Monthly Archives: April 2020

An Orlando Sentinel editorial calls for upgrading the Central Florida economy. What the Sentinel should say is that improving educational opportunities for the region’s children is the first step in making that upgrade.

Posted on April 25, 2020 by Paul Cottle

The Orlando Sentinel just posted an editorial calling for an upgrade to the Central Florida economy so that the region is no longer so dependent on the “junk food” of tourism. The editorial board left out a critically important point: … Continue reading →

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Triangulating K-12 education in Florida: A map for understanding the priorities of policy-makers, educators and…me.

Posted on April 23, 2020 by Paul Cottle

I want more students from a broad range of backgrounds to have the opportunity to pursue careers in engineering, science, computing and the health professions. I know – from research and my own experiences in the classroom – that how … Continue reading →

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In calling for a national industrial policy, Senator Rubio should address the most important supply chain of all – our nation’s education system.

Posted on April 21, 2020 by Paul Cottle

In a New York Times op-ed, Florida Senator Marco Rubio called for “the re-shoring of supply chains integral to our national interest — everything from basic medicines and equipment to vital rare-earth minerals and technologies of the future.” That is, … Continue reading →

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Do Florida’s “Acceleration Academies” offer a model for “long-term transformation of public schooling” as their founder argued in the Orlando Sentinel last week? Not by a long shot.

Posted on April 18, 2020 by Paul Cottle

In his Orlando Sentinel op-ed last week, Acceleration Academies Founder Joseph Wise argued that we should take advantage of the COVID-19 crisis “to inspire a long-term transformation of public schooling” built around technology that he says would serve all students … Continue reading →

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College and university engineering and science faculty will have to step up to keep the STEM pipeline open for minority and disadvantaged students.

Posted on April 17, 2020 by Paul Cottle

College and university science, engineering and math faculty are going to have to step up to keep Florida’s STEM pipeline open to all of the state’s students. The colleges and universities will be under tremendous financial stress as Florida’s sales … Continue reading →

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What will happen this coming fall at colleges and universities? Whatever it is, it will not be quite normal – at least not for students and professors with chronic health conditions.

Posted on April 12, 2020 by Paul Cottle

It is quite likely that this fall students and professors will flock back to their familiar physical classrooms at colleges and universities around the nation. Unfortunately, I will not be among them because I have a chronic health condition that … Continue reading →

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Teaching engineering, the physical sciences, math and computing at Florida’s universities will become more challenging after the pandemic if we care about giving our students opportunities to succeed.

Posted on April 10, 2020 by Paul Cottle

The jobs of Florida’s university educators in fields like engineering, the physical sciences, math and computing are going to be a lot more challenging after the pandemic than they were before it. Why? Because our students – particularly those from … Continue reading →

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So we’re doing gloriously well with our online instruction. Does that mean students are learning as well as they do in person? Probably not.

Posted on April 7, 2020 by Paul Cottle

It is important to make this 100% clear: Student learning in physics is not as robust in even the best available online learning environment as it is in an in-person interactive engagement environment like SCALE-UP (which we call “Studio Physics” … Continue reading →

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Now it will be up to Florida’s children to save the state from economic ruin. Recruiting the teachers who will prepare the children for that task should be Florida’s highest priority.

Posted on April 1, 2020 by Paul Cottle

The recovery of the State of Florida and more broadly our nation and world from the present pandemic will depend heavily on medical professionals, scientists, engineers and technologists. The importance of these professions to our society has never been clearer. … Continue reading →

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