a strange irony, Galileo was well know for pioneering the use of quantitative experiments whose results could be analyzed with mathematical precision. It looks to me as if he thought that math and science were processes that consist of steps and right answers.
There is no doubt that the arts are an important component of a solid education. To declare that math and science are dead, (which, sadly, is a true statement in America's public schools), is to encourage the further dismantling of an education system that continues to threaten the future of this nation.
Let us now turn to the mission statement of the Galileo school to determine how the school staff plans to succeed. The mission, as posted on the D11 Galileo web site, is as follows: “The mission of Galileo School of Math and Science is to establish an integrated, creative, technology-enriched, and individual talents abilities, skills, creativity, and potential of its students while promoting cultural responsiveness. This mission will be accomplished through academically rigorous, standards-based educational programs in the context of discipline, respect, and a high degree of community involvement.”
If you are able to put meaning behind that mission statement, you are probably over-qualified for the school. I suppose D11 never did claim thatGalileo was to be an English literacy or grammar magnet.
If you think the English is bad on the web page, wait until you see the Latin. Under a sub-topic titled “What We Offer” is this paragraph: “Ut lacreet dolore magna aliquam sic semper fi tyrannis erat volutpat. Wisi enim ad minim veniam. Dolore eu sata sfeugiat. Ipsum lorem vei illum sat dolor euis mod tincidunt vei auminiure dolor in esse. Ultaceet dolore magna si napi. Wisi e nim ad minim veniam, quis nos In a tsvulpate velt esse meleste at semper manet sola. UT lacreet dolore magna aliquam sic semp fi tyrannis erat volutpat. Wisi enim ad minim veniam. Dolore eu sata sfeugiat."
Immediately next to this paragraph is another titled: “Where we Deliver.” Under this heading is the exact same paragraph as above. This page can be found at http://www.d11.org/GALILEO/aboutus.htm.
Such high hopes, such an embarrassing start. Typical D11.
posted by Craig Cox | 4:44 AM
3 Comments:
I have never been to your town. I have no idea who the people are in your post. But just by the language you use, I can tell that your post is full of baseless innuendo. You say one Daniel Pink "was quoted as saying..." Quoted by whom? Where? Is there a link to a news story? If there is, why didn't you include it? And are you charging someone with stealing campaign signs? Again, what is the basis for this allegation?
You may have serious points to make and serious views to publicize, but when you fill your post with unsubstantiated allegations like these, your credibility is zero.
mark,
Thanks for taking time to visit from out of town. The link to the quote is at www.gazette.com/articles/school_41078___article.html/students_work.html - 57k - 2008-09-27.
If you would rather not use the link, you can swing your eyes waaaaay up to the preceding sentence where I use the term "Gazette" and Spetember 27th, and that should clue you in as to where to find the quote. When one doesn't take the time to read the whole article before making silly statements, one has zero credibility.
The sign stealing issue is one with which people out here are familiar, and they saw it on TV, so no baseless inuendo there.
Your right you’re out of “town” many of us here are clued in already to the daily stupidity of the school boards and administrators that constantly endear themselves to the public while the other hand is giving itself pay raises that are on one set of books that the “public” does not have access to. The revolving door administrators that have come from other districts have just been practicing their slight of hand at the cost of other tax payers and district 11 is just one of these problems in Colorado. The priceless thing about this blog is that you remove the names and it almost templates over many school boards and administrators in the Colorado area. The education system is really a small circle and the lateral communication leaves little to chance and they don’t have problems naming names.
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