Education

on 2009-02-10 by mjhasley

After reading this, I sure am glad that we haven't spent a lot of money yet during his administration, because this is going to cost a lot!

on 2009-02-13 by anderscj

Do any of the White House staff members monitor Diigo activity on their website?

on 2009-02-13 by anderscj

Is this the administration's take on what the purpose of public education is? (Hamiltonian rather than Jeffersonian aims?) I believe one of public education's problems right now is it is in the middle of a huge identity crisis. What are schools for? What purpose do they have? Before we can move forward intelligently we need to define this. Is it to produce an informed citizenry? Is it to produce an educated and obedient workforce? Is it to make the world a better place? Who is at the center of this purpose? The people? Industry? The country? The student? I would really like to hear Obama or Duncan come out and clearly lay out their definition and philosophy.

on 2009-02-10 by mjhasley

Not sure how it can be universal and voluntary? Does that mean my tax dollars are used for this, but I don't have to participate? Public school, K-12 used to be like this, wasn't it? Will this lead to mandatory 0-18 year old education?

on 2009-02-11 by mgajdik

I pay for my child already to receive this benefit. There are programs out there that adress some of these needs already. It is the parents perception as to whether or not education is valued at an early stage. The one thing parents could do for their children is read to them, everyday, and that is not being done.

on 2009-02-10 by mjhasley

Has this always been a part of the DOE? Why not Health and Human Services? Are we double spending?

on 2009-02-11 by mgajdik

Stop making the STAR program and option for daycares and make it mandatory. That puts the cost back on the daycare.

on 2009-01-24 by kherbert

I would be very happy if instead of measuring just pass/fail student improvement from one year to the next is recongized. It is horrible to tell a student/family that their child that went from 0.9 reading level in 3rd grade to 4.1 reading level in 4th grade that he/she still failed the test that is given 1 time a year - so failed the year.

on 2009-02-16 by calvamom

We need to get beyond multiple choice tests to authentic assessments that are useful to teachers and students and not just a stick to bang us both on the head with.

on 2009-02-13 by anderscj

This wording in conjunction with this campaign statement: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IfoRmaYz6xw make me optomistic that programs like this: http://carlanderson.blogspot.com/2009/02/hybrid-project-based-charter-idea.html will be supported.

on 2009-02-03 by robin611

Technology should be included as a National Priority. The use of educational technology along with technology and engineering subjects are of critical importance to our future and 21st century learning.

on 2009-02-11 by mgajdik

Where did the concern for reading go? One of the reasons parents don't read to their children is not only the perception of education, but that they can't read.

on 2009-02-12 by bfurst

Robin, I understand your concern, and would agree with a focus on information literacy, including communicating with multimedia methods, as well as deciphering appropriate sources of information.

on 2009-02-16 by calvamom

All three of these comments are related. Reading in this day and age doesn't just happen in books. (I'm a teacher/librarian. I love books.)Literacy is broader and takes places in more different contexts than ever. we need to recognize that in our education system. we still talk about the core disciplines in late 19th century ways, when the world has changed and is changing at a faster rate than ever.

on 2009-03-04 by cwilliams11

I also addressed 21st Century Literacy skills (technology and reading) and school media specialists under "Retain Teachers." We desperately need a systematic way to deliver on-going support and updates to keep teachers up to par, as well as providing Technology and Reading as National Priorities (along with Math and Science) for students.

on 2009-02-10 by mjhasley

OK...do they have to say Obama and Biden in every sentence. This proposal sounds like the making of a great drinking game.

on 2009-02-16 by calvamom

If they really mean it, we could dispense with a lot of English only ignorance that makes kids miss out on major core subject area content just because they don't understand English well enough yet. I've never met an immigrant child that didn't arrive wanting to learn English. I have met some who have been bullied out of that desire by teachers (who speak only one language) calling them stupid for not understanding as quickly as the bully thinks they should.

on 2009-03-04 by cwilliams11

To support our teachers, the Obama-Biden plan will utilize and acknowledge school media specialists as master teachers. They will use school media specialists to expand mentoring programs. They will give teachers paid common planning time with school media specialists so they can collaborate to share best practices impacting lesson plans such as emerging technologies, copyright knowledge and 21st Century Literacy skills.

on 2009-02-16 by calvamom

This is huge for first generation college attenders. I have spent uncounted hours helping parents who did not attend college figure out the FAFSA. that's not counting my own 5 kids FAFSAs.

on 2009-01-24 by kherbert

Are they going to continue to pentalize schools for acctually identifing students with disabilities? Under current system schools are penalized for IDing students with LD's if they go past a very small precentage.

on 2009-02-11 by mgajdik

What state would you be referring too?