‘Brilliant Bus’ shrinking digital divide

Working as a guidance counselor five years ago in Palm Beach County, Estella Pyfrom noticed that fewer students had access to a computer after school, CNN reports. The sluggish economy forced many families to prioritize their money and use it for more pressing needs. “They needed food. They needed to pay their mortgage or their rent,” said Pyfrom, a former teacher. “Some of them lost their cars. So I knew it was a serious problem.” Without a computer at home, or reliable transportation to get to a computer, Pyfrom feared that many of these students would get left behind. So she bought a bus, filled it with computers and brought technology to the kids…

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L.A. mayor: Education is our civil rights struggle

My story began like far too many people across this country. My father left when I was 5 years old., says Antonio Villaraigosa, mayor of Los Angeles, for CNN. My mother, sometimes working two jobs, raised four children on her own in East Los Angeles. She was always my touchstone, the person who taught me my core values. It was her quiet grace, strength in the face of adversity and unflinching will that served me so well in life. However, despite everything she poured into our family, we kids didn’t always make it easy for her. By age 16, I was kicked out of the Catholic school she had worked so hard to send me to. I found myself at the local public high school, Roosevelt. It was a “drop-out factory.” I was put into remedial classes, which I found boring and unchallenging after my previous education. But even worse than that, I felt like the school had given up on me. So, I gave up on myself and dropped out…

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Bill Gates: Invest in better teaching

Yesterday I released my annual letter. Each year, I reflect on what I learned in the last year through our travels and work with the foundation and how that will shape my thinking over the coming months, said Bill Gates for CNN. This year, my letter focuses on how important it is to set clear goals and measure progress in order to accomplish the foundation’s priorities, both here at home and around the world. Setting a clear goal lets you know what you’re driving at: Picking the right interventions that will have the most impact on that final goal, using that information to understand what’s working and what’s not, and adapting your strategy as necessary. One of the clearest examples of the power of measurement was the work of our partners to support great teachers…

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Overeducated and underemployed

Getting a college degree still helps your chances of getting a job, but not necessarily a good one, CNN Money reports. Some Americans are becoming overeducated for the jobs that are available to them, as data shows more college educated workers are taking low-skill jobs that are clearly below their qualifications. Take taxi drivers for example. About 15%, or more than than 1 in 7, had at least a bachelor’s degree in 2010, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data. Compare that to 1970 when less than 1% of taxi drivers had college degrees. And the job description hasn’t changed much, if at all, since then.

“A lot of people, particularly people with bachelor’s degrees, are getting jobs, but not good jobs,” said Richard Vedder, an economist at Ohio University.

In a study released Monday, Vedder shows that about 37% of employed U.S. college graduates are working in jobs that require no more than a high school diploma……Read More

Why telling bullying victims to ‘just fight back’ doesn’t work

Fall is upon us, and that means the school year is in full swing. Along with the stress of homework assignments and extracurricular activities, unfortunately some students bear an additional burden – bullying, reports CNN. October is National Bullying Prevention Awareness Month, pushing the issue to the forefront of the nation’s consciousness. Educators and legislators are under pressure to prevent bullying, and many schools are implementing programs such as A Classroom of Difference, Steps to Respect and Positive Behavior Intervention and Supports that teach empathy, interpersonal skills and respect for those who don’t fit into the mainstream. But not everyone agrees with this approach to managing bullying. There are vocal groups of naysayers who believe that focusing on social emotional skills training and urging students to be accepting of those who are different is leading to the weakening of America. They argue that bullying is really a form of socialization, asserting that kids who do not conform to society’s expectations are bringing on their own troubles…

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Watch: Teen with Asperger’s launches hidden inspiration project to help disabled kids learn

Though epilepsy and Asperger’s syndrome sometimes get in the way when Trenton Gilstrap socializes with his high school friends, his conditions haven’t interfered with his educational dreams, CNN reports. Trenton hopes to become a biomedical engineer and was recently accepted–on a full scholarship–to the University of Pittsburgh.

“It makes me feel like all that work, all that struggling, all that crying at home alone finally equals success,” Trenton told the news outlet.

While Trenton is satisfied with his accomplishments, he wants to make sure that other young people, suffering with similar disabilities, have the same opportunities. So, Trenton and his mom, Tatia, launched the Hidden Inspirations Project, a nonprofit that offers scholarships to kids living with a range of disabilities……Read More

NTSB recommends full ban on use of cell phones while driving

A federal safety board called Tuesday for a nationwide ban on the use of cell phones and text messaging devices while driving, CNN reports. The recommendation is the most far-reaching yet by the National Transportation Safety Board, which in the past 10 years has increasingly sought to limit the use of portable electronic devices–recommending bans for novice drivers, school bus drivers and commercial truckers. Tuesday’s recommendation, if adopted by states, would outlaw non-emergency phone calls and texting by operators of every vehicle on the road. It would apply to hands-free as well as hand-held devices, but devices installed in the vehicle by the manufacturer would be allowed, the NTSB said…

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Bully-proofing your kids

Miranda Jones can remember many afternoons in the counselor’s office in her small-town Colorado middle school, crying about other kids relentlessly teasing about her weight, CNN reports. Now at a top-ranked women’s college in the Northeast, Jones is grateful her debate coaches helped her find something she loved that kept her focused and got her into college. “Without an after-school activity, academic support from adults and without constantly reminding myself that it wasn’t going to last forever, I never would have survived the endless taunts of my peers.”

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GE chief says American workers need more skills

Training Americans for practical jobs that the nation actually needs should be a government priority, according to General Electric CEO Jeff Immelt, who heads President Obama’s jobs advisory panel, reports CNN.

“There are more than two million open jobs in the U.S., in part because employers can’t find workers with the advanced manufacturing skills they need,” wrote the GE chief, in an op-ed piece co-authored with American Express Chief Executive Ken Chenault that was published in Monday’s Wall Street Journal

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Is Google’s Android market dangerous?

Google’s Android market experienced its first real security lapse on Wednesday as more than a dozen apps were found to be lined with malicious code that could be used to steal user information and more, CNN reports. These apps were promptly pulled from Google’s smartphone app store, but not before raising serious questions about the Android Market’s safety.

Unlike Apple’s App Store, the Android Market prides itself on being “open,” which, in geek speak, means Google doesn’t hand-pick the apps that will be sold for phones running its operating system…

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