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US Needs to Dump Its Entire Terrible Education System

It hurts our kids, and there is a better way: Peter Gray

(Newser) - People talk a lot about how to fix our educational system—but the only real answer is to get rid of it, or at least its traditional components, writes research professor Peter Gray on Salon . Gray, an expert on psychology and how children learn, points out that schools today retain...

We&#39;ve Got a Choice: Schools or Nursing Homes?
We've Got a Choice:
Schools or Nursing Homes?
OPINION
Aug 5, 2013 1:43 PM CDT

We've Got a Choice: Schools or Nursing Homes?

Robert Samuelson doesn't think our economy is strong enough to pay pensions

(Newser) - If anyone tries to tell you that Detroit's bankruptcy is an isolated incident, "don't be fooled," writes Robert Samuelson at the Washington Post . The truth is that for governments across the country, "the scramble for scarce resources is intensifying. Schools compete with nursing homes."...

Linking Teacher Pay to Test Scores Is a Joke
Linking Teacher Pay
to Test Scores Is a Joke
OPINION
Apr 2, 2013 12:40 PM CDT

Linking Teacher Pay to Test Scores Is a Joke

Eugene Robinson: Corruption allegations in Atlanta prove the point

(Newser) - The huge corruption case in Atlanta schools makes one thing clear, writes Eugene Robinson in the Washington Post : It's time we put an end to the dumb idea of linking teacher pay to standardized test scores. Prosecutors say the former superintendent and others collected fat bonuses for improved scores—...

Texas Lawmaker to Schools: Put the Paddles Away

Legislator's bill would outlaw all forms of corporal punishment

(Newser) - A principal-turned-lawmaker is trying to outlaw paddling, spanking, and all other forms of corporal punishment in Texas schools. Legislator Alma Allen's bill would make it illegal for school district employees to get physical to enforce discipline, reports the Houston Chronicle . Many of the state's big cities already ban...

US Cities Packed With Empty Schools

 US Littered With Empty Schools 
new report
Feb 12, 2013 6:00 AM CST

US Littered With Empty Schools

Maintenance a drain on districts

(Newser) - Across 12 major US cities, there are 327 empty school buildings simply waiting to be sold—all the while costing districts money for maintenance without bringing in tax dollars, a Pew Charitable Trusts study finds. Prospects for sale are dimmed as parents increasingly send kids to charter or private schools,...

Schools Close Over Fears of 'Doomsday' Violence

People 'on edge' after Newtown: police officer

(Newser) - With schools on high alert after the Newtown shooting, rumors of a Mayan-predicted "apocalypse" are compounding fears of violence. Three counties in Michigan have been so overwhelmed with addressing the concerns that they've simply decided to close schools two days early for winter break. "We're not...

Bill Would Have National Guard Protect Schools

Barbara Boxer: 'Is it not part of the national defense to make sure our children are safe?'

(Newser) - Would you feel safer sending your kids to school if the National Guard was outside? Well, that could be a possibility if Barbara Boxer has her way. The California senator has introduced a bill that would allow local governments to use the Guard to enhance school security, Politico reports. That...

Asia Still Kicking Our Kids&#39; Butts in Math, Science
Asia Still Kicking Our
Kids' Butts in Math, Science
New test results
Dec 11, 2012 10:14 AM CST

Asia Still Kicking Our Kids' Butts in Math, Science

Singapore dominates, according to new testing results

(Newser) - The results of new testing are, unfortunately, more of the same: US kids remain behind a host of other countries in math and science, specifically those in East Asia. American fourth-graders rank 11th in math and 7th in science, while eighth-graders are 9th in math and 10th in science. Leading...

Hong Kong Scraps Pro-China 'Brainwashing' Class

Protesters oppose new education plan

(Newser) - Looks like pro-China "indoctrination" classes have been canceled. After thousands protested in Hong Kong yesterday over a plan to make students learn Chinese patriotism, officials on the semi-independent island scrapped the idea, the Washington Post reports. Many worried that Beijing wanted Hong Kong students to support China's Communist...

Native American Mascots Banned in Oregon Schools

State orders eight high schools to make changes

(Newser) - Eight Oregon high schools will have to retire their Native American mascots after the Board of Education voted yesterday to prohibit them. In doing so, the board gave the state some of the nation's toughest restrictions on Native American mascots, nicknames, and logos. The schools have five years to...

NH Bill Would Require Bible Class in Schools

Rep. Jerry Bergevin says it's key to understanding American history

(Newser) - A bill being pushed in New Hampshire would force schools to offer an elective Bible studies class—because the Bible is an inescapable part of American history, according to the bill's sponsor. "The Holy Bible is the bedrock of Western civilization," and it was essential to the...

Sexual Harassment Plagues American Schools: Survey


 Sexual 
 Harassment 
 Plagues Our 
 Schools: Poll 
'normal part of the day'
Nov 7, 2011 7:06 PM CST

Sexual Harassment Plagues Our Schools: Poll

More than half of girls report unwanted advances

(Newser) - Nearly half of middle and high school students suffer from sexual harassment, and almost 90% of victims admit to negative effects like stomach aches, poor sleep, and absenteeism, a new survey says. But girls take the brunt of it, with 56% reporting harassment as compared to 40% of boys. In...

To Succeed, Students Might Need to Fail First

School administrators wrestle with how to teach character

(Newser) - Traditional measures of success in high school—GPAs, standardized-test scores—aren’t always good predictors of a successful future. That’s why the heads of two very different schools in New York City are searching for a way to mix character into the education equation. In a lengthy New York ...

Less Than 25% of Students Proficient in US History

12% of seniors scored at a level showing solid academic performance

(Newser) - A new national assessment finds that less than a quarter of students are proficient in US history. The 2010 National Assessment of Educational Progress tested students on topics such as the American Revolution, Civil War, and the contemporary US. Just 20% of fourth-grade students, 17% of eighth-graders, and an especially...

Internet Threatens 'Snow Day' Tradition

When blizzards strike, kids can log in from home

(Newser) - Sorry, kids, the days of the snow day may be numbered. The principle so prevalent at the college level of taking a class online is creeping into elementary schools, too, the AP reports. That means that when the snow flies, kids might have to log in from home instead of...

Ex-NYC Schools Chief: Was it Sexism?

Cathie Black wonders if public drubbing would've been easier on a man

(Newser) - Cathie Black is out as chancellor of New York City's school system, and in her first post-firing/quitting interview, she wonders if sexism was part of the reason why: "If I were a guy, would I have had the pounding that I did?" the former Hearst honcho asks Fortune....

Why Our Kids Need Jules Verne
 Why Our 
 Kids Need 
 Jules Verne 
OPINION
Feb 9, 2011 1:35 PM CST

Why Our Kids Need Jules Verne

Blogger: His fiction is especially relevant for today's students

(Newser) - Today's students need a little more Jules Verne in their curriculum, writes Good education editor Liz Dwyer. He was born 183 years ago this week, but his fiction "seems more applicable than ever to the 21st-century lives of students," she argues. He's probably an after-thought in the age...

Mom Jailed for Sending Kids to Safer Schools

Kelley Williams-Bolar convicted of felony for falsifying records

(Newser) - Kelley Williams-Bolar tried to send her two daughters to safer schools—and in doing so, she found herself convicted of a felony and sent to prison for 10 days. Williams-Bolar lives in Akron, Ohio, but wanted to send her children to the schools in Copley Township, where her father lives,...

We Have to Move Now on Education Reform
We Have to Move Now
on Education Reform
michelle rhee
Jan 11, 2011 2:52 PM CST

We Have to Move Now on Education Reform

Michelle Rhee: Let's take advantage of the public support for change

(Newser) - American students continue to do miserably compared to their peers, and strapped states keep looking for more ways to stretch education dollars. That combination is all the more reason why we need comprehensive reform, writes Michelle Rhee, who recently left her post as DC schools chancellor to begin a group...

Look Out Teachers' Unions, Here Come Parents' Unions

California group trying to force school to become charter

(Newser) - Two dispatches from the education front, both speaking to underperforming students and angry parents:
  • In Compton, California: Parents are trying to take advantage of a new state law to force their chronically awful school to be taken over by a charter operation. Advocates easily got the necessary 51% support of
...

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