Obama gives go-ahead for NCLB waivers to states
Politics K-12 via Education Week
With efforts to rewrite the No Child Left Behind Act languishing in Congress, President Barack Obama has directed the U.S. Department of Education to grant waivers to states that agree to adopt a prescribed set of education reforms. Just what those reforms will be — and what freedoms states will gain in return — remain unclear. Those details will be made public in September, Obama administration officials said in a call to reporters.More

The most anticipated tech tools of back-to-school 2011
Mind Shift
The three tech tools that teachers most want to use during the upcoming school year are Google+, Edmodo and the iPad, according to an informal survey by blogger Audrey Watters. Educators said the Google+ social network could be used to engage students, while the education-focused social network Edmodo allows for organizing assignments. The iPad remains a teacher favorite after being the top most-wanted gadget last year.More

Bloomberg to use own funds in plan to aid minority youth
The New York Times
The administration of Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, in a blunt acknowledgment that thousands of young black and Latino men are cut off from New York's civic, educational and economic life, plans to spend nearly $130 million on far-reaching measures to improve their circumstances.More

Students cast wide net for mentoring with PLNs
USA Today
More students are taking advantage of Personal Learning Networks — or PLNs — to acquire specialized knowledge on a wide range of academic subjects. Nearly 9,700 educators are part of PLNs, which use social networking to connect subject experts and students with other students or educators who need specialized information or instruction. More

'Serving all children, no exceptions'
On Special Education via Education Week
More than 30 years after passage of the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act, schools still are working to include students with disabilities in all facets of public school. And in many places, they remain segregated for at least part of the day, Wayne Sailor says. "This has been a major uphill battle," Sailor, a professor of special education at the University of Kansas, told a group gathered in Arlington, Va., during a conference hosted by the U.S. Department of Education's office of special education programs.More

As schools open, possibility of shorter academic year has teachers, parents on edge
San Jose Mercury News
California teachers and parents are concerned the state could shorten the school year by as much as two weeks if it does not have enough money to fund the full academic calendar. Officials should know by December whether they will have enough funds. More

Maintaining journalism tradition, education at HBCUs
Diverse Education
When Gwendolyn Denwiddie graduated from Fisk University in May, her accomplishments exceeded the bachelor's degree she raised above her head in celebration. Denwiddie had succeeded at something that other Fisk students had been attempting for more than a decade. She revived The Fisk Forum, a student newspaper that had not been published since 1998.More

States start to require courses in financial literacy
USA Today
Virginia, Missouri, Tennessee and other states are now requiring high-school students to take a class to improve their financial literacy. Financial institutions and nonprofit groups also are supporting the effort. More

Trend watch: A spate of research awards on STEM and ELLs
Learning the Language via Education Week
The National Science Foundation is boosting a new direction in research by funding 32 projects for the study of English-language learners and science or ELLs and math. The majority of the awards are for the design, development, and testing of an idea, according to Julio E. Lopez-Ferrao, the director of the NSF's division of research on learning in formal and informal settings.More

Classroom sound amplification systems can make a difference in academic performance
THE Journal
There are many possible interventions that can occur when a child performs poorly in school, but one that can be easily overlooked is a hearing check. Yet a growing body of research indicates hearing loss — even a minimal amount — can have a dramatic effect on everything from attention and behavior to academic performance. At the same time, data indicates, and experts in the field believe, that the introduction of sound reinforcement and sound amplification systems can help with this problem.More

Federal report highlights gender gap in STEM fields
Curriculum Matters via Education Week
Women are "vastly underrepresented" in STEM jobs and among STEM degree-holders in the United States, finds a recent report issued by the U.S. Department of Commerce. Only 1 in 7 engineers is female, for example, it says. And on the employment front, women have seen no growth in STEM jobs since 2000.More

Charter operators face challenges in 'scaling up'
Education Week
The pace at which the highest-performing charter-management organizations are "scaling up" is being determined largely by how rapidly they can develop and hire strong leaders and acquire physical space, and by the level of support they receive for growth from city or state policies, say leaders from some charter organizations viewed by advocates as successful.More