Law & Education: The Ten Commandments Revisited By Martha McCarthy
No school issues are more emotionally and politically charged than church/state concerns, and posting the Ten Commandments on public property is among the most volatile recent controversies. READ ARTICLE
Students Taking the High Road to Religion: Imam Oliver Mohammad By Nazneen Malik
Oliver Mohammad never really had a desire to become an Imam; it was more of a calling. READ ARTICLE
Seminarian James Grace By Sarah Ann Mockbee
James Grace has known since he was in junior high school that he wanted to be a priest, but his desire to serve his community through ministry has not stopped him from pursuing other interests along the way. READ ARTICLE
The Road to the Rabbinate By Liza Young
Elie Kaunfer did not always have the aspiration to become a Rabbi. “As the son of a Rabbi and nephew to two out of three uncles who are Rabbis, I knew I wasn't going to be a Rabbi,” Elie reminisced.
READ ARTICLE
THE CULINARY ARTS IN EDUCATION :
Sesame Street Launches Health Habits Campaign By Sarah Ann Mockbee
In an effort to address the growing epidemic of childhood obesity, Sesame Workshop, the nonprofit organization behind Sesame Street, has developed a comprehensive program that will educate children, parents and caregivers about the importance of cultivating a healthy lifestyle at an early age. READ ARTICLE
The Delicious Revolution: Transforming Education through School Lunch Curriculum By Alice Waters
For me life is given meaning and beauty by the daily ritual of the table—a ritual that can express tradition, character, sustainability, and diversity. READ ARTICLE
Second Graders Cook at PS 98 by Dorothy Davis
Lisa Lloyd's Second Grade class at PS 98 in upper Manhattan reinforced counting, reading and teamwork skills while enthusiastically preparing tasty treats. READ ARTICLE
Grants
City Cracks Down on Our
First Amendment Rights MORE
Start the School
Year Right
with a Grant from the NEA FoundationMORE
Astronomy
PRODUCT
REVIEW: 2Sky Planetarium Softwareby
Mitchell Levine READ
MORE
PRODUCT
REVIEW: Celestron Nextstar GPSby
Mitchell Levine READ
MORE
Business In Education
Vendors Address Widening Achievement
Gap by Matt Stein
Despite the billions of federal dollars that have been
poured into education in the U.S. since the enactment of
the Elementary and Secondary Act (ESEA), there is a still
widening gap between the achievement levels of students,
which generally occurs along the lines of socioeconomic
status. READ
MORE
Supporting Science Education: Public/Private Partnership
At Work by Carlo Parravano, Ph.D.
“Write a check and get out of the way!” That’s
the answer some school administrators give me when
I ask them how the most effective business partnerships operate. . . .
READ
MORE
Report Card on School Year Spending
While the majority of the citys 1.1 million students
have put away their schoolbooks for the summer, the
Board of Educations... READ
MORE
Summertime Blues: Nearly 15,000
Fewer Summer Jobs for Teens
Despite an increase of $8 million in city funds for the Summer
Youth Employment Program (SYEP), 14,848 fewer New York City...
READ
MORE
Teachers Should Save Receipts for New Tax Deduction
The Internal Revenue Service recently advised teachers to
save their receipts for purchases of books and classroom
supplies. READ
MORE
The Business of Education
Total spending on education and training in the United States
is estimated at about $800 billion, making it the second... READ
MORE
JP Morgan Chase Helps Kids Cope With Sept. 11th by Jessica Shi
Although the immediate shock and confusion of Sept. 11th
are over, the long-term effects of this disaster are still
in question. READ
MORE
Real Estate: A Great Time to
Buy by Marsha Mack Frances
The New York real estate community suffered the same shock,
horror, bereavement, numbness, and despair as the... READ
MORE
Business Education & Real
Estate by Marsha Mack Frances
New York City provides some of the country’s most sought
after residential real estate and educational opportunities. READ
MORE
CFE v. State of New York:
Explaining
the Landmark Decision by Tom Kertes
While many people say that education has problems, not many
are willing to examine the complex question of how to make
it better. READ
MORE
Real Estate May Be Key to Tuition by Marsha Mack Frances
The location and value of your New York apartment may...
READ
MORE
Mayor’s Budget Would Slow
City Spending on Schools
From the New York City Independent Budget Office
After four
years of increasing city funding for the Board of Education... READ
MORE
Students Call for Raise in Activity Funds at
Budget Hearing
by Sarah Elzas
Chancellor Harold O. Levy released the preliminary version
of his budget for the 2001-2002 school year in the wake of
the...
READ
MORE
Channel 13 Honors Adult Learners by Rachel Mittelman
The familiar paradigm—graduate college, get a job,
retire and move to Florida—played no role in the recent
ceremony held at Channel Thirteen/WNET headquarters on West
33rd Street. READ
MORE
Something for Everyone at MMC’s
Writing Conference by Sarah Elzas
Lewis Frumkes, director of the Marymount Manhattan College’s
Writing Center, founded the annual Writers Conference nearly
ten years ago in order to “restore Marymount as a premiere
cultural institution.” READ
MORE
Child Care, Family Style by Dynishal P. Gross
Like many Americans, Yvette Gore Graham has held a number
of jobs in her adult life. She has been a bank teller,
a cosmetologist, a security officer, and has even served
in the military. For many years, she worked as... READ
MORE
Prison Prep by Dynishal P. Gross
In what educational institution in the city are the best
teachers found? The question is impossible to answer without
considering the needs of the students being taught. READ
MORE
Languages
Problems with Standardized Testing by Diane K. Trumbull
I have been haunted by some clearly wrong assumptions about
educating children in some local newspapers; but I decided
to write this only after I read a journalist quote that “standards-based
education reform assumes that every child should possess
a basic set of knowledge and that there is an objective standard
for judging whether a child has acquired that knowledge.” READ
MORE
The Debate Over English Language Acquisition by Kara H. Stein & Heidi Fisher
In the past decade, as the student population in the U.S.
has grown increasingly ethnically and linguistically diverse,
the debate around English language acquisition has come
to the forefront of national educational policy... READ
MORE
A Word with Jesse Sheidlower, Lexicographer,
Oxford U.
Press by Marie Holmes
Part cultural archive, part authoritative database, nothing,
perhaps, fits the definition of “living document” as
well as the dictionary...
READ
MORE
English Language Learners Let Down by Board
of Education by Priya Athiappan
Advocates for Children claims English Language Learner
(ELL) students are receiving an inferior education. READ
MORE
My Experiences In Italy by Molly Wallace
Suor Paola was a nun, a sports commentator and a teacher.
It was the day of my tenth birthday when I started as a
student in her fifth grade class. READ
MORE
Language Events Dr. David Birdsong to Give Presentation on Late Learning
of Second Languages
Dr. David Birdsong (Ph.D., Romance Languages, Harvard University),
Associate Professor of French Linguistics at the University
of Texas,... READ
MORE
Queensborough Community College Establishes Language Program
for Immigrants
Queensborough Community College (QCC) has been awarded a
$300,000 grant to fund the Queens Civics Collaboration of
the City University of New York (QCCC), a partnership program
between Queensborough,... READ
MORE
Preserving the Cheyenne Language by Richard E. Littlebear
Cheyenne speakers are uneasy about losing our language.
They say, “It’s scary” when asked about
it. The loss is scary because most do not realize... READ
MORE
Foreign Language Conference Encourages
Study Abroad by Katarzyna Kozanecka
Leadership was the theme of the 2002 Northeast Conference
on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (NECTFL), which convened
at the Hilton... READ
MORE
New TV Show for Hispanic Children
Designed for a pre-school aged audience, “Mi Casita” (My
Little House) now runs every morning on Hispanic cable
network Galavision.
READ
MORE
Englishclub.com Voted “Best
English Language Site”
In a survey of 7,000 English language students and teachers
conducted by Study Saint, the 100 percent free-access englishclub.com,
was ranked... READ
MORE
Foreign Language Teaching Around the World by Marie Holmes
In Thailand, students begin learning English in the first
grade. French instruction now begins in the second grade
for Moroccan children.
READ
MORE
Study Abroad Options Compiled by Marie Holmes
Considering study abroad? More students than ever are taking
advantage of the opportunities that study abroad offers. READ
MORE
New York High School Student Wins Summer
in London by Marie Holmes
Rachel Moran, a student at Pittsford Sutherland High School
in Rochester, New York, has won first prize in InternationalEducationWeek.com’s.... READ
MORE
U.S. Departments of State & EducationAnnounce
International Education Week by Marie Holmes
U.S. embassies and consulates around the world, as well
as other governmental and educational institutions, will
hold events to...
READ
MORE
Exchange Student Experiences: Japan by Christopher Lapinig
It was the language of Japan that brought me thousands
of miles away from my home; the prospect of speaking to
native speakers and nurturing my language skills. READ
MORE
September in History Compiled by Chris RowanREAD
MORE
A Children’s Story: Cycling
Away the Day by Adam
Ben SimchaREAD
MORE
Learning English with English Jump Start at IS 119 by Katarzyna
Kozanecka
At 8 a.m. at IS 119 in Glendale students from all over the
world sing jazz chants, not the Star-Spangled Banner. Throughout
the day, they read and talk in English. This is particularly
amazing because it is their recently adopted language; many
have been speaking it only since the beginning of this year. READ
MORE
Berlitz International: An Institute for Language Lovers
by Toni Brett
In a city as culturally diverse as New York, the sounds
of Spanish, German, Italian, French and many other foreign
tongues fill the air like international symphonies. And
if music soothes the soul, language lures the intellect.
Should the passions of your mind and spirit merge in a
quest to learn a foreign language, then the 125-year old
Berlitz International is to foreign language students what
Carnegie Hall is to concert musicians. READ
MORE
ELL Resolution Passed by
the Board
Recently, the Board of Education passed a resolution revising
the teaching of English Language Learners. The resolution
implemented a new system of parental choice among ELL programs
and emphasizes the need to clearly inform parents about
their options. READ
MORE
Law & Education
High
Court Finds Religion Constitutionally Distinctive by Martha McCarthy, Ph.D. READ
MORE
State of Religion in Public Schools by Martha McCarthy
The federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act, signed into
law in 2002, is the most comprehensive reauthorization of
the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965. Among
its many provisions, the NCLB Act requires school districts
to certify to the state education agency that no school policy
prevents participation in constitutionally protected prayer
in public schools. The law also requires the U.S. Secretary
of Education to issue guidance to school districts regarding
permissible religious activities. For the first time, federal
funds can be withheld from school districts that are not
in compliance with the certification requirement. READ
MORE
Briefly Noted Bully Policy: Michigan Debates
Legislation, Disabled Students Must Pass Indiana Exam,
NY Professor Receives Supreme Court Book PrizeREAD
MORE
Cracks in Wall Between Church & State by Martha McCarthy,
Ph.D.
On June 11, 2001 the Supreme Court delivered a significant
decision, Good News Club v. Milford Central School, allowing
a private Christian organization to hold its meetings in
this New York school district.
READ
MORE
Court Rules against Curriculum Censorship
A three-judge panel of the second U.S.Circuit Court of
Appeals ruled against the efforts of three Catholic families
to censor the curriculum in the Bedford Central School
District in Westchester County. In the mid-nineties, the
families sued the district alleging their religious rights
were violated by, among others, the DARE drug education
program.
READ
MORE
Funding for Girls in Non-Traditional Subjects:
The Go Girl
Act Representative Lynn Woolsey (D-CA)
introduced a bill last month authorizing $50 million in grants
during fiscal year 2002 to encourage girls, grades 4 through
8, to succeed in math, science, engineering and technology
courses, and pursue jobs in these fields. READ
MORE
Anti-Harassment Policies in Public Schools: Are They Vulnerable?
by Martha McCarthy, Ph.D.
In February 2001, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals rendered
a surprising ruling, Saxe v. State College Area School
District, striking down a Pennsylvania school district’s
anti-harassment policy and thereby overturning the lower
court’s decision. READ
MORE
Politics In Education
Regents Must Refine Standards
for Vocational Students & New
Immigrants by Assemblyman Steven Sanders
The educational establishment, the private sector, many politicians
and almost all the editorial pages have confused high standards
(good) with high-stakes testing (often bad), which will have
terrible consequences for many of our high school seniors,
especially for recent immigrants and those pursuing vocational
careers. READ
MORE
Arts Education & Internships:
A Road To Success
by Assemblyman
Steven Sanders
With headline after headline focusing on standards and
high-stakes testing, it is too easy for New Yorkers to
lose sight of some of the important success stories in
our public schools—among
these, the restoration of arts education. READ
MORE
Professionalize Supervision of Mentoring Programs by Assemblyman
Steven Sanders
Today there are countless mentoring programs run by social
service, academic, health and community institutions which
match youngsters with caring adult volunteers. These adults
serve as positive role models and provide extra support,
guidance and friendship in a young person’s life. READ
MORE
A Necessary and Enduring Power by Matthew Elias Koch
Assembly Passes Record State Aid Increase
for City Schools
by Assemblyman Steven Sanders
On March 21, the Assembly passed its budget resolution, which
includes, for the first time, State school aid to New York
City at a level that meets or exceeds the city’s proportion
of enrolled students statewide. Public school enrollment
in the City represents 37.4 percent of statewide public school
enrollment, and under the Assembly’s proposed budget,
New York City would get over 38 percent of the State’s
overall school aid. READ
MORE
Travel
San Francisco: City on the Bay by Pola Rosen, Ed.D.
San Francisco holds great visual appeal: its hills and architecture
combine the gracious curves of the past with the edges of
the present and everywhere, the sense that all streets lead
to the beautiful bay. READ
MORE
A Bacchanalian Feast in the Napa Valley by Pola Rosen,
Ed.D.
The Napa Valley, a verdant checkerboard of vineyards, picturesque
towns with sophisticated restaurants, comfortable inns
nestled in the hills and art galleries combined with local
wineries make for a marvelous California vacation. READ
MORE
Family-Friendly Puerto Rico: The Beach and Beyond by Jan
Aaron
We are walking down the palm lined path behind the Inter-Continental
Hotel in San Juan, Puerto Rico. My guide is a curly-haired
moppet, Lara, with one hand in mine and the other clutching
a sticky red lollipop. Lara, on loan from her mom, shows
me the hotel’s day camp where she plans to make sandcastles.
Almost all major hotels here have supervised daycare facilities. READ
MORE
