Special Blog Post #1

Many students misinterpreted the data Did You Know?

The article Did You Know? was very misleading. After doing a search on WolframAlfa, comparing populations of India, China, & the United States, the article made a little more sense. The United States has a small population in comparison to China and India. China has the largest population in the world with 1.35 billion people. India’s population is 1.21 billion and the United States only 309 million. India might have more people with the highest IQ, than the United States, but that is because they are 4 times larger in population. In China, 18 million speak English and 300 million are learning to speak English. That means 318 million people in China will speak English. That is more people speaking English than the U.S., but the U.S. only has 309 million. After doing the math, it is easy to see why China has more English speaking people.

Next, I did a search on WolframAlfa comparing the three countries education index. The United States education ranked 5^th in the world, China ranked 115^th, & India lagged behind at 146^th in the world. The United States ranked really high compared to China and India. Another search revealed, United States ranks 5^th in the world population for living standards. China ranked 94^th for living standards and India 123^rd. When you compare apple to apple, the United States is an awesome place to live.

WolframAlfa is an awesome tool for comparing data. The information comes from a reliable source, unlike some websites. It gives factual calculations of various topics. I will use the resource in the future and pass it along to my students some day.

Gary Hayes Social Media Chart

Gary Hayes Social Media Chart is amazing. It is hard to imagine, people are so connected with social networks. I am not sure social networks are educating people, but definitely entertaining society. Social media is growing by the second. The social media has become a highway for businesses. It has opened up a new way to advertise, not only locally but universally. Amazing to think how fast things are changing. What will it be like to be a teacher 2 years from now? Teachers need to keep informed with technology in society and how to incorporate these ideas into learning.