Google Groups no longer supports new Usenet posts or subscriptions. Historical content remains viewable.
Dismiss

What’s a Science Teacher to Do?

0 views
Skip to first unread message

AGWFacts

unread,
Feb 7, 2012, 10:03:20 PM2/7/12
to
What’s a Science Teacher to Do?

http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/02/06/whats-a-science-teacher-to-do/?src=recg

February 6, 2012, 3:41 pm
By ANDREW C. REVKIN

It used to be sex ed that got science teachers into challenging
situations once in awhile. Evolution, too, of course.
Increasingly, the “C” word, climate, is creating challenges for
educators trying to explore the heat-trapping properties of carbon
dioxide and the implications for climate as concentrations of CO2
and other greenhouse gases rise. Here’s an excerpt from a post at
Real Climate that asks, "So What's a Teacher to Do?"

"Imagine you’re a middle-school science teacher, and you get to
the section of the course where you're to talk about climate
change. You mention the 'C' words, and two students walk out of
the class.

"Or you mention global warming and a hand shoots up.

"'Mrs. Brown! My dad says global warming is a hoax!'

"Or you come to school one morning and the principal wants to see
you because a parent of one of your students has accused you of
political bias because you taught what scientists agree about:
that the Earth is getting warmer, and human actions have had an
important role in this warming.

"Or you pick up the newspaper and see that your state legislature
is considering a bill that declares that accepted sciences like
global warming (and evolution, of course) are 'controversial
issues' that require 'alternatives' to be taught.

http://www.seattlepi.com/local/article/Federal-Way-schools-restrict-Gore-film-1224947.php

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/blog/2011/may/17/global-warming-school-teaching-controversy/

http://ncse.com/news/2010/03/evolution-global-warming-redux-005359

"Incidents like these have happened in one or more states, and
they are likely to continue to happen. Teachers are encountering
pushback from many directions as they try to teach global warming
and other climate science topics."

http://www.realclimate.org/index.php/archives/2012/02/so-whats-a-teacher-to-do/

http://ncse.com/about/speakers#scott

The post (read the rest here) is by Eugenie C. Scott, the
executive director of the National Center for Science Education,
which was originally focused on keeping evolution in public school
curricula but has added a substantial climate focus to its work.

So, to your mind, what is a teacher to do?

There’s more in this question in my recent post on "Climate in
Classrooms."

http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/01/18/climate-in-classrooms/


--
"I'd like the globe to warm another degree or two or three... and CO2 levels
to increase perhaps another 100ppm - 300ppm." -- cato...@sympatico.ca

Tunderbar

unread,
Feb 7, 2012, 10:05:40 PM2/7/12
to
On Feb 7, 9:03 pm, AGWFacts <AGWFa...@ipcc.org> wrote:
> What’s a Science Teacher to Do?
>
> http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/02/06/whats-a-science-teacher-...
>
> February 6, 2012, 3:41 pm
> By ANDREW C. REVKIN
>
> It used to be sex ed that got science teachers into challenging
> situations once in awhile. Evolution, too, of course.
> Increasingly, the “C” word, climate, is creating challenges for
> educators trying to explore the heat-trapping properties of carbon
> dioxide and the implications for climate as concentrations of CO2
> and other greenhouse gases rise. Here’s an excerpt from a post at
> Real Climate that asks, "So What's a Teacher to Do?"
>
> "Imagine you’re a middle-school science teacher, and you get to
> the section of the course where you're to talk about climate
> change. You mention the 'C' words, and two students walk out of
> the class.
>
> "Or you mention global warming and a hand shoots up.
>
> "'Mrs. Brown! My dad says global warming is a hoax!'
>
> "Or you come to school one morning and the principal wants to see
> you because a parent of one of your students has accused you of
> political bias because you taught what scientists agree about:
> that the Earth is getting warmer, and human actions have had an
> important role in this warming.
>
> "Or you pick up the newspaper and see that your state legislature
> is considering a bill that declares that accepted sciences like
> global warming (and evolution, of course) are 'controversial
> issues' that require 'alternatives' to be taught.
>
> http://www.seattlepi.com/local/article/Federal-Way-schools-restrict-G...
>
> http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/blog/2011/may/17/global-warming...
>
> http://ncse.com/news/2010/03/evolution-global-warming-redux-005359
>
> "Incidents like these have happened in one or more states, and
> they are likely to continue to happen. Teachers are encountering
> pushback from many directions as they try to teach global warming
> and other climate science topics."
>
> http://www.realclimate.org/index.php/archives/2012/02/so-whats-a-teac...
>
> http://ncse.com/about/speakers#scott
>
> The post (read the rest here) is by Eugenie C. Scott, the
> executive director of the National Center for Science Education,
> which was originally focused on keeping evolution in public school
> curricula but has added a substantial climate focus to its work.
>
> So, to your mind, what is a teacher to do?
>
> There’s more in this question in my recent post on "Climate in
> Classrooms."
>
> http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/01/18/climate-in-classrooms/
>
> --
> "I'd like the globe to warm another degree or two or three...  and CO2 levels
> to increase perhaps another 100ppm - 300ppm." -- caton...@sympatico.ca

The teachers who teach the agw are lucky they've got a job still.

Peter Webb

unread,
Feb 7, 2012, 10:12:51 PM2/7/12
to

"AGWFacts" <AGWF...@ipcc.org> wrote in message
news:9ap3j716i1bgm6e4f...@4ax.com...
> What's a Science Teacher to Do?
>
> http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/02/06/whats-a-science-teacher-to-do/?src=recg
>
> February 6, 2012, 3:41 pm
> By ANDREW C. REVKIN
>
> It used to be sex ed that got science teachers into challenging
> situations once in awhile. Evolution, too, of course.
> Increasingly, the "C" word, climate, is creating challenges for
> educators trying to explore the heat-trapping properties of carbon
> dioxide and the implications for climate as concentrations of CO2
> and other greenhouse gases rise. Here's an excerpt from a post at
> Real Climate that asks, "So What's a Teacher to Do?"
>
> "Imagine you're a middle-school science teacher, and you get to
> the section of the course where you're to talk about climate
> change. You mention the 'C' words, and two students walk out of
> the class.
>
> "Or you mention global warming and a hand shoots up.
>
> "'Mrs. Brown! My dad says global warming is a hoax!'
>

If you are incapable of making your students believe something you say,
either:

1) What you are saying is wrong, or
2) You aren't a very good teacher.


Igor

unread,
Feb 8, 2012, 9:29:20 AM2/8/12
to
Your English teacher probably should have been fired long ago.

Tunderbar

unread,
Feb 8, 2012, 10:00:10 AM2/8/12
to
On Feb 7, 9:03 pm, AGWFacts <AGWFa...@ipcc.org> wrote:
> What’s a Science Teacher to Do?
>
> http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/02/06/whats-a-science-teacher-...
>
> February 6, 2012, 3:41 pm
> By ANDREW C. REVKIN
>
> It used to be sex ed that got science teachers into challenging
> situations once in awhile. Evolution, too, of course.
> Increasingly, the “C” word, climate, is creating challenges for
> educators trying to explore the heat-trapping properties of carbon
> dioxide and the implications for climate as concentrations of CO2
> and other greenhouse gases rise. Here’s an excerpt from a post at
> Real Climate that asks, "So What's a Teacher to Do?"
>
> "Imagine you’re a middle-school science teacher, and you get to
> the section of the course where you're to talk about climate
> change. You mention the 'C' words, and two students walk out of
> the class.
>
> "Or you mention global warming and a hand shoots up.
>
> "'Mrs. Brown! My dad says global warming is a hoax!'
>
> "Or you come to school one morning and the principal wants to see
> you because a parent of one of your students has accused you of
> political bias because you taught what scientists agree about:
> that the Earth is getting warmer, and human actions have had an
> important role in this warming.
>
> "Or you pick up the newspaper and see that your state legislature
> is considering a bill that declares that accepted sciences like
> global warming (and evolution, of course) are 'controversial
> issues' that require 'alternatives' to be taught.
>
> http://www.seattlepi.com/local/article/Federal-Way-schools-restrict-G...
>
> http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/blog/2011/may/17/global-warming...
>
> http://ncse.com/news/2010/03/evolution-global-warming-redux-005359
>
> "Incidents like these have happened in one or more states, and
> they are likely to continue to happen. Teachers are encountering
> pushback from many directions as they try to teach global warming
> and other climate science topics."
>
> http://www.realclimate.org/index.php/archives/2012/02/so-whats-a-teac...
>
> http://ncse.com/about/speakers#scott
>
> The post (read the rest here) is by Eugenie C. Scott, the
> executive director of the National Center for Science Education,
> which was originally focused on keeping evolution in public school
> curricula but has added a substantial climate focus to its work.
>
> So, to your mind, what is a teacher to do?
>
> There’s more in this question in my recent post on "Climate in
> Classrooms."
>
> http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/01/18/climate-in-classrooms/
>
> --
> "I'd like the globe to warm another degree or two or three...  and CO2 levels
> to increase perhaps another 100ppm - 300ppm." -- caton...@sympatico.ca

Stop teaching a fraud and get back to real science. Problem solved.

If you want to teach politics, teach it as politics. if you want to
teach eco-activism, go do that out at the Commune.

if you want to teach, teach the truth or don't teach at all.

sno

unread,
Feb 8, 2012, 12:00:19 PM2/8/12
to
Check out my sig for possible definitions to use....

Something you might try is teaching that all acience is based on
hypothesis...giving the definition of hypothesis....note that nothing in
science is ever proven, but are assumed to be true....

You can then point out that the god created everything is a hypothesis
based on religion....since science never proves anything.....the god
creation hypothesis may be true....

However, up till now no person has thought of an experiment that shows
it to be possibly valid.....that does not mean in the future such an
experiment or experiments may not show it....

At the present time scientific experiments have shown that evolution
appears to be the more valid hypothesis....and from these experiments it
has been raised to the level of a theory....give theory definition...

Some day in the future experiments may show the god one is correct...if
this happens then the evolution theory will be replaced by a god theory...

Theories do not happen because of what any amount of people think or
say....but come into being only by experiments....

You can also use the same type presentation for global warming....

thank you for listening to my thoughts....have fun....sno

--
Correct Scientific Terminology:
Hypothesis - a guess as to why or how something occurs
Theory - a hypothesis that has been checked by enough experiments
to be generally assumed to be true.
Law - a hypothesis that has been checked by enough experiments
in enough different ways that it is assumed to be truer then a theory.
Note: nothing is proven in science, things are assumed to be true.

Surfer

unread,
Feb 8, 2012, 12:23:24 PM2/8/12
to
On Tue, 07 Feb 2012 20:03:20 -0700, AGWFacts <AGWF...@ipcc.org>
wrote:
The teacher should teach the facts.

The principle fact is that there is a theory of AGW that is well
supported by data and alternative theories which are not so well
supported or have been contradicted by data.

It might also be worthwhile to let the kids experiment for themselves:
http://usgovinfo.about.com/od/technologyandresearch/a/nasasoftware.htm

<Start extract>

NASA's Educational Global Climate Model (EdGCM), for both Windows and
Mac platforms, is now available free for high school and university
desktop computers. Incorporating a 3-D climate model developed at
NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS), the software wraps
complex computer modeling programs with a graphical interface familiar
to most PC users.

The climate model program runs on a desktop computer to allow teachers
and students to conduct experiments identical to those scientists run
on supercomputers to simulate past and future climate changes. EdGCM
links the climate model to both a database and scientific
visualization utilities, making it simpler to create and organize data
and images.

"The real goal of EdGCM is to allow teachers and students to learn
more about climate science by participating in the full scientific
process, including experiment design, running model simulations,
analyzing data, and reporting on results via the Web," said Mark
Chandler, lead researcher for the EdGCM project from Columbia
University, New York.

An EdGCM Cooperative is being designed to encourage communication
among students at different schools and among schools and research
institutions. The cooperative will help students become familiar with
the importance of teamwork in scientific research.

EdGCM educational materials are also in development. A curriculum
module will walk students through a complete scientific project
involving the Global Climate Model (GCM) and climate change analysis.
Additional lesson plans will elaborate on how students can use a
climate model to study topics such as ancient climates in geologic
history or future climate water cycles. NASA is contributing funding
to improve cross-platform compatibility and to create detailed manuals
to help guide teachers through the many uses of EdGCM.

Professors at three N.Y. area universities are already using EdGCM.
Professors and students at Columbia University, City University of New
York, and New York University can conduct research projects using the
NASA/GISS GCM. At least two high schools in Madison, Wis. are also
testing EdGCM this semester in Earth Science courses.

<End extract>


AGWFacts

unread,
Feb 8, 2012, 12:31:17 PM2/8/12
to
> The teachers who teach the agw are lucky they've got a job still.

What the bloody fuck is "the agw?"


--
"I'd like the globe to warm another degree or two or three... and CO2 levels
to increase perhaps another 100ppm - 300ppm." -- cato...@sympatico.ca

AGWFacts

unread,
Feb 8, 2012, 12:32:26 PM2/8/12
to
> Stop teaching a fraud and get back to real science. Problem solved.

Exactly. That's five times you have admitted it: you are to be
commended upon your recovery.

> If you want to teach politics, teach it as politics.

Exactly. #6. Very good.

> if you want to teach eco-activism, go do that out at the Commune.

Huh?

> if you want to teach, teach the truth or don't teach at all.

What?


--
"I'd like the globe to warm another degree or two or three... and CO2 levels
to increase perhaps another 100ppm - 300ppm." -- cato...@sympatico.ca

Tunderbar

unread,
Feb 8, 2012, 12:49:31 PM2/8/12
to
> to increase perhaps another 100ppm - 300ppm." -- caton...@sympatico.ca

The fact that you have obvious comprehension difficulties with simple
language leads me to believe that you are not very bright at all.

be...@iwaynet.net

unread,
Feb 8, 2012, 5:41:35 PM2/8/12
to
On 2/8/2012 12:00 PM, sno wrote:

> Check out my sig for possible definitions to use....
>
> Something you might try is teaching that all acience is based on
> hypothesis...giving the definition of hypothesis....note that nothing in
> science is ever proven, but are assumed to be true....

Well you certainly can't teach this! Just point to state law that says
you must teach evolution as "FACT" and then teach it as fact. Soon
Leftist Democrats and others with vested interest in a trillion dollar
per year income will pass laws proclaiming that AGW is "fact" and must
be taught as such too. That will get teachers off the hook.

> Theories do not happen because of what any amount of people think or
> say....but come into being only by experiments....

Well this is wrong. AGW is the perfect example. It was thought up as a
great taxation scheme, a poll was taken among government scientists and
those not wishing to lose government funding and a total "consensus" was
found that says AGW is "settled science" which is another way of saying
"fact". Experiments weren't necessary. All the was needed were some
computer models and some massaged data that is available for teaching.
Teaching is tied to politics hence AGW must be taught as fact! Now THAT
is what modern science is all about!

> You can also use the same type presentation for global warming....

No, you can't. (see above paragraph)

=========

Correct Scientific Terminology:
Hypothesis - a guess as to why or how something occurs

Theory - a hypothesis that has been checked by enough experiments
to be generally assumed to be true.
===
A hypothesis that has been checked by at least ONE credible experiment
that was shown to give correct predictions of experimental outcomes
until it is invalidated by one or more credible experiments that are not
correctly predicted. Then it becomes a "wrong theory". The word "true"
in this case means "predicts correct outcomes to experiments". It does
not mean "correctly describes reality" as that is philosophy and not
science.
===

Law - a hypothesis that has been checked by enough experiments
in enough different ways that it is assumed to be truer then a theory.
===
Law - is a theory that has been checked by many experiments in many
different ways and NOT ONE experimental result has failed to agree with
it. Then it is termed a "law" and assumed to predict correct results
with the parameters of the "law". Again it is not assume "true" or a
description of reality. Note for example that Newton's laws are still
called laws even though it is known they are not true at high
velocities. It is automatically implied that when we talk of Newton's
laws we are only talking about conditions where they are valid.

It only takes ONE experiment that does not agree with the outcome
predicted by the theory to invalidate the theory.
====
Note: nothing is proven in science, things are assumed to be true.

Yup!

AGWFacts

unread,
Feb 9, 2012, 12:24:56 PM2/9/12
to
On Thu, 09 Feb 2012 03:53:24 +1030, Surfer <n...@spam.invalid>
wrote:
Thank you: you are absolutely correct.

erschro...@gmail.com

unread,
Feb 9, 2012, 5:23:22 PM2/9/12
to
No. A law is a summary of data. A theory is an explanation.
Newton's law of gravity explains nothing, but summarizes data and can
be used for calculations. Newton's (and later Einstein's) theory of
gravity explained how gravity works.

Week one in most freshman science classes.


> ===
> Law - is a theory


No. A law may arise out of a theory, or a theory out of a law, but a
law can no more become a theory than an airplane can become a bird.

Double-Aces

unread,
Feb 9, 2012, 10:08:37 PM2/9/12
to
http://www.google.com/imgres?hl=en&safe=off&sa=X&tbas=0&biw=1360&bih=599&tbm=isch&prmd=imvnso&tbnid=J9vssozQHRBbqM:&imgrefurl=http://www.emory.edu/EMORY_MAGAZINE/2010/spring/annual.html&docid=1fpFujQ9e8_esM&imgurl=http://www.emory.edu/EMORY_MAGAZINE/2010/spring/images/annual.jpg&w=500&h=316&ei=c4k0T--1I6eQ2QWStcyaAg&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=194&vpy=154&dur=11121&hovh=178&hovw=283&tx=159&ty=107&sig=103407059444368422970&page=1&tbnh=105&tbnw=166&start=0&ndsp=25&ved=1t:429,r:1,s:0

wrote in message
news:308f29ab-6e0f-4b96...@18g2000yqe.googlegroups.com...

You need to grow up already Mr. Nerd. Perhaps you can have some of your
dysfunctional students who are good at math, like you clearly are not
explain the many proofs that the Earth is in orbit around the Sun.

That is if you are not afraid of being embarrassed in front of the other
idiots
0 new messages