Tornado damage in north central Kansas -photo Kansas Division of Emergency Management
CHAPMAN, Kan. (AP) — Residents in northern Kansas are cleaning up the damage from an EF4 tornado that ripped through the rural area earlier this week.
Tom and Janet Whitehair’s Dickinson County home was among about 20 homes damaged or destroyed by the half-mile-wide tornado that was on the ground for about 90 minutes Wednesday night. No serious injuries or fatalities were reported.
Whitehair told the Topeka Capital-Journal he and his wife are “lucky to be alive.”
The National Weather Service says the tornado had wind speeds up to 180 mph. Most of the damage was in Dickinson County, but two homes were also damaged in Ottawa County, where the twister began.
Dickinson County administrator Brad Homman says some residents had minor injuries, and ranchers are also reporting missing livestock, horses and pets.
John Richard Schrock is a professor at Emporia State University.
Crossing into China on my 18th visa, this is the first time that I will not be working with teacher trainers at a Chinese normal university. Eighteen of the 26 universities I work with have “normal university” or “teacher’s college” in their name, although nearly all have become full service universities.
America dropped “normal” and “teacher” from university names in our massive expansion of American universities in the 1960’s to accommodate the “baby boom” generation. China has kept the name “normal” despite their universities also becoming full-service during their massive 16-fold university expansion beginning in 1996.
“Why did America call teacher’s colleges ‘normal’?” has been often asked and I am not sure that many American professors today would know the answer. It was derived from the French “E’cole Normale” which meant a school for teachers and had no relationship to our common usage of the word “normal.” But the education of teachers in China is nothing like “normal” American teacher training.
One major difference is that China has traditionally only required three years of college training for elementary school teachers, although some universities in the developed zones are now requiring four years. However, China teaches far more math and science in their elementary and high schools. As a result, in math and science knowledge, their high school graduates already surpass our “elementary ed” college graduates.
And except for Central China Normal University in Wuhan, China trains all of its high school teachers in the content departments. In America, the majority of high school teachers are trained in Education School programs. This is the case at the University of Kansas, Kansas State University and Wichita State University. In many of our former U.S. normal schools, represented by Fort Hays, Pittsburg and Emporia State Universities, the secondary program is also jointly overseen by the content departments. But these programs are still controlled by American accrediting agencies that require substantial and ever-changing “methods” courses. The number of credit hours in U.S. education methods can often exceed the content coursework.
Not so in China. China trains its high school teachers alongside its undergraduate students who are pursuing careers in research, industry, or professional studies. That means that in my field of biology, they receive essentially the same solid biology foundation that students receive who are pursing fish and game, pre-med, pre-dental, or other biology careers. Their professors are practicing biologists who are pursuing research in modern biology, so these teacher candidates learn up-to-date molecular biology and the full range of cutting edge anatomy, physiology, genetics, ecology, etc.
But in America, most states, similar to Kansas, go through expensive and time-wasting revisions of what “standards” we must require of our teacher training programs. Here in China, it is the constant progress of science that sets the standards. No stupid arguments over evolution or sex education or global warming. No millions of dollars spent rewriting the state of science and no professionals’ time wasted on this unending but irrelevant task of resetting “goals and outcomes,” aligning or mapping curriculum. Gravity, the Table of Chemical Elements, and human anatomy are the same worldwide. Yet the Kansas universities run by Ed Schools don’t even require their biology teachers to take anatomy and physiology!
Ed School advocates are eager to point out that some folks who are highly trained in science—perhaps straight from industry—and enter the classroom without methods training are often miserable failures. They would like you to believe that the opposite is just fine—that you can teach with Ed School training when you know absolutely nothing about the content. But any country bumpkin knows, whether in China or the United States, that you can’t teach what you don’t know.
The secondary biology teachers trained over here know a lot more science. And they do get some coursework and practice in teaching methods specific to their content department. It is nothing as expansive as the one-size-fits-all-fields, bloated and tedious busywork that is required in Ed Schools. It consists of some very practical aspects of communication and alternate ways to explain, demonstrate and test.
As a result, China has not wasted the last 40 years promoting cure-all educational fads that change every three years: individualized instruction, diagnostic instruction, open classrooms, back-to-basics, every-teacher-a-reading-teacher, every-teacher-a-special-ed-teacher, Madeline Hunter 7-step lesson plans, cooperative learning, outcomes-based education, or the current worship of all things digital.
China’s content-based teacher training has generated new generations of scientists who fill their universities and next year will surpass the United States in authorship of research in the top worldwide journals “Science” and “Nature.” And science literacy in their young general population exceeds ours.
If they don’t need education schools, why would we?
BARTON COUNTY– One person was injured in an accident just after 8p.m. on Thursday in Barton County
The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2004 GMC Yukon driven by Emma A. Ricker, 16, Ellinwood, was southbound in the 200 block of southeast 130 Avenue four miles south of Ellinwood.
The SUV’s passenger side tires left the roadway. The driver overcorrected and the vehicle skid across to the east ditch, rolled, and landed in a wheat field.
Ricker was transported to Great Bend Regional Medical Center.
Seven other teens in the SUV were not injured.
The passengers were not wearing seat belts, according to the KHP.
WASHINGTON (AP) — More than 3 million spill-proof cups for children between 4 and 12 months old are being recalled by Mayborn USA because of the risk of mold that could cause sickness.
Ingestion of the mold can cause gastrointestinal symptoms and infections in those with compromised immune systems. Mayborn has received more than 3,000 reports of mold in the removable, one-piece, opaque valve of the cups, including 68 reports of children experiencing diarrhea, vomiting or other symptoms associated with drinking from a cup with mold in the valve.
This recall involves five types of spill-proof Tommee Tippee Sippee cups, all with a removable, one-piece white valve. Consumers should stop using them and contact Mayborn for a free replacement or go here for replacement details.
FINNEY COUNTY -Law enforcement authorities in Finney County are investigating two suspects in connection with the sale and possession of drugs.
Garden City Police reports Henry Pauda Esquivel, 31, is wanted on an arrest warrant from the Kansas Department of Corrections. He is reportedly in the company of Sasha Valdespino, 25, for driving while suspended and drug possession.
Authorities ask the public to contact police or CrimeStoppers if you have information to help locate
DODGE CITY, Kan. (AP) — A man charged in the 2014 fatal shooting of a Dodge City woman has been found guilty of second-degree murder.
Victor Gutierrez Jr. was found guilty Wednesday in the death of 30-year-old Natasha Pruitt. Authorities say Pruitt was found dead in her home on Sept. 22, 2014.
Gutierrez was arrested after authorities say he led police on a chase with speeds that reached up to 140 mph through Stafford and Reno counties before he stopped. Gutierrez was sentenced to two years and two months in prison in connection to the police chase.
ELK COUNTY Law enforcement officials reported early Friday morning the missing boys were found by sheriff’s deputies in Elk County Kansas. An arrest was made. No additional details were released.
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The Kansas Bureau of Investigation in conjunction with Missouri State Highway Patrol and The Taney County Missouri Sheriff’s Department have issued an Endangered Person Advisory for a missing person incident that occurred at 390 Kingfish Drive in Ridgedale, MO on Friday.
Missing Is:
Jacob Oliver a white, male, age 9.
Jason Oliver a white, male, age 8.
Vehicle Information:
Maroon Toyota or Nissan Altima 4 door passenger car last seen northbound on US 65 from Ridgedale, MO.
Possible suspects or associates are believed to be:
Sabrina Lee Jones, a white, female, age 39, hgt 5’5″, 175 lbs, brown hair, hazel eyes —
Jake Norton, a white, male, age 30, hgt 6’2″, 170 lbs, brown hair, hazel eyes .
The endangered missing person:
Jacob Oliver, is a white, male, age 9, 60 lbs, blond hair, brown eyes, wearing a Superman shirt and blue shorts.
Jason Oliver, is a white, male, age 8, 50 lbs, blond hair, hazel eyes, wearing a red shirt and black shorts.
Brief circumstances regarding the Endangered Missing Person incident :Jacob Oliver and Jason Oliver were taken from their custodial parent’s residence in Ridgedale, MO. They are believed to be en route to Kansas in the company of their birth mother Sabrina Lee Jones, and her boyfriend Jake Norton. Jones has an active protection order out of Kansas against Norton that includes the children. Norton is known to be armed.
Anyone seeing the missing person, suspect, associate, or vehicle, or anyone having any information related to the endangered missing person should immediately dial 911 to contact the nearest law enforcement agency or call the Taney County Sheriff’s Department at 417-546-7250.
PITTSBURG, Kan. (AP) — A man has pleaded guilty in southeast Kansas to a charge linked to the 2014 shooting death of a 20-year-old Pittsburg State University student.
The (Pittsburg) Morning Sun reports that 25-year-old Juan Salas-Rueda entered the plea in Crawford County to one count of aggravated robbery.
Prosecutors dropped counts of first-degree murder, aggravated burglary and obstruction.
The county’s top prosecutor, Michael Gayoso, says prosecutors don’t believe Salas-Rueda was directly involved with the slaying of Taylor Thomas, but that he provided the weapons used in the robbery.
Thomas was a 20-year-old junior at the school when killed in October 2014. Authorities allege the intruders were seeking drugs and money, with the drugs belonging to Thomas’ roommate, Joseph Otter.
Otter pleaded no contest Thursday and was found guilty of a marijuana-distribution charge.
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — A federal indictment in southern Kansas accuses 13 people of roles in an identity-theft ring involving more than $3.5 million of thievery.
The 50-count indictment unsealed Thursday in Wichita alleges the conspirators divided up the work of stealing from mailboxes, forging identification documents, obtaining fraudulent credit cards and shopping with stolen identities.
Authorities say some conspirators were paid in drugs for their labor.
Prosecutors said items bought with ill-gotten gains from the scheme included a $43,500 Jaguar car and a $62,000 Dodge Challenger Hellcat.
The indictment’s charges include aggravated identity theft, trafficking in stolen identities, receipt of stolen mail, unlawful production of identity documents, bank fraud, and drug and gun counts.
NEW YORK (AP) — Officials are reporting the first U.S. human case of bacteria resistant to an antibiotic used as a last resort drug.
The 49-year-old woman has recovered. But officials fear that if the resistance spreads to other bacteria, the country may soon see germs impervious to all antibiotics.
The woman had gone to a military clinic in Pennsylvania for a urinary tract infection. Tests found she had E. coli bacteria resistant to colistin, an antibiotic of last resort. She was successfully treated for the superbug with other antibiotics.
Bacteria resistant to the colistin have been found in other countries but not in people in the U.S. The woman had not traveled recently outside the country.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The lowest gas prices in more than a decade could make this Memorial Day one of the busiest ever on the roads.
AAA projects some 38 million people will travel 50 miles or more over the holiday weekend. That’s about 700,000 more than last year and the most since 2005. And the auto club says the overwhelming majority of those travelers — 89 percent — plan to go by car.
The average price for a gallon of regular is a $2.30 nationwide, about 34 cents less than a year ago, and AAA estimates that Americans have saved more than $15 billion on gas so far this year.
AAA also cites rising personal income and a strong labor market as factors encouraging Americans to head to the beaches, mountains and other destinations this Memorial Day weekend.
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — The Kansas Governmental Ethics Commission has launched a new campaign finance website that officials say might not address the public’s needs.
The website aimed to give people easier access to information about which political candidates are receiving money and who’s contributing to campaigns, The Lawrence Journal-World reported.
Carol Williams, who heads the commission, said the website won’t address many of the concerns raised in a new national report that says most states have campaign finance websites that are confusing, difficult to navigate and often provide inaccurate information.
Williams said she believes the new website is easier to navigate but that the data itself is still the same. It’s composed mainly of PDFs, which are hard for users to search or navigate because many of them are handwritten.
RILEY COUNTY – One person was injured in an accident just before 1:30p.m. on Thursday in Dickinson County.
The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2014 Mitsubishi passenger car driven by Shannon M. Timm, 41, Phoenix, AZ., was westbound on Interstate 70 just west of Tallgrass Road.
The vehicle hydroplaned on the wet surface and sideswiped a semi.
Timm was transported to the hospital in Manhattan.
The semi driver Bradley C. Pooler, 50, Delphos, was not injured.
Both drivers were properly restrained at the time of the accident, according to the KHP.
