Curriculum Matters
This blog covered news on the common core, literacy, math, STEM, social studies, the arts, and other curriculum and instruction topics. This blog is no longer being updated, but you can continue to explore these issues on edweek.org by visiting our related topic pages: common core, reading & literacy, mathematics, STEM, social studies, and curriculum.
Reading & Literacy
An A for Penmanship
Few report cards these days include a line to mark achievement in an age-old skill that our parents and grandparents toiled over in school. Even when I was a kid, a good grade in penmanship or handwriting was enough to elicit pride and boastfulness in both parent and student, not to mention the teacher who forced us to practice perfect little curves and carefully crossed 'T' s.
Science
Arne Duncan on Differential Pay, Stimulus for Science Teachers
U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan spoke today before a major professional organization, the National Science Teachers Association, at its annual meeting in New Orleans, delivering a message that members of the audience were likely to find appealing.
Curriculum
Teaching Content, and Character
The AIG fiasco and the uproar over those executive bonuses might provide a timely opportunity for talking about character in the classroom. But it might be more difficult to integrate lessons on morality and ethics day to day, particularly at a time when many educators are hesitant to cover issues that can be colored by personal values and beliefs, and therefore open to misinterpretation and conflict.
Curriculum
Study The Arts, Develop the Mind
A recent article in Edutopia makes the case that interest in arts education is on the upswing. It says that states and schools are carving out more time for arts education, despite the pressure to test in other subjects, because of the belief that the arts contribute to students' development and can be used as a learning tool. Research on student cognition is fueling this interest, the article says.
Science
Gifted Foreign Students: Homeward Bound?
One of the more fascinating and too-often underplayed aspects of the immigration debate centers on U.S. policies toward foreign college students and highly skilled workers. Many high-tech and industry leaders say those students and employees have played a vital role in our nation's business innovation and economic growth.
Social Studies
Federal Lawmakers Pushing History, Civics
When he's not jabbing President Obama for making public his NCAA tournament picks, Sen. Lamar Alexander is introducing legislation aimed at improving the teaching of U.S. history. Alexander, a former U.S. secretary of education, is sponsoring legislation that would sponsor 100 new summer academies for outstanding teachers and students of U.S. history. The academies would be "aligned with academies in the U.S. Park System," such as Independence Hall.
Science
Breaking Down Math and Science Professional Development
At a time when policymakers are interested in improving the quality of math and science teaching, a new book examines strategies for the professional development of educators in those subjects.
Reading & Literacy
Burke Says Goodbye to CATEnet
It's been nearly a month since Jim Burke announced that his long-running CATEnet listserv, an e-mail forum for California English teachers, was heading into early retirement and it's taken me that long to get over the news.
School & District Management
Department Sponsors Study of I.B. Progam
The federal Institute of Education Sciences, the main research arm of the U.S. Department of Education, is sponsoring a first-of-its-kind longitudinal study of the International Baccalaureate (IB) program, the popular college-prep curriculum used in schools.
Science
A Science Educator at the Department of Ed
The names of new staffers at the U.S. Department of Education continue to trickle out, week after week. Here's one that may be of particular interest to math and science teachers around the country: Steven Robinson, who will carry the title of special adviser to Secretary Arne Duncan.
Social Studies
Students See Value in History-Writing Venue
It is difficult to figure why some education ventures attract impressive financial and political support, while others flounder despite their value to the field. For years, I've written about The Concord Review and the really amazing history- research papers it publishes from high school authors/scholars.
Reading & Literacy
A New Kind of Online Dictionary?
I recently came across an intriguing item about a new resource called "Wordnik," an online dictionary that is supposed to provide users with a wealth of information they would not be able to get by looking up a word in print.
Science
A Math Challenge on a Timely Topic ($)
Businesses, philanthropies, and other organizations have been staging math and science competitions and contests for years as a way to motivate students to take on independent projects and have their work judged by experts in the field.
Education
The Ed Department's Mike Smith Talks About 'Common Standards'
Mike Smith, a senior adviser to U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, said in a speech today at the Library of Congress that he's "somewhat skeptical" about the value of "common standards," which he said he uses interchangeably with "national standards." His biggest concern, he said, is that if common national standards are funded by the federal government, "you can't keep ideology or politics out of the ball game."