SBCSS News and Press Releases

Firefighter To Make Algebra Demonstration To Pacific High Students

2009-04-03

SAN BERNARDINO - About 140 students from Pacific High School will receive a hands-on math lesson in real-world applications for algebra from Tom Rubio, an engineer with the San Bernardino City Professional Firefighters.

The event will be held from 7:30-11:45 a.m. on April 7 at Pacific, which is located at 1020 Pacific St. in San Bernardino.

The presentation is one of about five different business partner demonstrations of the use of real-world mathematics, which are part of the Applications by Business and Labor for Educators (ABLE) program being implemented at Pacific High School for the second year through the Alliance for Education, a program of the San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools.

"These exercises with education partners like Tom Rubio give students real-world applications for what they are learning in their classes," County Superintendent Gary Thomas said. "Demonstrations through our Applications by Business and Labor for Educators program engage students in learning."

The activity consists of some classroom instruction on how firefighters use algebra, followed by a hands-on demonstration using the fire engine. During the hands-on portion of the demonstration students will have the opportunity to hold the fire hose and feel the changes in pressure relevant to the math done during the classroom portion.

The Alliance for Education in partnership with business/labor/community leaders develop and demonstrate authentic applications of math found in the workplace to students in the classroom or at the business/industry sites. Rubio will demonstrate how California Algebra Standard 5, which involves solving multi-step word problems using linear equations, is used in the field of firefighting.

For more information on the demonstration, contact Kim Terry with the Alliance for Education at (909) 386-2636.