EducationNewsToday
Education Department changes the music
Callers to the department who are put on hold will now hear “Conjunction Junction,” a little ditty on, you guessed it, conjunctions, one of the songs that make up the “Grammar Rock” section of Schoolhouse Rock!
Jay Mathews: Urban school sheds crime scene label
Has Wilson High School become too good to worry about bad news in the paper? It would seem so. The school still struggles with the effects of poverty on student performance. But the number of tardy students has dropped...Dirty secret of black-on-Asian violence is out
San Francisco's hidden truth is out. That's what community organizer Carol Mo calls the realization that Asian residents are being targeted for robberies, burglaries and intimidation by young black men....Sacramento area high schools OK with same-sex prom companions
A high school prom is a rite of passage that should be a source of joy, not worry, anxiety or fear, regardless of the student's relationship status or sexual orientation, say local school administrators. ...U.S. probe widens to 18 city charters
What began as a federal probe of a single charter school in Northeast Philadelphia two years ago has spread to at least 18 schools and may be the largest federal charter investigation in the country, experts say. ...Students travel to Kenya to trace Obama's roots
During the two-week Kenya trip, the class of 13 students met Obama's grandmother and donated hundreds of pens, notebooks and other supplies and games for students at the Barack Obama Secondary School in Kogelo in western Kenya. ...Idaho school districts study emergency cutbacks
Deep cuts in this year's education budget came with a statewide declaration of financial emergency. Now districts throughout Idaho are deciding whether to opt in....Publishers vie to update Texas pre-K classroom materials
Nearly a dozen publishers are trying to win the state's approval to offer updated classroom materials for pre-kindergartners — another effort to increase the quality of education for Texas' youngest students....
Healthy meals turn school lunch into a money-loser
The french fries offered separately from the main meal for $1.50 went quickly during a recent lunch period at Wakefield High. The $2 meal designed to meet nutrition standards did not. ...Bobb to restore teaching program
Speaking at the University of Michigan on Saturday night, Detroit Public Schools emergency financial manager Robert Bobb announced that he will sign a contract next week to bring the well-known Teach for America program back to the city in the fall. ...Hoosier educators say school grading plan is unfair
Dozens of teachers and school administrators showed up at the Indiana Department of Education to offer their evaluation of a new plan to issue letter grades for their schools....
Columnist works on furthering China connection, encouraging global economy
Tom Watkins believes U.S. students should learn Chinese rather than some of the other languages taught....
Ms. Rhee makes the honor roll
IN THE RECENT tumult over a proposed contract for District schoolteachers, the key question has been ignored: Why is everyone in the city not working together to make sure that Schools Chancellor Michelle A. Rhee sticks around? ...SATs pressure turns children off reading, say authors
Almost 100 children's authors and illustrators have signed a letter supporting heads and teachers in their campaign to get rid of national curriculum tests for 11-year-olds. ...