Math And Science

Their desks pushed together in a working unit, the six second graders in Wendy Towle's class started on their project. They were asked to take the pile of 10 leaves placed in the center of the desks and find three categories to group them in. Their decision - three smooth, five bumpy and two rough. "See, the edges of this one are rough, but the back of this one is rough, too," said Rachel Taylor, 7. "And these are smooth, but you have to be careful because they break," said Laura Bacon, 7. As the second graders studied the leaves and then wrote down the corresponding numbers on a worksheet, they were learning science, math and critical thinking skills, Towle said.

The National Science Foundation yesterday formally awarded a $3.7 million grant to a Philadelphia education group to work with schools, colleges and the private sector to significantly increase the numbers of minorities in math and science fields. The local project, to be coordinated by the Philadelphia Renaissance in Science and Mathematics (PRISM), is part of an approximately $30 million national effort at eight sites. "If you look at the figures, there's a crying need for this," said Richard deLone, a consultant to PRISM.

The most common math and science tests given in U.S. schools measure low- level skills like memorization - not the higher-order reasoning and problem-solving abilities that most experts agree students need, according to a major study released yesterday by the National Science Foundation. Reliance on these tests virtually assures that those higher-order skills are not taught or are de-emphasized, especially in urban areas, the study found. The $1 million study, done by Boston College's Center for the Study of Testing, Evaluation and Educational Policy, concluded that efforts to increase math and science competence cannot succeed unless tests and textbooks are significantly updated.

Even if people such as Gerty Cori, the first woman to receive the Nobel Prize for medicine, and Maria Goeppert-Mayer, a Nobel Prize winner for physics, did pave the way, Michelle Dickman will tell you that the path to a career in science is still a bit bumpy. Especially if you're a woman, said Dickman, valedictorian of Maple Shade High School's Class of 1990 and now a junior majoring in biology at Trenton State College. That's one reason that Dickman volunteered to lead a workshop in environmental science as part of Burlington County College's Futures Unlimited, a conference Friday designed to expose the county's girls to math and science careers.

Angel Hambrecht likes math and science and is pondering a job in biomedical engineering, but not many of her female friends at West Deptford High School, where she is a junior, share those interests. "It's different. It's kind of scary," she said, explaining why some girls avoid math and science. On Saturday, however, she was surrounded by about 135 other female high school students who think it's cool to talk about polymers, the aerodynamics of roller coasters, and the similarities between chocolate and asphalt at Widener University's Engineering Mini-Camp for High School Girls.

American students are making some progress toward national educational goals but rank at or near the bottom in math and science in comparison with students from four other countries, a national panel reported yesterday. The National Education Goals Panel, reporting on progress toward a set of ambitious goals set two years ago by President Bush and state governors, said the nation "must travel a tremendous distance" to meet them and to match international academic standards. "Our students are not world-class, and we recognize it," said South Carolina Gov. Carroll A. Campbell Jr., chairman of the panel that issued the 245-page report.

In an attempt to encourage girls in middle schools to continue their studies in math and science, the Makefield Area Branch of the American Association of University Women put the spotlight on several young women who have excelled in those disciplines. Twenty-two seventh and eighth graders were recognized at a special dinner during the school year. They were selected by teachers in the Council Rock, Pennsbury, Morrisville and Neshaminy School Districts. "The dinner gives them a chance to relate to other girls who are succeeding.

Temple University will receive a $2.4 million grant, one of 12 in the nation, to encourage and prepare more of its math and science majors to teach at the middle and high school level. The money comes from the recently formed National Math and Science Initiative (NMSI), based in Dallas, which has been charged with funding the replication of successful programs to improve math and science education in the United States. The effort follows a 2005 national report that estimated that in 1999 and 2000, more than two-thirds of students in some grades were taught some math and science courses by educators who had not majored in those subjects or had no certification in them.

How times have changed. A serious discussion about career goals requiring technical math and science backgrounds did not used to be a likely topic for a group of seventh-grade girls, but that is exactly what this group was talking about. More than 225 seventh-grade girls from Montgomery, Bucks and Philadelphia County schools turned out Tuesday for "Math Options '92" at Penn State's Ogontz campus in Abington. The program was sponsored by Women and Mathematics and Penn State. Math Options brings seventh-grade girls together with women who work in jobs that require them to have a background in math or science.

After noticing a lack of interest in math and science courses among students at Rancocas Valley Regional High School, school officials are planning to revamp the studies to encourage higher levels of learning. Henry G. Cram, district superintendent, said the school was applying for $50,000 under the Governor's Grants for Excellence in Science and Mathematics program for a project officials were calling "Concentrated Core Science and Mathematics. " The project is designed to use existing personnel combined with "external expertise" to teach students useful courses in both subjects and "will hopefully inspire them to move forward in those areas and seek higher-level courses," according to Cram.

WHEN the Community College of Philadelphia acquired the old U.S. Mint building on Spring Garden Street, one of the people who made the move happen was Robert Samuel King. Robert, a college board member since 1968, was chairman of the board in 1972 when the school moved into the great stone fortress of a building that had been a Philly landmark since 1901. "Robert made a difference in the lives of many, and provided opportunity for them to access affordable education," his family said.

WHEN THROWING around the we're-like-brothers designation, some guys are way too loosey-goosey. Not Jeffon Powell. He lives in South Philly with the family of teammate Will Williams, and for the last 2 weeks, he has been the happiest guy in the house. Powell, a 6-5, 200-pound junior forward, and Williams, a senior, deep-sub guard who's 10 inches shorter and weighs the same, are basketball players for Math, Civics & Sciences Charter, the defending PIAA Class A state champion. Will the Mighty Elephants return on Friday to Penn State's Bryce Jordan Center to defend their title?

The Rev. Helen MacLauchlan Powers, 94, a minister and administrator for the American Baptist Churches USA, died on Friday, Jan. 20, at her home in Rydal Park, the retirement community in Abington. Mrs. Powers began part-time studies for the ministry at what is now Palmer Theological Seminary at Eastern University, graduating in 1962, a daughter, Jessica Greenfield, said in a Tuesday interview. That was the year she was ordained a minister in what is now American Baptist Churches USA. She worked as an administrator at the Valley Forge headquarters of what is now American Baptist International Ministries from 1962 to 1979, her daughter said.

When a basketball team turns the ball over 21 times, shoots 40 percent from the foul line, and lets a large lead dwindle, that team should probably be a bit alarmed. Unless the name Chester runs across the front of the jersey. Then, it seems, all those negatives can be shrugged off. In fact, you can still win a game despite a whole bunch of sloppiness. In an encounter between reigning state champions, Class AAAA champ Chester withstood Class A titlist Math, Civics & Sciences, 64-52, Saturday at Cheltenham as part of Coaches vs. Cancer event.

On the campus of Cheyney University, a school that is no stranger to financial hardship, professor Adedoyin M. Adeyiga is a rainmaker. The African-born chemistry professor, whose father is a king in Nigeria, has secured more than $5 million in grants for programming to increase minority participation in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). An additional $1.35 million is pending. Adeyiga, or "Dr. A. " as he is known on campus, works furiously to stop students from shunning a subject and career path that many consider scary and intimidating.

Mayim Bialik's 2008 doctorate in neuroscience from UCLA may give her more access than most actors would have to the world of Amy Farrah Fowler, her uber-geek character on CBS' "The Big Bang Theory. " But if you're thinking the former "Blossom" star is just one of those lucky people to whom math and science come easy, think again. As an adolescent, "I gave up on science," Bialik recalled. "I went to very competitive academic junior high and high school programs and I think by the end of seventh grade I knew that I could never be a scientist.

While many young people embraced sports or arts and crafts this summer, one group spent its days in math and science classes or on field trips to such places as a helicopter museum and a highway research center. For four weeks, 20 youths ages 12 to 14 participated in the Summer Transportation Institute at Lincoln University, a program designed to interest minority students in careers in transportation. "The goal is to make sure to expose them to all modes of transportation - land, water, or air," said Robert Allen, a Lincoln professor who has run the courses there for six years.

Tyreek Riddick is not your normal teenager. As in, the kind who develops a passion for something 1 month and can barely remember what it was the next. For 8 years now, almost without fail, Riddick performed the same ritual before his basketball games. It involves music. It doesn't involve 50 Cent or Jay-Z or any other rapper. "I always listen to 'Dance With My Father' by Luther Vandross," Riddick said. "That helps me remember my grandfather. I take that sadness and transfer it into heart on the court.

It has been more than seven years since the stroke-related death of his grandfather Charlie, but Tyreek Riddick continues to play in his memory. "He was like a father figure for me," Riddick said. "Whenever my mom went out, I stayed with him. He would take me to Sixers games, out to eat, things like that. On the court, I try to turn my sadness from losing him into toughness. " Riddick, a senior wing guard for Math, Civics & Sciences, is called a "shooting assassin" by one assistant coach.

Some stars shine from the instant they pick up a basketball. From the very beginning, they can score 40 points with one eye closed. Probably still notch 20 while blindfolded. Make snappy passes as easy as breathe. Even grab loads of rebounds, no matter their height. And then there's Thomas Moore, a 5-11, 165-pound senior point guard at Math, Civics & Sciences Charter. Not only did he struggle in his early days as a player (term used loosely), he was so incompetent he barely got near the court.