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Podcast Series: Innovations in Education
Explore the full series of eSchool News podcasts hosted by Kevin Hogan—created to keep you on the cutting edge of innovations in education.
Opening up, students transform a vicious circle
There is little down time in Eric Butler’s classroom, The New York Times reports. “My daddy got arrested this morning,” Mercedes Morgan, a distraught senior, told the students gathered there. Mr. Butler’s mission is to help defuse grenades of conflict at Ralph J. Bunche High School, the end of the line for students with a history of getting into trouble. He is the school’s coordinator for restorative justice, a program increasingly offered in schools seeking an alternative to “zero tolerance” policies like suspension and expulsion…
…Read MoreWatch: Boy kicked out of school for his genetic makeup
Colman Chadam, an 11-year-old California boy, has been ordered to transfer from his current school to another one miles away because of his genetic makeup. Now, his parents are taking the issue to court, the Huffington Post reports. Colman carries the genetic mutations for cystic fibrosis, a noncontagious but incurable and life-threatening disease. Despite the gene’s presence, the Jordan Middle School student in Palo Alto doesn’t actually have the disease and doesn’t exhibit the typical symptoms of thick mucus that can clog and infect the lungs. Cystic fibrosis is inherited from both parents and while not contagious, can pose a threat if two people with the disease are in close contact. In an effort to protect other students at the school who do have the disease, officials declared that Colman would have to transfer out to prevent cross contamination…
…Read MoreReaders: These 10 education policies need to go
As education stakeholders continue to debate various school reform ideas, many have targeted specific policies they see as outdated, cumbersome, or standing in the way of real progress.
We recently asked readers: “If there was one policy/rule that you’d like to have waived for your school/district/state, what would it be and why?” Here are our readers’ top responses.
What do you think of these education policies—and do you have any suggestions of your own for policies you’d like to waive or change? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.…Read More
They dropped out of Princeton-for education reform
For the past three years, Princeton University has been home to Catharine Bellinger and Alexis Morin, and their non-profit organization Students for Education Reform, USA Today reports. Rather than returning for their senior year, Bellinger and Morin decided to take on running SFER full-time. The pair formed Students for Education Reform during their sophomore year…
…Read More