Runaway Children
A brutal truth is that many runaways die, some from suicide, some from drug overdose or alcohol, and some from HIV and other diseases. Some runaways are homicide victims. Many run away before turning 14, many run away more than once, and girls are more likely to be repeat runaways.
August 2010
Reading Delays
Children who are slow to catch on to reading typically have “slow shutter speeds.” Sounds and words fly by too quickly, leaving the children stranded. Neuroscientists say these children require a two-fold intervention: exercises that thicken their gray and white matter and forge neural connections; and one-on-one instruction.
July 2010
Can a Devasting School Fire Happen Again?
Newer schools are designed to keep fires from igniting and spreading, with sprinkler systems as the first line of defense. But, the fire marshals warn, today’s schools have many “potential ignition sources.” These days, school fires can spread rapidly, owing to the immense “fuel load” of the buildings.
June 2010
A Place for Parents at the School Table
It takes home-school connections and parent partnerships to repair a broken school. Home visits improve student attendance and test scores and reduced suspensions, expulsions, and vandalism. Try as we may to dignify success in schooling with test scores and bar charts, it is in relationships that educators become significant.
May 2010
The Dropout Crisis Cure
How do U.S. dropout rates compare to those in other industrialized countries? A 2006 study ranked the U.S. 21st out of 28 countries, lower than Germany, Greece, and Slovenia and barely above Estonia, New Zealand, and Spain. Could the numbers be any worse?
April 2010
A Place for Rural Schools
Research reveals the remarkable power of simple acts of kindness and compassion, and classroom lessons that, as an elementary teacher told me, “get where students live.” It turns out that these acts, when seamlessly woven into daily practice, motivate rural students to learn and achieve, and to stay in school.
March 2010
Preventing Sports Concussions in Children
Crack open an egg and swish the yolk around inside the shell. That’s what a youngster’s brain looks like during a concussion. Concussions occur in all organized sports. The American College of Sports Medicine has stepped up efforts to enact a national policy for concussion in youth sports.
February 2010
Civic Lives of Students
What happens after students get elected to student councils? At best, the process gives students a voice in school governance and prepares future leaders. But many low-income students are skeptical about student government, convinced that principals and other officials would subvert their efforts to improve school conditions.
January 2010