The Carnival Of Education: Week 41

Welcome to this week's edition of The Carnival Of Education. We think that this roundup of entries represents a wide variety of educational viewpoints that are to be found in the EduSphere. All entries were submitted by the writers except those labeled, "Editor's Choice," and are grouped into several categories.

A successful carnival is a team effort. Please consider helping spread the word. And as always, your comments and constructive criticism are most welcome.

An invitation: Writers of education-related posts are invited to send contributions to next week's Carnival midway. Please send your submissions to: owlshome [at] earthlink [dot] net. We should receive them no later than 9:00 PM (Pacific) next Tuesday, November 22nd. Please include the title of your post, and its URL, if possible. Barring unforeseen circumstances, the midway of the 42nd edition of the carnival should open here next Wednesday.

There is a complete set of carnival archives here. For our latest posts, please visit our home page.

Let the free exchange of thoughts and ideas begin...

Education Policy:

The City of San Francisco is noted for taking some unusual stands on political issues. Just last week, the folks in the City by the Bay voted to bar military recruiters from public high school campuses. But was this the right thing to do in a time of war? Darren, over at Right on the Left Coast, takes a stand of his own.

Teacherlore, a group blog by several teachers in Montana, doesn't care much for the federal No Child Left Behind Act. But they do have a most intriguing alternative.

Are racially exclusive criteria ever acceptable for selecting the recipients of academic fellowships? At Rhymes With Right they have some thoughts on double standards and reverse discrimination.

Some time ago, our transatlantic cousins in Britain made a move toward the development of the "comprehensive school." Depending on who one asks, the results have been very mixed. The Sharpener presents the case for a return to the traditional English grammar school. (It should not come as a surprise that many of Britain's policy-making elite traditionally continue to send their kids to traditional boarding schools no matter what policy they foist upon the rest of the country...)

The U.S. Supreme Court has made a potentially landmark ruling regarding special education processes and appeal procedures. Was this a good thing for kids? That remains to be seen. Going to the Matt is on the story.

Editor's Choice: Andrew Rotherham's Eduwonk.com offers insightful commentary on the SCOTUS decision cited above.

The 65% Plan seems to be attracting quite a bit of attention lately. This time, it's the governor of Missouri who's pushing the idea that 65% of every education dollar must be spent in the classroom. Ms. Cornelius reveals to us that in Missouri, it would be a case of the tail wagging the dog if this is implemented.

Is the use of Wooden Instruments Of Persuasion on the bottoms of students ever justified? In an entry titled, "No Child's Behind Left," the EduSphere's satirist, The Super (as in superintendent) has just published the Secretary of Education's announcement authorizing the use of such persuasive devices.

The Dayton Daily News' education reporter Scott Elliott notes that Dayton, Ohio has the highest percentage of students in the country that attend public charter schools. But is this the best educational approach for that community's students? At Get on the Bus, Scott makes the case for charter schools as well as presenting the case against charters in Dayton.

When, if ever, is censorship of a high school newspaper justified? Here at The Education Wonks, we humbly submit for your consideration our entry. We titled our post, "Censorchimps: The Florida Sub-Species."

Teaching And Learning:

Thoughts on Teaching asks a very good question: Why do English teachers read plays aloud almost exclusively in class and expect novels to be read outside of class when novels tend to be more cognitively demanding?

In a most readable entry from The Daily Grind, Mr. McNamar draws some eye-opening parallels between families and the classroom. This one really strikes home.

My goodness. When I read this post over at What It's Like on the Inside, I couldn't believe my eyes. The title says it all, "Tutoring for Toddlers."

Should American students spend more time memorizing math procedures? Is this the reason why U.S. students don't often do well when compared to students from other industrialized countries? Chris Correa presents a thoughtful post that shows the surprising results of a survey of student attitudes from around the world.

The battle between those who support Constructivist Math Programs and those who favor More Traditional Approaches continues with the Instructivist sending in the latest dispatch from the front.

Editor's Choice: At Polski's View From Here, Polski3 has a post that well illustrates the positive aspects of assigning meaningful homework balanced with the reality of having to teach some 172 seventh-grade students.

Editor's Choice: Joanne Jacobs new book, Our School: The Inspiring Story of Two Teachers, One Big Idea and the School That Beat the Odds is out and will soon be ready for delivery. Read all about it over at Joanne's place. (We've bought two copies ourselves.)

Survival Guide For Parents And Students:

Editor's Choice: The Wawascene, which is written by Superintendent Dr. Mark J. Stock, of the Wawasee Community School Corporation in Syracuse, Indiana, is introducing us to a brand-new (and very exciting) use of blogging. Who would have thought that a weblog may be used to facilitate communications between school and community? The benefits of such a weblog to both parents and educators should be obvious. If your local superintendent isn't writing a blog, perhaps you should consider making the suggestion...

Homeschooling:

Should students who are homeschooled be permitted to participate in the local public school's athletic programs? That's a very hot topic in education today and Cross Blogging has the latest in this long-running controversy.

Do children have a roll as missionaries in the public schools? Over at Spunkyhomeschool, they're having a very lively debate among the commenters regarding that very question. In this bonus post, (selected by us) Spunky asks another thought-provoking question: Are all parents homeschoolers?

Vernice at Jones Blog continues her remarkable series of profiles of persons from differing racial and class backgrounds with her latest installment. This week, Vernice presents the story of Cheryl, a woman who overcame the twin challenges of poverty and race to earn her doctorate.

In a post that illustrates the uniqueness of each child, Why Homeschool shows us once again why a one-size-fits-all approach to education doesn't serve the interests of our nation's children.

The Secret Lives Of Teachers:

At Scheiss Weekly, Mamacita gives us a very humorous step-by-step look at her top secret strategy for surviving an age-inappropriate surgery.

A smart school district recruits a cadre of qualified, motivated, and caring substitute teachers to serve in the classroom when the regular teacher is absent. Mr. Lawrence, a practicing substitute teacher, shows us how some districts don't seem to understand that 'subs need to sleep just like everyone else.

Testing And Technology:

Wiki Fever seems to be catching as educators are learning the classroom value of this new approach resource. Tim Fredrick has the latest: using a wiki as an aid to planning lessons!

Would you believe that there is such a thing as open course software from The Massachusetts Institute of Technology? Go to An Educational Voyage and become a believer.

Inside The EduBlogs:

Have you ever wondered what books and other publications have influenced a particular EduBlogger to write what he or she does? At The Common Room, they have both originated and implemented what must be an EduSphere first: A blog's bibliography.

Higher Education:

Editor's Choice: Should graduate students who may be seeking careers in Academia think twice before authoring a weblog? Could their blog damage their career prospects? Over at Jenny D's place, the question is carefully considered.

If you were on a college basketball team and your college's president gave a speech that you thought was racist, what would you do? At Ticklish Ears, they have the scoop on a team that didn't go to the President but went elsewhere instead.

Writing at The American Enterprise Institute Online, Joseph Knippenberg, who is one of the authors of the No Left Turns blog at the Ashbrook Center of Ashland University, takes a hard look at Harvard University's latest report on general education.

Once upon a time a professor from Sweden named Sven was hired to teach at an American college. And then his colleagues discovered that he was a closet conservative.

Ask any Borg and he (or she) will tell you that Resistance is Futile. Gullyborg will also (wryly) tell you all about how many law schools are causing many of their students to use a forbidden substance.

Education Funding And Finance:

How many times do the taxpayers of a school district have to say to the powers that be, "Read our lips; no new taxes!" ----------------------------This midway is registered at TTLB's carnival roundup. See The Education Wonks' latest posts here, and the complete Carnival archives over there.