Signs of the Times - October 2012 - (Page 16)

TECHNOLOGY UPDATE By Darek Johnson Darek Johnson is ST’s Senior Technology Editor/Analyst. Email him at darek.johnson@stmediagroup.com Having trouble getting the message across? Schoolwork – it haunts us forever. On August 25, MSN entertainment writer Sharon Waxman wrote of NBC’s report on Astronaut Neil Young’s death. Apparently, NBC was the first news bureau to get notice of Astronaut Neil Armstrong’s death, and its editors misread the bulletin. The bureau soon restructured the story. Waxman, tongue in cheek, wrote that singer Neil Young was undoubtedly much relieved. reach the NCLB requirements, extreme effort goes to that group. In the intervening time, teachers try to lift up their more promising students. Why are reading skills important? If you’re a signshop owner or manager, today’s students are your future workers, the source of your income; if you’re a worker, they’re your future associates – perhaps they’ll soon read the grounding instructions for your new TIG welder. If you’re a voter, they may soon stand beside you at the polls. In January 2012, Washington Post writer Valerie Strauss described a 10-year evaluative study of NCLB, conducted by the National Center for Fair and Open Testing (Boston). Her report said the NCLB had failed in terms of its own goals and, further, had not significantly increased academic performance or reduced achievement gaps. On July 6, the New York Times reported the Obama administration as having released 26 states from the central provisions of the NCLB law. This action, the Times said, causes educators to question the program’s present value. However, in exchange, the outed schools and districts were required to promise new goals and also tie teachers and school evaluations to student achievement on standardized tests – which will be used to judge teacher effectiveness, the Times said. Notice the change? NCLB placed responsibility on the entire local school program; the new change names teachers only. It shifts the scoring blame to the weakest link, classroom teachers, who are the least sanctioned to make changes, defend themselves or discipline students. The Washington, DC-based CATO Institute (a public-policy research group) has said, “In the end, neither Republicans nor Democrats should fight for NCLB. It hasn’t helped either party, and it has hurt children all over the country. Indeed, if NCLB has taught one thing, it is this: When Washington gets involved in education, no one wins.” What’s missing in the reading programs is analysis. Comprehension isn’t analysis. Comprehension is acknowledging the meaning of text, but at a level that ignores characterizations or depictions that may have a broader – or more specific – meaning. Students don’t learn to focus on both precise and following word meanings and groupings; nor do they learn to distrust sources. Here’s a close-to-home example, I found it on the Intl. Sign Assn.’s (ISA) LinkedIn Group site as a member-sponsored (not ISA) survey. The question: “What are your favorite sources of printing industry news?” On the day I examined the survey, 60% of the respondents had voted “company websites.” Another 30% selected “printed magazines” and the remainder tagged “other.” So, it’s true. For industry news, most responding ISA members rely on “company websites” more than industry publications. Wait. You don’t acquire industry news from company websites. Company websites (manufacturers, distributors) present information that specifically relates to that company’s products and activities – but not industry news. For sign- and digital-print shops, industry news addresses company news, yes, but also general news, technology updates, and laws, zoning issues, trade organizations, events, product introductions, product reviews, supply sources, new applications, case studies, promotions, obituaries and more. The unbiased industry news sources are independently owned, journalist/ editor-based, business-to-business publishing firms that actively My and by the direction ofOver the wife teaches school. years, school administrators, she’s been required to direct her teaching efforts towards the 2001, federally mandated No Child Left Behind (NCLB) law, as initiated by Senator Ted Kennedy and signed by President George Bush. In general, the law compels schools to annually test students in math and reading, from the third through eighth grade, and once again in high school. The testing program also notches into President Barack Obama’s 2010, multifaceted, $4.35 billion Race to the Top educational initiative that presents funds to states that link teacher evaluations to test scores. The latter program reworked NCLB’s teacher evaluation, compensation and retention policies; it’s said to ensure that talented teachers are placed in the schools and subjects where they are most needed. But, it doesn’t really happen like that. Instead, such programs instill a type of fear in both teachers and administrators, which causes them to concentrate on test scores and not education in general. The reason is clear. In today’s classrooms, students must voluntarily work with the teacher because present laws – and parental pandering – pretty much prevent any effective discipline. As a result, persuading troublesome students to focus on grades is almost impossible, but, to 16 SIGNS OF THE TIMES / OCTOBER 2012 / www.signweb.com http://www.signweb.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Signs of the Times - October 2012

Sign of theTimes - October 2012
ST Update
Technology Update
Vinyl Apps
Strictly Electric
LED Update
Software Update
Technology Review
Technology Review
Sign Museum News
New Products
2012 Vehicle Graphics Contest
Entry-level Electronic Digital Signage
The Proposed ISA Reorganization Plan
Enter ST's 2013 Intl. Sign Contest
SGIA Expo 2012
The Value of Signs
Advertising Index
Editorially Speaking

Signs of the Times - October 2012

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