Louis Nirenberg, a mathematician who explored the complexities of equations commonly used by physicists and engineers, and who shared the 2015 Abel Prize, a top math award modeled after the Nobels, died on Sunday in Manhattan. He was 94.
…. Dr. Nirenberg struggled with cancer and other maladies in recent years, but, as a dedicated gourmand, he insisted on continuing to go out to restaurants.
This graph, showing the times of the 50 fastest U.S. women’s marathoners for 2000 to 2019, appeared elsewhere on NYTimes.com.
By Friday morning, Sept. 25, we will provide the “Reveal” — the graph’s free online link, additional background and questions, shout outs for student headlines, and Stat Nuggets.
After looking closely at the graph above (or at this full-size image), answer these four questions:
What do you notice?
What do you wonder?
The questions are intended to build on one another, so try to answer them in order.
2. Next, join the conversation online by clicking on the comment button and posting in the box. (Teachers of students younger than 13 are welcome to post their students’ responses.)
3. Below the response box, there is an option for students to click on “Email me when my comment is published.” This sends the link to their response which they can share with their teacher.
4. After you have posted, read what others have said, then respond to someone else by posting a comment. Use the “Reply” button to address that student directly.
On Wednesday, Sept. 23, teachers from our collaborator, the American Statistical Association, will facilitate this discussion from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Eastern time.
5. By Friday morning, Sept. 25, we will reveal more information about the graph, including a free link to the article that included this graph, at the bottom of this post. We encourage you to post additional comments based on the article, possibly using statistical terms defined in the Stat Nuggets.
• Learn more about the “Notice and Wonder” teaching strategy and how and why other teachers are using this feature from our on-demand webinar.
• Sign up for our free weekly Learning Network newsletter so you never miss a graph. Graphs are always released by the Friday before the Wednesday live-moderation to give teachers time to plan ahead.
Students 13 and older in the United States and the United Kingdom, and 16 and older elsewhere, are invited to comment. All comments are moderated by the Learning Network staff, but please keep in mind that once your comment is accepted, it will be made public.
It’s a phrase I’ve uttered countless times, typically in response to a new offering from our family’s artist-in-residence, also known as my 6-year-old daughter. I’m being honest — it’s a treat when she dedicates her work to me, rather than the parent with higher approval ratings (her mother, my wife), and I take a fatherly pride in her choice of colors and attention to detail. But it turns out, I’m also undermining her efforts, by putting myself, and my approval, at the center of the conversation.
It seems like the right thing to say. After all, how many times have we parents been told that it’s better to pre-emptively praise (and reward) the behavior we want our children to demonstrate, rather than waiting to condemn them for misbehaving. But, as leading researcher Wendy S. Grolnick, Ph.D., a professor of psychology at Clark University in Worcester, Mass., puts it, praise also has a dark side.
This is because praising the outcome (“It’s beautiful!”) or the person (“You’re so smart!”) encourages the child to focus on those things. She might feel performance anxiety. He might question the conditionality of your love. (“If I’m a smart boy when I do this, I must be a stupid boy when I don’t.”) He might become more motivated by a parent’s pleasure than by the process that led to it. Future crayon masterpieces might become less fun for him to create — or disappear altogether when they’re not as highly praised.
Mr. Underwood presents six research-based approaches and strategies to parents on how to praise — or not praise — their child:
Praise the process, not the person.
Pay close attention to your child’s process.
Praise what your child has control over.
Don’t praise by comparison.
Beware of praise inflation.
Rather than praise, offer descriptive feedback.
The article concludes:
I’m lucky. Our daughter might not be tucking any colorful drawings into her backpack these days — in-person school in our hometown is delayed for at least a month, maybe longer — but spending long days at home allows her progress as an artist to proceed apace. Which means more masterpieces for me to praise. I don’t always get it right — “I love it!” is still my immediate, and authentic, response — but I’m working on it. And so is she.
Students, read the entire article, then tell us:
Do your parents overpraise you? Or do you find yourself wishing they would offer more praise and approval?
How do you feel when you receive praise from your parents, or others? In what ways do compliments and praise positively affect your self-esteem, character and growth? In what ways do they hurt?
Do your parents have pet compliments, like “good job” or “I love it”? What kinds of praise and validation would you most like to receive?
Do you agree with Mr. Underwood’s contention that too much praise can undermine children’s independence and self-confidence? Have you ever felt “pressure to live up to [your] parent’s praise”?
What do you think of Mr. Underwood’s six recommendations for the overpraising parent? Does his statement, “this is because praising the outcome (‘It’s beautiful!’) or the person (‘You’re so smart!’) encourages the child to focus on those things” resonate with your own experience?
What other recommendations and advice would you give to parents or anyone who gives too much — or too little — praise?
Are you good at giving praise yourself? What kinds of compliments do you like to give? Do you think you will be an overpraising parent?
Students 13 and older in the United States and the United Kingdom, and 16 and older elsewhere, are invited to comment. All comments are moderated by the Learning Network staff, but please keep in mind that once your comment is accepted, it will be made public.
This past August, the United States celebrated 100 years of the ratification of the 19th Amendment, which established American women’s right to vote. But we’re discovering that the traditional telling of the women’s suffrage movement — that it began at the Seneca Falls Convention in 1848, was led by Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton and ended with all women getting the right to vote in 1920 — is not the whole story.
Three museum exhibits seek to broaden that narrative. Though this article was written in 2019, before the coronavirus pandemic had canceled the many yearlong exhibitions, parades and conferences planned to celebrate the centennial of suffrage, reading about these exhibits can offer a fuller picture of the fight for the 19th Amendment and teach us about the “messiness, complexities and compromises involved in any movement for social change.”
In this lesson, you’ll learn the lesser-known history of the struggle for women’s voting rights, including that of important activists, strategies and divisions in the movement.
To further explore the themes and ideas raised in this article, teachers can use our resource “19 Ways to Teach the 100th Anniversary of the 19th Amendment,” which includes activities to help students learn a more complete history of the women’s suffrage movement, make connections to current events and find ways to “finish the fight.”
Warm Up
What do you know about the women’s suffrage movement in the United States?
Create a K/W/L chart to show what you know. In the left column, write down everything you think you know about how women won the right to vote, whether ideas, facts, names, places or anything else.
If you’re not sure where to start, here are some prompts to get you thinking:
What period in history did the movement take place in? What was the social and cultural climate of the United States at that time?
How and why did the movement begin?
Who were some of the key figures in the movement?
What strategies did suffragists use to fight for their right to vote?
Then, in the middle column, write down what you want to know about the suffrage movement.
Questions for Writing and Discussion
Read the article, then answer the following questions. As you read, you might annotate the text, using one color or symbol to mark what you already knew about the women’s suffrage movement and another to mark what you learned.
1. What are some of the common myths and misconceptions about the women’s suffrage movement that are being excavated in these exhibits? Why is it important to correct them?
2. This article says that suffragists staged “a dogged fight for the vote.” What evidence and artifacts collected in these museums support this idea?
3. Kate Lemay, one of the exhibition’s curators, says that the Voting Rights Act of 1965, not the 19th Amendment, is the “true conclusion” of the fight for women’s voting rights in the United States. What does she mean by this?
4. Why do you think these exhibits chose to highlight the stories of lesser-known activists like Frances Ellen Watkins Harper, Marie Louise Bottineau Baldwin and Mabel Ping-Hua Lee? What do their stories tell us about the women’s suffrage movement?
5. Take a moment to closely study the images in the article. Taken together, what story do they tell about the women’s suffrage movement? What is interesting or surprising about that story?
6. Each of the exhibits profiled in this article ended in a different way. Choose one of them to examine. What message does its ending send about the 19th Amendment? What does it say about the role of voting today? What do you think of the curators’ decision to conclude in this way?
7. Return to the K/W/L chart you created in the warm-up and add your key takeaways from the article to the “Learned” column. In what ways do these lessons confirm, challenge or add to your previously held ideas about the women’s suffrage movement?
Build a visual history of the women’s suffrage movement. This might take the form of a poster, comic strip, TikTok video, timeline or anything else that illustrates the important events, activists, themes and artifacts of the movement.
Reflect on what democracy means to you. Share your thoughts on the significance of voting and civic engagement in our recent Student Opinion question “Is Your Generation Doing Its Part to Strengthen Our Democracy?” What lessons from the fight for the 19th Amendment can you apply to politics today?
Create an infographic debunking common myths. On paper, or using a program like Venngage, create a piece that corrects the myths, misunderstandings and incomplete truths about the women’s suffrage movement.
Make a found poem or blackout poem. Use the words and images in the article to create a poem that speaks to the major themes and ideas of the complex history of the women’s suffrage movement.
Interview a woman about the right to vote. Talk to someone in your family or community about the first time she voted. What did it mean to her? What role does political participation play in her life? What issues in the upcoming election are most important to her and why?
In March, fears rose that hospitals would run out of ventilators to help critically ill patients breathe. Mr. Severino released a bulletin putting states and hospitals on notice that protocols to decide which patients would — and would not — receive ventilators could not discriminate on the basis of disabilities, race or age, among other factors.
In April, his office resolved civil rights complaints against Alabama and Pennsylvania for ventilator triage guidelines that the office deemed discriminatory toward older patients and those with disabilities.
Mr. Severino announced a separate resolution on Tuesday that his office had reached with Hartford Hospital in Connecticut over a 73-year-old patient with Covid-19, Joan Parsons, who had difficulty speaking with medical providers because of a brain condition known as aphasia. The hospital had initially barred Ms. Parsons’ family members from being present to assist her, but it later allowed them to join her, according to one of her daughters, Susan Fandacone.
Along with many other museums in New York City, the American Museum of Natural History is reopening this month, and it has been reimagined to make visitors feel safer in the era of Covid-19.
But September is always a month of beginnings, even in a year where nothing is normal. What fall pleasures, large or small, are you looking forward to? Why?
Post it in the comments, then read the related article to learn more.
Students 13 and older in the United States and the United Kingdom, and 16 and older elsewhere, are invited to comment. All comments are moderated by the Learning Network staff, but please keep in mind that once your comment is accepted, it will be made public.
By Betty Vandenbosch, Chief Content Officer, Coursera
Over half of the active workforce in the US does not have a college degree. This group has been disproportionately affected by the pandemic, experiencing more than double the job loss rates compared to college-educated workers.
Coursera has teamed up with Salesforce, SV Academy, and IBM to launch two new entry-level Professional Certificates to help these groups and others affected by the pandemic. Both programs will prepare learners for well-paying, in-demand roles projected to grow over the coming years. The certificates do not require any specific education or work experience, making them accessible to learners of all backgrounds. Starting today, learners can enroll in these programs for $49/month.
Sales Development Representative (SDR) Professional Certificate from Salesforce and SV Academy — This five-course program integrates content from Trailhead, Salesforce’s free online learning platform, to prepare learners for a career in sales development. Nearly half* of open sales representative roles don’t require a four-year college degree in the US. The certificate covers SDR basics, including how to prepare a professional portfolio and develop a personal brand, the Conversational Selling methodology, and tech tools.
“SV Academy is proud to partner with Salesforce to bring an in-demand career pathway to Coursera,” said Rahim Fazal, co-founder and Chief Executive Officer at SV Academy, who does not have an undergraduate degree. “As the tech industry continues to grow and innovate, employers are increasingly in need of entry-level sales talent to develop new business and revenue. This certificate program introduces a brand new way for learners to access these exciting career opportunities by pairing human-centered skills with the latest technologies.”
Data Analyst Professional Certificate from IBM — Data analytics roles offer a median wage of $65,000*. With a mix of theoretical coursework and hands-on labs, the program prepares learners for this lucrative career within nine months. Upon completing the eight courses, learners will have the skills to help companies make smart, data-driven decisions, and a portfolio of projects to share with potential employers.
“We have had great success with IBM Data Science and AI Professional Certificates on Coursera,” said Leon Katsnelson, Director and CTO of IBM Developer Skills Network. “Because skills are the new currency, it’s important to make acquiring in-demand skills more accessible for students and workers – regardless of their backgrounds. Offering the new IBM Data Analyst Professional Certificate on Coursera will help learners develop skills and gain practical experience for working with data and ultimately, preparing for their next career steps.”
The unparalleled knowledge and experience of our industry partners make them top educators in their domains. We’re proud to welcome leaders like Salesforce and SV Academy to the Coursera partner community and expand our relationship with IBM to bring job-relevant credentials to learners everywhere.
The Ismaili National Council UK is one of a variety of organisations around the world using Alison to bring online education and skills training to its members. Nymeth Ali, a member of the Ismaili community in the UK, tells us about the benefits of using Alison for community learning.
The Aga Khan Education Board (AKEB), a central institution within the Ismaili National Council UK, aims to support and promote learning as a means of improving the quality of life for all members of its community, regardless of background, age or current education level. For support in providing the community with upskilling and training opportunities, the AKEB sought a partnership with Alison.
Having researched a number of potential partners, the AKEB opted to work with Alison due to their extensive range of courses and their bespoke interface which tracks a learner’s progress, enabling us to provide support to individual learners.
With Alison, AKEB were also able to provide certificates and diplomas free of charge to learners in the community when they fulfilled a set of criteria as defined by the team. Learners also have the option to build their curriculum vitae via the Alison platform which is an invaluable skill to share with community members.
The partnership with Alison has been beneficial to the community, particularly during these challenging times which has seen an increase in the number of learners embarking on their learning journey with the AKEB and Alison. Alison have been readily available to offer support, providing an immediate response when the UK went into lockdown.
Since launching the partnership, over 400 learners have browsed the website and over 100 learners have started courses, with 30 certificates already distributed. The learner profile is 50/50 male/female and approximately 30% are aged 36 to 45 years old. Most of the learners are based in the wider London region, however we have learners in Birmingham, Sweden, Germany, the Netherlands and other locations. The courses that have been taken up are in the fields of health and well-being, computer science, programming, leadership, project management and languages.
Education is an ongoing process and, with Alison’s support, the community is in a strong position to continuously introduce its members to online learning.
by Nymeth Ali (Ismaili National Council UK)
Click here to learn more about how your business/organisation can benefit from an educational partnership with Alison.
Codecademy for Business and our friends Code Climate are meeting with engineering leaders to talk about their career journeys, leadership tactics, and their advice for the next generation of engineers in our new series, 1 on 1 with Engineering Leaders.
Below is an excerpt from a 1 on 1 chat with Tara Ellis, Manager, UI Engineering at Netflix and Hillary Nussbaum from the Code Climate team. On our blog, Tara shares the story of when she was starting out with coding and shares advice for those that are thinking about becoming engineers or engineering managers.
Q: What interested you about engineering when you were just starting out?
I do not have a traditional engineering background. When I went to school, I wanted to be a lawyer. I had wanted to be a lawyer since I was in fifth grade, and I only applied to colleges that had law schools.
That was the path, and then at 22, when I graduated, I decided to take a year off. That year, I ended up going to Japan to visit my dad. I was supposed to be there for two weeks, but I ended up staying for a year. I met this 17 year old hacker kid who worked at an arcade across from where I was working. I was working for AT&T. We had a cyber café and he would come in and rent internet time and he started showing me all of these crazy at the time technologies. “You know what HTML is? This is how you FTP. This is CGI…” It was one of these things where I thought, “Hey, I love learning.” That’s my jam.
The thing that attracted me to law was that you never really stop learning, right? There’s always new case law. There’s always new things. You master a craft and then you have to take in inputs, not at the speed that you have to as a front end engineer, but still.
I was like, “Oh I think programming is cool. I like building stuff. I can actually build stuff with this thing, and then there’s always new technology.” That’s what initially attracted me to it was that.
Q: What advice do you have for people who might be considering a career in engineering?
I think the thing is you’ve got to be a learner. You have to like to learn. I think the thing that really fails a lot of senior engineers especially is that they stop learning, right? I mean they just get to a place and say, “I don’t want to do anything else” and then their skills stagnate, and then it becomes really hard to stay in the industry.
Understand how you learn, because you’re going to need to do it a lot — and really like learning. I think as long as you do that, there’s nothing that you can’t do.
Q: What advice do you have for engineers who are considering management one day?
I think the single biggest advice I would give people is you have time — do not rush this process. I have talked to so many engineers that are three years in their career, and they’re like, “Oh my God, I’m a failure. I’m not a manager yet.”
You don’t have to do this in five minutes. Actually, you’ll probably be a worse manager if you do it your first couple years. I always try and tell people, “Please slow down. You have time. Learn your craft. Learn it inside and out.” Whatever the thing it is you’re interested in, I do think you should try to become a technical expert, or as close to that as you possibly can get. Then while you’re doing that, try different things. See what you’re interested in. Eventually, if you decide that people are what you want to go after, it’ll become really apparent.
I think what happens a lot in addition to people just feeling like they have to do it quickly is also that they don’t really understand what the role. It becomes, “Hey, I’m taking this is a step up. I’m climbing a ladder.” I’m like, “It’s a different ladder. It’s not the same ladder that you were on. If you want to move to a different ladder, great, but you should know, you should intentionally understand that that’s what you’re doing.”
I talked with an engineer in my org, he’s really great, really senior and had been thinking about moving into some manager role. I remember when I asked him why, he gave me a ton of reasons that were really great, but none of them were people. I was like, “You got to stop. What you’re describing is a principal engineer. This is not a people manager. Let’s talk about that.”
Q: Once someone is sure they want to become a manager, are there any specific skills they can build to prepare while they’re in an IC role?
For a practical skill, you’ve got to learn to communicate — in writing and verbally. If you can practice and get very good at taking complex ideas and making them simple for people who don’t deal in that complexity, you will go very far. I also think it’s really a part of a leader to be able to do that. There are a lot of people who can code. There are not a lot of people who can communicate effectively. The further you get away from the code, the more important your ability to explain and be a thought leader matters.
1.any usually predatory wild animal considered undesirable; e.g., coyote
2.an irritating or obnoxious person
_________
The word varmint has appeared in three articles on NYTimes.com in the past year, including on June 5 in the book review “Three New Memoirs Bring the Farm to the Page” by Tina Jordan:
Like Carlson, Frey was raised on an 80-acre family farm, only hers lacked indoor plumbing for years and was heated only by a wood stove during the frigid Illinois winters. By the time she was 5, she was used to chores like gathering the eggs. “When people think of chickens, they think of decorative little hens in the pretty little houses that you see on Instagram,” she writes. “No. We had a shadowy henhouse full of spider webs, mice and the occasional egg-sucking varmint — a raccoon or possum.”
