Schools Advised to Reject Middle Class

Professor John White, a member of a committee established to advise on curriculum changes in the U.K., will explain the suggestion that 'middle class' academic subjects should be removed from the national curriculum in junior high schools.

Children should no longer be taught traditional subjects at school because they are "middle-class" creations, the advisory panel concluded. Lessons should instead cover a series of personal skills.
Pupils would no longer study history, geography and science but learn skills such as energy-saving and civic responsibility through projects and themes.     ..the full article..
Energy conservation is a meaningful unit within a broader science course; ecology and conservation belong in geography; civic responsibility lessons are a by-product of studying history. It's necessary to understand how the past influences the present and predicts the future.

Available at chapters.indigo.ca

Geography, history, science and the arts are underfunded in education now - partly because funding levels consider student achievement on standardized tests. The standard tests focus on English and Math, yet an entire generation struggles with arithmetic, grammar, reading comprehension and writing. The panel's report claims that 'the aims [of changing the curriculum] include fostering a model pupil who "values personal relationships, is a responsible and caring citizen, is entrepreneurial, able to manage risk and committed to sustainable development".'

I support these goals, but I don't understand how removing social sciences is going to achieve them; however, I see there may be a buyer for my proposed course on Communication for Youth.

Among the units covered in my suggested class would be Communicating in Spontaneous Situations (Small Talk) and Conventions of Conversation.
The course would cover initiating, participating in and ending conversations. We'd discuss using humor, irony and sarcasm effectively, as well as the importance of thinking before speaking.

I can't decide if Communication for Youth will be a prerequisite or co-requisite of my proposed Common Sense 101.
I'll see what Professor White and his pals think.

Tags: [Prof. John White]  [Curriculum Review Committee]
["Middle Class" Subjects]
[Mark Bauerlein]  [The Dumbest Generation]

Happy Birthday to the World

Anglican Bishop James Ussher, "the author of the book frequently described as the greatest history book ever written", concluded the world was created Oct. 23, 4004 B.C. – making it exactly 6,010 years-old this week.

In the 1650's, Ussher wrote Annals of the World. "It's the history of the world from the Garden of Eden to the fall of Jerusalem in AD 70." The book integrates biblical history with secular chronicles. MasterBooks commissioned the updating of the material from the 18^th century to present-day; and the translation from its original ancient Latin to English.

The basis for Ussher's date is that ancient civilizations began the calendar year at the harvest. He uses the first Sunday following autumnal equinox to start the year. Because the calendar has been manipulated over time, we now mark the autumnal equinox on September 21.

World, I'm sorry these birthday wishes come late. I suggest we mark your 6010^th birthday the same as all the other years - we'll burn fossil fuels creating pollution that warms the earth and contributes to climate variability.

See your candles in this picture of the earth at night? Remember to make a wish before you blow them out.

Tags: [James Ussher]  [Annals of the World]
[MasterBooks]  [World's Birthday]  [Julian & Gregorian Calendars]
[Global Warming]  [Climate Change]

The Changing Climate of Parenting

Parenting Through the Decades

Decade	Theme	Expert	Reward	Conse- quence
1950s	Strong Values/ Firm Leadership	Dr. Benjamin Spock	Allowance	Extra chores like wash out the garbage cans
1980s	Put children first	Saul Scheidlinger	Psychotherapy	Psychotherapy
1990s	The child's sense of self	Dr. Barbara Colorosa	Spend quality time together recog- nizing the accomplishment	Reward the effort made attempting to meet expectations
2000s	Nurture Nature	Dr. David Suzuki	Select from list of ethical / green choices++	Deduct/Withhold Carbon Credits

⁺⁺ Green Choice Rewards may include:

Jewelry from natural beads	Organic cotton clothing
Clothing purchased second-hand	Eco Jeans (organic material)
Shoes with treads of recycled tires	Anything from Bono's fair-trade-focused fashion label
School bag made from recycled inner tubes

Some suggested music: Dave Matthews, Alicia Keys, Melissa Etheridge, Jack Johnson, The Beastie Boys (especially Mike D), John Legend, Ludacris, Sting, U2


Tags: [Parenting] [Dr. Spock] [Barbara Colorosa]
[David Suzuki] [Climate Change] [Carbon Credits]
[Brushfire Records] [Tibetan Freedom Concert] [Fair Trade]
[Bono] [An Inconvenient Truth]

It's Not Rocket Science

On August 7, 2007 NASA will launch its 22^nd mission to the International Space Station.

Space Shuttle Endeavour was rolled out of assembly to the launchpad at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida this week. NASA celebrated the arrival of Endeavour and welcomed visitors to KSC with a banner in front of the launchpad exclaiming

The problem is that "the orbiter is named after HM Bark Endeavour, the ship commanded by 18th century explorer James Cook; the name also honored Endeavour, the Command Module of Apollo 15. This is why the name is spelled in the British English manner." Read Shuttle's Name Misspelled . Endeavour's mission is expected to last 11 days.

That florist's window sign that offers
'HELLIUM BALOON ARRANGEMENTS'
doesn't seem so bad now.

Another CL Life Lesson Proven True: PDPS (Public Displays of Poor Spelling) are embarrassing and should be avoided. Ask any NASA engineer or scientist how he feels about PDPS; I'm sure you'll find he agrees.

Related Reading: Sadly Mistaken

Tags: [NASA] [Kennedy Space Center]
[Endeavor] [Endeavour]
[International Space Station]

[James Cook] [Commander Scott J. Kelly]

[Canadian Space Agency] [Richard Mastracchio]
[Dave Williams]

In Other Anthropology News

Headline from LiveScience and MSNBC:

Residents of Ancient Pompeii Liked Fast Food

Quick history lesson:
Pompeii was destroyed by a violent eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 A.D. It was accidentally re-discovered in 1748. Pompeii is one of the richest anthropological sites because it was destroyed so quickly. Scientists are focusing on the relics in one neighborhood to better understand day-to-day living in the 1^st century.

Back to the story -

Archaeologist Penelope Allison (University of Leicester) describes some of her team's findings:

There was an absence of formal dishware sets but an abundance of small
grilling vessels (like barbecues) found in the residences studied, indicating
that people were eating-and-running on the go.

The more things change, the more they stay the same.
Everything old is new again.
[Pompeii]    [Penelope Allison]     [Archaeology]

Stumbling on Melons *

Dug up from The Canadian Press (June 1, 2007) :

Archaeologists in Japan unearthed the world's oldest melon. It was intact, the flesh still attached to the rind, after 2100 years. The Research Institute for Humanity & Nature in Kyoto used radiocarbon testing to determine the age of the fruit.

Researcher Shuji Yamazaki explains: the melon might have been so well-preserved because it was in a vacuum-packed state in a wet layer below the ground, an environment hostile to micro-organisms that might otherwise have broken down the remains.

The ancient Shimongo settlement was built near water and protected by moats, circa 300 BC to A.D. 300.

So, it looks like even 2100 years ago, people liked to have melon after they swim...Wayne didn't start that!

All I can say is that my life is pretty plain....

* Andrew Marvell (1621-1678): "The nectarine, and curious peach, / Into my hands themselves do reach; / Stumbling on melons, as I pass, / Ensnared with flowers, I fall on grass."


[Oldest Melon Discovered] [Blind Melon]
[Shuji Yamazaki] [Melon Salad]