Motivation Matters
Motivation Matters covered what works, and what doesn’t work, to motivate students to do better in school. This blog is no longer being updated, but you can continue to explore these issues on edweek.org by visiting our related topic pages: student motivation & engagement.
Science
Math and Science Worries
If you are concerned about getting students more motivated to study math and science, especially more difficult math and science, the results of a recent Public Agenda survey are likely to feel a bit troubling.
College & Workforce Readiness
10,000 Sign Up for Wisconsin Covenant
Back in May, I had promised to keep readers up to speed on any developments in the Wisconsin Covenant program, which plans to offer guaranteed college placement and financial aid to high school students in the state who maintain B averages.
Student Well-Being & Movement
'Absent From Class'
Will Fitzhugh, the founder and president of the Concord Review, a journal of academic writing by high school students, has written a thought-provoking essay, "Absent From Class," for edweek.org that poses the question: Why do so many of our high school students do so little work?
Education
Remembering Manhattan
My thoughts today turn to a Tuesday exactly six years ago when I was driving into Manhattan on a beautiful, sunny morning to spend the day with New York City teacher Laura Marks. I was writing a story about her motivation to return to the classroom after recovering from a violent beating from a student. On that day, her state of mind would be put to the test.
College & Workforce Readiness
Picking a Major: Good or Bad Idea?
A growing number of schools across the country are asking or requiring students to pick an academic major or specialty before they enter high school. Seems a bit premature for most kids, who probably do not have a clue what career they want to pursue. My oldest son, for one, picked engineering as his concentration.
Education
Back to School in Droves
My kids started school yesterday with typical fanfare: new backpacks and lunchboxes and, as they waited for the bus, endless chatter about their teachers and which friends are in their classes.
Education
School and Happiness
How shocked would you be to learn that school and watching television rank the same among activities that make young people most happy in life? In a survey by MTV and the Associated Press, few 13- to 24-year-olds identified school or TV (or sex or cars, for that matter) as the key to their happiness.
Assessment
Report Card Failure
If federal law doesn’t ensure that schools and districts report student achievement data to the public, maybe threat of a lawsuit will. Public Advocates is banking on it. The San Francisco-based non-profit law firm has filed suit against California's Oakland Unified, and sent warning letters to school officials in eight other districts, after finding their school report cards were inadequate, according to this story in the San Diego Union-Tribune.
Student Achievement
Absent From School
Japan is known far and wide for maintaining a rigorous and effective public education system. But a significant number of students are less than enamored with it. A new report from the country's Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology shows that the number of students refusing to attend school is rising for the first time in five years.
College & Workforce Readiness
Learning by Doing
With diplomas in hand, most new high school graduates would rather spend the summer soaking up their last moments of leisure before they have to tackle college work and make career plans. But a group of Miami students were motivated instead to tackle complicated, real-world lessons in Washington this summer, as the Miami Herald reports.
Assessment
The Temptation to Cheat
It is the season for school report cards, and I’ve seen a number of news clips about student progress and overall school performance on state tests reported under the requirements of the federal No Child Left Behind Act.
Assessment
Success at a Price
Linda Perlstein is getting a lot of attention this week with the release of her second book, this one about the impact of testing and accountability on an elementary school in suburban Maryland. “Tested: One American School Struggles to Make the Grade” chronicles the success of Tyler Heights Elementary, a Title I school in Annapolis, in boosting students’ test scores in math and reading.
Education
Back to School Already?
Students and teachers everywhere are slowly being shocked back to reality by the inevitable Back-to-School ads. In some places, though, classes for the new school year have already begun.
Education
Under a Wizard's Spell?
The much-heralded release of the new Harry Potter book took bookstores by storm Sunday, selling more than 8 million copies in the first 24 hours.