Haverford No Longer Uses StudentLoans

Haverford College is one of the latest, in a growing list of schools, to replace student loans with grants in an effort to increase the affordability of college. Starting next year, the Quaker school will eliminated loans for freshman and finance the effort by establishing an endowment funded by alumni.

Check out the entire article at:
http://www.philly.com/inquirer/education/20071220_Haverford_College_moves_away_from_loans.html

Entincing Teachers to High-Need Schools

Yesterday, the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation announced a $17 million effort to push highly qualified teachers to high-poverty and struggling schools. Starting in 2009, the Princeton-based foundation will award hundreds of future teachers a $30,000 stipend to attend graduate school. The catch? These teachers will agree to teach for at least three years at high-need schools.

Read the entire article at:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/12/19/AR2007121902292.html

Studying Facebook.com

Facebook, the social networking website, is now under the excited scrutiny of some social science scholars at Indiana, Northwestern, Penn State, and others. They are examining how young people are connecting to one another--something that Facebook allows them to do.

Check out the entire article at:
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/17/style/17facebook.html?_r=1&ref=education&oref=slogin

The Bullies' New Playground: Cyberspace

The case of Megan Meier put the harsh reality of cyber-bullying in the headlines. Eventhough it was a hoax, the idea that this sort of bullying can happen anywhere and anytime without ever meeting someone face to face is sobering.

Check out the article at:
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/16/fashion/16meangirls.html?_r=1&ref=education&oref=slogin

Rise in Hispanic Students Prompts Increase in Bi-lingual Programs

The numbers of Hispanic students are on the rise--not in the urban environment, but in the suburban. A number of suburban schools are adding bi-lingual programs to their curriculum to meet the growing needs of this growing population.

Check out the entire article at:
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/16/nyregion/nyregionspecial2/16Rschool.html?_r=1&ref=education&oref=slogin

$500 College-fund for Maine 2009 Babies

Thanks to Harold Alfond, who founded the Dexter Shoe Co., every child born in Maine, starting 2009, will be eligible for $500 towards college. The benefactor passed away last month, but arranged for his philanthropic foundation to give out applications before parents leave the hospital.

Check out the entire article:
http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/content/education/chi-collegedec12,0,1382399.story

A Tablespoon of Culinary Art and a Dash of Science

Students at Thomas W. Pyle Middle School in Bethesda, Maryland are getting after-school cooking lessons sponsored by their PTSA and the Young Chef's Academy, a Texas-based cooking school for children. The nine-week session includes not only cooking lessons, but also information on the foods they cook--like why onions make them cry (the sulfuric acid!)--as well as advice on table manners.

Check out the entire article at:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/12/12/AR2007121201293.html

All In! Harvard Professor Thinks Poker Has Educational Benefit

The Global Poker Strategic Thinking Society, formed by Charles R. Nesson, a Harvad Law School professor, is dedicated to demonstrating that poker, which is probability based, requires risk assessment, situational analysis, and a gift for reading people, has educational benefits. "I see great advantage in hitting kids as early as sixth grade, when they're dropping out of math," stated professor Nesson. Opponents to this idea cite poker as a "gateway" drug to a bigger gambling addiction.

Read the article at:
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/12/nyregion/12poker.html?ref=education

Wires Not Welcome in Philadelphia Classrooms

A $40 million project to bring wireless internet into Philadelphia's 170,000 student school district was completed last month. It's an ongoing effort by Philadelphia school officials to modernize their classrooms.

Check out the entire article at:
http://www.philly.com/inquirer/education/20071206_Project_brings_wireless_Internet_to_city_classrooms.html

Requiring Flu Vaccines for Preschool

The NJ Public Health Council is poised to vote today on a rule that would require flu vaccines for any child entering day care of preschool. If the rule is approved, it would make NJ the first state in the country to have this requirement.

Read the entire article at:
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/09/nyregion/09vaccine.html?ref=education

Science and Math - Test Shows U.S. Students Lag

Widely talked about, but recently confirmed again by an international test, students from the United States are lagging behind other countries' students in science and math. The test focused on science, but included a math section, this year.

Read the entire article at:
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/05/education/05scores.html?_r=1&ref=education&oref=slogin

International Student Enrollments Rebounding in U.S.

The number international students enrolling in American colleges and universities is finally reaching pre-9/11 numbers. After one of the terrorists involved in the attack was found to have entered the country on a student visa, the Bush administration had tightened the number of visas given out to foreign students.

Check out the entire article at:
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/education/20071205-1120-foreignstudents.html

Freshman at a NJ College Must Buy Textbooks and a Cell Phones

At Montclair State University, incoming freshman must get a campus cell phone, at a price of $210 per semester. While some grumble about the increased cost to their tuition, others praise the effort to ramp up security on the campus. Each phone comes with a GPS tracking device that would notify the police if it were activated.

Read the entire article at:
http://www.philly.com/philly/education/20071203_ap_atnjcollegestudentsmustbuycellphonewithgpstracking.html

AP Testing Milestone

In Montgomery County, Maryland, black students passed over one thousand Advanced Placement tests this year, making this Maryland school system, along with New York City public schools, to acheive this feat.

Read the entire article at:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/12/03/AR2007120301878.html

"Checkbook" Math Making a Comeback?

Balancing a checkbook is a life skill, but students rarely, if ever, formally learn how to balance it. Once ubiquitous in high school curricula, consumer mathematics had become increasingly phased out with schools opting for higher math tracks leading to advanced placement tests. Now, schools in the DC metro area are re-thinking the idea of consumer math.

Check out the entire article at:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/12/01/AR2007120101607.html