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The challenges of teaching ESL in community college
Douglas Magrath EducationMany second-language students end up in community colleges either in IEP programs or college preparatory classes. Some community colleges also provide adult basic education, which prepares resident internationals to become citizens and enter the workforce. As discussed in a previous article, adult education English language courses (ESOL) offer a unique set of challenges that are different from those presented by the typical intensive programs at state universities and private language schools.
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The debate over grading and ranking public schools
Brian Stack EducationFor more than a decade, states have published grades and ranks of their schools as part of the requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), a federal mandate first signed into law by President George W. Bush in 2002. Since that time, many states have developed a system that uses common measures such as standardized test scores and graduation rates to generate letter-grade report cards for schools, similar to the ones that students are issued.
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The promise and burden of the Supreme Court ruling on disabilities
Howard Margolis EducationThroughout the country, parents of children with disabilities and advocates are celebrating the Supreme Court's unanimous Endrew F. v. Douglas County decision on March 22. And they have every right to do so.
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What parents of gifted students desperately want your school to know
Susan Winebrenner EducationAs a young adult, I paid to sign up for an adult course called "Advanced Bridge." After playing "at bridge" for some years, this class sounded intriguing. After the first 15 minutes of the class, as the instructor was answering several questions that clearly belonged in a Beginning Bridge class, I excused myself and went home. No one stopped me because as an adult, this was my prerogative.
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Listen up: Understanding the truth behind learning disabilities
Susan Winebrenner EducationCan you remember when you tried to learn something you really wanted to know how to do? And it didn't work the first time. Or the fifth time. Or even now — years later. For me it has been sailing, which is my bliss and which I have been trying to master for decades. But I still don't get it intuitively, because you learn sailing by doing it. And I now know I don't easily learn that way.
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The case for space: An inspiration for learning in the stars
Sheilamary Koch EducationThe excitement surrounding the discovery of the Trappist-1 solar system announced by NASA on Feb. 22 speaks to the allure that space still holds for modern humans. Despite the exploration that's taken place in the last 80 years, the universe is full of mystery, as it was for ancient civilizations.
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Strategies for teaching gifted and talented English learners
Erick Herrmann EducationWho are our gifted and talented students? What makes a student gifted? How are gifted and talented students identified? These questions are important in education as we attempt to best meet the needs of each of our students. When it comes to meeting the needs of English learners, these questions can seem more complicated.
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America’s sleep deficiency: Resolving the nightmare
Bob Kowalski Mental HealthcareRealizing that Americans are suffering from a lack of sleep is no eye-opener. Just look around classrooms, offices, the car next to you in traffic — the yawns and bleary eyes give it away. In a previous article, we discussed the issues that result from sleep deficiency and the research into the problem plaguing America. The path to our long national nightmare has been complicated, but solutions may be available.
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Is too much technology a bad thing for kids?
Brian Stack EducationDoes this story sound familiar to you? It is a typical weekday evening at home. Our family has just finished eating dinner together. The kitchen has been cleaned up, lunches have been packed for school the next day, and my wife Erica and I both sit down and start to scroll through the many notifications that have popped up on our phones from both email and social media over the past couple of hours.
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Students and fake news: Educators breathe hope into bleak diagnosis
Sheilamary Koch EducationIt’s easy for parents and teachers to be wowed by the tech savvy of today’s "neo-digital" natives. Yet, while the typical millennial student can work the most complicated phone and has got a finger on the pulse of social media and the newest apps and games, recent research out of Stanford University shows a gaping hole in their digital competence — namely in their ability to discern what online information is credible and what’s not.
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