chance

29Mar

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

LGBTQ

Offering A Chance For Community To Stand In Solidarity And Support – Trans Day Of Visibility

Visibility within the transgender community is often a Catch-22, especially for trans people of color, or those living in rural, conservative areas. Hiding one’s identity can be a damaging experience and increase feelings of isolation, stigma and shame. But standing out as a trans person can make someone a target for discrimination or violence. As a trans man who studies transgender health and well-being, I believe Trans Day of Visibility – celebrated annually on March 31 – is an important day that allows community members to come together and find support and solidarity by knowing they are not alone. A celebration’s history Trans Day of Visibility acknowledges the contributions made by people within the transgender, nonbinary and gender-diverse communities (hereafter referred to as “tran...

‘Last Chance U’ The Netflix Series Speaks To The Reality Of Athletes I Study

3Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

EDUCATION, VIDEO REELS

‘Last Chance U’ The Netflix Series Speaks To The Reality Of Athletes I Study

The concept behind Netflix’s hit docuseries “Last Chance U” is simple: Locate a junior college sports team, follow the team around for an entire season with video cameras, and show how team members struggle to realize their dreams of going pro despite their difficult pasts. The show’s popularity rests on the fact that athletes often end up in junior college – or “JUCO,” as it’s often called – through adverse circumstances. These colleges often represent their last chance to get recruited to a big-time college team, or at least a four-year college. The prospect of going from “rags to riches” as an athlete is a narrative that seems to resonate well. While “Last Chance U” has dealt with junior college football, on March 10 an eight-episode spinoff will focus on junior college basketball. A ...

Changing What It Means To Be Human – AI Is Killing Choice And Chance

3Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

AI, TECHNOLOGY

Changing What It Means To Be Human – AI Is Killing Choice And Chance

The history of humans’ use of technology has always been a history of coevolution. Philosophers from Rousseau to Heidegger to Carl Schmitt have argued that technology is never a neutral tool for achieving human ends. Technological innovations – from the most rudimentary to the most sophisticated – reshape people as they use these innovations to control their environment. Artificial intelligence is a new and powerful tool, and it, too, is altering humanity. Writing and, later, the printing press made it possible to carefully record history and easily disseminate knowledge, but it eliminated centuries-old traditions of oral storytelling. Ubiquitous digital and phone cameras have changed how people experience and perceive events. Widely available GPS systems have meant that drivers rarely ge...

Pivot to remote learning creates a chance to reinvent K-12 education

3Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

EDUCATION, VIDEO REELS

Pivot to remote learning creates a chance to reinvent K-12 education

Many of the nation’s 57 million K-12 students will spend at least part of the 2020-2021 school year either dealing with distance learning or a hybrid model that keeps them out of classrooms several days a week. They’ll spend lots of time using teleconferencing software, with teachers either convening classes live or pre-recording lessons. Getting children to excel won’t be easy. Zoom and similar programs can be challenging for teachers and boring for “digital natives” accustomed to watching more entertaining stuff on their devices. Based on my experience both as a writer and a producer of films and TV shows in Hollywood and a lecturer at the University of Pittsburgh – where WQED, the nation’s first educational television station got started – I recommend four creative ways to overcome th...

Skipping standardized tests in 2020 may offer a chance to find better alternatives

4Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

IN OTHER NEWS

Skipping standardized tests in 2020 may offer a chance to find better alternatives

The Education Department is letting states cancel standardized tests. The move is a practical one: School buildings across the nation are closed due to the coronavirus pandemic, even though distance learning efforts are widespread. As a result, 2020 is the first year without federally mandated standardized testing in nearly two decades. Washington has required all states to use these tests to evaluate students, teachers, principals, schools and entire school systems, first in accordance with accountability measures shaped by the 2002 No Child Left Behind Act and later under the 2015 Every Student Succeeds Act. Until now, students in third through eighth grade were taking standardized tests annually for language arts and math, and then at least once again in high school. In addition, they...