Reading books as a teenager can feel more like a chore than leisure, especially when distracted by Facebook and Instagram. However, what happens when you combine social media and reading, then cater it toward young adult (YA) readers? Rachel Fershleiser, a representative from Tumblr, said some sites that successfully combine both are “replicating what your local bookstore used to do.” She observed this [...]
I was never a fan of math. I can vividly remember one day in kindergarten when I was handed an extra-long sheet of paper with addition and subtraction problems on them, and I felt like my world was going to end right there. But the world didn’t, and throughout the rest of my school life. I managed to do all right in math. [...]
This year looks to be a benchmark year in education reform. In 2013, not only do the new Common Core State Standards start to become integrated into curricula, but one of the country’s most impactful pieces of educational legislature is up for reauthorization. The America Creating Opportunities to Meaningfully Promote Excellence in Technology, Education, and Science Act (America COMPETES) was first signed back [...]
This March at SXSWedu, an educational conference in Austin, News Corporation’s educational unit unveiled their new tablet specialized to teaching. Spearheaded by former New York City School Chancellor Joel Klein, now CEO of Amplify, the Amplify tablet aims to change the classroom environment into one that students more readily understand. In Klein’s opinion, schools need to embrace technology instead of banning it if [...]
Two years after the American Council on Education (ACE), the parent company of the General Educational Development (GED) tests, teamed up with Pearson PLC to create the GED Testing Service, the ubiquitous high school equivalency exam is undergoing a makeover. In the coming months, test takers will put down their pencils and close their paper booklets in favor of a completely computerized exam, [...]
Starting with the 2013–2014 school year, students in five states will be spending 300 more hours per year at their desks. Schools in Colorado, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York, and Tennessee will extend their time with students, individually choosing to accumulate the extra hours through longer days, longer school years or a combination thereof. Advocates claim that this extra time, by providing more student–teacher [...]
Judy Blume: one of the most prolific and influential writers of the young adult (YA) novels publishing craze. Her books, which explore sensitive and real-life topics applicable to many teens, have been both incredibly popular and controversial. Released June 7, the movie adaptation of Blume’s 1981 Bradbury Press novel Tiger Eyes features the first of her books to hit the big screen, yet it remains [...]
Instead of calling attention to students who misbehave, teachers in some schools are now practicing a technique called “active ignoring.” The idea behind it is simple: Teachers are no longer reprimanding students for their bad behavior but instead waiting for them to correct it on their own. When a student exhibits good conduct, they are verbally praised. For example, a teacher won’t acknowledge [...]
The burgeoning use of Internet technologies in the classroom has enabled students to explore a nearly limitless reservoir of human knowledge. In the past four years, however, major research organizations from across the globe have begun to offer students not only access to their findings but also a way to actively participate in gathering, sorting, and analyzing scientific data. Open Air Laboratories, or [...]
As many schools across the country enter their final month, they are another year closer to a drastic change that has been looming for a while. In 2010, the Common Core State Standards (or just the “Standards,” as the Common Core State Standards website refers to them) were developed and introduced. Since then, 45 out of the 50 states, along with a number [...]