Education

Generation F

Staff / Truthdig Aug 30, 2006 The national SAT score average has suffered its most severe drop in 30 years. Educators insist that kids are just as intelligent, but that a recent redesign of the test, which placed increased emphasis on math and critical reading skills, is to blame for the poor showing. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Jabari Asim: A Troubled Picture for Black Male Students

Jabari Asim / Truthdig Jul 15, 2006 The gender gap among African-American college students is growing at a dangerous rate. And it's no wonder: The roots of the problem were obvious at my daughter's school, where many boys by age 10 had been socialized to be tough, regarding education with contempt and suspicion. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

Ellen Goodman: The ‘Boy Crisis’ Is a Red Herring

Ellen Goodman / Truthdig Jul 6, 2006 Although it's sexier and more startling to talk about boys falling behind girls in schools, the real dividing line is race and class. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

‘Smart Pill’ Use Skyrockets Among Students

Staff / Truthdig Jun 11, 2006 High school and college students are popping more speedy prescription pills than ever in an attempt to help them study. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Duke Reinstating Lacrosse Team

Staff / Truthdig Jun 6, 2006 Duke University President Richard Brodhead said about his decision: "I am, I know, taking a risk in reinstating men's lacrosse [but] if we did not allow these players the chance to take responsibility for creating a new history for their sport at Duke, we would be denying another very fundamental value: the belief in the possibility of learning from experience, the belief in education itself" . Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Soda Sales Will Stop in Most Public Schools

Staff / Truthdig May 3, 2006 The nation's largest beverage distributors have agreed to remove the sugary drinks from school vending machines and cafeterias. Bill Clinton brokered the deal. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Most Young Americans Can’t Locate Iraq on a Map, Study Finds

Staff / Truthdig May 3, 2006 Fewer than 40% could find the country on an unlabeled map of the Middle East. Only a quarter could find Iran or Israel. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Parents Sue School Over Same-Sex Fairy Tale

Staff / Truthdig Apr 28, 2006 Two families have filed suit against a Massachusetts town and its public school system over a teacher's reading of a gay-themed fairy tale to children. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Taking Back Our Schools–and Fixing Them

Wellford Wilms / Truthdig Apr 26, 2006 The director of the Education Leadership Program at UCLA forcefully argues that public education funds must be diverted from bloated bureaucracies and redirected into the schools, where principals, teachers and parents can meaningfully influence what is being taught. Dig deeper ( 11 Min. Read )

Harvard Backs Away From ‘Israel Lobby’ Study

Staff / Truthdig Mar 27, 2006 The university has removed its backing from a controversial report (co-authored by a Harvard dean) critical of America's pro-Israel lobby. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Yale Both Stonewalls and Attacks on Taliban Student Issue

Staff / Truthdig Mar 14, 2006 In the wake of The New York Times Magazine's cover story on the former Taliban official attending Yale, alumni are setting up protest websites designed to hurt fundraising efforts. Yale mostly won't talk, but one university official responded by calling the critics "retarded." (Hat tip: Huff Po) Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

The Freshman

Staff / Truthdig Feb 28, 2006 How did the Taliban's chief spokesman abroad end up a student at Yale? The New York Times Magazine has the story. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )