Topic: NO Child Left behind

Are large maximum class size laws giving your child a fair chance?

By Sue Freeman Culverhouse | September 13, 2009 |

According to the National Education Association, research shows that the ideal number of students in a class is 13 to 17. In Tennessee, class sizes are allowed as follows (data from the Tennessee Department of Education Web site): Kindergarten through third grade: average 20; maximum 25; fourth through sixth grade: average 25; maximum 30. This may appear to be reasonable to some politicians, educators and parents. Teachers will tell you that maximum class loads reduce the one critical need of every student: individual attention.

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Sections: Commentary | 2 Comments

Tennessee receives $22 million to support, increase Charter schools

By Bill Larson | August 12, 2009 |

Nashville – The Tennessee Department of Education has been awarded a $22 million grant through the United State Department of Education to support the state’s 22 existing charter schools and to increase the number of high-quality charter schools opening in the future.

“Since Tennessee began authorizing charter schools in 2002, we have continued to provide additional and innovative educational opportunities for our students,” Governor Phil Bredesen said. “This grant provides unprecedented resources to increase those opportunities and gives Tennessee another chance to show the nation our leadership in the area of education reform.” «Read the rest of this article»

Sections: Education | No Comments

ASVAB: Backdoor military recruitment in the guise of “career testing”

November 20, 2008 |

Tucked inside a handbook my grandson brought home from school was a score sheet not unlike what one might expect from No Child Left Behind or any standardized state Achievement Test paper. Scores and tables and percentiles. Okay. And then I looked closer. Read the fine print (almost needed magnifying glasses for my 58-year-old eyes).

Although it masquerades as a “career exploration test,” I was appalled when I first read the tidbits on the grading sheet, test materials and booklet on a test called the ASVAB, a test most high school juniors (11th grade) take.

ASVAB, you ask? What’s that? ASVAB stands for Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery; I had to visit three websites to find the acronym actually spelled out. Yep. My grandson, 17, has been tested by the U.S. Government and the only reasons for that are the probability of intense recruitment efforts or the possibility of forced military service — i.e.: a draft. It’s a logical conclusion, given the issues facing recruiters in a country increasingly disenchanted and disgusted with the policies behind the Iraq War (and the physical, emotional and financial cost of that war), policies that have tens of thousands of U.S. troops deployed in the Middle East, policies that have stretched our troops to the breaking point. «Read the rest of this article»

Sections: News, Opinion | 2 Comments

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