Comments on: Teacher Levi Simons: No reason why you can't get meaningful scientific data from 14-year-olds

By: Michael W.

Michael W. — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 03:12:00 +0000

I want to take tricorder readings oh his mullet. I think I may be able to mind meld with it.

By: hassan-i-sabbah

hassan-i-sabbah — Sat, 17 Sep 2011 20:01:00 +0000

Physics teacher looks like saxaphone player shock!

By: Ariel Levi Simons

Ariel Levi Simons — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 18:29:00 +0000

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=otppMltEGc4

By: Ariel Levi Simons

Ariel Levi Simons — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 18:29:00 +0000

It’s the apprenticeship model. Now everyone put on your pointy felt hats, we’re going to learn how to blacksmith!

By: Ariel Levi Simons

Ariel Levi Simons — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 18:28:00 +0000

Oh, the open source stuff is free, but it’s gets grouped together with the hardware when the projects are discussed. Thanks for the link though!
Speaking of which, http://www.donorschoose.org/donors/proposal.html?id=583642 . Forgive my asking, but…..

By: Uncle Geo

Uncle Geo — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 14:29:00 +0000

Here’s a list Levi:
http://www.wikimatrix.org/

By: Uncle Geo

Uncle Geo — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 14:27:00 +0000

Purchasing wiki software? Why? Open source is free. Mediawiki, Tikiwiki and others. As schools become increasingly crippled by ideologues open source will have to be part of the mix.

By: Kevin 'Bynk' Bingham

Kevin 'Bynk' Bingham — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 13:24:00 +0000

I wonder what kind of checks they have to keep the results scientifically rigorous. These are 14 year olds we are talking about.

By: Chris Lites

Chris Lites — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 13:18:00 +0000

While 2000 dollars might not seem a lot to us, for a guy like Levi, back in the 1980s, it’s quite a windfall. He could buy several Atari 2600s with that kind of dough. Yes, with the faux wood paneling too.

By: Eric Hunt

Eric Hunt — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 13:07:00 +0000

@google-83cc6f8949af17b0661be6f86cb90580:disqus - so all learning that possibly could take away a job from someone further along the learning path should be verboten?

What about research-grade work conducted by hobbyists in their field? Astronomy would be way behind if only professional astronomers were allowed to contribute.

I guess if your #1 priority, above all, is making sure everyone has a job, then I might could at least wrap my brain around your position.

By: Private Private

Private Private — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 13:01:00 +0000

Hm. Using kids to perform environmental testing that elsewhere would be performed by Env. techs and GIS grads. Brilliant! It’s not child labour if it’s for Science, right?

By: Lobster

Lobster — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 12:48:00 +0000

They’re certainly easier to trick into the lab, and they’re smaller so it’s easier to get them in their restraints. It’s a lot easier to SCIENCE when they’re not squirming around, making you cut the wrong thing or drop that baboon heart.

By: Mike List

Mike List — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 10:30:00 +0000

anybody who is capable of independent thought is capable of new/innovative scientific data. the trick is to sic ‘em on the right problem or concept. kids, especially.

By: dw_funk

dw_funk — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 08:29:00 +0000

Having a good teacher makes all the difference. I practically failed my way through organic chemistry, but because we had an awesome high school teacher, I knew how to do lab reports after a semester-long water quality project.

Good teachers don’t just need raises. They deserve some effing medals.

By: Colin Rosenthal

Colin Rosenthal — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 07:27:00 +0000

“Teacher Levi Simons: No reason why you can’t get meaningful scientific data from 14-year-olds if you dissect them carefully”

Fixed that for ya.

By: Atrum

Atrum — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 05:55:00 +0000

“No reason why you can’t get meaningful scientific data from 14 year-olds” is something I can totally imagine Cave Johnson saying.

By: nosehat

nosehat — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 04:31:00 +0000

There’s no reason why you can’t get meaningful scientific data from 14-year olds

Do you mean things like: What is the chemical composition of those 14-year olds? What is the air-speed velocity of an unladen 14-year old?Things like that?

By: wss233

wss233 — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 03:45:00 +0000

Hey buddy, why don’t you shut up. Dude can wear his hair however he wants.

By: Wade Bortz

Wade Bortz — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 03:18:00 +0000

F-ing A man! Yeah, they could have freed up a few more dollars for this stuff, but hey, it’s not like Levi is paying them huge salaries. With a little luck, maybe some more funding will come his way in the future, maybe even because of the media attention. I can only hope my son gets a teacher as awesome as Levi at some point in his education.

By: SedanChair

SedanChair — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 02:39:00 +0000

He better hope them kids don’t get too scientific, or they’ll figure out he’s a time traveler from 1981

By: scionofgrace

scionofgrace — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 02:23:00 +0000

[curmudgeonlygrumble] In MY day, we used test tubes and PH strips, none of this fancy-schmancy GPS stuff! And we were only sixth-graders! [grumblegetoffmylawngrumble]

(I had some great science classes. In eighth grade, the class everyone wanted to be in was Aviation, where you got to build and shoot a model rocket, and fly a Cessna. When I was fourteen, I got to buzz my house!)

By: Spitty Sumo

Spitty Sumo — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 02:10:00 +0000

” a one-day-a-week school for the gifted in northwest florida (“The
Learning Center” of Okaloosa County), where you could take courses
ranging from the humanties/theater, to hard science, and the arts.
(Even a class on etiquette, grooming, and dancing).”

oh, lucky y’all. :/ seriously. here where i live, we just got shoved into whatever room the other (and much larger) end of special ed decided they didn’t need at that particular moment. the teachers did a wonderful job with what we had, which was more or less zero resources. seriously, for several years we met in a changing room adjacent to the stage, which was located in the cafeteria. no special outings, field trips, anything like that. but we *did* get to dissect frogs once, which was considered a Very Big Deal and Very Extravagant on the part of our school.

By: Spitty Sumo

Spitty Sumo — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 02:04:00 +0000

” He envisions projects in which researchers at all levels, from high
school to grad school, can do field work with little more than a cell
phone to contribute to ever-expanding bodies of knowledge.”

my admiration for science is matched by a nearly-learning-disabled-level incapacity for math — thus my inability to pursue anything science-y degree-wise — so i’m in love with this concept.

By: Bucket

Bucket — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 02:00:00 +0000

Buddy, just play it cool, man. Don’t turn around. Kenny G is sneaking up behind you. I said don’t turn around!

By: jlargentaye

jlargentaye — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 01:33:00 +0000

only a $2000 grant? This country has really abandoned its own education T_T

By: Michael Johnson

Michael Johnson — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 01:31:00 +0000

I (and my wife) attended a one-day-a-week school for the gifted in northwest florida (“The Learning Center” of Okaloosa County), where you could take courses ranging from the humanties/theater, to hard science, and the arts. (Even a class on etiquette, grooming, and dancing). I took classes there in botany than held me over all the way through college botany 101, oceanography, and archeology.

Having done a supervised dig and transect surveys in Archeology (6th grade), as well as sand and current studies in Oceanography… we occasionally found something interesting enough (with enough detail) to interest the local university to come and investigate – I feel I can say the following with a measure of confidence:

Kids can generate good science if they have trusting, motivated and patient adults willing to teach it to them. They can astound you with their capabilities if you help/allow them to do so.

Finding said adults is the hard part.