Neag Center Home Page | News & Views
Sometimes TV can be a good influence: inspired by popular crime dramas, students in one Louisville high school will have the opportunity to take classes in forensic science beginning next fall:
www.kentucky.com/mld/kentucky/news/state/9094855.htm
A bargain for everyone: in Ohio, one school district is making use of its students' computer skills by hiring them as tech support over the summer. The students' wages are less that professional services would demand, making this a good deal for all concerned:
www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20040708/NEWS04/407080317/-1/NEWS
In Tennessee, over 30,000 young children eligible for the state's Head Start program may not have that opportunity, thanks to inadequate funding. The Tennessee Commission on Children and Youth has called for the state government to provide the funds:
tennessean.com/education/archives/04/07/53888926.shtml?Element_ID=53888926
According to a report submitted to the House of Representatives, America's juvenile detention centers may be serving a dangerous double purpose—as "warehouses" for mentally ill youngsters. The report suggests that the problem is nationwide:
www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5387015
Weighing in in favor of standardized tests, this article argues that they are a good, if imperfect measure and play an important role in assessment—and accountability:
www.csmonitor.com/2004/0712/p09s02-coop.html
In Britain, educational television isn't just for kids any more. A new channel, Teachers' TV, was recently approved, offering professional development programming and classroom resources:
www.tes.co.uk/breaking_news/story.asp?id=23679
Meet ASCD's Outstanding Young Educators! This site showcases the winners of this year's ASCD award:
www.ascd.org/cms/index.cfm?TheViewID=2513&reid=sb
No one's lining up for Linux, at least not in Britain's schools. While some urge a switch to Linux, most feel that the lack of software choices make it a less than attractive option:
news.independent.co.uk/world/science_technology/story.jsp?story=540603
Prep school. . . . for kindergarten? That's what some Canadian schools are trying out, in some cases for children as young as three:
www.globeandmail.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/TPStory/LAC/20040714/KIDS14/TPEducation
And yet another study on Why TV Is Bad For Kids: researchers in New Zealand found that excessive TV watching in children can lead to adult health problems, including high cholesterol and an increased likelihood of smoking:
news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/3896093.stm
The latest on NCLB: new provisions designed to give relief to rural districts use criteria that resulted in giving relief to Western districts, but leaving Southern ones "out in the cold". The Education department is now considering revising its guidelines:
www.boston.com/news/education/k_12/articles/2004/07/16/western_schools_get_reprieve_on_standards
In Britain, a columnist writes on what parents really want from government-funded schools: safety and a quality curriculum for their children. Ideally, these schools would be so good that even those who can easily afford privately funded schooling would clamor to get their children in:
education.guardian.co.uk/schools/comment/story/0,9828,1261659,00.html
In Michigan, some districts are experimenting with new online classes. Currently, they have six available for high school students:
www.detnews.com/2004/schools/0407/19/c05-215833.htm
It's a basic: healthy students are more likely to be successful in school. Check out these great new Health in Education resources from ASCD:
www.ascd.org/cms/index.cfm?TheViewID=1914&flag=1914&showsubs=0,2117&reid=sb
In Iowa, many smaller districts lack the resources to offer advanced placement (AP) courses. The lack has touched off a debate between those who believe that such courses should only be offered to schools with a high percentage of college-bound students and those who believe that that approach is a self-fulfilling prophecy:
www.dmregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20040719/NEWS02/407190316/1001
No School Administrator Left Behind? In Nashville, the metro area schools director has asked that his contract not be extended unless test scores come up:
tennessean.com/education/archives/04/07/54599602.shtml?Element_ID=54599602
A new study highlighted in ASCD's ResearchBrief looks at the quality of mathematics teaching, and teachers, in the US:
www.ascd.org/cms/objectlib/ascdframeset/index.cfm?publication=http://www.ascd.org/publications/researchbrief/volume2/v2n15.html
A new report looks at state implementation of NCLB provisions. The report, by the Education Commission of States (ECS) finds that while states are making progress, many have a long way to go:
www.ecs.org/ecsmain.asp?page=/html/special/nclb/reporttothenation/reporttothenation.htm
What's the one thing most Americans want in school funding? The answer is fairness, according to a new report:
www.ets.org/news/04070101.html
Despite the best efforts of J.K. Rowling and Oprah Winfrey, reading is on the decline in the US. A new NEA report shows that many functionally literate adults choose not to read for pleasure:
msnbc.msn.com/id/5389382
A new kind of high school: This report examines the Talent Development High School model, a program that has seen success in some troubled schools:
www.mdrc.org/publications/388/overview.html
In Texas, buying new textbooks has sparked an ethics debate. As the state considers new high school health textbooks, groups at both ends of the political spectrum weigh in:
www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5469437
Author—and educator—Jonathan Schorr takes a look at John Kerry's education platform. Read the details here:
www.washingtonmonthly.com/features/2004/0407.schorr.html
They may not be old enough to vote, but thanks to new political websites, kids can get involved in the political process. Some sites are partisan, while others, like Kids Voting USA, simply seek to give kids an opportunity to explore the experience of voting:
www.kidsvotingusa.org
Read an article about these websites here:
www.usatoday.com/tech/webguide/internetlife/2004-07-22-election-kids_x.htm
In national news, the House of Representative recently voted in a bill to strengthen the Perkins Act. The new measure would clarify funding measures in this act, which provides resources for vocational education programs:
www.boston.com/news/education/higher/articles/2004/07/22/congress_mulls_vocational_education_change
Arizona is one of only two states in the US that doesn't allot state funds for free-lunch programs in school, but that doesn't mean they don't windup holding the lunch bag: many districts are in debt owing to uncollected lunch fees from parents too poor to afford school lunches for their children but too well-off for the federally-funded lunch program:
www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/news/articles/0722lunch22a1.html
The Teach For America recently got a research boost in the form of a new report showing the success of the program's graduates. Read this article in ASCD's EdPolicy Update:
www.ascd.org/cms/index.cfm?TheViewID=2514
Aiding teachers more than ever: A new study shows that teacher aides are taking on more and more classroom duties and responsibilities:
www.usatoday.com/news/education/2004-07-13-teachers-aides_x.htm
Title 1 funds are a source of financial lifeblood to many schools. This report examines upcoming changes in Title 1 funding—and the reasons behind them:
www.cep-dc.org/pubs/Title1_Funds_15June2004/TitleI_15June2004_Paper.htm
In Oregon, state policy-makers are reconsidering an ambitious school "blueprint" proposed five years ago. But with budget cuts since then taking their toll, legislators are reevaluating the practicality of the plan:
seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/education/2001983616_education20m.html
"Back to school" means big bucks for some retailers: check out this report on projected school-related expenses for average American families:
money.cnn.com/2004/07/20/news/economy/nrf_school/index.htm?cnn=yes
In Arizona, state lawmakers have determined that privately-run, for-profit charter schools are eligible for state funding. The move is designed to encourage the US Education Department to follow suit:
www.dailystar.com/dailystar/news/30880.php
Family vacations are on the rise this year—but there's a new guest along on many of them: the new in-car TV/VCR combos many parents will use to entertain their children. This column argues that doing so, however, misses the point of a family vacation: time together to see new places:
www.tallahassee.com/mld/democrat/news/opinion/9014550.htm
A new after-school activity: check out ExperienceCorps' website for ways that older adults can get involved in after-school activities and share their experience with the next generation:
www.experiencecorps.org/news/afterschoolreport/index.html
A more permanent kind of substitute: this article talks about the ways that smart administrators help ensure their substitute teachers can be more than just babysitters:
www.districtadministration.com/page.cfm?p=807
Education as experimentation—and vice versa: This new report by the APA takes a look at the role of discovery learning in science classes, an approach that has its roots in two of education's best-known names, Jean Piaget and John Dewey:
www.apa.org/monitor/jun04/instruct.html