Do Times reporters know the difference between percentages and raw numbers?
I suspect the following is an unfortunate placement by the reporter on a story about record high percentages of young adults in college (with an emphasis on percentages): “What’s behind this,” Mr. [Richard] Fry added, “is that we have the biggest pool of young adults we’ve ever had who’ve finished high school.” I suspect that […]
Florida Student Group Fights for Zombie Rights
Tallahassee, Florida (Dissociated Press) — At an early-morning press conference in the state capital, five zombies attending Florida state universities announced the formation of the new organization Florida Upbeat Zephyr Zombies (FUZZ) to fight for zombie rights. “There are organizations that fight for the rights of students to be free from discrimination on all sorts […]
Channeling Jerry Bracey on “proficiency”: it’s political, not scientific
One of the late Jerry Bracey’s hobbyhorses was the pretense that the NAEP achievement level labels were scientific, as he argued in 1999: “The standards have generally been the object of scorn and derision from the psychometric community.” He was fond of quoting the 1999 report on NAEP proficiency levels, esp. from p. 162: ” […]
Why unions need competent administrators on the other side
Dean Dad neatly explains why Southwestern College’s leaders aren’t even competent Machiavellian administrators. While I’ve occasionally heard from people that the best union recruiting tool is a horrid manager, life is more complicated. Yes, there are threshold effects of managerial incompetence and cruelty on organizing campaigns, but for an already-recognized union with plenty of duties, […]
In no language either is there the phrase “as quiet as an airport”
By Sherman Dorn on October 25, 2009
Heard on the Philadelphia International Airport intercom. Or at least the small bits I could “understand”… THIS IS A BOARDING ANNOUNCEMENT FOR PASSENGER GRISENSD PLEASE GO TO TRUMP ATE FERRITINOUS PAGING WE NEED YOU AT GATE WYNNEWOOD NARBUHTH ARDMORE HAVERFORD BRYN MAWR ROSEMONTCODE PHILLIES WAITING RAIN DELAY HAS WITHDRAWN FROM DANCING WITH THESTARS SEEN ELOPING IN NEXT MONTH’S […]
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