Education Center Online Celebrates Black History Month - Offering Online Education for People of All Races

Education Center Online Celebrates Black History Month - Offering Online Education for People of All Races

Apperson Education Products Partners with Northrop Grumman

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Disabled students scores up in Green Bay schools

Disabled students scores up in Green Bay schools

The Green Bay School District's efforts to improve test scores among disabled students appear to be paying off, according to state standardized test scores being released today.

At elite colleges, new aid for the middle

At elite colleges, new aid for the middle
Some of the nation's most elite colleges, trying to ward off perceptions that they've become unaffordable to even high-income families, are bolstering their financial aid packages by offering grants to students whose parents earn as much as $180,000 a year.

Mo. Senate panel OKs $800M college building plan

The Missouri Senate Appropriations Committee expanded a proposed college construction bond package on Wednesday to include money for other state building projects. Continue reading ...

Our views: Report card for education

With the Louisiana Legislature poised for another session, the Council for A Better Louisiana has released an updated version of its Education Report Card that tracks trends in elementary, secondary and higher education throughout the state.

Read more ...

Disabled students scores up in Green Bay schools

The Green Bay School District's efforts to improve test scores among disabled students appear to be paying off, according to state standardized test scores being released today.

Read more ...

Experts want crackdown on drugmaker dollars

Experts want crackdown on drugmaker dollars
Government medical advisers say millions of dollars in gifts, travel and consulting fees from the pharmaceutical industry should be eliminated to stop companies from influencing doctors.

OER Commons: Open Educational Resources

OER Commons: Open Educational Resources

Since my own EduResources Portal closed in July 2007, I've been looking for other useful portal entry points to recommend to students and instructors who are searching for educational resources. I highly recommend the OER Commons as a valuable first stop. The Commons is extremely broad in scope, but so well organized that new users can orient to its resources quickly.

The OER  materials can be browsed by categories or collections; resources are also searchable with key words. Additionally, the entry page displays the OER Top Ten and the Top 25 Tags for a quick scan of what other users are viewing. Visitors who register can set up their own OER Portfolio and also sign up to receive an E-News newsletter.

The "OER Matters" section provides links to News Stories, Articles and Reports, Conferences and Workshops, Discussion Forums, Organizations and Associations, Tools and Technology, and Blogs and Wikis.  The Commons was created by the Institute for the Study of Knowledge Management in Education (ISKME) which is supported by the Hewlett Foundation.  OER professionals will want to mark the OER Commons in their bookmarks and visit the site regularly (an rss feed is also available). _____JH

______

"OER Commons is a teaching and learning network, from K-12 lesson plans to college courseware, from algebra to zoology, open to everyone to use and add to."

"Learn more about the worldwide movement to make teaching and learning materials free and accessible for use and re-use by everyone."

When a Community Loses

Eight years ago, when my daughters were in diapers, I took an assistant coaching post with the Hamilton-Wenham High School hockey team. It was one of those rare moments when life allows you to repay a debt. I lost my dad before eighth grade. Sports kept me heading in the right direction despite the upheaval of puberty. I had a ... Continue reading ...

Kaplan SAT Prep Tools on Facebook

While I’m usually one to veer away from technology, I have always maintained that it does have its place in the education realm. Kids these days (is there any way to avoid sounding like my grandmother when I use that phrase?) rarely separate themselves from technology, and as much I adore a Ticonderoga #2, [...]

While I’m usually one to veer away from technology, I have always maintained that it does have its place in the education realm. Kids these days (is there any way to avoid sounding like my grandmother when I use that phrase?) rarely separate themselves from technology, and as much I adore a Ticonderoga #2, they tend to see paper and writing implements as inefficient and old-fashioned. It’s fortunate that I’m a confident enough girl to not take umbrage at what that may imply about me and my doddering 35-year-old-ness.

Technology is not my favorite item on the menu, but I absolutely see its usefulness, especially in terms of educating the tech-savvy younger generations. Kaplan has just launched a Facebook application for their SAT prep tools that melds nicely with the whole education/technology/whippersnappers-glued-to-their-laptops era. It saves trees, and users can challenge each other with the “Challenge a Friend” feature.

I’m not a proponent of standardized testing, but as long as the tests are being used, the technologically adept teenagers of today may as well have access to as much digital test prep as possible.

Posted by Alexa Harrington

Read the rest ...

The education of Randy Houser

The education of Randy Houser
The Mississippi native, who'll play the Indio festival, traveled to Nashville to make music. He's teaching the old-timers a thing or two.

One of the more surprising hits on country radio this year has been "Anything Goes," sung by Mississippi-born musician Randy Houser . At a time when country programmers are enamored of songs from male singers cheering for lifelong romantic commitments, the title track from Houser's debut album is unusually frank in its depiction of a guy who goes off the deep end after his girl leaves him.

Student Has Perfect Score Times 3

Student Has Perfect Score Times 3

A Michigan high school student who got perfect scores on three college entrance tests may have the math skills to calculate the odds of doing what she did.

Colleges push tuition aid for illegal immigrants

Colleges push tuition aid for illegal immigrants

Wading into the politically charged immigration debate, a group of colleges and universities is urging Congress to give illegal immigrants tuition aid and a path to citizenship in light of efforts in several states to block them.

2 charged in threats against UCLA research scientists

Linda Faith Greene, 61, and Kevin Richard Olliff, 22, have been charged with 10 felonies involving incidents against scientists who use animals in their research.

Two animal rights activists have been charged with threatening and harassing UCLA scientists who use animals in their research, according to a Los Angeles County grand jury indictment unsealed Monday.

Read the rest ...

Mich. high school senior aces ACT, SAT and PSAT

Willa Chen has a knack for tough tests.

The Detroit News reported Saturday that the 17-year-old senior at southeast Michigan's Canton High School got perfect scores on the ACT _ and the SAT _ and the PSAT.

ACT Inc. spokeswoman Mary Owens says it's 'quite an accomplishment.'

The College Board, made up of 5,000 schools, administers the SAT and PSAT but says it doesn't track statistics on whether anyone has scored perfectly on both of its tests.

Chen plans to attend Princeton University.

Read the rest ...

Donations flow in for Crenshaw High student's Oxford adventure

Donations flow in for Crenshaw High student's Oxford adventure
Sharron Pearson is overwhelmed by the response to her request for aid for airfare and expenses. 'It went incredibly well -- amazing,' says the assistant principal who coordinated the effort.

A fundraising effort to help Crenshaw High School junior Sharron Pearson buy a plane ticket to attend Oxford University this summer far surpassed its goal, with about 1,000 people offering to make donations, school officials said Thursday.

Open Educational Resources--UNESCO/IIEP Virtual Conference

Over three intense weeks from Nov. 13 to Dec. 1,  I participated, along with 700 others, in the UNESCO-sponsored virtual conference on Open Educational Resources. "Organized in partnership with the OECD Centre for Research and Innovation, this Internet discussion forum is the latest in a programme of activities designed to raise awareness and build capacity on Open Educational Resources." 

I would say that this conference was the best of the three UNESCO virtual conferences that I've "attended" about OER over the past year, partly because of the quality of leadership guidance by Susan D'Antoni, Claude Martin, Alexa Joyce, and Jan Hylen, and partly because of the quality and focus of the postings from well-qualified participants such as David Wiley, Stephen Downes, Fred Beshears, Marianne Phillips, Derek Keats, Wayne Mackintosh, and many others. Also this conference clearly benefitted from the formulations and exchanges that emerged from earlier UNESCO conferences about OER, especially the preceding conference about Free and Open Source Software in relation to OER. 

In the past when I've participated in UNESCO's and other conferences, virtual and actual, I've blogged about them while the conferences were underway. For this conference I'm going to blog retrospectively by posting a number of items that I kept on my computer from the hundreds of postings that were made over the three week period. I'll also post links to the reports about the conference as they become available. 

High on my education wish list is a very strong request that many, many other educational organizations begin to run open virtual conferences, if not to replace their regular conferences, then in parallel with them and in between them.  The bountiful possibilities for enriched educational exchanges that are now available with via simple communication tools on the web would be mutiplied exponentially if only organizations and conferences would move in this direction. (And we can leave suitcases at home.)

_______

 

Conference Invitation from Jan Hylen

Dear Colleague,

I would like to invite you to participate in an online discussion that will focus on the findings and conclusions from the OECD study on Open Educational Resources. The forum will run from Monday 13^th November through Friday 1^st December.

We hope that you will be interested in participating since you have actively contributed to the OECD study – either by answering our survey, carrying out case studies or participating in expert meetings. This study is approaching its final stage, and it is time to summarize our findings and draw some conclusions for the final report that is scheduled to be published in March/April 2007. By inviting you to participate in the discussion we would like to give some feedback on your participation and offer you the opportunity to discuss, comment and have a say regarding the conclusions and the recommendations coming out of the study.

The forum will be organized as follows:

·       Week 1 (13 – 19 November): What do we know about users and producers of Open Educational Resources?


·       Week 2 (20 – 26 November): What are the motives or incentives and barriers for individuals and institutions to use, produce and share Open Educational Resources?

·       Week 3 (27 November – 1 December): What are the policy implications and the most pressing policy issues on institutional, regional and national level coming out from this study?

Participants in the discussion will receive two background notes summarizing the main findings from the OECD study on who the users and producers of OER are, and the motives or incentives for individuals and institutions to use and produce OER.

The forum is one of a series of discussions organized by UNESCO’s International Institute for Educational Planning (IIEP) for the purpose of awareness-raising on OER. The Community of Interest that has been formed has been active since October 2005 and has more than 600 members from 94 countries. You can find information on previous topics of discussion at: http://www.unesco.org/iiep/virtualuniversity/forums.php

To participate in the forum, please send an e-mail to Susan D’Antoni at: virtual.university@iiep.unesco.org and mention the OECD study. Your name will then be added to the OER Community for this specific online discussion.

And for more information and continuous updates regarding the OECD study, you can refer to: www.oecd.org/edu/oer .

We hope that you will be able to join us and contribute further to the reflection and discussion of OER and our findings.

With best regards,

Jan

Jan Hylén
Analyst
Centre for Educational Research and Innovation (CERI)
Directorate for Education, OECD
2 rue André Pascal
75775 Paris Cedex 16, France
Tel: +33 (0) 145 24 17 06
www.oecd.org/edu/ceri/update

Read more ...

When a Community Loses

Eight years ago, when my daughters were in diapers, I took an assistant coaching post with the Hamilton-Wenham High School hockey team. It was one of those rare moments when life allows you to repay a debt. I lost my dad before eighth grade. Sports kept me heading in the right direction despite the upheaval of puberty. I had a ... Read the rest ...

Hoops-Cossey: Focus on better education for students

Why are you seeking a position on the Wayne-Westland Board of Education? I am currently a teacher at Huron Valley Catholic School, a private school in Ypsilanti, but have taught in public and charter schools as well.

Continue reading ...

1 dead, several injured in NC hit-and-run accident

Police are investigating a hit-and-run accident that flipped a minivan on a North Carolina city street.

Read more ...

Expanding the Pool of Qualified Educators

Read more ...

Educational Psychology Can Save Recess (I Hope)

Sometimes I wonder why the decision-makers are so backward in their thinking, and then I wonder which one of us non-decision-makers was responsible for putting them in charge in the first place. Outdoor recess and unstructured, in-classroom play time have been decreasing so as to make time for the fully structured knowledge-absorption parts of [...]

Sometimes I wonder why the decision-makers are so backward in their thinking, and then I wonder which one of us non-decision-makers was responsible for putting them in charge in the first place. Outdoor recess and unstructured, in-classroom play time have been decreasing so as to make time for the fully structured knowledge-absorption parts of the school day. The yahoos in charge of how much time is spent learning vs. playing in elementary schools need to spend an afternoon finger-painting and remember what it was like to be a kid.

Alternatively, they could read all the research backing up the idea that kids who are given time during the school day for physical activity (the crux of the recess invention) and to play in the classroom during free choice time (they learn while they play indoors, too) are better able to sit down at their desks and absorb more info when it comes time for the focusing.

I’m a big recess fan, so I’ve always been cranky about the slow but sure disappearance of primary school recess times. But there’s also an entire portion of in-classroom free time, also known as child-directed educational play, which is being squeezed out in favor of fully structured, sit-still-and-absorb-the-information learning.

The traditional kindergarten classroom that most adults remember from childhood—with plenty of space and time for unstructured play and discovery, art and music, practicing social skills, and learning to enjoy learning—has largely disappeared. The results of three new studies, supported by the Alliance for Childhood and described in this report, suggest that time for play in most public kindergartens has dwindled to the vanishing point, replaced by lengthy lessons and standardized testing.

The studies were conducted by researchers from U.C.L.A., Long Island University and Sarah Lawrence College in New York. The researchers found that

• On a typical day, kindergartners in Los Angeles and New York City spend four to six times as long being
instructed and tested in literacy and math (two to three hours per day) as in free play or “choice time” (30 minutes or less).

• Standardized testing and preparation for tests are now a daily activity in most of the kindergartens studied, despite the fact that most uses of such tests with children under age eight are of questionable validity and can lead to harmful labeling.

• Classic play materials like blocks, sand and water tables, and props for dramatic play have largely disappeared from the 268 full-day kindergarten classrooms studied.

• In many kindergarten classrooms there is no play- time at all. Teachers say the curriculum does not
incorporate play, there isn’t time for it, and many school administrators do not value it.

Kindergartners are now under great pressure to meet inappropriate expectations, including academic standards
that until recently were reserved for first grade. At the same time, they are being denied the benefits of play—a major stress reliever.

If teachers were in charge, I can guarantee there would be more free time in the classroom for the kids to engage in child-directed, imagination-saturated, problem-solving, cognition-developing play. Anyone who has learned anything about the psychology of kiddos and their brain wiring knows that they are learning even when they are playing, and that they learn better during the in-desk formal learning part of their school day if they’ve have a chance to blow off some steam and decompress a little.

Someone with a conscience and the proverbial balls to use their powers for good needs to get some official documentation of their qualification to tell the powers that be what it is, exactly, that kids require to be happy and healthy. (The answer is: More play, on and off the monkey bars.)

I think educational psychology carries some excellent potential for bureaucratic ass-kicking. Educational psychologists understand the whys and hows of who is learning what, how they’re learning in any given situation, and who is teaching and what makes those educators tick, and why the curriculum is or isn’t working for all parties involved. They’re the ones who grok the whole educational picture of a school and can use torrents of gorgeous vocabulary to explain to the policymakers why recess matters. Someone go to it and save our kids.

Further Reading and Resources:

Physically Fit Kids Do Better In School
Physical Activity May Strengthen Children’s Ability To Pay Attention
Educational Psychology Careers and Degrees
About Educational Psychology
Telling the Stories of Educational Psychology
American Psychological Association

Posted by Alexa Harrington

image sources: classroom and playground

Continue reading ...

Get The Best Plumbing Business Plan And Build Your Business

by Greg Hamlyn Business Planning For Plumbing Companies Many a time, when you think of launching your own plumbing business, there seem to be road blocks in form of improper planning. Complex software also does not provide adequate assistance or any better potential. Business plan is based upon various aspects of the plumbing trade, which are tried and tested methods of successful businesses. Business planning should be a vital focus for companies of any dimension. A well-organized plan prov Continue reading ...

Pearson Education's OnMicrosoft Podcasts Provide New Learning Tool

Pearson Education's OnMicrosoft Podcasts Provide New Learning Tool

Kaplan SAT Prep Tools on Facebook

Kaplan SAT Prep Tools on Facebook
While I’m usually one to veer away from technology, I have always maintained that it does have its place in the education realm. Kids these days (is there any way to avoid sounding like my grandmother when I use that phrase?) rarely separate themselves from technology, and as much I adore a Ticonderoga #2, [...]

While I’m usually one to veer away from technology, I have always maintained that it does have its place in the education realm. Kids these days (is there any way to avoid sounding like my grandmother when I use that phrase?) rarely separate themselves from technology, and as much I adore a Ticonderoga #2, they tend to see paper and writing implements as inefficient and old-fashioned. It’s fortunate that I’m a confident enough girl to not take umbrage at what that may imply about me and my doddering 35-year-old-ness.

Technology is not my favorite item on the menu, but I absolutely see its usefulness, especially in terms of educating the tech-savvy younger generations. Kaplan has just launched a Facebook application for their SAT prep tools that melds nicely with the whole education/technology/whippersnappers-glued-to-their-laptops era. It saves trees, and users can challenge each other with the “Challenge a Friend” feature.

I’m not a proponent of standardized testing, but as long as the tests are being used, the technologically adept teenagers of today may as well have access to as much digital test prep as possible.

Posted by Alexa Harrington

Wash. state lawmakers wrapping up budget deal

Wash. state lawmakers wrapping up budget deal
Legislative Democrats struck an agreement Wednesday night on roughly $4 billion in spending cuts to close a massive two-year budget deficit, putting the Legislature on the cusp of resolving the worst budget mess in some 25 years.

Youth volunteering dips, first time since 9/11

Youth volunteering dips, first time since 9/11
Volunteering has helped define a generation of young Americans who are known for their do-gooder ways. Many high schools require community service before graduation. And these days, donating time to a charitable organization is all but expected on a young person's college or job application.

College Board steps into the immigration debate

College Board steps into the immigration debate
Trustees of the association that administers the SAT vote to support the Dream Act, which would offer some undocumented youths a path to citizenship through college or the military.

The College Board is supporting legislation that would offer some undocumented youths a path to citizenship through college or the military.

LectureShare

LectureShare

This new web tool makes it easy for instructors to share text, audio, and video with students. Registration is required, but free. Use the FAQ and About sections to orient to the resources. Also look at Ezra Katz's sample course LectureShare 101 (once registered). ____JH

(Thanks to Jane's E-Learning Pick of the Day for this reference.)

_____

• Give students access to course materials without the burden of maintaining your own webpage or the hassle of complex web-based solutions
• Post audio and video content easily
• Make class announcements that your students will actually read—via e-mail, RSS (coming soon), or SMS
• Effortlessly make your course available to anyone if you choose

Boston investigator will review arrests of Colby students

Boston investigator will review arrests of Colby students
Colby College has named an independent investigator to evaluate the conduct of campus security during the videotaped arrest of two students after an April 11 dance.

Final Glance: Education companies (INO News)

Final Glance: Education companies (INO News)
Apollo Group rose $.42 or .7 percent, to $61.57. Career Education rose $.45 or 2.2 percent, to $21.00.

At elite colleges, new aid for the middle

At elite colleges, new aid for the middle
Some of the nation's most elite colleges, trying to ward off perceptions that they've become unaffordable to even high-income families, are bolstering their financial aid packages by offering grants to students whose parents earn as much as $180,000 a year.

EduResources Portal Closed

The EduResources Portal was closed this month. The Portal, which was formerly at http://sage.eou.edu/SPT was shut down by Eastern Oregon University (EOU) when the server could no longer be maintained. Because of financial pressures, the University must focus on "supporting hardware and software that directly contribute to the central mission of the institution."

I began the EduResources Portal in 2003 while completing a sabbatical research project; the Portal was established to provide a starting point for instructors who sought to locate online instructional repositories. When I retired from EOU in June 2004, I continued to maintain the Portal from a distance with the assistance of the Computer Center at EOU. The Portal operated in conjunction with this EduResources Weblog; the Portal provided organized links to sites that contain instructional resources for higher education and the Weblog provided commentary about news related to online instructional resources.

I intend to continue the EduResources Weblog for at least another year. I recommend that users who relied on the EduResources Portal make use of the TLT Group's Collection of Collections to guide their searches for online resources: "Exploration Guide: Collections, Repositories, Referatories of Instructional Resources on the Web."

Read the rest ...

If You’re Pondering A Teaching Career

While on the one hand we’ve got a major teacher retirement upheaval about to hit the American school system, during which we’ll be losing a third of the current teaching force, on the other hand we’ve got a sketchy economy that’s sending boatloads of career-types running for the safety (I use the term loosely) of [...]

While on the one hand we’ve got a major teacher retirement upheaval about to hit the American school system, during which we’ll be losing a third of the current teaching force, on the other hand we’ve got a sketchy economy that’s sending boatloads of career-types running for the safety (I use the term loosely) of the business end of a classroom. Stock markets can crash, but barring a new world order, there will always be schools full of kids to teach.

For anyone out there who might be considering a career in the educating arts, please read this collection of short pieces in the New York Times written by three teachers, one professor of education, and one economist, about how hard teaching really is and the fact that, just because there’s a shortage coming down the pike, it doesn’t mean landing aand keeping a teaching job is going to be a piece of cake.

You might also want to read Teacher Man, by Frank McCourt, the most realistic, unromantic, non-Hollywood memoir about McCourt’s career as an English teacher in the New York public school system. It’s amazing and beautiful, but it would never serve to convince anyone to become a teacher unless the urge to educate was present in their bones prior to reading the book and had managed to stay put through to the last page. Teacher Man does not do for the teaching profession what Top Gun did for naval fighter pilots. It doesn’t make the teaching profession sexy in the slightest; it makes it terrifying and frustrating and also a tad eviscerating. (Is it possible to only be a tad eviscerated?)

Teacher Man is a beautiful story because Frank McCourt is who he is and because he wrote the way he did about how he felt about his students and his teaching of them. No other teacher will have the same relationships or career experiences, so for god’s sake don’t go becoming a teacher so you can be the next Frank McCourt. He writes honestly enough (he’s painfully blunt) that I feel certain reading his book will serve as an excellent chaff separator.

Further Reading:

A ‘Tsunami’ of Boomer Teacher Retirements is on the Horizon
As Economy Falters, Interest in Teaching Surges
Report Envisions Shortage of Teachers as Retirements Escalate
‘Relentless Pursuit’: A Year Teaching in America
Alternate Route to Teaching is Now a Road More Traveled
Education Degree Resources

Posted by Alexa Harrington

image source

Read the rest ...

Analysis: Mo. has $2 billion, 3 weeks to spend it

Two billion dollars. One-hundred-sixty ways to spend it. And three weeks to figure it out. Read more ...

Educational Psychology Can Save Recess (I Hope)

Educational Psychology Can Save Recess (I Hope)
Sometimes I wonder why the decision-makers are so backward in their thinking, and then I wonder which one of us non-decision-makers was responsible for putting them in charge in the first place. Outdoor recess and unstructured, in-classroom play time have been decreasing so as to make time for the fully structured knowledge-absorption parts of [...]

Sometimes I wonder why the decision-makers are so backward in their thinking, and then I wonder which one of us non-decision-makers was responsible for putting them in charge in the first place. Outdoor recess and unstructured, in-classroom play time have been decreasing so as to make time for the fully structured knowledge-absorption parts of the school day. The yahoos in charge of how much time is spent learning vs. playing in elementary schools need to spend an afternoon finger-painting and remember what it was like to be a kid.

Alternatively, they could read all the research backing up the idea that kids who are given time during the school day for physical activity (the crux of the recess invention) and to play in the classroom during free choice time (they learn while they play indoors, too) are better able to sit down at their desks and absorb more info when it comes time for the focusing.

I’m a big recess fan, so I’ve always been cranky about the slow but sure disappearance of primary school recess times. But there’s also an entire portion of in-classroom free time, also known as child-directed educational play, which is being squeezed out in favor of fully structured, sit-still-and-absorb-the-information learning.

The traditional kindergarten classroom that most adults remember from childhood—with plenty of space and time for unstructured play and discovery, art and music, practicing social skills, and learning to enjoy learning—has largely disappeared. The results of three new studies, supported by the Alliance for Childhood and described in this report, suggest that time for play in most public kindergartens has dwindled to the vanishing point, replaced by lengthy lessons and standardized testing.

The studies were conducted by researchers from U.C.L.A., Long Island University and Sarah Lawrence College in New York. The researchers found that

• On a typical day, kindergartners in Los Angeles and New York City spend four to six times as long being
instructed and tested in literacy and math (two to three hours per day) as in free play or “choice time” (30 minutes or less).

• Standardized testing and preparation for tests are now a daily activity in most of the kindergartens studied, despite the fact that most uses of such tests with children under age eight are of questionable validity and can lead to harmful labeling.

• Classic play materials like blocks, sand and water tables, and props for dramatic play have largely disappeared from the 268 full-day kindergarten classrooms studied.

• In many kindergarten classrooms there is no play- time at all. Teachers say the curriculum does not
incorporate play, there isn’t time for it, and many school administrators do not value it.

Kindergartners are now under great pressure to meet inappropriate expectations, including academic standards
that until recently were reserved for first grade. At the same time, they are being denied the benefits of play—a major stress reliever.

If teachers were in charge, I can guarantee there would be more free time in the classroom for the kids to engage in child-directed, imagination-saturated, problem-solving, cognition-developing play. Anyone who has learned anything about the psychology of kiddos and their brain wiring knows that they are learning even when they are playing, and that they learn better during the in-desk formal learning part of their school day if they’ve have a chance to blow off some steam and decompress a little.

Someone with a conscience and the proverbial balls to use their powers for good needs to get some official documentation of their qualification to tell the powers that be what it is, exactly, that kids require to be happy and healthy. (The answer is: More play, on and off the monkey bars.)

I think educational psychology carries some excellent potential for bureaucratic ass-kicking. Educational psychologists understand the whys and hows of who is learning what, how they’re learning in any given situation, and who is teaching and what makes those educators tick, and why the curriculum is or isn’t working for all parties involved. They’re the ones who grok the whole educational picture of a school and can use torrents of gorgeous vocabulary to explain to the policymakers why recess matters. Someone go to it and save our kids.

Further Reading and Resources:

Physically Fit Kids Do Better In School
Physical Activity May Strengthen Children’s Ability To Pay Attention
Educational Psychology Careers and Degrees
About Educational Psychology
Telling the Stories of Educational Psychology
American Psychological Association

Posted by Alexa Harrington

image sources: classroom and playground

Company to pay $7 million to resolve allegations

A Denver-based company and the colleges it operates in Texas have agreed to pay $7 million to resolve allegations that the colleges submitted false claims for federal student aid funds, the Justice Department announced Monday. Read more ...

World's Greatest Libraries: Past and Present

World's Greatest Libraries: Past and Present

Explore some of the most significant libraries from the ancient and modern world, including the largest, the oldest and the most technologically advanced, as well as those with unique collections, architecture or locations.

India Launches Spy and Education Satellites (People's Daily)

India's all-weather defence surveillance satellite - radar imaging satellite (RISAT-2) - and the micro education satellite Anusat were successfully placed in orbit by an Indian rocket that flew from spaceport of Sriharikota in South India's Andhra Pradesh early Monday morning. The Israeli-built spy satellite RISAT-2 will primarily keep an eye on the country's borders round-the-clock and help in ... Read more ...

Pearson Education's OnMicrosoft Podcasts Provide New Learning Tool

Pearson Education's OnMicrosoft Podcasts Provide New Learning Tool

Mass. college kids to break ground on solar house

Mass. college kids to break ground on solar house
In this decathlon, green engineering and design replace sprints and long jumps. A team of students from Tufts University and Boston Architectural College are building a solar-powered house as part of the 2009 Solar Decathlon.

David Wiley's Open Course on Open Education

David Wiley's Open Course on Open Education
Here's the link the to wiki syllabus for David Wiley's Fall 2007 course about Open Education. There's still time to sign up for this online course. "The goals of the course are (1) to give you a firm grounding in the current state of the field of open education, including related topics like copyright, licensing, and sustainability, (2) to help you locate open education in the context of mainstream instructional technologies like learning objects, and (3) to get you thinking, writing, and dialoguing creatively and critically about current practices and possible alternative practices in open education." Those who don't want to participate in the course will still find value in the online readings and the links to OER sites. ____JH

Who Else Wants To Know More About Business Opportunities

by Paul Horowitz Talking of a business opportunity, this is an avenue through which an individual profits from. Haunted by myriad questions whose answers seem not to exist? Looking for jobs to no success? All is not lost. All you need is a little investment and a good idea to start a business opportunity. Our economy is wanting, the job market is full, but there are always business opportunities that have not yet been exhausted. You are in college, university or any education field you still Continue reading ...

Expanding the Pool of Qualified Educators

Read more ...

EducationBug.org Launches Free Job Post

EducationBug.org Launches Free Job Post

L.A. Unified moves to cut 5,000 teachers and others

The board's 4-3 vote closes most of a $596.1-million deficit for next year and will lead to larger classes. But the battle over funding will rage on for weeks.

Los Angeles school district officials moved forward Tuesday with plans to lay off more than 5,000 teachers, counselors, custodians, clerks and other employees, but the battle over funding will rage on for weeks -- affecting who goes, who stays and what schools and classrooms will look like for students next year.

Read the rest ...

10 years later, Columbine's hold remains strong

10 years later, Columbine's hold remains strong
Teenage gunmen spilled the blood of children before Columbine -- in Alaska, Arkansas, Mississippi and Oregon. After Columbine, more blood was shed in Minnesota and California, in Germany and Finland.

Day of Silence open thread

Today is the National Day of Silence. Are you participating? Any Day of Silence stories? Continue reading ...

In City and Country, the Hip Bring Community into Focus

In City and Country, the Hip Bring Community into Focus
You won’t find the community of West Rose, New York listed on any maps, and I’m not sure it is really there any more. But when I was younger, growing up in rural Central New York, the hills west of Rose had a fading reputation for oddity and hipness. In prior decades, a variety of urban and suburbanites moved there from elsewhere, seeking an escape from grinding sameness. Laboring as organic farmers and craftspeople, they attracted one another to a place, with each settling in his or her own

Arizona jobless rate rises to 7.8 percent in March

A senior state government economist said Thursday the steady rise of Arizona's unemployment rate shows no sign of slowing with the loss of 7,600 jobs in March. Read the rest ...

Arizona jobless rate rises to 7.8 percent in March

A senior state government economist said Thursday the steady rise of Arizona's unemployment rate shows no sign of slowing with the loss of 7,600 jobs in March. Read more ...

Tweeting in the Operating Room

Tweeting in the Operating Room
Tweeting has suddenly gone from social networking tool to surgical tool as doctors have begun to use Twitter in the operating room to provide real-time updates of procedures. Don’t worry, they don’t have a scalpel in one hand and a iPhone in the other, collegues tweet while another surgeon operates. While sharing so much information may make some people squemish, medical tweeting is a clever way to educate the public and demystify what happens during surgery, especially for those facing an

Turbine hearings to resume

Turbine hearings to resume
A series of contentious Planning Board hearings on the proposed Cohasset Heights wind turbine project will continue at 9 p.m. next Wednesday in Town Hall. Private developer CCI-Energy of Plymouth plans to build two 1.65-megawatt wind turbines off Route 3A on the Graham Waste Services property. The 8 million kilowatts of energy generated annually by the pair would be sold. ...

Shakespeare in the Limelight: "Words, Words, Words" (and Plays and Poetry)

Shakespeare in the Limelight: "Words, Words, Words" (and Plays and Poetry)

Born in England in the 16th century, Shakespeare's poetry and plays are still published, produced, discussed, translated and analyzed in the 21st century.

Funds return to further education (BBC News)

Funds return to further education (BBC News)
Nearly £9m of extra money will go to post 16 education but college leaders still warn of difficult times ahead.

“How To Get Off A College Wait List”

I have always been an appreciator of clearly listed Dos and Don’ts. If you, or someone you know, has been wait-listed by the institution of higher learning that they’re just dying to get into, Allen Grove has a solid set of instructions for how to deal with said situation. There are actionable items [...]

I have always been an appreciator of clearly listed Dos and Don’ts. If you, or someone you know, has been wait-listed by the institution of higher learning that they’re just dying to get into, Allen Grove has a solid set of instructions for how to deal with said situation.

There are actionable items on the Do list, so you can put your spastic antsy-ness to productive use. There’s also a very helpful list of what NOT to do (seriously, don’t cave your world in on yourself before you’ve even graduated from high school by letting your parents call the admissions office to offer up a high-volumed piece of their minds. Be a (wo)man and solve your own crises).

And, as always, please remember that there is no medically documented case of any teenager actually disintegrating as a direct result of not getting into their first choice school. I can pretty much guarantee that everything will work out, regardless of the matriculation location.

Posted by Alexa Harrington

image source

Read the rest ...

Eli Broad dangles a carrot in front of L.A. Unified

Eli Broad dangles a carrot in front of L.A. Unified
He donates to Juilliard and promises similar funding here -- if the district better runs its arts programs, especially the new arts high school.

Los Angeles philanthropist Eli Broad will help pay for a New York-based arts program that benefits poor and minority students -- and he said Friday that he and other donors would provide similar funding here if the Los Angeles school district can better manage its own arts programs, especially the new downtown arts high school.

Higher Education Officials Address Legislature (WMTW Auburn)

The top administrators of Maine's two systems of public higher education are reporting to the Legislature on the state of their respective systems. Read more ...

Clever horses

THIS WEEK MARKS the 50th anniversary of "The Elements of Style," the best-selling usage manual consisting of E.B. White's additions to (and revisions of) a 1918 "little book" by William Strunk Jr., once White's professor at Cornell. To celebrate, the publisher is offering a revised, updated . . . Read more ...

Educate Online Launches, Dedicated to Improving Student Achievement, Building Academic Confidence

Educate Online Launches, Dedicated to Improving Student Achievement, Building Academic Confidence

Britain's Leading Educational Paper in£5 Million Relaunch

Britain's Leading Educational Paper in£5 Million Relaunch

MCAS results released today

The Massachusetts Department of Education today released the results of the 2008 MCAS tests and the department said statewide they show impressive math gains in all grades and strong improvement in eighth grade science and gains in English language arts, math and Science, Technology/Engineering in Grade 10. Continue reading ...

High school wins vote, but faces delay

If there was ever a question of whether residents want a new high school, it was answered Monday when 80 percent of voters who cast ballots - or 4,670 to 1,143 - agreed to raise their own taxes in an uncertain economy to fund the $68 million venture. Read more ...

Guest View: Bad math on school budgets

Guest View: Bad math on school budgets

THERE is no question high school students today are faced with more challenges than ever before.

Conn. eyes limits to on-campus credit card offers

A growing number of Connecticut lawmakers are calling for more regulations on how companies market credit cards at colleges. Continue reading ...

Our View: No testing for second-graders

Our View: No testing for second-graders

Even the test-happy national No Child Left Behind Act - nickname among teachers, No Child Left Untested For A Millisecond - doesn't mandate a rigorous, all-consuming program of relentless standardized testing of youngsters until the third grade.

Parents get 10000 state grant to pay for home schooling

A group of parents who refused to send their children to one of the worst schools in the country have been given a 10,450 state grant to pay for home schooling.

Read more ...

Teacher Compensation Reform

Teacher Compensation Reform
I remain wary of Obama’s teacher compensation plan, but here are two articles on the subject. As I opined previously, the idea of paying the good teachers well is wonderful and I would wholeheartedly say “yes” if the world were more with the logic and the black-and-whiteness and less with the grey areas and [...]

I remain wary of Obama’s teacher compensation plan, but here are two articles on the subject. As I opined previously, the idea of paying the good teachers well is wonderful and I would wholeheartedly say “yes” if the world were more with the logic and the black-and-whiteness and less with the grey areas and red tape.

Perhaps I’m being too pessimistic, but I worry that somehow, even the great teachers who are doing the best they can with what they have will get screwed because they don’t have the resources available to them to do the proper job of educating that they’d like to do. Also, it strikes me that the only way for the powers that be to know which educators are improving/ being wonderful teachers is to test the students. That brings us right back to standardized testing and kids being caught in the middle and that always just pisses me off. Sometimes I wish I were brilliant think-tank fodder so I could solve problems like this.

Further Reading:

Obama Pushes to Reward Great Teachers
The Future of Teacher Compensation
School Leaders Target Salary Reform Toward Newer Teachers
Lessons From 40 Years of Education ‘Reform’
National Comprehensive Center for Teacher Quality: Useful Links
Democrats for Education Reform

Posted by Alexa Harrington

image source

NC House wants to see key tax figures for budget

NC House wants to see key tax figures for budget
House leaders accepted cautiously the Senate's proposed North Carolina state government budget, worried whether they'll ultimately need to make more cuts or raise more taxes than their counterparts.

College tuition hikes lower than expected

College tuition hikes lower than expected
Private schools in California and around the nation are announcing relatively modest tuition increases, averaging about 4%, for the 2009-10 school year. About a dozen colleges have announced freezes.

As the recession deepened last fall and the value of college endowments melted away, some higher-education officials predicted that spring would bring the announcement of steep tuition hikes.

Re-Installing OS and Apps

I've been re-building my computer sytem the last week with a clean re-installation of the operating system and re-installing all my applications, including Radio Userland. I had many of my data files and apps backed up, but did lose some data, including some Radio postings. ____JH Continue reading ...

Colorado lawmaker named to federal education job (KOAA-TV Colorado Springs - Pueblo)

Colorado state Senate President Peter Groff was hired as director of faith-based community initiatives for the U.S. Department of Education in Washington. Read more ...

Former AutoAdmit Exec’s False-Suit Claim Lives On

Former AutoAdmit Exec’s False-Suit Claim Lives On
A lawsuit launched by a former executive of Internet discussion board AutoAdmit has survived a motion to dismiss leveled by a former Keker & Van Nest attorney and others. The ruling means that Anthony Ciolli, a University of Pennsylvania Law School graduate and former chief education director at AutoAdmit, can press ahead with his suit against Stanford Law School professor Mark Lemley, who worked as counsel at Keker, and two Yale Law School students who alleged that AutoAdmit defamed them on

Northwest Nazarene University announces new school of nursing and health sciences

As part of an initiative of excellence in education President David Alexander of Northwest Nazarene University has established the School of Nursing and Health Sciences, effective July 1, 2009, which will consist of the nursing and kinesiology departments.

Read more ...

OER Commons: Open Educational Resources

Since my own EduResources Portal closed in July 2007, I've been looking for other useful portal entry points to recommend to students and instructors who are searching for educational resources. I highly recommend the OER Commons as a valuable first stop. The Commons is extremely broad in scope, but so well organized that new users can orient to its resources quickly.

The OER  materials can be browsed by categories or collections; resources are also searchable with key words. Additionally, the entry page displays the OER Top Ten and the Top 25 Tags for a quick scan of what other users are viewing. Visitors who register can set up their own OER Portfolio and also sign up to receive an E-News newsletter.

The "OER Matters" section provides links to News Stories, Articles and Reports, Conferences and Workshops, Discussion Forums, Organizations and Associations, Tools and Technology, and Blogs and Wikis.  The Commons was created by the Institute for the Study of Knowledge Management in Education (ISKME) which is supported by the Hewlett Foundation.  OER professionals will want to mark the OER Commons in their bookmarks and visit the site regularly (an rss feed is also available). _____JH

______

"OER Commons is a teaching and learning network, from K-12 lesson plans to college courseware, from algebra to zoology, open to everyone to use and add to."

"Learn more about the worldwide movement to make teaching and learning materials free and accessible for use and re-use by everyone."

Read the rest ...

Crashing

I experienced a major crash of my computer and my backup system recently. Consequently, I've not been able to post messages for several days. Also, I've not been able to fully recover past messages. Hope to fully recover the system today or tomorrow.

JH

Continue reading ...

Dracut PTO treasurer charged

Dracut PTO treasurer charged
Donna Breton, 42, has been charged with larceny by embezzlement over $250 for allegedly stealing nearly $13,000 from a local parent-teacher organization. Breton was treasurer of the Parker Avenue School PTO for several years. According to police, she embezzled fund-raising profits intended for school improvements to pay mortgage and utility bills, and cover the cost of a new roof ...

Hampton special education plan faces $800,000 shortfall (Daily Press)

The annual plan for special education in Hampton schools includes a possible $800,000 shortfall in federal funds. Continue reading ...

Jasper County Chamber holds education forum (WTOC 11 Savannah)

Dozens of people gathered in Jasper County today hear what education leaders in the county had to say about a number of important topics. Read more ...

LectureShare

LectureShare

This new web tool makes it easy for instructors to share text, audio, and video with students. Registration is required, but free. Use the FAQ and About sections to orient to the resources. Also look at Ezra Katz's sample course LectureShare 101 (once registered). ____JH

(Thanks to Jane's E-Learning Pick of the Day for this reference.)

_____

• Give students access to course materials without the burden of maintaining your own webpage or the hassle of complex web-based solutions
• Post audio and video content easily
• Make class announcements that your students will actually read—via e-mail, RSS (coming soon), or SMS
• Effortlessly make your course available to anyone if you choose

At elite colleges, new aid for the middle

At elite colleges, new aid for the middle
Some of the nation's most elite colleges, trying to ward off perceptions that they've become unaffordable to even high-income families, are bolstering their financial aid packages by offering grants to students whose parents earn as much as $180,000 a year.

Community colleges add dorms to boost appeal

In Mammoth Lakes and elsewhere, some campuses are offering housing with cool amenities -- like maid service -- to help draw students to the traditionally commuter-oriented schools.

Byron Herman rolled out of his dorm bed, yanked on snow pants and a beanie and stumbled across the parking lot to his 8 a.m. math class.

Read more ...

LeMill Web Community

LeMill Web Community

The LeMill Web Community site is available for sharing online learning resources. The site is viewable in nine languages; to orient to what is offered take the Tour and consult the FAQ. Thanks to the Development Gateway for information about this site. ___JH

_____

"LeMill is a web community for finding, authoring and sharing learning resources. First at all, you can find learning resources. You can use the resources you find in your own teaching or learning. You can also add your own learning content to LeMill. You may edit your content and combine larger chunks of learning resources from individual media pieces. If you wish you may also join some of the groups producing or editing learning resources. In LeMill the content is always easily found where and whenever you need them."

Democratic, GOP parties win dubious Muzzle Awards

Democratic, GOP parties win dubious Muzzle Awards
The Democratic and Republican parties both earned dubious Jefferson Muzzle Awards Tuesday for what a free-speech watchdog described as tacit compliance with restrictions on where protesters could demonstrate during their national conventions over the summer.

LectureShare

This new web tool makes it easy for instructors to share text, audio, and video with students. Registration is required, but free. Use the FAQ and About sections to orient to the resources. Also look at Ezra Katz's sample course LectureShare 101 (once registered). ____JH

(Thanks to Jane's E-Learning Pick of the Day for this reference.)

_____

• Give students access to course materials without the burden of maintaining your own webpage or the hassle of complex web-based solutions
• Post audio and video content easily
• Make class announcements that your students will actually read—via e-mail, RSS (coming soon), or SMS
• Effortlessly make your course available to anyone if you choose

Continue reading ...

Beware the College Rankings Machine

Beware the College Rankings Machine
The National Review Online has an illuminating article up pointing out the illogicality (and foolishness) of putting too much faith in the warped college rankings system. I’ve said about all I can say (using professional language) about the rankings, so I’ll hold back and let Frederick M. Hess and Thomas Gift from NRO speak [...]

The National Review Online has an illuminating article up pointing out the illogicality (and foolishness) of putting too much faith in the warped college rankings system. I’ve said about all I can say (using professional language) about the rankings, so I’ll hold back and let Frederick M. Hess and Thomas Gift from NRO speak wisely (and way more professionally) instead:

Some of the schools with higher rankings may truly have improved, but the most significant factor is that two of the Barron’s criteria — high-school grades and percentage of applicants accepted — don’t mean what they did a decade ago. Grade inflation, and students’ applying to more schools than they used to, have juiced the numbers to make students look more qualified and schools more selective.

Grade inflation, dubbed “high schools’ skeleton in the closet” by Lehigh University education professor Perry Zirkel, has been a creeping phenomenon for two decades.

Also, whereas college-bound students used to limit applications to a few top choices, it is not unusual for students today to apply to many more. UCLA’s Higher Education Research Institute has reported that the percentage of high-school seniors who applied to four or more colleges increased by more than a quarter from 1996 to 2006 and now stands at over 60 percent….. when students in general submit more applications, colleges in general get to reject more applicants — making schools across the board more “selective” by the Barron’s criteria.

And that is why trusting the evil genius rankings machine is a mistake. Be aware of who’s in charge and make decisions accordingly.

Previous Posts, Venting Language Included:

Acceptance
College Rankings
Unigo.com
New System for Ranking Colleges

Posted by Alexa Harrington

image source

Oklahoma Regents Recognize Schools For ACT Scores

The Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education is honoring 11 state high schools for increasing both ACT scores and the number of students who take the college preparatory test.

Continue reading ...

Ellison: Hope for better education standards

Ellison: Hope for better education standards

Why have I - and so many others who have similarly spent their careers fighting for higher standards in education - struggled so adamantly against the current standards movement in California and the nation? And why are we now beginning to smile again? We've dreamed of reasonable standards measuring student achievement with authentic assessment.

Heavy requirements not in Harvard's stars

Heavy requirements not in Harvard's stars
Harvard's astronomy and astrophysics program, one of the university's least-popular majors, has followed in the steps of the Classics Department and toned down its requirements in an attempt to attract more undergraduates.

LectureShare

LectureShare

This new web tool makes it easy for instructors to share text, audio, and video with students. Registration is required, but free. Use the FAQ and About sections to orient to the resources. Also look at Ezra Katz's sample course LectureShare 101 (once registered). ____JH

(Thanks to Jane's E-Learning Pick of the Day for this reference.)

_____

• Give students access to course materials without the burden of maintaining your own webpage or the hassle of complex web-based solutions
• Post audio and video content easily
• Make class announcements that your students will actually read—via e-mail, RSS (coming soon), or SMS
• Effortlessly make your course available to anyone if you choose

WorldWideScience

WorldWideScience

Science students and instructors will want to put this web address in their bookmarks because WWS provides a federated search of science sites around the world. By combining WWS with Scirus--plus a discipline-specific search and a general search in Google--a searcher will have made a serious first-pass at finding information. ____JH (Via the Development Gateway's E-Learning distribution.)

____

"WorldWideScience.org is a global science gateway—accelerating scientific discovery and progress through a multilateral partnership to enable federated searching of national and international scientific databases. Subsequent versions of WorldWideScience.org will offer access to additional sources as well as enhanced features"

Eye on Entertainment

Read more ...

Moxie

It bodes well for the future that there are kids with enough intelligence and moxie to gracefully pull off telling the adults in charge (parents, teachers, principals, chancellors of education) that the current state of D.C. high schools could use a little work, and that they’d like to do a ninth-grade year at their only-to-eighth-grade [...]

It bodes well for the future that there are kids with enough intelligence and moxie to gracefully pull off telling the adults in charge (parents, teachers, principals, chancellors of education) that the current state of D.C. high schools could use a little work, and that they’d like to do a ninth-grade year at their only-to-eighth-grade middle school to, you know, prepare.

Shaw Middle School had, until recently, been a sketchy educational institution. Now it’s amazing, the kids love it, and they see no reason to leave their wonderfully overhauled school if the high school options have yet to be improved.

The kids ended up in Michelle Rhee’s office, the chancellor who—if her reputation is to be believed—doesn’t take anyone’s crap and rarely goes in any direction but her own.

In the end, it was impossible to say no to children who were telling her that D.C. educators had done such a good job bringing high standards and creative teaching back to Shaw that they wanted to get more of it before moving on. “It’s maybe not the right decision for the system,” said Rhee, who had to make many last-minute adjustments, “but it is the right decision for those kids.”

By letting 90 students remain [at Shaw] for one more year, Rhee is acknowledging that some of the high schools they might attend still need work. “I wasn’t in a situation where I could look these kids in the eyes and say, ‘I have a really good option for all of you to go to high school’ ” next year, Rhee said. But she said the schools that would most likely take them, such as Cardozo, Dunbar and Roosevelt, were improving and would be ready for them as 10th-graders.

So. Damn. Cool. I’m proud of the whippersnappers and the grown-ups.

Further Reading:

Some Happy D.C, 8th-Graders Moving Up Without Moving On
Rhee Tackles Classroom Challenge

Posted by Alexa Harrington

Read the rest ...

Vietnam Ink Investment Promotion Agreements with the U.S., UAE

VNBusinessNews.com - The Foreign Investment Agency (FIA) under the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) has just signed two investment promotion cooperation agreements with the U.S. and United Arab Emirates (UAE).Under the agreements, investors from the U.S. and UAE will be provided with information about investment and business in Viet Nam.The agreements also includes the selection of investment projects that conform to Vietnam’s situation and the capacity of the U.S. and UAE investors as Read more ...

NM official: Stimulus requires more accountability

State Education Secretary Veronica Garcia says the more than $500 million in economic stimulus money New Mexico will receive for education will lead to reforms and will require more accountability from her department and school districts. Continue reading ...

German family seeks US asylum to homeschool kids

Uwe Romeike works with two of his children Josua, 9, and Lydia, 10, at their home in Morristown, Tenn.

Continue reading ...

Senate Ed alters gov's PROMISE cap, ups funding

Senate Ed alters gov's PROMISE cap, ups funding

Joe Manchin's legislation to control the soaring price tag of the merit-based program.

Clicking with students

Clicking with students
LEXINGTON - Their eyes glued to the screen, the eighth-graders each grasped a clicker, a 4-ounce device akin to a television remote, and pressed a letter on the keypad. Then, they stared at the screen expectantly.

Expanding the Pool of Qualified Educators

Read the rest ...

Videos of 'Death of Education' and 'Financial Fools Day' Actions - Watch and PASS ON!

Continue reading ...

Petition calls for ouster of NH school officials

Petition calls for ouster of NH school officials
A petition in Franklin, N.H., is calling for the dismissal of the school superintendent, principal of Franklin High School and the school board chairman.

Moxie

Moxie
It bodes well for the future that there are kids with enough intelligence and moxie to gracefully pull off telling the adults in charge (parents, teachers, principals, chancellors of education) that the current state of D.C. high schools could use a little work, and that they’d like to do a ninth-grade year at their only-to-eighth-grade [...]

It bodes well for the future that there are kids with enough intelligence and moxie to gracefully pull off telling the adults in charge (parents, teachers, principals, chancellors of education) that the current state of D.C. high schools could use a little work, and that they’d like to do a ninth-grade year at their only-to-eighth-grade middle school to, you know, prepare.

Shaw Middle School had, until recently, been a sketchy educational institution. Now it’s amazing, the kids love it, and they see no reason to leave their wonderfully overhauled school if the high school options have yet to be improved.

The kids ended up in Michelle Rhee’s office, the chancellor who—if her reputation is to be believed—doesn’t take anyone’s crap and rarely goes in any direction but her own.

In the end, it was impossible to say no to children who were telling her that D.C. educators had done such a good job bringing high standards and creative teaching back to Shaw that they wanted to get more of it before moving on. “It’s maybe not the right decision for the system,” said Rhee, who had to make many last-minute adjustments, “but it is the right decision for those kids.”

By letting 90 students remain [at Shaw] for one more year, Rhee is acknowledging that some of the high schools they might attend still need work. “I wasn’t in a situation where I could look these kids in the eyes and say, ‘I have a really good option for all of you to go to high school’ ” next year, Rhee said. But she said the schools that would most likely take them, such as Cardozo, Dunbar and Roosevelt, were improving and would be ready for them as 10th-graders.

So. Damn. Cool. I’m proud of the whippersnappers and the grown-ups.

Further Reading:

Some Happy D.C, 8th-Graders Moving Up Without Moving On
Rhee Tackles Classroom Challenge

Posted by Alexa Harrington

Beware the College Rankings Machine

Beware the College Rankings Machine
The National Review Online has an illuminating article up pointing out the illogicality (and foolishness) of putting too much faith in the warped college rankings system. I’ve said about all I can say (using professional language) about the rankings, so I’ll hold back and let Frederick M. Hess and Thomas Gift from NRO speak [...]

The National Review Online has an illuminating article up pointing out the illogicality (and foolishness) of putting too much faith in the warped college rankings system. I’ve said about all I can say (using professional language) about the rankings, so I’ll hold back and let Frederick M. Hess and Thomas Gift from NRO speak wisely (and way more professionally) instead:

Some of the schools with higher rankings may truly have improved, but the most significant factor is that two of the Barron’s criteria — high-school grades and percentage of applicants accepted — don’t mean what they did a decade ago. Grade inflation, and students’ applying to more schools than they used to, have juiced the numbers to make students look more qualified and schools more selective.

Grade inflation, dubbed “high schools’ skeleton in the closet” by Lehigh University education professor Perry Zirkel, has been a creeping phenomenon for two decades.

Also, whereas college-bound students used to limit applications to a few top choices, it is not unusual for students today to apply to many more. UCLA’s Higher Education Research Institute has reported that the percentage of high-school seniors who applied to four or more colleges increased by more than a quarter from 1996 to 2006 and now stands at over 60 percent….. when students in general submit more applications, colleges in general get to reject more applicants — making schools across the board more “selective” by the Barron’s criteria.

And that is why trusting the evil genius rankings machine is a mistake. Be aware of who’s in charge and make decisions accordingly.

Previous Posts, Venting Language Included:

Acceptance
College Rankings
Unigo.com
New System for Ranking Colleges

Posted by Alexa Harrington

image source

Webcam Keeps Hospitalized Students Connected

I often look at the touted promises of the 'next' technology with a jaundiced eye. This is technology put to great, direct, effective use. The Washington, DC area chapter of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society has provided Georgetown University Hospital's pediatric oncology program with six laptops and webcams that hospitalized students use to follow lessons and stay connected to their classrooms and lessons. Becky Wilson, a leukemia patient, follows along with her classmates at Jamestown Ele Read the rest ...

L.A. Unified to observe Chavez Day

Board will honor birthday of the late United Farm Workers leader, exchanging it for another holiday in the school year.

Two years ago, 500 middle school and high school students skipped classes in Boyle Heights and East Los Angeles and marched to demand that Cesar Chavez's birthday become a holiday.

Read more ...