education

Remind us why we have MCAS again?

adamg — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 09:53:29 -0400

The Globe reports:

Thousands of Massachusetts public high school graduates arrive at college unprepared for even the most basic math and English classes, forcing them to take remedial courses that discourage many from staying in school, according to a statewide study released yesterday.

Read the report yourself.

MCAS opponents just weak and fearful?

adamg — Sat, 09 Jun 2007 10:32:46 -0400

Only in Boston makes the argument.

Abstinence education

adamg — Tue, 24 Apr 2007 09:04:52 -0400

Carpundit, no fan of Deval Patrick, applauds his decision to not apply for a federal abstinence-only education grant:

... It's patent that teens will be having sex, theocrats' fantasies notwithstanding. They should be taught about the implications.

The Outraged Liberal reads to the very end of a Globe story to learn that some lobbyist is getting paid $50,000 a year to get the Legislature to fund abstinence-only education in Massachusetts:

... There's no harm in teaching abstinence -- in conjunction with a curriculum that also covers the facts of life. The decision by the Patrick administration and other states that refuse to buckle to yet another absurd federal mandate (in an area where states traditionally have greatest leeway) is appropriate.

So is a House amendment to contest the policy. But only if that amendment is offered in the clear light of day -- which this one was not. Or if the pros and cons are debated on the floor, which has not happened.

Bueno Queso Social Club

thesecondglass — Thu, 15 Mar 2007 11:49:55 -0400

Robert Aguilera, manager and cheese buyer for the Formaggio Kitchen in Cambridge has teamed up with Julie Cappellano, the wine buyer at the South End Formaggio to bring Boston, the Bueno Queso Social Club. These are monthly wine and cheese pairing classes.

The next class is titled, "From the Stiletto Heel to the Thigh Highs of Italy." and will take place on March 25th at the Middlesex Lounge in Cambridge.

Solving the dropout issue

adamg — Mon, 29 Jan 2007 08:08:33 -0500

On Civic Boston, Chris Lovett ponders what to do about the state's dropouts - figures released last week show a dropout rate of 22% in urban school districts.

Frantic Cantabridgians overloading Brookline schools?

adamg — Tue, 02 Jan 2007 08:17:43 -0500

Enrollment in Brookline kindergartens are up 25%. Is it because anxious Cambridge parents are moving to Brookline because they think the schools are better? Or is it simply because the Brookline School Committee lowered the age of enrollment for kindergarten a few years back? Jim Conley writes:

... Remember back in March of 2002 when the Brookline School Committee lowered the age requirement to attend kindergarten? Remember how nearly every kindergarten teacher in Brookline told the Committee that doing so would result in a flood of new registrants, many of whom will demand much more time from them? ...

A difference between inner-city and suburban schools

adamg — Wed, 18 Oct 2006 10:08:10 -0400

Harold M. Clemens reports the police showed up at the inner-city school where he teaches last week with drug-sniffing dogs:

... same way my students go through a metal detector and get patted down everyday before entering the building, while white boys in the middle of nowhere walk into their pristine schools unacosted and gun everything in dat bitch down. ...

New blog for Boston parents

adamg — Mon, 11 Sep 2006 11:31:54 -0400

As the parent of a third-grader in a Boston public school, I know it's possible to get your child as good an education as that in any suburban school (maybe even better). But, oh, is it freakin' difficult. Boston Parents is a new blog devoted to helping parents chart their kids through the maze that is education in the city. It starts with a look at their authors' daughters first day in K-0 (basically, pre-school) today:

... The Kid sat right down for her second breakfast and was onto playing with dough by the time we left. ...

Improving Boston schools

adamg — Tue, 10 Jan 2006 21:49:51 -0500

With a new superintendent on the way, Chris takes a look at ways to make Boston public schools better.

Metal detectors in Boston high schools?

adamg — Mon, 12 Dec 2005 08:54:24 -0500

John is willing to cut headmasters who don't like them some slack but says:

... If kids are afraid of getting shot during classes, nothing else in the experience of school has meaning.