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POPSAftershock rattles China quake zone Friday May 16th 2008
The government said it would investigate why so many school buildings collapsed in the quake and severely punish anyone responsible for shoddy construction. Officials in at least six provinces promised to tear down dangerous school buildings to protect students, state media reported. The quake destroyed about 6,900 classrooms, not including those in the hardest-hit counties. China's education system is chronically underfunded. Building experts said the problem here, as in many other parts of the world, was a lack of commitment by governments to improve the quality of school buildings. "Schools should never collapse, and hospitals and fire stations should never collapse. These are all civic structures that are needed in a disaster," said Roger Bilham, a professor of geological sciences at the University of Colorado at Boulder. "So when I hear a school has collapsed, I point the finger at politics." More than 4 million apartments and homes were damaged or destroyed in Sichua
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POPSUK educator decries domination of education by management-oriented language An Oxford professor examines the gradual takeover of all policy writing on education by the language of business management: "efficiency," "providers," "audits," "performance indicators," etc. This kind of thinking, he says, has gradually obscured any legitimate answer to the question of what education is really supposed to accomplish.
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POPSCongress Direspects Teachers, Students, and Parents...Again It is amazing how pointed the disrespect with which teachers are held by Congress really is...they speak out of both sides of the mouth. Congressmen say they want teacher comments, but they waited until August 27, 2007 to send out a 11 page draft of a bill that the House Ed Committee hopes to present to Congress shortly after Labor Day. That gives any teacher who wants to look at it about a week to read and analyze the draft summary and to write a comment. Congressman, can you spell, N'er Do Well? It just makes you wonder why citizen approval ratings of Congress are so low, doesn't it? LORL
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POPSReading Party ideas to get Students to enjoy reading Beach Party: Encourage students to bring in rubber rafts, inner tubes, beach blankets, and beach chairs, and to dress in beach clothes. Then invite them to read "in the sand." 101 Dalmatian Party: Celebrate "101 Reasons to Read" with a Dalmatian Celebration. Read for 101 minutes then write songs, poems, and stories about dogs. Invite a local veterinarian or dog trainer to be your special reading guest. Mystery Party: Invite students to come dressed as their favorite detectives -- and armed with a mystery book to read. Article by Linda Starr Education World® Copyright © 2006 Education World 04/21/2006
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POPSDoes early schooling harm children? I think it is the format of the teaching and learning that could harm the kids the most- if they are subjected to very structured lessons and tests before they are ready, I can foresee psychological harm done to them, especially in the areas of confidence and dealing with anxiety and stress. 5 year olds are supposed to be in "Kindegarten"- "Children's garden"- a Kinder classroom should have places for the students to explore and learn; most do best in play. Frankly, almost everyone does best, learning-wise- at play :)
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