Cellphone use tied to changes in brain activity
Researchers from the National Institutes of Health have found that less than an hour of cellphone use can speed up brain activity in the area closest to the…
Month: February 2011
A founding father’s books turn up
A literary detective story that began 18 months ago and was advanced through a chance reading of an 1880 edition of The Harvard Register has led researchers from…
Successful credit recovery programs from four districts
While the Spring Branch Independent School District in Houston, Texas, has a strong early intervention program that is successful in keeping more kids from failing classes, the district…
Laura Bush announces new graduation initiative
The George W. Bush Institute has introduced its second big education initiative, a program that seeks to improve graduation rates by focusing on middle schools.
Detroit schools closing: Michigan officials order Robert Bobb to shut half the city’s schools
State education officials have ordered the emergency financial manager for Detroit Public Schools to immediately implement a plan that balances the district's books by closing half its schools,…
Anaheim school district takes a big brother approach to truancy
The Anaheim Union High School District really doesn't want students to skip class, so it is doing the only logical thing: It's tracking delinquent students with GPS devices,…
For autistic children, a school’s coffee shop imparts skills while raising money
There's a special class for children with autism or multiple learning disabilities that is charged with running the coffee shop every Friday morning, reports the New York Times.
Arizona university founds civility institute
A university in Tucson is seeking to turn the shooting rampage that severely wounded U.S. Representative Gabrielle Giffords last month into a teachable moment with a new institute…
German iPhone app guides handicapped around cities
One man took matters into his own hands and launched wheelmap.org, an iPhone application and website in German and English that allows users to share ratings and tips…
States make gains in building data systems
States have made unprecedented progress collecting longitudinal data in education, but they have not taken action to ensure data are used to improve student achievement, according to the…
More LA schools convert to charters as funds dip
Like other successful schools before it, El Camino is about to break off from the district to get more funding and flexibility in how it spends its dollars…
Blogs wane as the young drift to sites like Twitter
Like any aspiring filmmaker, Michael McDonald, a high school senior, used a blog to show off his videos. But discouraged by how few people bothered to visit, he…
A University of Virginia student has a bright idea: ‘Flash seminars’
Once or twice a week, students at the state's flagship public university collect in some idle classroom or lounge for a "flash seminar," an ad hoc performance of…
Racial flaps dog ‘Bama despite progress
Months after the University of Alabama dedicated a plaza and clock tower to its earliest black students, the school has been swamped with unwelcome attention over the past…
Mexico state congress asks ban of video game
A shoot-em-up video game set in the border town of Ciudad Juarez has angered local officials who are busy fighting all-too-real violence, reports the Washington Post.
ED to unions, districts: Can’t we all just get along?
Despite frequent reports of labor-management strife in the nation’s schools, there are many school systems in which teachers and district leaders are working together to improve public education—and…
How to raise student achievement through better labor-management collaboration
Laura Rico, union president for California’s ABC Unified School District, said the idea of collaboration between labor and management was “very risky—even political suicide.” But the partnership has…
Wisconsin protests grow as teachers balk at proposed legislation
Republicans who swept into power in state capitols this year with promises to cut spending and bolster the business climate now are beginning to usher in a new…
Expert: Federal school reform plan is wrong
The president is wrong. Arne Duncan is wrong. The media are wrong. Many state administrators are wrong: This was the message on the current state of school reform…
Bridging informal and formal learning in the digital education age
Learning has always extended beyond the classroom. Children and young adults learn as they encounter information, people, places, and things in their lives, both in school and out…
Editorial: Public school employees under attack
Conservative lawmakers are targeting educators as part of a broader attack on public-sector employees in states from coast to coast—and the fallout could have lasting implications for the…
AASA focuses on teamwork, collaboration
Nothing makes people come together in good spirits like unexpected warm weather in a terribly cold season, and the American Association of School Administrators (AASA) took advantage of…
Open courseware on every campus by 2016?
Just as colleges and universities have adopted online classes over the past decade, students can expect free open courseware of some kind at every campus in the U.S.…
Digital age is slow to arrive in rural America
After a couple of days in this part of rural Alabama, it is hard to complain about a dropped iPhone call or a Cee Lo video that takes…
White House aims to revamp education law by summer
The Obama administration set a goal on Feb. 17 of revamping the federal No Child Left Behind education law before students start the next school year in the…
House Republicans seek to block FCC internet rules
House Republicans are seeking to prevent the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) from enforcing new rules that prohibit broadband providers from interfering with internet traffic on their networks.
Got a question for Watson? Ask away on Reddit
You've probably heard about Watson, IBM's latest smarter-than-you supercomputer. This week it competed against champions on Jeopardy--and won, CNET reports. Thankfully, Watson is not self-aware (yet), because we…
Is Google’s Facebook competitor almost ready?
The press has been speculating since the middle of last year about a new social networking product from Google — its big attempt to compete with Facebook, SocialBeat…
Ten great sites with free teacher resources
With cuts to school budgets, teachers are often left searching for ways to innovate without breaking the bank. There are numerous sites that can help, but we've picked…
Why do great school systems fear charters?
I admire the erudite and public-spirited members of the Montgomery County Board of Education, writes the Washington Post's Jay Mathews. Their superintendent, Jerry D. Weast, is one of…
Florida looks at taking school textbooks completely digital by 2015
Get ready to say goodbye to bulky books. There's a move to go all-digital in Florida classrooms, reports the St. Petersburg Times. State education officials rolled out a…
Apple reportedly breaks iBooks for jailbreakers
Apple iBooks users who jailbreak their iPhone may find themselves locked out of their own book collection, CNET reports. Apple has allegedly built a jailbreak checker into iOS…
Report: ‘Google Music’ coming via Android Honeycomb
PC World reports that Google will tie its rumored Google Music service into its upcoming Android Honeycomb mobile operating system, a Motorola executive said at Mobile World Congress.…
Motorola CEO confirms $800 price tag for Xoom tablet on Verizon
Those leaked ads showing an $800 sticker price for the Android 3.0-powered Xoom tablet through Verizon Wireless have been confirmed by Motorola's chief exec, who adds that a…
A huge win for artificial intelligence … but what does it mean for humans?
A gigantic computer created by IBM specifically to excel at answers-and-questions left two champs of the TV game show “Jeopardy!” in its silicon dust after a three-day tournament,…
Obama’s ed budget a tough sell on Capitol Hill
President Barack Obama's budget request for increased education spending is likely to face a tough fight against Republicans — and even if ends up being approved, the extra…
Feds reverse course on open education mandate
The departments of Education and Labor have heeded calls from online education experts to change a mandate in a $2 billion grant program that opened last month, meaning…
New site allows for safe YouTube viewing
Many schools block access to YouTube on their networks, which can be frustrating for teachers who want to use YouTube at school. There's a lot of great educational…
U.S. policy to address internet freedom
Days after Facebook and Twitter added fuel to a revolt in Egypt, the Obama administration on Feb. 15 announced a new policy on internet freedom, intended to help…
HTC’s ‘Facebook phones’ revealed
Rumors had been swirling for weeks that HTC had a pair of new Android phones with deep Facebook integration in the offing, and now the two handsets—the Salsa…