What's the Big Idea..?

The StudentEdge team understands the importance of staying informed about education topics. That’s why we’ve launched this blog to give you easy access to daily educational news links and important articles regarding new trends in education and counseling from a variety of sources. Just as StudentEdge is a one-stop resource for students, this blog is a one-stop resource for the education news and information that’s important to you.


EdNews.org - Daily EdNews

Monday, June 30, 2008

Career Programs Give Students Better Odds

These aren't your parents' vocation education classes that direct students on solidly noncollege tracks. Over the past twenty-five years, the career academy has steadily gained a foot hold in our nation's high schools. These programs, primarily in low-income districts, focus students on not only a career, but combine job placement, college prep, and classes beyond the vocational trades. A report released on Friday finds that students from these career academies have a significantly higher employment and earnings rate than their control group peers.

Read the entire article at:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/26/education/26careers.html?_r=1&ref=education&oref=slogin

Thursday, June 26, 2008

Getting Parental Involvement

Helicopter parents have been creating quite a buzz in the news, but there is a particular group of parents that are not knee deep in their child's school affairs--immigrant parents. While the parents care very much about their children, often times they are very confused by the American educational system.

Read the entire article at:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/22/nyregion/nyregionspecial2/22immigct.html?_r=1&ref=education&oref=slogin

Wednesday, June 25, 2008

Public Service or Wall Street?

All too often, graduates from elite institutions are heading off to Wall Street - succombing to the lure of the big paycheck and working with their friends. Now, however, this phenomenom is being challenged by a few professors and even the new president of Harvard.

Read the article at:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/23/education/23careers.html?ref=education

Thursday, June 19, 2008

Congress Backing Universal College Loans

In a response to reports that some lenders have stopped offering loans to students at community and other colleges, two congress members introduced a bill that would prohibit companies from "selective" lending--offering loans to only those who meet a certain economic and educational criteria. Many financial aid officers criticize this practice as weening out those with the most economic need and Senators Patty Murray (D-Washington) and Christopher Dodd (D-Conn) intend to stipulate that loans backed by federal tax dollars need to be available to everyone.

Check out the entire article at:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/18/business/18loan.html?ref=education

Monday, June 16, 2008

Education Secretary Fights Opponents of "No Child Left Behind"

Though the "No Child Left Behind" law was not updated by Congress earlier this year, Margaret Spellings is not letting it die with the Bush presidency--in fact, she has taken to the road to speak in support of updating it before the White House changes hands. So far she has visited more than 20 states, drumming up support even though the bill's main sponsor in the legislature, Representative George Miller (D-CA) calls the "No Child" law, the "most negative brand in the country."

Read the entire article at:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/12/washington/12spellings.html?_r=1&adxnnl=1&oref=slogin&ref=education&adxnnlx=1213632160-HilhKzhHCurlYKcSuxi1bA

Friday, June 6, 2008

Few Student Loans Available for 2-yr Colleges

Many big banks have stopped student loans altogether; those that remain are paring down their lists of colleges, to whose students, they will offer loans. Which schools are getting dropped: 2-yr colleges, for-profit universities, and other less competitive institutions. Citibank, which has been the most aggressive in paring the list, is joined by JPMorgan Chase, PNC, and Suntrust banks as those that are cutting out 4-yr colleges that aren't very selective in their admissions. This practice threatens to cut off loans to those students who often need it the most.

Check out the entire article at:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/02/business/02loans.html?_r=1&ref=education&oref=slogin

Monday, June 2, 2008

Bringing More than Textbooks to Freshman Year

Many states have exit exams to test for college readiness, but one exam they do not give students is on time and money management. Freshman year is frought with pitfalls, but simply planning ahead can make a big difference in students' lives.

Read the entire article at:
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/5812106.html