- How does your opinion compare to the average teacher’s? The fifth annual survey conducted by Harvard’s Program on Education and Governance and Education Next covers a wide variety of education policy issues and found a growing disparity between the views of teachers and the general public. Take a look at the survey here.
- TIME columnist and Eduwonk blogger Andrew Rotherham encourages parents to “kick a school’s tires” when choosing a school in his latest post. He suggests that shoppers look beneath the label, go for a test-drive, be diligent (but not overboard), follow their instincts, and keep pushing for more choices.
- Gamers rejoice! Quest to Learn, a public middle school in New York City, and is revamping classroom instruction with the help of game designers. Modeled loosely after video games like FIFA Soccer and Halo that require players to collect and use knowledge to accomplish various goals, the school crafted ten-week long “missions” that connect multiple subject areas and deliver a comprehensive lesson. Katie Salen, leader of the team that founded Quest to Learn, blogs about the school here.
- The scene has been set for a raging debate in Springboro, Ohio. The hot topic: creationism. The Springboro school board is just one vote away from getting the support of the five-member board to push creationism curriculum in schools- an initiative that, not surprisingly, is facing strong opposition.