Panama City Renaissance School events and activities

Children color pictures for local veterans

Community Service,Florida,National Concern,News,PCRS Events,Panama City,School,education   

November 12, 2008

Outside the Box – Juliann Talkington

Juliann

This week the PCRS children learned about Veteran’s Day and colored special sheets for patients in the local Veteran’s Administration hospital. The students had wonderful time creating and discussing the importance of Veteran’s Day.  After all the sheets were completed Mrs. Estes delivered the pictures to the hospital.

Math is critical: Don’t shortchange your kids

Academic Performance,Math,National Concern   

April 13, 2008

Outside the Box – Juliann Talkington 

Juliann

According to Nicholas Terrell, an economist with the US Office of Occupational Statistics, between now and 2014 there will be about 1.25 million new jobs requiring math expertise (engineering, science, math, technology).
 

 In addition, carpenters and other trade people who have a strong understanding of arithmetic, geometry and algebra quickly move from minimum wage jobs to positions with excellent pay, sometimes well into the six figures. Lawyers aren’t exempt either. They must keep track of hours and handle billing, tasks that require arithmetic and algebra. Success in the art world demands considerable business savvy and the ability to handle arithmetic, geometry and algebra. One artist lost a lucrative commission, because he did not know how to use math to get the images of two paintings to line-up.

The tragedy is kids are getting the wrong signals from our society. We are quick to tell a teacher there is too much homework when a child has to spend 20 minutes working on math problems.

However, if a coach or dance instructor asks a child to spend an hour practicing a particular move, we are fully supportive. According to Emily Krauser in Athletes Balance Prospects of Professional Sports, Professional Careers, only about 13 in 10,000 high school athletes go on to a professional career. In addition, very few people make an adequate living in the performing arts. For those who “make it”, long-term success requires a good understanding of math as most earnings occur within a few years and must be allocated over a lifetime.

If everyone needs math skills to succeed, what has happened to our priorities? First, we believe there are many careers that do not require math for success. In the information age, this viewpoint is a fallacy. Second, we fear math and believe it is unreasonable to expect our children to learn it. 

Fortunately, math is not difficult. Like reading and athletics, it requires little but clear instruction, repetition and hard work. Most mathematical concepts, including algebra and calculus, can be taught in very simple, straightforward ways. So rather than trying to teach math theory, encourage your children to use math to solve everyday problems. 

Most importantly, don’t short-change your children. Please convey to them that math is important and make learning math a priority in your daily schedule. It is worth the extra time and focus. After all, good math skills are a prerequisite to a bright future.

Juliann Talkington is the Administrator of the Panama City Renaissance School (www.pcrschool.org). Reach her at jtalkington@pcrschool.org or 850-215-8712.

PCRS hosts Native American Fall Festival event

English,National Concern,PCRS Events   

November 28, 2007

Outside the Box – Juliann Talkington

Juliann

On November 13, the school was filled with sounds of native American music, the beat of drums and the smell of Native American food as the Panama City Renaissance School participated in a Native American Fall Festival event. The event was organized by Kate Estes, the English/History teacher, who grew up on the outskirts of an Indian reservation. The second grade students presented plays they had written. The other children enjoyed watching the presentation and then participated in a Native American dance. After the dance, parents, teachers and children enjoyed a feast of meats, soups and vegetables.

Play Dance Audience

An Educational Crisis in the US. Really?

Academic Performance,Florida,Foreign Language,Math,National Concern,PCRS Academics,Panama City,School,Science & Technology   

October 16, 2007

Panama City Downtown Rotary – Juliann Talkington<

In the past, US parents had little to worry about. The US had a huge lead on other countries. Americans could graduate from college and be assured of a good job. This is no longer true. The world has changed and the US children are academically behind children in many parts of the world (often more than 2 years by the end of high schools). Many US companies are looking for talent outside the US. For US children to be competitive, they must have an education comparable to children in other parts of the world. The Panama City Renaissance School is trying a new approach. The school has adopted curricula and approaches used successfully overseas. The school uses a math program developed by the Singapore Ministry of Education, because Singapore consistently outperforms the rest of the world in international math testing. In addition, the school has adopted a language immersion model, so the children can fluently communicate in Mandarin Chinese and Spanish as well as English.
 
Dialog is very important for successful change. Please join the discussion. Does your school have unique programs that help close the gap between what children are learning in the US and what children learn overseas? Have you seen any positive changes in US education recently? Do you have any other recommendations about how we might be able to encourage change? How can we get more immediate feedback about how our children are performing relative to children in Europe and Asia? Do you know of other language immersion programs? If so, how are they working? Do you know of schools that have a unique ways of rewarding teaching excellence? How are schools able to offer teachers better pay without increasing overall costs? (more)