Education

Education

Elementary Schools in Forsyth County Will Get Big Security Uprades

2:48pm December 27, 2013

Schools across the country have been re-evaluating their security measures since the Sandy Hook Elementary shootings last December, including the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County School System. But a school shooting at Carver High School in August prompted school officials and the board to take action immediately. As a result, parents, teachers and staff will see some big changes in 2014.

School Testing Systems Should Be Examined In 2014

7:49am December 26, 2013

Our series on the future continues with a discussion about education. Morning Edition co-host Steve Inskeep talks to Linda Darling-Hammond, a former adviser to President Obama, who is dismayed to see his administration build on the high-stakes testing requirements introduced by the Bush administration.

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Decades ago, the SAT test was seen as a measure of raw ability, not as something students ought to cram for. Now, test prep is a huge industry. Linguist Geoff Nunberg wonders what exactly students learn when they're flipping through vocabulary flashcards.

Sorry Assiduous (adj.) SAT-Takers, Linguist In Dudgeon (n.) Over Vocab Flashcards

4:01pm December 23, 2013

by Geoff Nunberg

Many students prepare for the SAT by drilling themselves on esoteric, arcane and recondite words — like esoteric, arcane and recondite. Linguist Geoff Nunberg doesn't discourage these efforts, but he does have a word of caution: memorizing a definition is hardly the same as learning a new word.

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High school senior Pat Cordova-Goff would be allowed to use the girls' bathroom under a California law slated to go into effect next year. The law's critics call it the "co-ed bathroom bill."

Education

Religious Groups Challenge Calif. Transgender Law Over Privacy

12:14pm December 18, 2013

by Aaron Schrank

Opponents of a new California law that aims to accommodate transgender students say they've gathered enough signatures to try to overturn it on next year's ballot. The law allows transgender students to use the bathrooms and join the sports teams that match their gender identity.

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Education

Fla. School To Change Name Tied To Ku Klux Klan Leader

8:02am December 18, 2013

by Karen Feagins

A school board in Jacksonville, Fla., has decided that one of its schools should no longer be named after Ku Klux Klan grand wizard Nathan Bedford Forrest. He was also a general in the Civil War. Nathan Bedford Forrest High School received its name in the 1950s, and for decades the decision has been debated.

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A Panther Pride sign cheers Washington High School's undefeated football team amid debris from last week's tornado.

Rivals Help Level Playing Field For Tornado-Shattered Team

5:24pm December 16, 2013

by Amanda Vinicky

Competition and compassion meet on the field in Springfield, Ill., Saturday, when two central Illinois high school football teams face off for a spot in the state championship. One team is a perennial powerhouse, but the other is from a town that was all but destroyed by a tornado one week ago.

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Education

Mothers, Citizens Break the Silence

8:01am December 14, 2013

This weekend, thousands of people nationwide and in North Carolina will hit the streets to advocate for better gun control legislation.

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Education

North Carolina Teachers Sue the State Over School Vouchers

4:27am December 12, 2013

An advocacy group representing North Carolina teachers is suing the state.

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Noel, a remote Ozarks town of 1,832, is thriving thanks to the Tyson Foods poultry plant in town.

In A Small Missouri Town, Immigrants Turn To Schools For Help

12:30pm December 11, 2013

by Abbie Fentress Swanson

The once-sleepy tourist town of Noel, Mo., in the heart of the Ozark Mountains, is now home to hundreds of immigrants and newly arrived refugees, thanks largely to the huge Tyson Food Inc. poultry plant. And since the town lacks the infrastructure to serve these new residents, schools have become the de facto safety net.

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Education

Policy Changes Considered to Help Special Needs Children in the Classroom

6:04pm December 09, 2013

by Keri Brown

School choice including charter schools, magnet schools and private schools are options for many families in North Carolina. But as the state's education landscape continues to change, many parents with special needs children are facing major challenges.

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