When President Obama came into office, one of the first problems he addressed was the economic recession. Obama’s administration passed a $787 billion stimulus package; almost $100 billion of that stimulus package went straight for education.

In October 2009, officials said this stimulus saved 250,000 teacher, administrator, and other education-related jobs.

But now, less than six months later, many public schools are facing the financial danger of not having enough money to pay teachers, facilitate extracurricular activities for students, and offer elective classes.

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Imagine this: Jenny Smith is a second-year teacher at a Happytown Elementary. Her students have been acing every standardized test they take. Smith is so proud of her students. But Smith isn’t the only one who is proud of the people who have learned from her; the college that Smith earned her degree from is also benefiting from the improved scores on her students’ tests.

On the opposite end of the spectrum: Jake Snow is another new teacher at Frownyville Middle School. His students’ test scores have been falling every year that he has been teaching. And now, the university where Snow graduated from is being scrutinized to see if they are adequately training their students.

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If students are not doing well on standardized tests and are not keeping up to national standards, what’s the solution? Offer improved teacher training? Have students attend small group tutoring sessions? Put more of an emphasis on test preparation?

Or, if the school in question is in Central Falls, Rhode Island, the option might be to fire the entire faculty of the school.

This decision was a very controversial one and is sending shockwaves across the country. Even more shocking to some was President Obama’s endorsement of the decision.

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When we hear “economic recession,” my friends and I don’t really have a strong grasp on what all is involved. We know that the unemployment rate is higher than it has been in years and that it is becoming harder and harder for college graduates to find a job.

We also know that more students are not able to go to college because they simply cannot afford it. But beyond that, my friends and I do not have a clear understanding of the financial crisis. It’s too bad that we don’t go to Columbia University.

Steven Fraser, an American studies professor at Columbia, is now teaching a class about Wall Street and this financial crisis, comparing it to similar crises in the past.

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There’s been a lot of talk lately about the Race to the Top program. Which states have already applied for funding? Which states are not going to apply? Is it too political? Is it expecting too much of teachers? What exactly is it? The Race to the Top program is a $4 billion grant program created by the Department of Education and signed by Education Secretary Arne Duncan. 

It was created to encourage states to assess and improve students’ education and performance. It is also intended to enable schools to hire and keep high-quality teachers. States must apply for the funding, and if they qualify, they could receive up to $700 million to improve their schools.

States are evaluated on several criteria. The biggest factor is if they have “a comprehensive and coherent reform agenda.” The quality of the teachers and having common standards are also factors used during the evaluation process.

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Sometimes it is hard to break out of a cycle, especially when the cycle is one your family or you have been living for years. But a non-profit organization called the Harlem Children’s Zone does just that for children and families who live in one of the most impoverished cities in the country.

The Harlem Children’s Zone’s mission is breaking the cycle of generational poverty for the thousands of children and families it serves by focusing on urban education. The organization was established in the 1970s and has helped tens of thousands of people since it was founded. Read the rest of this entry »

Science and math are two academic fields where the U.S.  faces tough challenges from other countries. Now, President Barack Obama, as part of his efforts to improve education in America, is striving to make these fields more appealing to students.

A new campaign called Educate to Innovate was announced in late November to promote science, technology, math, and engineering. The campaign will ask companies and nonprofit groups to donate time and money to encourage students to study in these fields.

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It’s a scary time for college graduates. Although the economy has improved recently, we are still in a recession and jobs are hard to come by.

In looking at industries, retail lost 45,000 jobs, finance lost 42,000 jobs, and manufacturing lost 207,000 jobs, signalling the largest one-month decline in over 25 years.  Many college seniors are therefore considering graduate school, simply because there are not enough jobs.

Is there any hope?

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Finding the right tutor is like finding a personal trainer – there are countless to choose from but finding one that you connect with can be an arduous task.

Likewise for tutors, letting students know about your areas of expertise, rates and services is akin to running your own small business.

But for tutors and tutees alike, this process just got easier. A lot easier.

The online resource WyzAnt is tutor-student matching service that offers in-home, private instruction in academics, test prep, music and more. With a database of more than 16,000 tutors from all around the country, all you simply do is search for tutors available in your ZIP code, contact the potential tutors via email, purchase your lessons online and have your first lesson with WyzAnt’s 100 percent satisfaction guaranteed policy. Read the rest of this entry »

“Get Schooled: You Have the Right.” What does that mean? The right to what? Well, on Tuesday, September 8 at 8 p.m., a nationwide television program will air on more than 20 different cable networks showing the importance of earning an education. Popular channels such as Nickelodeon, Spike TV, MTV, TV Land, and VH1 will all be showing this documentary.

The purpose of “Get Schooled: You Have the Right” is to teach students something that “your teachers can’t teach you. All the homework won’t help you understand. Because some lessons are too big for a classroom.”  The goal of Get Schooled is to start a movement to improve America’s standards for educational levels. Read the rest of this entry »