Claudio Sanchez

30 Years On, Educators Still Divided On Scathing Schools Report

Claudio Sanchez — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 21:07:00 +0000

Thirty years ago this week, President Ronald Reagan's administration released "A Nation at Risk," a report warning of "a rising tide of mediocrity" in American public education.

According to the report, only one-third of 17-year-olds in 1983 could solve a math problem requiring two steps or more, and 4 out of 10 teenagers couldn't draw inferences from written material.

'Core Curriculum' Puts Education Experts At Odds

Claudio Sanchez — Sun, 14 Apr 2013 08:58:00 +0000

At 2 p.m., it's crunchtime for students who write for The Harbinger Online, the award-winning, student news site at Shawnee Mission East High just outside Kansas City, Kan.

El Paso Schools Cheating Scandal Probes Officials' Accountability

Claudio Sanchez — Wed, 10 Apr 2013 21:30:00 +0000

No one knows if Atlanta's school superintendent or any of the people accused of falsifying test results will go to jail, but they wouldn't be the first if they do.

Lorenzo Garcia, the former superintendent of schools in El Paso, Texas, has been sitting in a federal prison since last year.

Study: More Adult Pell Grant Students, Not Enough Graduating

Claudio Sanchez — Wed, 10 Apr 2013 12:08:00 +0000

The federal government each year gives needy college students billions of dollars they don't have to pay back — $34.5 billion to be exact. More than 9 million students rely on the Pell Grant program. But a new study says much of the money is going to people who never graduate.

Sandy Baum, an expert on student financial aid, has been leading a group in a study of the 48-year-old Pell Grant program.

Race, Poverty Central To National School-Closure Debate

Claudio Sanchez — Sat, 23 Mar 2013 10:22:00 +0000

In Chicago, parents are fighting to prevent the city from closing 54 public schools.

Sequester Spells Uncertainty For Many Public Schools

Claudio Sanchez — Wed, 27 Feb 2013 21:59:00 +0000

If Congress and the Obama administration can't agree on a budget deal by Friday, the federal government will be forced to cut $85 billion from just about every federally funded program. Every state could lose federal aid, and a myriad of government programs could shut down or curtail services — and that includes the nation's public schools.

There is one bit of good news for schools: Because most federal aid to schools is forward-funded, the cuts triggered by sequestration would not hit classrooms until September at the earliest.

Union Backs 'Bar Exam' For Teachers

Claudio Sanchez — Tue, 29 Jan 2013 21:21:00 +0000

The system for preparing and licensing teachers in the U.S. is in such disarray that the American Federation of Teachers is proposing a "bar exam" similar to the one lawyers have to pass before they can practice.

Currently, there's a patchwork of different certification requirements that vary state by state. There's no single standard to determine who's fit and who's not fit to teach.

Holiday Travelers Stranded By Severe Weather

Claudio Sanchez — Thu, 27 Dec 2012 09:34:00 +0000

A major storm system is causing havoc for travelers trying to get home from their holiday destinations. Powerful winds and blizzard conditions have hit parts of the U.S.

In California, Parents Trigger Change At Failing School

Claudio Sanchez — Fri, 14 Dec 2012 08:15:00 +0000

Parents in one small California community have used a "parent-trigger" law for the first time to shut down and take over an elementary school.

Firestorm Erupts Over Virginia's Education Goals

Claudio Sanchez — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 20:05:00 +0000

As part of Virginia's waiver to opt out of mandates set out in the No Child Left Behind law, the state has created a controversial new set of education goals that are higher for white and Asian kids than for blacks, Latinos and students with disabilities.

Virginia Democratic state Sen.