Five links that made us think this week:
Give me an O! Give me an M! Give me a G! Let's hear it, OMG! God is indeed the newest member of a cheerleading squad in a small East Texas town, where cheerleaders' decision to use Bible verses in banners has caused much controversy over the past week. The school superintendent has opposed the squad's actions, citing a law that bans religious expression at public school events. But the cheerleaders are saying "Goooo First Amendment rights!" and cheering their freedom of expression.
World Teachers’ Day is celebrated across the globe every year on October 5th, and this year’s slogan is ‘Take a stand for teachers!’ UNESCO’s Director General, Irina Bokova, released a YouTube video saying, “Each of us remembers our favorite teacher, each of us recalls the feelings of wonder and curiosity they fueled in us.” What teacher does this video make you remember? Personally, I will never forget my World History professor in high school, Blanca Facundo, who taught her students with a relentless drive to shape us into critical thinkers.
Wednesday’s first presidential debate on domestic issues left the audience wanting to hear more on the candidates' education policies. President Obama stood by his position to support education spending, while Gov. Romney claimed that he would eliminate all programs that didn’t pass this test: “Is the program so critical it's worth borrowing money from China to pay for it?"
Photo via World Teachers' Day.
With today's nation-wide release of Won’t Back Down, Hollywood is shining a spotlight on some of the challenges facing families raising kids in low-income communities. The movie, which includes a character who is a Teach For America alum, also raises complex issues about the relationships among parents, teachers, students and administrators.
Here are some WBD-related links that caught our eye:
The movie is inspired by actual events and stars award-winning actresses Viola Davis and Maggie Gyllenhaal as two determined mothers—one a teacher—who join forces to turnaround a failing school, relying on a Parent Trigger law to achieve change for their kids.
Photo by Joella Marano via WikiCommons
Five links that made us think this week:
Think you have what it takes to be America’s next big YouTube celeb? YouTube’s Next EDU Gurus program is looking for the next education superstar, and they want YOU! (video)
Although our country is becoming increasingly diverse, new data from the Department of Education shows that black and Latino students are isolated in classrooms, while white students overwhelmingly study alongside other white students. Not surprisingly, this classroom segregation affects students and society as a whole.
The government is taking steps to stop the brain drain from some of the nation's top universities. For example, this article reports that more than 20% of graduate students at Duke University are from other countries. Here’s more on the status of the bill that proposes potential changes to visa requirement to keep highly skilled foreign students in the U.S.
Photo by Jean-Pierre via Wikicommons
Five links that made us think this week:
Anyone else think former President Bill Clinton should have ended his speech at the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte like this?
I’m proud of being an immigrant, and this only makes me prouder: A report from the New York City Independent Budget Office found that immigrant students graduate from city high schools at a slightly higher rate than those who were born in the U.S.
Photo by: Jean-Christian Bourcart
Five links that made us think this week.
What’s the purpose of K-12 education? Over at Impatient Optimists, Irvin Scott argues that primary education should prepare students for colleges and careers, while Anthony Cody says “that’s not enough.”
Who’s the boss in the classroom? It’s Tony Danza, who shares what he learned during the year he spent teaching 10th-graders in Philadelphia.
Promotional image for the A&E television series Teach: Tony Danza
Gaby Barahona is manager of regional communications at Teach For America.
Five links that made us think this week:
Two million: That’s the historic number of 18-to-24-year-old Hispanics in the U.S. who enrolled in college in 2011. The Pew Research Center’s analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data notes that in public schools nationwide, 1 in 4 elementary students are Hispanic. I wonder what the milestone will be in 2019.
In case you missed it, here’s an interesting dialogue on education and the upcoming election with American Federation of Teachers president Randi Weingarten, education historian and policy analyst Diane Ravitch, teacher and education historian Camika Royal, teacher Maryanna Stufflebeem, and Success Academy Charter Schools founder and CEO Eva Moskowitz.
Can schools be cool? Scholastic issued its assessment of the 25 coolest schools in the U.S. (shout out to my home state for having two on the list!). What ideas should we be bringing back to our communities?
Photo by Katherine Johnson, via Flickr Creative Commons
Claire D'Silva is an intern at Teach For America.
Five links that made us think this week.
Approximately 40% of our public school buildings are in “bad to poor condition.” Is there anything that communities can do to improve the infrastructure? Here are two success stories where communities took matters into their own hands. (Pass the Chalk’s Janiceia Adams covered this topic back in June.)
“Call Me Maybe” is unstoppable! First the Harvard baseball team sang along, then the US Olympic Swim Team joined in, and now... high school teachers are taking part in the fun.
Claire D'Silva is an intern at Teach For America.
Five links that made us think this week.
The conversation about teacher evaluations continues: Vicki Phillips of the Gates Foundation says that multiple-measure evaluations can help teachers improve their practices; Anthony Cody responds and says it’s time to stop obsessing over test scores and start creating conditions that will allow teachers to grow.
Take three stellar actresses (Maggie Gyllenhaal, Viola Davis, Holly Hunter) and add a dose of real events: what results is a new film about two mothers trying to transform a failing inner city high elementary school. Check out the trailer for Won’t Back Down.
Claire D'Silva is an intern at Teach For America.
Five links that made us think this week.
Lullabies are old news. One New Jersey mom has added math problems into her kids’ nighttime routines.
Researchers recently discovered time outside can actually make you smarter, so plan a trip to the park this weekend!
Photo by Paolo Costa Baldi. Via WikiCommons.
Five links that made us think this week.
In the wake of the Aurora shootings, Mike Johnston (Colorado state senator and TFA alum) has a message for all of us: Love back.
Teachers are doing it for themselves! Three teachers make a video and get on Kickstarter to fund their dream of touring America’s best classrooms, sharing best practices, and eventually starting their own school. (Via Good Education)
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