Cable in the Classroom is pleased to present via podcast [MP3, 55MB], the February 21, 2006 edition of the U.S. Department of Education's Education News Parents Can Use.

Today, emergent technologies and rapidly changing technical and manufacturing fields serve as powerful reminders that in order to keep up with our global competitors, we must ensure that all children succeed in mathematics and science. Unfortunately, many American students—especially minorities and high school students—are lagging behind and remain ill prepared for the complex demands of today’s high-tech economy. This program addresses questions such as:

• What is the “global economy” and what does it demand of our students and educational system?
• Why is it so critical for all children to become “literate” in mathematics and science today?
• How will the American Competitiveness Initiative help improve math and science instruction, student competence and achievement?
• How can parents encourage their children to learn mathematics and science outside the classroom?
• What should students be learning in mathematics and science at the elementary, middle and high school grades? What must change in the way these subjects are currently being taught
  

For more information about this program, please see the U.S. Department of Education's show notes.

Listeners may also be interested in the Spring 2005 edition of Cable in the Classroom's Threshold (produced in partnership with NASA) and in the March 2006 and April 2006 editions of Cable in the Classroom Magazine - each of which focuses on the future of math and science education.

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