Education News: January 25, 2008

Following are some of the top headlines from the world of education for the week ending January 25, 2008.

Resegregation of U.S. Schools Deepening
(Source: The Christian Science Monitor, 1/25/08):  A new study by the Civil Rights Project has found that U.S. schools are becoming less and less racially diverse.  For example, the report found that approximately two thirds of black and Latino students in large cities attend schools with less than 10 percent white students.  One reason for the decreased diversity is that a string of court decisions, including a major one made last summer by the U.S. Supreme Court, has made it more difficult for school districts to use mandatory or voluntary integration programs.

Tougher Policy on Bullying Proposed
(Source: The Washington Post, 1/25/08):  Maryland state lawmakers are currently considering pieces of legislation that would compel schools to take stronger action in response to bullying complaints and levy $500 fines against students who participate in ‘cyber-bullying’ on websites such as MySpace and Facebook.  One of the bills was inspired by a Maryland teen who was the victim of both online and in-person harassment after coming out as a lesbian.

Chicago Public Schools to Fire Hundreds at 8 Under-Performing Schools
(Source:  The Chicago Tribune, 1/24/08):  In an effort to reform a group of chronically struggling schools on Chicago’s South Side and West Side, school officials have developed a proposal that would involve replacing the teaching staffs of these schools virtually wholesale.  The Board of Education will consider the proposal as early as next month.

Schools to Offer Pay for Scores
(Source:  The Baltimore Sun, 1/23/08):  Baltimore’s struggling high school students can now earn money for improving their test scores.  Starting with this year’s juniors, students who have already failed one of their High School Assessment exams can earn $25 for a five-percent improvement, $60 for a 20-percent improvement, and $110 for a 40-percent improvement.

Army Recruits with Diplomas Hit 25-Year Low
(Source:  The Boston Globe, 1/23/08):  The portion of Army recruits with high school diplomas dropped from 84 percent in 2005 to less than 71 percent in 2007.  This is a problematic finding considering that high school graduates are more likely to have successful Army careers than dropouts.  Due to the difficulty of maintaining enrollments, the Army has been compelled to lower or waive its recruiting standards, including those involving medical conditions and criminal records.

Teenagers, Scalpels, and Real Cadavers
(Source: The New York Times, 1/22/08):  Across the country, a modest number of dedicated high school biology teachers have managed to incorporate human cadaver dissection into their curricula.  To do so, the teachers have had to navigate obstacles like funding, permission slips, and other logistical matters.  Other teachers have arranged with colleges and medical schools to bring their students in to observe cadaver demonstrations.

Rethinking Principal Priorities of Training
(Source: The Washington Post, 1/21/08):  Traditionally, principals have received their training at education schools, but a growing group of experts is wondering if a business education would be more appropriate.  With that in mind, Rice University in Houston, Texas, is launching an MBA program specifically aimed at producing principals.  Rice is partnering with Teach for America and several Houston-area education groups for the initiative.