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September 20th, 2007 · Posted in Linkage ·Video Games as Useful Teaching Tools
Playing action-oriented video games have a long-term effect on spatial acuity (picking stuff out quickly). And the effect on women is larger than on men. Yay for video games!
Friday Reflections: Tell me how you’ll measure me - and I’ll tell you how I’ll behave …
This is why performance-based pay for teachers is a bad, bad idea.
Adult Stem Cells v. Embryonic Stem Cells
Makes you wonder why people are pushing so hard to kill babies for ’science’, doesn’t it?
Video Games Ruined My Life
Good thing I have two extra lives.
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September 20th, 2007 at 11:33 pm
“Makes you wonder why people are pushing so hard to kill babies for ’science’, doesn’t it?”
Although I am not in support of the use of embryonic stem cells in research, I do wish to point out that no-one is “killing babies for science”. The embryos used in the research are terminated through elective abortions, and are then used for research.
Perhaps I can suggest “harvesting dead babies for science” as an equivalent but more accurate inflammatory rhetoric?
I’m not looking forward to tackling the abortion issue in the Ethics campaign, as what needs to be said isn’t going to please anyone.
Hope all is well with you!
September 21st, 2007 at 11:53 am
How does “using babies already killed (by someone else) for science” sit with you as an inflammatory device?
Either way, I’m not a fan.
I think the thing that bugs me most about it is that there is a huge push for it that seems to be purely financially driven.
I’m interested to hear what you say in your campaign. I’m sure I’ll disagree
(For what it’s worth, I’m pro-choice, but I think the choice occurs when you decide to have sex).
All is well - just had our 18/19 week ultrasound, and #3 is looking healthy (and folded up). That probably has some more bearing on my views too.
I had a skim through the gamasutra write-up of a talk you did at (insert conference name here) on Temperance Theory. Of course I knew it all already
‘Twas still interesting to see someone elses views on your opinions.
September 27th, 2007 at 1:25 am
The push for stem cell research is in part financial, but also there are a lot of people in the US who are afraid of dying of illness and who therefore spend a lot of money supporting research that can overcome various ailments. Fear of death is what drives research of this kind.
Glad to hear that your new baby is coming along fine!
Oh, and it’s *Temperament* Theory, not Temperance Theory - a small but amusing mistake.
Best wishes!
September 27th, 2007 at 8:17 am
“a lot of money supporting research that can overcome various ailments”
The whole point of the site I linked was that the money would be far better spent on a proven source of treatments rather than a purely pie-in-the-sky (and ethically dubious) ‘treatment’.
The money I am talking is not so much from the people wanting to avoid getting sick, but rather the push by research companies wanting to research on the stem cells retrieved by destroying the unborn.
‘Temperance Theory’ - not sure where that came from, I wrote that last reply at 5:30am while getting ready to leave, so that could explain my error. I think it would make a great title for a scenario in your ethics campaign however
October 3rd, 2007 at 8:13 am
Sorry I am a little late in posting but I have been busy.
I would like to adress the perfomance measure vs. pay idea.
Funnily enough we have looked a this in a little bit of detail at Uni.
I won’t bore you with the details but the main way to avoid this “SUB-OPTIMISATION” (Davidow and Uttal, 1988) is to ensure that you are measuring the complete package of what you want your employees to produce/do.
Ultimately this means that measures of QUALITY as well as QUANTITY need to be considered.
I wouldn’t be so quick to dismiss this as a bad idea. It has been proven that people DO respond to being measured and subsequently being rewarded for reaching those measures.
As long as the measures established reward based on the “whole package” that you want someone to provide they are fine.
BTW: Rewards don’t just mean $$$ but that is another Uni assignment in itself.
D!
October 3rd, 2007 at 8:20 am
The problem with incentive pay and teaching is that there is no way to measure quality. I think we should pay teachers more, but I really don’t think incentive pay would work.
It works just fine for sales-people though (as you have a simple metric you can measure - sales).
October 3rd, 2007 at 8:52 am
What about independent student testing? (That is externally set and externally marked tests)
I agree that sales and production industries are easier to quantify and measure but for other areas such as education or even customer service you just need to work a little harder to define and measure expectations.
D!
October 3rd, 2007 at 9:00 am
It doesn’t matter who is doing the testing. Teachers will then be pressured to teach to the tests - and you end up with kids who can pass the tests with flying colours, but can’t use the knowledge in real life.
I’ve had this experience at uni - one of my subjects I learnt how to pass the test, but haven’t retained any of the knowledge of the subject (I got a distinction).
A similar thing happens already in lots of private schools - the kids are trained to get great HSC results, so they get into uni no worries, but then they have a really high drop-out rate as they got great scores, but didn’t get a great education (this obviously doesn’t apply to all private schools - but private school students in Australia are far more likely to drop out of uni before finishing their degree).
October 5th, 2007 at 8:04 am
Point taken.
D!