Educational Issues and Trends
Historical and Contempory Information for educators and interested...

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Standards:

The public's reasoning about standards is largely misunderstood because of a reasoning fallacy of generalizing that if something is good for an individual, it is good for everyone. For example: High scores on tests grant entry to elite universities, therefore, high scores must be right for the nation as a whole.

Most parents would probably like their children to have high scores. However, looking at our nation as a whole we should come to a different conclusion. In that situation we would want a combination of people that are able to be leaders, followers, heroes, creators, producers, so that the society could function for the benefit of everyone.

Tenure

The ability to fire or ask for a person's resignation without due process is a perfect example for the granting of tenure to teachers.
Shirley Sherrod

When Shirley Sherrod was Georgia State Director of Rural Development for the United States Department of Agriculture her remarks were edited and used to force her to resign. However, when a complete unedited video in full context was released, the NAACP, White House officials, and Tom Vilsack, the United States Secretary of Agriculture, apologized for the firing and Sherrod was offered a new position.

SAT and college admission

How to get a perfect score by Allen Cheng

Popular Media

Freedom Writers

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... on the recommendation of my granddaughter, I saw Freedom Writers.

I was very glad I did. It is one of the best films I have seen. The film presents the struggles of teaching and the life of a teacher. The passion, desire, and commitment needed to determine and provide what students need for them to develop to the point of empowerment, as well as the persistence and determination to overcome barriers to provide it. While fear and hate are the major barriers depicted in this film, barriers of traditional schooling and public misconceptions of what it means to be educated and how to achieve it are just as great of barriers to be overcome for students to achieve a quality education. Find the time to see this film with a loved one. It has life long empowering possibilities.

The Freedom Writer's movie trailer

Freedom Writer's foundation & resources ...

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The plural of anecdote is not data.

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Education in Madrawar, Afghanistan. 2006.

Late one February night, more than a dozen masked gun carrying Taliban burst into the 10-room girls' school in Nooria's village, Madrawar about 100 miles east of Kabul. They tied up and beat the night watchman, soaked the principal's office and the library with gasoline, set it on fire and escaped into the darkness.

The townspeople, who doused the blaze before it could spread, later found written messages from the gunmen promising to cut off the nose and ears of any teacher or student who dared to return.

The threats didn't work. Within days, most of the school's 650 pupils were back to their studies. Classes were held under a grove of trees in the courtyard for several weeks, despite the winter chill, until repairs inside the one-story structure were complete. Nearby schools replaced some of the library's books.

But the hate mail kept coming, with threats to shave the teacher's heads as well as mutilate their faces.

When, NEWSWEEK visited and talked to students and faculty on the last day of classes. Nooria, who dreams of becoming a teacher herself, expressed her determination to finish school.

"I'm not afraid of getting my nose and ears cut off," she said, all dressed up in a long purple dress and head scarf.

"I want to keep studying." Newsweek June 26, 2006

Educational Issues and Trends Historical and Contempory Information for educators and interested...