Twin Cities Daily Planet (https://www.tcdailyplanet.net/author/joe-nathan/page/6/)
“Reach for the Stars 2011-12” is one of the finest free resources I’ve ever seen for families, educators or young people. The 28-page booklet is an amazing array of what its compilers describe as almost 100 “academic programs, challenges, competitions, events and enrichment opportunities for k-12 students in Minnesota.”
While there is deep division in the US about some issues, a new national poll shows strong, and sometimes surprising support for several key ideas in public education. Young people and families in Minnesota gain from the way these ideas are being applied here.
Autumn, Rosemary, Renee, Mary, Edgar, and Ellen are among an intriguing group of 100,000 Minnesotans. One’s not yet 18, another is in her 30’s and another is in his 50’s. They come from everywhere, Anoka to Minneapolis to Zimmerman, suburbs, small towns, farms and cities. There are taking on-line courses this year from the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities System. Continue Reading
What’s the Memorial Day weekend going to mean for your family? Perhaps you’ll consider not just the traditional TV, picnics, parades and so on.
If you interested, the Minnesota National Guard has dozens of ways to help, on a section of its website entitled, “how can I help?”
This is the story of a beloved public school teacher. It’s about Ron Moeller, who recently died at age 48. More than 300 St. Paul, Minnesota parents, educators and students attended a spaghetti dinner and memorial service in his honor last week.
A pioneering proposal from Little Falls Superintendent Curt Tryggestad may have important lessons for learning throughout Minnesota. Among other things the proposal, which the LF board will vote on March 22, would
• Provide each student, grades 5-12, in the Little Falls district with a iPAD
Dozens of raised hands, and a new report from Minnesota Commissioner of Education Brenda Cassellius reflect good news. More Minnesota high school students are taking and passing challenging college level classes. Cassellius wisely praised the progress, and stressed the significant work left to do.
U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan was direct when he spoke in Minnesota last week to about 800 Minnesotans at a meeting convened by the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce. While complimenting some of Minnesota’s reforms and education accomplishments, Duncan pointed out that we have one of the nation’s largest achievement gaps between whites and students of color. He is “shocked” that Minnesota does not have stronger “alternative routes” into teaching for talented recent college graduates and effective teachers from other states seeking to work in Minnesota. How should we respond? First, by listening openly to the information he shared. Duncan is not just concerned about our achievement gap. He’s also concerned nationally about the fact that a generation ago, the U.S. ranked first in the world in the percentage of people with college degrees. Now, we are ninth. He wisely wants us to lead the world in graduates of 2 and 4-year higher -education institutions.Free Speech ZoneThe Free Speech Zone offers a space for contributions from readers, without editing by the TC Daily Planet. This is an open forum for articles that otherwise might not find a place for publication, including news articles, opinion columns, announcements and even a few press releases. Continue Reading
People interested in seeing, at least in part, how school choice plays out for families might want to attend one or more of the free school choice fairs happening this Saturday, Janu
For generations, many Minnesota farmers have been members of a co-op. Now that idea is being applied, with encouraging impact, to public school teachers. Both the Minneapolis and St. Paul Federation of Teachers have endorsed some versions of this idea. And support is coming from places as diverse as Ladies Home Journal and a recent report, “Can Teachers Run their Own Schools? Tales from the Islands of Teacher Cooperatives” (charlestkerchner.com/cr/uploadImages/Teacher_run_case.pdf)Written by Charles Kerchner, a Claremont (California) University professor, it’s the story of another Minnesota educational innovation that is receiving attention all over the country: public schools run like agricultural cooperatives. But if you think about options doctors, lawyers, journalists and other professionals have, this is not just for rural communities. Kerchner notes: “The use of cooperatives is much more widespread than commonly realized, involving as many as 100 million Americans.”But don’t schools need school boards and administrators? Isn’t it vital to have school boards at the top, setting policy, hiring administrators who make recommendations, to school boards and are responsible for hiring and firing the teachers? No.How often have teachers said to themselves “If I were in charge, here’s how I would do it.” Some teacher run schools are charters, some are part of a traditional district. The new Minnesota “site governed law”, provides the option for teachers wanting remain part of a district. Continue Reading