February 12, 2002
On a recent Friday, I drove up to Melbourne to meet a friend at the Melbourne Square Mall for dinner and a movie and, as is my wont, arrived an hour early. My plan to walk around the mall and do some shopping was replaced by another plan: to check out all the Brevard County students' science-fair projects. It was quite a show.
Oftentimes, when education is covered in the news media, it's the latest "bad news" about student behavior or performance in school, adult behavior at school board meetings or athletic events, or the general topic, "our failing public schools."
These students' displays, however, showed something seldom seen when I was in high school: an intense curiosity.
Two earnest young "rocket boys" showed me how they tested model rocket engines to see if they performed as rated by the manufacturer, using a test stand they built. One of the team demonstrated a device for estimating the highest altitude of the rockets they launched.
One young researcher had done a study of which set of siblings fights more, boys and boys, boys and girls, or girls and girls, and what they fight over most.
Another fellow had done a comparison of the Windows XP operating system and Linux for speed of startup, shutdown and application startup. He was somewhat dismayed to find that Windows XP scored higher on the test system, because it challenged what he had expected. More research is needed, he told me, to find out why he got such results.
There were countless other displays of research into just about anything imaginable, from esoteric studies of cells and protozoa to the effect of different laundry detergents on dirty clothes. It was good to see the number of research projects by girls, some of which were so complex as to defy explanation. Some of the math these kids were using I never even took in college.
Politicians love to carry on about the state of education and demand more standardized tests for the great god of "accountability." Before doing that, they should check out a science fair like this and bear in mind that concepts like curiosity, thought and insight cannot be quantified by filling in dots on an answer sheet.
Of course, when you're running for re-election to Tallahassee, higher scores on the FCAT may be better for one's re-election chances, but the things that really matter sometimes can't be expressed in numbers.
These students are lucky to have access to resources and equipment that didn't even exist when I was growing up, and I envy them not only their youth but their interest and enthusiasm.
Reading, writing and arithmetic are certainly important skills to have. But it's the thinkers and dreamers who will have a hand in the future, too, and if those kids in the Melbourne Mall are the tip of the iceberg, the future will be better than we can imagine.
Later this week, there will be a science fair at Vero Beach High School. I hope some of our local politicians take a break from bashing the schools to see what the youth of our area are capable of.
Vincent F. Safuto is a copy editor for the Press Journal. Reach him at Vincent.Safuto@scripps.com.
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