Wednesday 25 February 2015

Little Genius.... 10 Year Old Nigerian Girl to go to the Uninversity

She spends her spare time in a similar way to many other ten-year-old girls - playing with Barbie dolls and making loom bands.
But the key difference between Esther Okade and other children her age is that she has been accepted to study for a university maths degree - despite not going to school.
Esther, from Walsall, West Midlands, has enrolled on an Open University course months after she passed her A-levels - and wants to study for a PhD before running her own bank.
 Happy: Esther (left) is pictured last year with her mother Omonefe (right) after passing her A-level in 

The girl, who gained a C grade in her maths GCSE aged six, has joined the course which started this month. Her younger brother Isiah is already studying for his A-levels - also aged six.
The siblings are both home-schooled by their mother Omonefe, who has converted the living room of their semi-detached, three-bedroom house into a makeshift classroom.
Mathematician Mrs Okade, 37, said: ‘Esther is doing so well. She took a test recently and scored 100 per cent. Applying to the university was an interesting process because of her age.
‘We even had to talk to the vice-chancellor. After they interviewed her they realised that this has been her idea from the beginning. From the age of seven Esther has wanted to go to university.
 Course: Esther Okade has been accepted to study for a maths degree - despite not going to school

‘But I was afraid it was too soon. She would say, “Mum, when am I starting?”, and go on and on and on. Finally, after three years she told me, “Mum, I think it is about time I started university now”.’
Mrs Okade added that Esther - who will study for her degree at home - was ‘flying’ and ‘so happy’ when she was accepted by the university, and wants to be a millionaire.
Esther stunned her parents last year when she achieved a B grade in her pure maths A-level.
She applied to the Open University last August - and after a phone interview, an essay and an exam, she was told in December that she had been accepted onto the course.
Esther Okade, a ten-year-old maths student


Her father Paul, 42, a managing director, added: ‘I cannot tell you how happy and proud I am as a father. The desire of every parent is to see their children exceed them, and take the family name to great heights, and my children have done just that.’
In 1981 Ruth Lawrence, of Brighton, became the youngest person to pass the exam for Oxford University, as a ten-year-old - and graduated aged 13 with a first-class degree in maths.
 Esther Okadepictured at home in Walsall with her brother Isaiah


Now aged 43 and a married mother-of-two, Mrs Lawrence is an associate professor of maths at the Einstein Institute of Mathematics, at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

SOURCE: www.dailymail.co.uk  

 

Monday 2 February 2015

Cursive handwriting is useless, but politicians want students to learn it anyway


For many students, cursive is already a thing of the past.
In the past few years, states as politically diverse as TennesseeNorth CarolinaCalifornia, Georgia, Idaho, and Massachusetts have passed bills requiring schools to teach students to write in cursive. The Kansas Board of Education reaffirmed in 2013 that students should learn to write cursive. And similar bills have been proposed in Indiana, South Carolina, Arkansas, and other states.
These defenders of cursive writing say they're spurred into action by the Common Core — new standards for what students should know and be able to do in language arts and math. The Common Core doesn't require students to learn to write cursive.
But the Common Core really just reflects a longstanding trend: cursive handwriting has been on its way out for two generations, long before texting became the preferred way for young people to communicate. The search for a simpler way to teach children to write goes back a century. The slow death of cursive is just the latest version.



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Is Handwriting STILL Important in the 21st Century?

Jotting down a shopping list, writing a birthday card, taking down a phone message, completing a form at the bank ….handwriting is part of our daily lives. It is on show to others and may be used to make judgments about us.
Writing has a very long history. It began as simple pictographs drawn on a rock, which were then combined to represent ideas and developed into more abstract symbols. Just like our writing today, early symbols were used to store information and communicate it to others.
In recent years, modern technology has dramatically changed the way we communicate through writing. However, despite the increased use of computers for writing, the skill of handwriting remains important in education, employment and in everyday life.



Time devoted to the teaching and learning of letter formation in the early years will pay off. Legible writing that can be produced comfortably, at speed and with little conscious effort allows a child to attend to the higher-level aspects of writing composition and content. This is important when assessments are based on written work, particularly in time-limited written examinations, which remain as a major form of assessment for many formal qualifications. Without fast and legible handwriting, students may miss out on learning opportunities and under-achieve academically.




Beyond formal education, most employment situations will involve at least some handwriting and any require the communication of critical information (e.g. medical notes, prescriptions).
Thus, handwriting with pen and paper still has an important role from early childhood through our adult lives, But more and more, people are shifting from paper to electronic modes of communication. Interestingly though, many personal computers now have handwriting recognition capability so that handwriting as means of interacting with computers is becoming more pervasive. It seems, therefore, that even in this modern age, handwriting remains an important skill for communication.

Why handwriting? A personal view

Oscar, who is studying for his A levels, had had problems with legibility of handwriting for some years. He has been given permission to use the keyboard to write his exams. However, for him this does not solve all his problems (see below), although it may make his scripts easier for the examiners to read.
Photo: Oscar's handwriting on lined paper













"The process of handwriting promotes clear thought and natural structure. Being so close to the page means that translation of thought has less opportunity for deviation.
When typing I find I compulsively re-read my work on the screen and the ability to edit is sometimes paralysing, Although computer work can allow for more complex structure, it is often too complex and has many complications for timed conditions."
Oscar Aged 17 years

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