Re: [Assam] A smart path  that isn't 'college ' -- Abraham Lincoln
As far as vocational education goes no better example than Abe Lincoln. Today I sat at Lincoln memorial in Washington DC and read a biography by Landmark Children's books being sold there. He had no school education and he became a successful lawyer and US president as well -despite having illiterate and penniless parents in the back of beyond. He had a different accent as well "Backwoodsmen accent". Ocourse, he always had a book to read and newspapers etc and was famous for his physical prowess as well which won him countless strong friends and admirers - Rail Splitter Abe - as he was known even by his electorate. He could shoot straight at age eight. Umesh Dilip/Dil Deka <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: Is there anyone in Assamnet who is directly involved in vocational training whether in Assam or anywhere else? Please email me - we may have some serious business to talk about. Dilip Deka === A smart path  that isn't 'college' By Ben Brown If we're so big on measuring results in education, isn't it time to get serious about an approach that links knowledge and training with good-paying jobs? The time is ripe. Hardly a week goes by without another warning from a business or education-reform group that too many of our students graduate without the skills to compete in a global marketplace. And when the nation's governors meet in February for a National Education Summit, high on the agenda is a discussion of new strategies for helping students "build bridges between high school, college and work." The trouble is, if you try to bring vocational education into the discussion, the first thing that enters many folks' minds are the guys in last-period shop class, the ones who seemto know their way around an engine block, but not algebra II. Fonzie in Happy Days, the 1970s sitcom set in the 1950s, was a voc-ed guy  cool, but not what parents hold up as a career role model. Everybody knew Fonzie wasn't headed to college. And college is the one sure path to the good life, right? A skewed view of college Well, yes and no. Yes, if you're willing to morph your concept of college to include other post-secondary educational opportunities, from community colleges to tech schools to professional- certification and workplace-training programs. Occupational certification has increased by 50% during the past decade, according to a recent study by the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education. No, if you're talking about only four-year institutions, where a third of students don't qualify for degrees in six years. "The last thing we need is another college dropout, saddled with student loans and looking for a job without a marketable skill," says Gerry Hogan, a volunteer advocate for vocational education and the chairman of Endurance Business Media. Clide Cassity, director of Pinellas Technical Education Centers in Florida, adds, "Yet somehow we've gotten ourselves in the situation where we believe that college is all that counts, that nothing else matters." Even though good jobs increasingly require what used to be college-level training, most still don't demand four-year degrees. Of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics' estimates of the fastest-growing occupations between 2002 and 2012, the top 10 don't require bachelor's degrees. And many non-degree occupations crying out for workers are career fields with salaries that can support healthy families  provided employees have higher level skills. Kay Martin, CEO of the Francis Tuttle Oklahoma Technology Center in Oklahoma City, says students who graduate in Tuttle's automotive program "after a few years can earn $100,000." And there are similar career opportunities in health technology, the construction trades and public safety. In an era of outsourcing, here's more good news: These high-skill jobs aren't going anywhere. You're not going to call someone in India to fix your car or your plumbing. And if your house is on fire in Ohio, help is not coming from Mexico. A' real-world' advantage Career and technical education  the term voc-ed pros have adopted to avoid the Fonzie factor  has the advantage of relevance. For many students, "academics suddenly make sense," says Robin White, president of the Great Oaks Institute of Technology and Career Development in Cincinnati. "Geometry makes more sense in construction technology than just drawing circles and squares on paper." And the best programs can tout real-world accountability. Tom Applegate, executive dean of Austin Community College, says, "All our programs are labor-market driven. If employers don't want our grads, we don't want the program." In Florida, Cassity has lines at both ends of some Pinellas Tech programs: Students wait for class slots, and companies wait to hire them. Two-thirds of Pinellas Tech students complete requirements for professional cert
[Assam] Assam government is protecting Bangladeshis for vote bank politics : Samujjal
NESO dares Assam Chief MinisterNET News Network Guwahati, August 5: The North East Students Organization (NESO) has challenged the Assam chief minister to give a clarion call to all the suspected Bangladeshi nationals in the state to leave Assam on their own. The Nesos challenge came on Sunday after its two day general council meeting at Shillong from August 3, where the eight students bodies of the seven states decided to fight against the ongoing infiltration from Bangladesh together. Neso adviser Samujjal Bhattacharyya said that Assam government is protecting the escaped suspected Bangladeshi nationals from Arunachal Pradesh and other states of the region for vote bank politics. The All Arunachal Pradesh Students Union (AAPSU) issued quit notices to all the suspected Bangladeshi nationals in the state and about 25,000 people left the state immediately, he said and added that how can Assam government own these people as Assamese. The Aapsu did not use any force to chase the people. The people left the state immediately after the quit notice. This indicates that the escaped people themselves admit them as Bangladeshi nationals, how can Assam chief minister term them as Assams population, wondered Bhattacharyya. Secretary general of the Neso Gumjum Haider, who also represents Aapsu, said, It is ridiculous. Assam government owned those people who left our state after our quit notice to Bangladeshis. If they are genuine Indian people (and nor Bangladeshis) they should have rather stayed back in Arunachal Pradesh. Bhattacharyya said that AAPSU has given quit notices suspected Bangladeshis and the state government had supported them. It is shameful that the state government here has been protecting those Bangladeshis for strengthening its vote banks, he said and added that we challenge the chief minister to give a clarion call. The NESO in the two day meeting also unanimously decided to fight for three causes good education, good educational institutional and good employment for the youth. Besides we have also decided to demand for a separate education commission for the northeast, he said. We are also demanding to all the state governments to implement Inner Line Permit in all the northeastern states which is expected to stop the infiltration, said Bhattacharyya. - Ready for the edge of your seat? Check out tonight's top picks on Yahoo! TV. ___ assam mailing list assam@assamnet.org http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org
Re: [Assam] More on Minneapolis Collapse
I saw on CNN that 17% of US bridges are not safe
Umesh
mc mahant <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:P { margin:0px; padding:0px } body {
FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY:Tahoma } more from that Pandora's box:
__
Join Date: May 2005
Location: Las Cruces, NM
Posts: 48
#26
Re: Bridge collapse 08/05/2007 8:01 PM
It is unfortunate that this post duplicates a similar post under Civil
Engineering:
http://cr4.globalspec.com/thread/10774/Could-bridge-collapse-be-prevented?frmtrk=CR4digest
I repeat my post from that thread:
There are many reasons why bridges collapse. They mostly fall into two major
categories: (1) compromised maintenance, (2) unanticipated "features" of a new
design concept.
The history channel has prepared an excellent non-technical review of the
recent history of bridge collapses
http://www.history.com/minisite.do?content_type=Minisite_Generic&content_type_id=55377&mini_id=1335
Regarding the second: It is hard to argue against new designs, but since much
of the concept polish in engineering is based on lessons learned (from
disasters), we should at the very least recognize that there is significant
inherent risk coupled with every departure from the tried and true. New
concepts are thoroughly investigated by a modeling, but the models only
evaluate the problems which we can think of, and often they cheat by adding
complexity (tweakable knobs) so that modelers can "tune" their models to
compensate for things that they cannot resolve intellectually. This subject is
treated at length in an excellent book: The Future of Everything: The Science
of Prediction by David Orrell
As to the first: A call to action was issued following the collapse of the
Silver Bridge over the Ohio River in 1967 citing to inattention that we pay to
our infrastructure. This call has been repeated after each ensuing collapse and
is soon forgotten. Politicians play to the whims of the voters, which they
skillfully manipulate. Politicians readily decide to spend a trillion dollars
on a ill advised war, but can never find funding for basic human needs
(education, health care, infrastructure, etc.). It's not their fault: we
(re)elect them and put up with their fanciful tirades.
The best argument against democracy is a five-minute conversation with the
average voter - Winston Churchill
__
Honesty trumps Loyalty
[input] [input]
Cardio-2
Associate
Join Date: Sep 2006
Posts: 37
#29
Re: Bridge collapse 08/05/2007 9:54 PM
You make a good point, but your figure of $ 2 billion a week needs some
adjustment. How much gasoline, diesel and jet fuel does the services consume in
a week? Where does that money go? Mostly to OPEC nations for "oil" at $60 to
$75 a bbl. How much of these fuels can be made from a bbl of crude? How much
aid, in many forms, do OPEC nations contribute to "the enemy" in Iraq and
Afghanistan? How much of that is paid for with "our" oil money to OPEC nations?
How many terrorists does Saudi, Iran, Syria, et al train, equip and support?
Are we accomplishing any good in Iraq? Is Iraq any better off now that it was
20 years ago under a dictator? How many lives of US service personal is that
accomplishment worth? What price does one put on a young, vibrant human life? I
submit that we need to increase the numbers of the actual cost of the "war" in
Iraq, plus the loss of that money as it contributes to the downside of poor
educational reforms here in the US, poor health and
health insurance for the needy, attention to the infrastructure of roads,
bridges and railways, and so on. One can make quite a list! No politics
involved here, just facts. When will taxes begin to skyrocket to pay for all
the expenditures in Iraq, etc?
_
That shd be enough!
mm
-
The idiot box is no longer passe; It's making news and
how!___
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Umesh Sharma
Washington D.C.
1-202-215-4328 [Cell]
Ed.M. - International Education Policy
Harvard Graduate School of Education,
Harvard University,
Class of 2005
http://www.uknow.gse.harvard.edu/index.html (Edu info)
http://hbswk.hbs.edu/ (Management Info)
www.gse.harvard.edu/iep (where the above 2 are used )
http://jaipurschool.bihu.in/
-
Yahoo! Answers - Get better answers from someone who knows. Tryit now.___
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A smart path � that isn't 'college'
Is there anyone in Assamnet who is directly involved in vocational training whether in Assam or anywhere else? Please email me - we may have some serious business to talk about. Dilip Deka === A smart path  that isn't 'college' By Ben Brown If we're so big on measuring results in education, isn't it time to get serious about an approach that links knowledge and training with good-paying jobs? The time is ripe. Hardly a week goes by without another warning from a business or education-reform group that too many of our students graduate without the skills to compete in a global marketplace. And when the nation's governors meet in February for a National Education Summit, high on the agenda is a discussion of new strategies for helping students "build bridges between high school, college and work." The trouble is, if you try to bring vocational education into the discussion, the first thing that enters many folks' minds are the guys in last-period shop class, the ones who seemto know their way around an engine block, but not algebra II. Fonzie in Happy Days, the 1970s sitcom set in the 1950s, was a voc-ed guy  cool, but not what parents hold up as a career role model. Everybody knew Fonzie wasn't headed to college. And college is the one sure path to the good life, right? A skewed view of college Well, yes and no. Yes, if you're willing to morph your concept of college to include other post-secondary educational opportunities, from community colleges to tech schools to professional- certification and workplace-training programs. Occupational certification has increased by 50% during the past decade, according to a recent study by the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education. No, if you're talking about only four-year institutions, where a third of students don't qualify for degrees in six years. "The last thing we need is another college dropout, saddled with student loans and looking for a job without a marketable skill," says Gerry Hogan, a volunteer advocate for vocational education and the chairman of Endurance Business Media. Clide Cassity, director of Pinellas Technical Education Centers in Florida, adds, "Yet somehow we've gotten ourselves in the situation where we believe that college is all that counts, that nothing else matters." Even though good jobs increasingly require what used to be college-level training, most still don't demand four-year degrees. Of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics' estimates of the fastest-growing occupations between 2002 and 2012, the top 10 don't require bachelor's degrees. And many non-degree occupations crying out for workers are career fields with salaries that can support healthy families  provided employees have higher level skills. Kay Martin, CEO of the Francis Tuttle Oklahoma Technology Center in Oklahoma City, says students who graduate in Tuttle's automotive program "after a few years can earn $100,000." And there are similar career opportunities in health technology, the construction trades and public safety. In an era of outsourcing, here's more good news: These high-skill jobs aren't going anywhere. You're not going to call someone in India to fix your car or your plumbing. And if your house is on fire in Ohio, help is not coming from Mexico. A' real-world' advantage Career and technical education  the term voc-ed pros have adopted to avoid the Fonzie factor  has the advantage of relevance. For many students, "academics suddenly make sense," says Robin White, president of the Great Oaks Institute of Technology and Career Development in Cincinnati. "Geometry makes more sense in construction technology than just drawing circles and squares on paper." And the best programs can tout real-world accountability. Tom Applegate, executive dean of Austin Community College, says, "All our programs are labor-market driven. If employers don't want our grads, we don't want the program." In Florida, Cassity has lines at both ends of some Pinellas Tech programs: Students wait for class slots, and companies wait to hire them. Two-thirds of Pinellas Tech students complete requirements for professional certification or state licensing, and 82% end up employed in their field of study. So what's not to like about voc-ed? "It's the high schools that have run amok," says Phyllis Hudecki, executive director of the Oklahoma Business and Education Council, a non-profit education advocacy group. Even its defenders acknowledge that, in the past, voc-ed has been used "as an avoidance mechanism for kids who couldn't do academic work," Hudecki says. "And that's still out there. I want to make sure students are really learning, and then turn them loose" in voc-ed tracks. Approaches such as the Southern Regional Education Board's "High Schools That Work" project have proved that integrating vocational education with ac
Re: [Assam] More on Minneapolis Collapse
more from that Pandora's box: __ Join Date: May 2005 Location: Las Cruces, NM Posts: 48 #26 Re: Bridge collapse 08/05/2007 8:01 PM It is unfortunate that this post duplicates a similar post under Civil Engineering: http://cr4.globalspec.com/thread/10774/Could-bridge-collapse-be-prevented?frmtrk=CR4digest I repeat my post from that thread: There are many reasons why bridges collapse. They mostly fall into two major categories: (1) compromised maintenance, (2) unanticipated "features" of a new design concept. The history channel has prepared an excellent non-technical review of the recent history of bridge collapses http://www.history.com/minisite.do?content_type=Minisite_Generic&content_type_id=55377&mini_id=1335 Regarding the second: It is hard to argue against new designs, but since much of the concept polish in engineering is based on lessons learned (from disasters), we should at the very least recognize that there is significant inherent risk coupled with every departure from the tried and true. New concepts are thoroughly investigated by a modeling, but the models only evaluate the problems which we can think of, and often they cheat by adding complexity (tweakable knobs) so that modelers can "tune" their models to compensate for things that they cannot resolve intellectually. This subject is treated at length in an excellent book: The Future of Everything: The Science of Prediction by David Orrell As to the first: A call to action was issued following the collapse of the Silver Bridge over the Ohio River in 1967 citing to inattention that we pay to our infrastructure. This call has been repeated after each ensuing collapse and is soon forgotten. Politicians play to the whims of the voters, which they skillfully manipulate. Politicians readily decide to spend a trillion dollars on a ill advised war, but can never find funding for basic human needs (education, health care, infrastructure, etc.). It's not their fault: we (re)elect them and put up with their fanciful tirades. The best argument against democracy is a five-minute conversation with the average voter - Winston Churchill __Honesty trumps Loyalty Cardio-2 Associate Join Date: Sep 2006 Posts: 37 #29 Re: Bridge collapse 08/05/2007 9:54 PM You make a good point, but your figure of $ 2 billion a week needs some adjustment. How much gasoline, diesel and jet fuel does the services consume in a week? Where does that money go? Mostly to OPEC nations for "oil" at $60 to $75 a bbl. How much of these fuels can be made from a bbl of crude? How much aid, in many forms, do OPEC nations contribute to "the enemy" in Iraq and Afghanistan? How much of that is paid for with "our" oil money to OPEC nations? How many terrorists does Saudi, Iran, Syria, et al train, equip and support? Are we accomplishing any good in Iraq? Is Iraq any better off now that it was 20 years ago under a dictator? How many lives of US service personal is that accomplishment worth? What price does one put on a young, vibrant human life? I submit that we need to increase the numbers of the actual cost of the "war" in Iraq, plus the loss of that money as it contributes to the downside of poor educational reforms here in the US, poor health and health insurance for the needy, attention to the infrastructure of roads, bridges and railways, and so on. One can make quite a list! No politics involved here, just facts. When will taxes begin to skyrocket to pay for all the expenditures in Iraq, etc? _ That shd be enough! mm _ The idiot box is no longer passe! http://content.msn.co.in/Entertainment/TV/Default.aspx___ assam mailing list assam@assamnet.org http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org
Re: [Assam] More on Minneapolis Collapse
Can Yours Truly add on? Saw this in a blog at CR4 site I comment in: __ That's what I told MMS "Liberate us->and We liberate you" And Yours Truly posted earlier thus: MUKULMAHANT Power-User Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Long.92E,Lat.26N Posts: 456 #17 Re: Bridge collapse 08/05/2007 10:59 AM -- you said it all. GWB will now visit the site and tell them "Do it again-we will foot the bill". I am sure nobody will tell him "Not like the one which fell--but like the one by the side which did not"(The one standing is Arch Below with Spandrels) Look at reliable bridges of Yore--all Arches. Look at what France does since high-strength wires came up : -http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Millau_Viaduct I saw in Shanghai a Steel TopArch Bridge with span 500m The one that fell in Minneapolis was 100m! In India ,Arch Bridges are almost Unknown.The never taught us arch designs. > Date: Thu, 2 Aug 2007 16:01:46 -0700> From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]>> > All I ask > is WHAT exactly were you and your cheering> > section, ably > > led by > Krishendu, trying to prove or disprove ?> > Once I get a bearing > > on that, > I will be pleased to share my thoughts.> > > > Take care.> > > > c-da> > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > _ Sign in and get updated with all the action! http://content.msn.co.in/Sports/FormulaOne/Default___ assam mailing list assam@assamnet.org http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org
[Assam] New Engineering College and Medical College in Assam
Dear All, Today (05.08.2007), I have read the news about the opening of Diphu Polytechnic by Education Minister Ripun Bora on 04.08.2007. In AJIR DANIK BATORY has written the news that there will be 3 (three) new Engineering college and 1(one) Medical Collegein Assam as announced by Education minister. But,in ADINOR SAMBAD paper has written the news that there will be 1(one) new Engineering College and 3(three) new Medical College as announced by Education minister. Can anybody tell me which news is correct? Thanking You Buljit Buragohain - DELETE button is history. Unlimited mail storage is just a click away.___ assam mailing list assam@assamnet.org http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org
[Assam] Nirupama Borgohain : walking that extra mile with grace and clarity (The Assam Tribune, 05.08.2007)
Nirupama Borgohain : walking that extra mile with grace and clarity By A Staff Reporter GUWAHATI, Aug 4 Age has not withered her spirits, but only emboldened her beliefs. Steadfastly believing humanism to be the highest religion, she has struggled with her circumstances and walked that extra mile. What is surprising is that in her long and eventful journey, she gained clarity and grace in abundance. This was evident for all those who took part in an interactive session with eminent litterateur and Sahitya Akademi award winner Nirupama Borgohain, the Guest of the Month at the Guwahati Press Club today. In the evening of my life, I can say that I have led an honest life, and have never compromised with principles. In reason and rationality I have had great faith and at times I even committed some extreme acts. But such acts have only strengthened my belief in conduct based on reason, she noted. On the idea of a supreme power controlling the destiny of human beings, she said that although she personally did not subscribe to the idea, she would not deny it either. After all there are values at the heart of many religions, values which are essentially humanitarian, she said. Referring to the various events that moulded her sensibilities both as a human being and as a writer, she pointed to some episodes in the Assam Movement. Violence committed against women and children touched her, and she could witness situations, which were not reported in the mainstream media of that time. During one of her visits to a relief camp in Nalbari, she saw a six-month old child, who had serious burn injury on her back. Supporters of the movement had killed her parents. The small child had no medical attention in the relief camp. Moved by her plight, Borgohain approached a team of doctors for help, but the response she received was a shock. We are not going to help anybody who is a Bangladeshi! one of the doctors replied. When Borgohain reminded the group of doctors of their oath to serve people regardless of class creed or religion, the young doctors heaped her with abuse. More bad news was in store for her. After the editor of the Nilachal, the paper she worked in, learnt about her visit to the relief camp, she was sacked from her post. From that time, life was another struggle. I applied for the post of a lecturer at Lalit Chandra Bharali College that would have provided me with a salary of Rs 50. But that job was denied to me, even though I had experiences of teaching in several colleges, she mentioned. Later it was in the same institution that she was feted for her contribution to literature, making her realise that there are some instances in life that finally brings recognition if one is true to oneself. She was candid in admitting that those who created literature in Assam were still a neglected lot compared to their counterparts outside. It is a lonesome endeavour, where money could never be an incentive! But the greater reward is the love and respect that people bestow on writers. It is that love and affection which brings so much joy, and a genuine sense of fulfilment. Asked about her present project, Borgohain revealed that she was working on a book based on the life of educationist the late Indira Miri. She was one of those women who struggled against great odds and achieved her goals. My book would be a tribute to that great personality. (The Assam Tribune,05.08.2007) - 5, 50, 500, 5000. Store N number of mails in your inbox. Click here.___ assam mailing list assam@assamnet.org http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org
