Educare, a preschool program for at-risk youth, is credited as one of Oklahoma’s high points for early childhood education. Credit: Shannon Cornman Oklahoma was one of two states with the greatest gains in overall child well-being, moving from 40th place to 36th in the 2013 Kids Count Data Book, an annual study by the Annie […]
education
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School’s out, and over
“They were second from the bottom in terms of academic performance,” said state Superintendent of Public Instruction Janet Barresi. “If I had a student there, I would be thrilled to have my child out of that school. This should not be a surprise to them. There were several parents who expressed concern.” Located at 537 […]
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College shouldn’t be never-ending
Today, more and more kids think college should take five or six years. Why? If you plan it right, get the core courses out of the way in the first two years, identify a major so you know what you’ll need to graduate, it will take about the same number of classes and hours to […]
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Common sense about Common Core
Now they must also implement policies that may or may not make sense, such as creating high school academies, retaining third-graders who don’t pass reading tests, remediating seniors who have not passed four graduation examinations and avoiding state takeover of schools that fail according to the state’s report card. Even more time and money must […]
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Connecting the dots
Each year, hundreds of bills and tax-related initiatives are approved that, when viewed independently, may not seem to have a significant impact. Yet by not connecting the dots of various actions when it comes to public schools, the picture of Oklahoma education becomes disturbingly distorted. If citizens don’t start connecting the dots, a true picture […]
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School daze
The annual report measures schools by several factors, including college readiness, algebra proficiency, English proficiency and student/teacher ratio. On a state level, Booker T. Washington High School in Tulsa was rated No. 1, ranking 325th nationally. Most of the state’s top 10 were in the metro. Classen School of Advanced Studies nabbed the second spot […]
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Dead or alive
Although House leadership this session quashed bills that sought to outlaw texting while driving, proponents of the legislation tried again last week. No go. An amendment that would have limited the ban to school zones, work zones and intersections failed, too. Faring better was a plan to let teachers and other school personnel arm themselves […]
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In the city
Barbara Gonzales Credit: Shannon Cornman Since 2010, the academy has given upper-level education majors who are passionate about teaching in urban classrooms the opportunity to do so through a partnership with Oklahoma City Public Schools. Gonzales and fellow future teachers entered the program in January. After completing volunteer hours and training, they will be placed […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Sensible sex ed
Kathy Harms Credit: Mark Hancock “My cousin was a myth believer,” one student shared. “She believed that if it’s the first time you have sex, you couldn’t get pregnant. Yeah, she’s pregnant now.” It’s clear to Harms that more and better sex education is the most effective way to counter misinformation. “We teach car safety, […]
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Gunning for freedom
Credit: Brad Gregg Turns out, the thought of a sweet kindergarten teacher suddenly morphing into Kindergarten Cop isn’t such a realistic prospect after all. The decision comes at the recommendation of the Oklahoma Commission on School Safety, a group of law enforcement officers, mental health officials, teachers, parents and first responders. Their opposition, of course, […]