URBAN EDUCATION
Where Boys Become Men
from Teaching Tolerance by Jill E. Thomas
Early in the school year, members of a youth gang came to our Oakland, Calif. campus. Their target was a young woman from the ninth-grade class. As the rival youth approached her, several of our boys stepped up, formed a protective wall around the young woman and even took punches to the face. They had no intention of fighting. The young men later defended their actions saying, "I am not indifferent." The young men who shielded their peer are members of a campus group called "Be A Man," lovingly referred to as B.A.M.
Promise of the 'flipped classroom' eludes poorer school districts
from Hechinger Report by Sarah Butrymowicz
When Portland, Ore., elementary school teacher Sacha Luria decided last fall to try out a new education strategy called "flipping the classroom," she faced a big obstacle. Luria realized that none of her students had computers at home, and she had just one in the classroom. So she used her own money to buy a second computer and begged everyone she knew for donations.
EDUCATION REFORM
Judge backs using student achievement to evaluate L.A. teachers
By Teresa Watanabe, Los Angeles Times
In a preliminary ruling, the court supports charges that L.A. Unified is violating the law by not using students' performance - including test scores - in reviewing teachers.
Schools Are More Segregated Today Than During the Late 1960s
By Emily Richmond, The Atlantic
Housing patterns, not laws, are causing today's crisis. But John F. Kennedy's critique of American education still rings dismally true.
GIFTED STUDENTS
Intervention for Gifted Students
from Edutopia blogs by Ben Johnson
Blogger Ben Johnson explores steps for supporting gifted students when they get off track.
TEACH FOR AMERICA
In Defense Of Teach For America
from NPR Topics: Education
Teach for America is drawing criticism from some education policy observers who say its training for new recruits is rushed and incomplete. The organization, however, vigorously defends its record. Host Michel Martin speaks with Heather Harding of Teach for America about the program's challenges and its future.
Is Teach For America Failing?
from NPR Topics: Education
Teach for America has been touted for its success in bringing talented people into the field of education. But it has also been drawing criticism, even from former supporters, about whether the program is effective. Host Michel Martin talks with Gary Rubenstein, a Teach for America alum, a veteran teacher and a critic of the program.
INTERNATIONAL
Tensions on a Campus Mirror Turbulence in a New Tunisia
By Suzanne Daley, NY Times
The turmoil at Manouba University has kept Dean Kazdaghli, who is elected by faculty representatives, at the top of the news and editorial pages, sometimes admired for his embrace of a secular campus, sometimes derided for letting things get out of control or for failing to acknowledge the needs of the Salafist students.
HIGHER EDUCATION
Taking Ivy League Classes Online, For Free
By Neal Conan, NPR's Talk of the Nation
When Stanford professor Andrew Ng put one of his classes online, more than 100,000 students signed up. Now he's co-founded a company, Coursera, with the potential to give millions of students free access to classes from Stanford, Princeton, the University of Pennsylvania and other schools.
Program Teaches Vets How To Survive The Classroom
by DANIEL ZWERDLING, NPR Topics: Education
At Sierra Community College in California, military veterans are counseled in navigating their studies, as well as the GI Bill or how to receive their veterans' benefits.
TECHNOLOGY
MapFab is a Fabulous Map Creation Tool
from Free Technology for Teachers by Mr. Byrne
MapFab is an excellent free map creation tool built on top of Google Maps. MapFab offers a few advantages over Google Maps, but the most notable advantage is that you do not have to create an account in order to create your custom maps.
How to Use Video Game Tactics in the Classroom
from MindShift
Science teacher Paul Anderson says video games teach kids that failure is okay - that it's part of the learning process. "Trying something, failing, trying something again, that's something we aspire to see in kids," he says. So he created a class around the premise of a video game - without a video game.
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