JulieLeung.com: a life told in tidepools

An article in yesterday’s Bainbridge Review described a new forensic science club at the high school.

They began their habit at age 12, two smart island girls drawn into the dark and mysterious world of murder and crime on the streets of Las Vegas.
Now 16, Genevieve Glahn and Kim Mathews think it’s time to form a bond with other teens who’ve become addicted to the TV show “C.S.I.: Crime Scene Investigation.”
In January, the pair will hold the debut meeting of the “Forensics/C.S.I.” club at Bainbridge High School, which will be part fan club, part hands-on instruction in forensic science.
The Thursday night melodrama on CBS is a huge hit among high school students, who try to to figure out the whodunit before the senior forensic sleuth Gil Grissom and his staff in the Las Vegas Criminalistics Bureau do, at the conclusion of each episode.
“It’s just one of those things you get caught up in,” Mathews said.
When she recently asked students in her physics class if they would be interested in joining the club, “every hand in the room shot up.”

I’ve never watched C.S.I. and I’m not a fan of tv, but I’m encouraged to hear of this new club at the high school. I think that forensic science could be a rich interdisciplinary class, combining all areas of science as well as drama and literature…I think this is a great idea and I hope it grows…

A recent article outlining a proposed $10 million levy for technology in the schools concerned me. I like the idea that each high schooler could have a laptop, although I wonder whether many students already have access to such machines at home in this relatively-affluent island community. However the proposed usage of computers in elementary education made me think twice

In the lower grades, the use of new projection and camera technology allows teachers to demonstrate techniques for writing, for example, which show the teacher’s hand holding a pencil correctly and writing script so that the whole class can see.
There also are technologies that can “read” stories to children and then “listen” while the child reads aloud, recording words a child stumbles over.
The teacher can download the words, and even listen to a recording of the child reading, if necessary.
At a time when teachers have little time to listen to students read aloud, the technology has been shown to improve reading score.

On the one hand, I appreciate any way that can help kids learn to read and write better. But I wonder what is happening in schools if teachers have little time to listen to students read aloud. I remember my teacher listening to me read aloud. And I try to listen to my daughter each day. Reading together takes up the majority of our “school” time at home. Many hours each week here are spent with children sitting in our laps and sharing stories. I hope that the local school district can improve education for children. However, I don’t believe a machine can substitute for a teacher’s attention.