Only Texas

Are stuffed animal belt buckles only fashionable in Texas, and some parts of California?

Does it mean there’s something to do with all those beanie babies that people paid hundreds of dollars for?
Justin Timberlake has a purple dragon one!

Don’t forget Arizona and Sonora, Mexico. Scorpions are the bomb out there.

The T-STEM initiative was launched in December 2005 by Governor Perry's office, in collaboration with schools in Texas, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, The Michael & Susan Dell Foundation, National Instruments, and Communities Foundation of Texas.

Texas Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (T-STEM) initiative is a proposed $ 71 million to better prepare students in Texas schools for success in college and the workplace. With the undeniable progress towards a technology based global economy, Texas high schools are putting more emphasis on science and mathematics.

Although many Texas schools are already doing excellent work in these areas of education, the most common reason, many Texas schools are academically qualified unacceptable by the state is the poor performance of science. The second most common reason is the poor math performance.

In 2005, only 72 percent of students passed the math portion and only 71 percent passed the science portion of the state-required exit-level Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) test. The pass rate among Texas schools, the main ethnic groups was significantly lower. Only 54 percent of African-American students passed the math portion and only 55 percent passed the science. Hispanics are not a little better with 61 percent passing the 57 percent mathematics and science.

Hopes are that the new T-STEM project will improve the current student performance in Texas schools in both areas, providing innovative science and mathematics education and innovative demonstration sites.

T-STEM 35 schools will create small or academies located in high-need areas across the state of Texas. These schools in Texas will focus on science, mathematics, engineering and technology of instruction. Five to six STEM demonstration centers will be developed to transform the current teaching methods for educators in schools Texas, as well as train and prepare teachers for these specialized schools of Texas. Moreover, the project will establish a statewide network to promote wider dissemination of practice in all Texas schools.

Each new T-STEM Texas schools include grades 6-12, become an academy or high school that works with feeder middle schools. Each grade will have about 100 students from Texas schools. The aim is to create personalized, dynamic and important environments learning.

The Texas schools enrolled students must have four years of math and science related to participation in activities extracurricular. An internship or project in areas related to science, technology, engineering or math also be necessary.

Educators in these schools in Texas will have to work with institutions of higher education to promote partnerships, dual credit classes, and opportunities teacher training.

The funding of schools in Texas T-STEM initiative is $ 30 million from the state of Texas, $ 20 million each of the foundations Gates and Dell, $ 1 million from National Instruments, and $ 10 million from the Communities Foundation of Texas, including major corporations, foundations and individuals stressing the importance of these academic areas for the future of our global economy.

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About the Author:

Patricia Hawke is a staff writer for Schools K-12, providing free, in-depth reports on all U.S. public and private K-12 schools. Patricia has a nose for research and writes stimulating news and views on school issues. For more on Texas schools visit http://www.schoolsk-12.com/Texas/index.html

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com – T-STEM Initiative a Boost for Texas Schools Students