Texas: CSCOPE: Innovative Curriculum or Threat to Youth?

In what has traditionally been seen as an all-boys sport in high schools across the country, female athletes are beginning to make their mark. Female wrestlers have struggled for many years to be serious contenders in wrestling competitions, dealing with coaches who didn’t want them on the team and male contenders who forfeited matches rather than compete against them. Now, that tide appears to be changing, as more schools across the country are beginning to recognize these athletes as the serious competitors they are. Some are even giving girls their own place in the wrestling world, forming all-girls teams that are making their way into national competitions.

Female Wrestling Growing Nationwide

Max Preps reports that female wrestling at the high school is a growing sport across the country. In fact, the entire sport appears to be on the rise for both male and female athletes. The publication reports on a survey conducted by the National Federation of State High School Associations during the 2010-11 school year that showed a .3 percent increase in the number of male wrestlers and a 19.8 percent increase in the number of female wrestlers. That year, 273,732 high school boys competed in the sport and 7,351 female athletes competed at the high school level.

This video shows Kasey Baynon of Statesboro Georgia making history as the first girl in Georgia to take the podium at the GHSA Wrestling Championships.

The dress code has become a major source of contention at one Mobile County school, as a widespread suspension has resulted in strong feelings on both sides of the issue. While some applaud the suspensions as a way to teach students responsibility, others claim the suspension sends the wrong message to students about priorities. Who is right and who is wrong in this debate? The answer may depend on who you talk to.

Suspensions Come after Numerous Warnings

Al.com reports that the principal of LeFlore Magnet High School in Mobile County recently suspended 100 students on a single day for dress code violations. The principal, Alvin Dailey, said the suspensions were issued after numerous warnings to the students that they needed to abide by the dress codes that had been in place at the school for 16 years.

“I’ve repeatedly told kids before today to pull your pants up, take that jacket off, tuck your shirt in,” Dailey stated at Fox 10. “After a while, it’s time to stop talking and take some action.”

The two-day suspensions created a gamut of responses from parents, students, and even members of the community. Some supported Dailey’s decision, saying the students need to learn “soft” skills – like a professional appearance - in high school that will help them succeed in jobs after graduation. Others complained that Dailey’s extreme measure does little more than take students out of a safe learning environment and put them on their

The cheating scandal that has rocked the Atlanta Public School system for the better part of five years is now coming to a close with nearly three dozen indictments against educators in the city. Now, those found guilty of myriad charges, from racketeering to making false charges, have been given a deadline to report for jail. Among those indicted is Atlanta Public Schools Superintendent Beverly Hall, who received hundreds of thousands of dollars in bonuses directly tied to the “improvements” in standardized test scores.

A Long, Sordid Saga Comes to a Close

Suspicions of cheating throughout the Atlanta Public School system were first raised in 2008 by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. According to the Daily Beast, the publication ran a story questioning the “statistically improbable” test score improvements at one of the city’s elementary schools. The Journal Constitution followed up with other levels of suspicious test results at ten more schools throughout the city.

What evolved after those reports was a long and complex investigation launched by former Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue. Perdue put numerous state resources behind the study, assigning two state prosecutors and dozens of investigators to the task. The study took several years to complete and eventually told a sordid tale of teachers forced into test cheating by intense pressure coming from top officials in the district.

This video reports on the Atlanta Schools cheating scandal.

Dozens of Counts

Climate change has never been a consistent part of school science curriculum. Some teachers have touched on the subject, but few have delved into the matter with the depth it requires for thorough understanding. Sometimes it is presented as a controversial theory, and at other times it is taught as irrefutable fact. Now, new national science standards are due out that could streamline the educational approach to the subject of climatic shift.

About the New Standards

The new science standards were created as a result of a partnership between the National Research Council and the National Science Foundation, the American Association for the Advancement of Science and National Science Teachers Association. The non-profit group Achieve was also a part of the collaboration. Standards introduce the concept of climate change at a much younger grade and continue to expand on the subject throughout middle and high school. Mark McCaffrey, programs and policy director for the National Science Foundation called the new standards “revolutionary.”

This video from Teacher TV offers an overview of climate change.

Until now, the only effort to establish national science standards was in 1996, when the National Science Education Standards were published by the National Research Council. However, few states did much to bring those standards into the classroom. In 2010, a new effort was launched to produce standards in science, and the National Research Council recruited the other entities