IEA Newsletter for Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Welcome to the Institute for Education and the Arts' newsletter for Wednesday, August 20, 2008. The newsletter is published each Wednesday to the IEA listserv and archived here on the IEA blog.

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REPORTS
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STARTING KINDERGARTEN LATER GIVES STUDENTS ONLY A FLEETING EDGE
ScienceDaily, 8/18/08
“New research challenges a growing trend toward holding kids out of kindergarten until they’re older, arguing that academic advantages are short-lived and come at the expense of delaying entry into the workforce and other costs. The findings show older kindergartners fare better academically largely because they learn more before starting school, not because age improves aptitude, said Darren Lubotsky, a University of Illinois economics professor who co-wrote the study.”
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INSTANT MESSAGING FOUND TO SLOW STUDENTS’ READING
Debra Viadero, Education Week, 8/15/08
“Students who send and receive instant messages while completing a reading assignment take longer to get through their texts but apparently still manage to understand what they’re reading, according to one of the first studies to explore how the practice affects academic learning. ‘Students who are managing busy lives may think they are accomplishing more by multitasking, but they will actually need more time to achieve the same level of performance on an academic task,’ said Laura L. Bowman, a psychology professor at Central Connecticut State University in New Britain.”
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MUSIC EDUCATION
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TEACHER’S HELPER FILLS GAPS IN MUSIC INSTRUCTORS’ DEVELOPMENT
Jonathan Devin, (Memphis) Commercial Appeal, 8/18/08
“When Dr. Deanna Stark taught elementary school music for Memphis City Schools, she found herself, like many teachers, struggling for classroom resources and creative freedom … Last September, Stark created her own business, Sister Squared, filling in the gaps in music teachers’ professional development and resources using Orff Schulwek, a methodology for teaching music adopted by Memphis City Schools’ elementary curriculum to enhance the learning experience for teachers and students alike.”
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SCHOOL FUNDING
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COULD BUMPY ECONOMY LEAD TO SLUMPING EDUCATION?
Libby Quaid, Associated Press/USA Today, 8/18/08
“Harder times and higher fuel prices are following kids back to school this fall. Children will walk farther to the bus stop, pay more for lunch, study from old textbooks, even wear last year's clothes. Field trips? Forget about it. This year, it could cost nearly twice as much to fuel the yellow buses that rumble to school each morning. If you think it's expensive to fill up a sport-utility vehicle, try topping off a tank that is two or even three times as big. At the same time, bills are mounting for air conditioning and heating, for cafeteria food and for classroom supplies, all because of the shaky economy. And parents have their own tanks to fill. The extra costs present a tricky math problem: Where can schools subtract to keep costs under control?”
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EDUCATION AND TECHNOLOGY
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AT SCHOOL, TECHNOLOGY STARTS TO TURN A CORNER
Steve Lohr, New York Times essay, 8/7/08
“[T]he time may have come to reconsider how large a role technology can play in changing education. There are promising examples, both in the United States and abroad … In the classroom, the emphasis can shift to project-based learning, a real break with the textbook-and-lecture model of education. In a high school class, a project might begin with a hypothetical letter from the White House that says oil prices are spiking, the economy is faltering and the president’s poll numbers are falling. The assignment would be to devise a new energy policy in two weeks. The shared Web space for the project, for example, would include the White House letter, the sources the students must consult, their work plan and timetable, assignments for each student, the assessment criteria for their grades and, eventually, the paper the team delivers. Oral presentations would be required.”
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ARTS IN SCHOOLS
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KIDS ARE THE STARS OF THIS SUMMER SHOW
A TWIST ON THE CLASSIC 'SNOW WHITE' IS A PLEA TO KEEP THEATER IN SCHOOLS
Paul Nyhan, Seattle Post-Intelligencer, 8/8/08
“[I]n an era of widespread standardized testing and tight budgets, formal theater and arts programs are harder to find in schools. Nearly three-quarters of Washington public schools didn't offer all students weekly theater classes, according to a 2005 report by the Washington State Arts Commission. Some worry there isn't nearly enough art education, particularly at schools that serve lower-income families. ‘A lot of schools obviously are choosing to let go of art, or in some cases, in elementary schools, recess,’ said Tina LaPadula, education director at Arts Corps, a nonprofit that runs independent arts programs in Seattle schools. ‘I feel right now there is not a lot of equity between who has access to that well-rounded education.’ Change may be coming. Seattle Public Schools is conducting an audit to identify any gaps in arts offerings – part of a broader, five-year arts partnership with the city. It plans to begin making changes tied to its report in the 2009-10 school year.”
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GRANTS AND AWARDS
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TE@CH AWARDS
Best Buy
Deadline: 10/12/08
Maximum Award: $5,000
“The Best Buy Teach Award program recognizes creative uses of interactive technology in K-12 classrooms. Winning programs focus on kids using technology to learn standards-based curriculum, rather than on teaching students to use technology or educators using technology that children aren't able to use hands-on. The purpose of the Best Buy Teach Award program is to reward schools for the successful interactive programs they have launched using available technology. Please do not be discouraged from applying if your school does not have the most current equipment.”
Learn more>>


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