All Education
Georgia school district mulls over buying assault rifles: Could it be a good idea?The move by Gainesville City Schools in Georgia is a direct result of the Sandy Hook massacre last year. Under the proposal, the district would buy Colt 6920 M4 carbines and keep them in locked safes.
Flatlining SAT scores are 'a call to action' for educatorsSAT scores for the latest crop of graduating seniors are virtually stagnant for the fifth year in a row, the College Board reported Thursday. Fewer than half of test takers met the benchmark for readiness to do college-level work.
Cyberbullying: Should schools police students' social media accounts?The Glendale, Calif., school district hired a firm to monitor students' social media accounts and prevent cyberbullying. Critics say it could chill student speech and lead to unintended legal consequences.
Sexual assault on campus: Yale tries to clarify 'consent'When Yale released its latest semi-annual report on sexual misconduct this summer it faced criticism for the phrase 'nonconsensual sex' and for punishments seen as too light.
New college rankings are out. Are they part of the problem?The annual US News & World Report college rankings were released Tuesday, and critics charge they're contributing to a national college affordability problem that has seen student debt soar.
Hazing update: FAMU band back in action after student's deathFlorida A&M's Marching 100 returns to the field Sunday for the first time since the 2011 death of the band's drum major during a hazing ritual. The tragedy sparked a broad crackdown on hazing on campuses, but the tradition is proving to be hard to eradicate.- Teen's suicide in Conn. renews focus on bullying as factor in complicated mixA friend's mother says the 15-year-old high school student was bullied for years, but prevention experts caution that the causes for suicide are complex and often less visible.
Cutting college costs: five questions about Obama鈥檚 proposal President Obama unveiled a plan Aug. 22 to make college more affordable. 鈥淲e can鈥檛 price the middle class and everybody working to get into the middle class out of a college education,鈥� he said. Here鈥檚 a look at the plan and affordability efforts.
An iPad for every student? What Los Angeles school district is thinking.The Los Angeles Unified School District is passing out iPads to all 650,000 of its students this fall, part of a $1 billion high-tech investment. Whether that's a smart move depends on teacher training and a host of other factors, experts say.
Colleges with the best value? New rankings upend conventional wisdomWashington Monthly this week released 'bang for your buck' rankings of colleges and universities. The rankings come a few days after President Obama launched a major initiative around college affordability.
Chicago opens new school year: Will it be less testy than the last?With 48 schools closed (and two more set to close), some 12,000 students had to find their way to new schools, sometimes through dangerous neighborhoods. Budget cuts and controversy over teacher evaluations loom, but the top concern is safety of students in transit.
'The Donald' suggests Obama was in on lawsuit against Trump UniversityDonald Trump on Monday implied that President Obama may have helped plan a lawsuit filed by New York's attorney general. According to the suit, Mr. Trump's for-profit enterprise defrauded consumers.- Online charter school CEO indicted for misused funds. Do laws need tightening?Nicholas Trombetta, former CEO of the Pennsylvania Cyber Charter School, has been charged with diverting more than $8 million of taxpayer money away from the school for a condo, airplane, and other expenses.
Obama to rank colleges. So can you, with no wait. Here's where to look.President Obama aims to have a new federal database, by 2015, that ranks colleges for the value they provide to students. But plenty of online sites that aim to do the same are up and running now.
Obama, on bus tour, to unveil new strategy to curb college costsCollege costs increased 600 percent in the past 30 years, and federal aid enabled it. What's needed is a 'shake up,' Obama told supporters 鈥� and it may not be popular with 'some who've made higher education their business.'
Americans' confidence rising in public school teachers, poll findsPublic school teachers have taken a bashing, in part because of moves to tie student scores on standardized tests directly to teacher performance. Now, a new poll suggests that Americans' confidence is rising in their neighborhood schools and the people who run them.
FocusIs your student 'competent'? A new education yardstick takes the measure.A new learning regimen requires pupils to show proficiency in 'core competencies' for each subject 鈥� with no exceptions. It's called competency-based education. Here's who's trying it and what it entails.- FocusA faster, cheaper way to go through college 鈥� and emerge 'competent'?Advocates of competency-based learning see it as a potential game changer for higher education. The approach can make college degrees more affordable, and can assure employers that graduates have mastered a defined set of ideas and skills.
- College costs keep rising faster than inflation, survey saysCollege tuition costs, as well as room and board, are racing upward. Tuition and fees at community colleges are up 24 percent more than inflation over the past five years, according to a new College Board survey.
Chinese students coming to US middle schools? It's starting to happen.Less than a decade ago, virtually no Chinese students attended American middle and high schools, but that is rapidly changing, as Chinese students seek a different educational experience.
