Fighting Bullying With Babies

http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/11/08/fighting-bullying-with-babies

David Bornstein

The New York Times

8 November 2010

Text / 1500-3000 Words

The Canadian federal government has identified bullying as a national problem. Roots of Empathy, based in Toronto, encourages empathy in elementary kids by having them interact with babies.

Free pre-K: Strong early gains, but long-term questions

http://seattletimes.com/html/education/2024591420_edlabtulsaxml.html

Claudia Rowe

The Seattle Times

20 September 2014

Text / 1500-3000 Words

Preparing the young for elementary education is a priority to nurture reading and social skills. For 16 years, Tulsa Oklahoma has instituted a state funded preschool, staffed with teachers trained in early education. Tulsa’s Pre-K initiative has shown that their children are more prepared for literacy skills and math; however, maintaining the positive results is a long-term challenge.

From slipping through the cracks to the college track

http://www.seattletimes.com/education/from-slipping-through-the-cracks-to-the-college-track

Claudia Rowe

The Seattle Times

14 April 2014

Text / 1500-3000 Words

The Rainier Scholars program in Seattle places fifth graders, who are all minorities, in special coursework through middle and high school, finally offering rigorous college coaching. In Oakland, CA, the National College Advising Corps directs recent graduates into schools to be role models and guides for at-risk students.

Fruit, Not Fries: Lunchroom Makeovers Nudge Kids Toward Better Choices

http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2013/03/29/175710393/fruit-not-fries-lunchroom-makeovers-nudge-kids-toward-better-choices

Kevin Charles Redmon

NPR

2 April 2013

Text / 800-1500 Words

With child obesity on the rise, public school students have lacked the motivation and access to eat healthy food. Different programs around the country aim to improve student diet in public schools, including Real Eats for Academics and Life in Los Angeles and Cornell’s Smarter Lunchrooms Movement, by emailing nutrition report cards to parents, presenting the healthy food with aesthetic pleasure, and the arrangement of the food for access.

High poverty, high test scores: Auburn school is a shouting success

https://www.seattletimes.com/education/high-poverty-high-test-scores-auburn-school-is-a-shouting-success

Linda Shaw

The Seattle Times

27 April 2014

Text / 1500-3000 Words

As school poverty rates goes up, learning and test scores fall. At Gildo Ray elementary school in Washington state uses a teaching method called director or explicit instruction, in which children learn from a structured approach to teaching with teacher-guided practice. Gildo Ray’s test scores in math and reading are among the highest in the state.

Houston's Learning Curve

http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2015/05/houstons-learning-curve-117959.html#.VYmllPlViko

Patrick Michels

Politico

21 May 2015

Text / Over 3000 Words

When immigrant children come to America, they are faced with culture shock, language barriers, and a system of education different from where their original country. Houston’s Las Americas Newcomer School is designed to ease the adjustment of immigrant and refugee children as they enter the American educational system. Las Americas offers competitive wages for teachers, teaching in several different languages, and preparation for the SAT as the school has the highest rate of minority participation.

How Seattle Got Its (Arts) Groove Back

https://medium.com/bright/how-seattle-got-its-arts-groove-back-883392ada1de

Robyn Jordan

Bright Magazine

29 June 2015

Illustrations / Under 800 Words

Arts education programs in the United States are subjected to cutting for maintaining tight school budgets. Technology sectors in Seattle seek professionals who have been trained in problem solving skills and innovative idea generation. In response, Seattle Public Schools and the Seattle Office of Arts and Culture collaborate to promote equity in students’ access to the arts.

How to Fix a Broken High Schooler, in Four Easy Steps

http://freakonomics.com/2014/12/04/how-to-fix-a-broken-high-schooler-in-four-easy-steps-a-new-freakonomics-radio-podcast

Stephen J. Dubner

Freakonomics

4 December 2014

Podcast / Over 15 Minutes

Fixing the education system in the country requires addressing the problem of student motivation to endure and succeed in school. Pathways to Education is a Toronto-based program designed to keep at-risk kids in school. It offers four different kinds of support: counseling, academic, social and financial, all of which contribute to a 46 percent decrease in the student drop-out rate.

Hard Times for Recess

http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/04/04/hard-times-for-recess

David Bornstein

The New York Times

4 April 2011

Text / Over 3000 Words

Despite strong evidence that school-based physical activity improves children’s cognitive skills, concentration, and behavior, schools under pressure to produce quantitative results and decrease bullying have drastically cut back on recess in recent years. An Oakland-based nonprofit organization called Playworks is working to make healthy play accessible for more children and show schools how productive recess can be to the whole academic world.

A low-income Brooklyn high school where 100 percent of black male students graduate

http://hechingerreport.org/a-low-income-brooklyn-high-school-where-100-percent-of-black-male-students-graduate

Meredith Kolodner

The Hechinger Report

14 July 2015

Text / 1500-3000 Words

The overall graduation rate for black male students in New York City was 58 percent in 2014 - student retention rates are equally poor. But one school achieved a 100% on-time graduation rate last year, motivating their students with a student-founded, student-sustained 'fraternity'.