Plan to stem dropout rate stirs controversy
The Obama administration is offering a $900 million carrot to the nation’s school systems to tackle what many view as an abysmal dropout rate that threatens America’s ability…
Policy
Tennessee colleges fight cell-phone cheating
As students head off to college with cell phones in hand, universities are wrestling with the issue of how to cope with high-tech temptations in the classroom, reports…
Rhode Island town fires all teachers at a failing high school
In one of the first tests of the federal government’s restructuring model for failing schools, the Central Falls, R.I., school board on Feb. 23 approved a recommendation to…
Librarians to colleges: Keep on streaming videos for courses
The Library Copyright Alliance has published a legal analysis of the use of streaming video in higher education, NewTeeVee reports, and the bottom line could be good news…
FCC survey shows need to teach internet basics
The federal government’s plan to provide fast internet connections to all Americans will have to include some basic instruction in Web 101, a new survey reveals.
Obama urges states to raise academic standards
Saying America’s “primacy in the world” is at stake, President Barack Obama on Feb. 22 prodded states to raise their academic standards by using the best leverage he…
Education goals in National Broadband Plan revealed
Upgrading the federal e-Rate program to provide more connectivity to schools and libraries, removing the barriers to online learning so that more students can take advantage, and unlocking…
More Americans skeptical of higher education
An increasing percentage of Americans believe colleges and universities prioritize profit margin over educational quality, a claim educators refute as unfair, especially during the current economic downturn.
Are unions blocking school reform?
In a new film called Waiting for Superman, there is a scene in which hidden-camera video shows a teacher reading a newspaper and looking at his watch while…
Commentary: Data undermining
Unions are taking heat for their stance on using data to measure teacher quality, but school districts bear some responsibility, too.
Duncan pushes back against private lenders
Responding to private lenders’ lobbying efforts against White House plans for direct federal loans, Education Secretary Arne Duncan said Feb. 17 that he trusts the U.S. Senate will…
Privacy group files FTC complaint on Google Buzz
A privacy watchdog group complained to federal regulators on Feb. 16 about Google's new Buzz social networking service, saying it violates federal consumer protection law, reports the Associated…
Broadband access gap remains large
Roughly 40 percent of Americans do not have high-speed internet access at home, according to new Commerce Department figures that reinforce what educators believe causes some students to…
Google rebuts DOJ objections to digital book deal
Google Inc. wants the digital rights to millions of books badly enough that it's willing to take on the U.S. Department of Justice in a court battle over…
Viewpoint: Failure is not an option in our schools
On Jan. 28, a group of inspiring educators from four diverse school districts came together to share their experiences on how they have turned their underperforming schools around,…
Congressional Democrats challenge Comcast, NBC on merger
Congressional Democrats on Feb. 4 challenged executives from Comcast Corp. and NBC Universal to show that the cable TV operator's plan to take control of the entertainment company…
FY11 budget plan folds ed tech into new program
President Barack Obama’s proposed budget for fiscal year 2011 calls for sweeping changes to programs within the U.S. Department of Education, including a restructuring of federal education technology…
Wireless mic frequency change could affect schools
Schools and colleges that use wireless microphones operating on the 700 megahertz (MHz) frequency band have until June 12 to change the radio frequency or buy new equipment,…
Experts say NCLB rewrite will be hard this year
In his State of the Union address, President Obama held out the hope of overhauling the main law outlining the federal role in public schools, a sprawling 45-year-old…
Obama calls for more school funding
Education is one of the few areas of the federal budget that would not see a spending freeze, if President Barack Obama gets his way this year.
Obama to seek freeze on domestic spending to trim deficit
President Obama will call for a three-year freeze in spending on many domestic programs, including education, and for increases no greater than inflation after that -- an initiative…
MIT lags in hiring, promoting black, Hispanic faculty, internal report says
MIT must do a better job recruiting and retaining black and Hispanic faculty, who have a significantly more difficult time getting promoted than white and Asian colleagues, according…
Schools weigh in on national broadband plan
To help provide broadband access to more citizens, the Federal Communications Commission should expand the eligible uses of e-Rate discounts to include after-school programs and community centers, many…
AFT: Education must change to move forward
Moving public education to a model that will better prepare students for today's knowledge economy, and one that will strengthen teacher development and evaluation, is critical to the…
Blindness groups, ASU settle lawsuit over Kindle
Two organizations representing the blind have settled a discrimination lawsuit against Arizona State University over its use of Amazon's Kindle e-reader device.
Net-neutrality dispute heads to court
The Federal Communications Commission ran into a potential setback Jan. 8 in its push to draft rules that would require internet providers to give equal treatment to all…
National STEM program increases reach
President Barack Obama on Jan. 6 announced an expansion of the Educate to Innovate program he launched last November, including the creation of several new partnerships to help…
Top 10 ed-tech stories of 2009: No. 4
The federal stimulus package approved by Congress in February included $650 million designated specifically for education technology. That doesn't include billions more for other programs, such as Title…
Schools face tough economic road ahead
While some economists point to signs that the nation's economy is improving, others say the U.S. faces a much slower climb out of the recession--a scenario that will…
Universities play role in broadband expansion
Colleges and universities will help bring broadband internet to underserved schools, businesses, and neighborhoods after Vice President Joe Biden announced the first round of federal stimulus funds to…
Duncan: Schools ‘need to be more creative’
Education leaders in the United States must work to close the digital divide and ensure that all students have access to top-notch technology, while at the same time…
Racist group targets school newspapers
A free music-downloading web site that has placed advertisements with at least two high school newspapers is actually a vehicle for violent hate speech and "white resistance" information.
Comcast, NBC deal to test net neutrality
Analysts say Comcast Corp. likely will have to accept substantial conditions if the cable TV provider wants to win regulatory approval for control of NBC Universal's broadcast network,…
Schools protest Kindle’s setup for the blind
Amazon's Kindle electronic book reader can read books aloud, but if you're blind it can be difficult to turn that function on without help. Now, two universities say…
Student lending landscape in flux
College administrators face a student lending landscape in upheaval at a time when students are borrowing more money than ever to pay for college. Key words: college software,…
FCC proposes web-safety education rules
e-Rate applicants would have to certify that they are teaching students about internet safety, according to a new Notice of Proposed Rulemaking
Teachers tread with caution on Facebook
With technology evolving as fast as a teen's thumbs can move over a cell phone, teachers are seeking to strike a balance on what's considered appropriate contact in…
Open-source tool to boost STEM graduates
State education officials have a new tool to help them predict which investments will pay dividends as they try to boost the number of college graduates who major…
School employees clogging computers with personal eMail
The Tampa, Fla., school board is wrestling with how to set rules for employees' personal use of eMail -- a problem with no easy answers, reports the Tampa…