R.I. groups want PARCC-graduation delay
R.I. groups, incl. the ACLU, NCAAP, & Providence Student Union, want to prevent schools from making PARCC tests a graduation requirement until 2020.
School News
US News issues national high school rankings
Maryland can claim to be No. 1 on a list that we feel has very little value in terms of school improvement. Yet it serves as a gold standard.
IL Supreme Court strikes down pension reform
The IL state constitution prohibits a reduction of retirement benefits (pensions) that the state promised retirees when they were first hired.
Durbin warns educators about for-profit colleges
Sen Dick Durbin of IL wants to make certain students avoid for-profit colleges that give students nothing but worthless degrees and high indebtedness.
Teacher Appreciation Week ideas
Teacher Appreciation Week ends Friday, and we have some ideas that might be better than delivering home-baked cookies to the teachers' lounge.
Arson & a stolen violin, etc., in Maine Twp.
A former music student allegedly steals a violin; someone sets a fire in a women's restroom; all 3 high schools make a list published by the <em>Washington Post</em>.
141 students named US Presidential Scholars
141 students, including 2 from IL and 3 from Md., were named US Presidential Scholars Monday, based on their academic performance or excellence in the arts.
Book review: The Long Shadow
Students in Baltimore's poorer neighborhoods have difficulty lifting themselves out of poverty. They <em>can</em>, but it's a tough road, especially if they're black.
May 1 is National College Signing Day
We note the first anniversary of Michelle Obama's Reach Higher initiative, aimed at increasing the number of US students who finish college.
IL in hot water over cancelled science tests
IL's decision to abandon its current science test for students in 4th, 7th, and 11th grade has put the state in hot water with the feds.