Urban public schools: the Philadelphia experiment. What do the huge public school struggles in Philly tell us about the challenges in America’s other large, dysfunctional urban districts? We look at history, context, the poverty puzzle, and charter schools. THANKS to BO$CHBEATZ for letting us use his original music. Check him out on SoundCloud


MashCast_NPR News_08_Philly Schools

We asked a few students from very different parts of the Bay Area - Oakland and Menlo Park - what they think could be done to improve their schools. This will become a regular little feature on my feed. With Tina Barseghian of KQED's Mind/Shift. Check out her stellar blog @
http://blogs.kqed.org/mindshift/  
Photo: Erin Scott 

Kids Speak - Oakland and Menlo Park

Three tumultuous years after a popular uprising drove Hosni Mubarak from power Egyptians embrace a return to dictatorship. Critics say General Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi’s authoritarian military regime tolerates no dissent from activists, the news media, civil society or ordinary citizens. A fresh look at the return of repression and the demise of nascent democracy in the Arab world’s most populous nation with journalist Thanasis Cambanis from the Century Foundation and reporting from NPR’s Laila Fadel. Also, a pullback look at the changing US role in the post “Arab Spring” Middle East with NPR Correspondents Deborah Amos and Michele Kelemen  

 


MashCast_09_Egypt & Middle East

Bring on the poets. On many American campuses has the rise of celebrity speakers, marketing and ideological fights marred the graduation speech tradition? Time for a rethink?  

Rethinking Commencement

A pact to get out of trouble and into medical school; the lost gospel of Bob Dylan; In Tulsa, helping kids thrive by helping their parents; an Army vet writes his way out of a crippling PTSD fog; & jazz singer Rene Marie takes on Eartha Kitt - and a lot more. Open ears. @Ericnpr on Twitter. Follow Weekend All Things Considered @nprwatc 

Podcast Weekend All Things Considered

Meet the classic Miles David quintet of HS student bands. You know, the one with Coltrane and Cannonball. Next week we’re going to spend a little time with a public school band that rocks, swings, and breaks new musical ground. But...this isn’t your typical high school group. The members make music by combining traditional instruments and singing with iPad tablet computers and apps. Ohh, and all the members happen to have serious learning disabilities and autism spectrum disorders. On Morning Edition and All Things Considered, I'll introduce you to a music teacher in Queens, New York who uses tech and a passion for teaching to help open doors for kids with severe mental and physical challenges. Stay tuned. Now meet the band 

Playin' in the iPad band. Meet the special needs students w/the PS 177 tech band

Raw reaction interviews to today’s landmark CA Superior Court ruling which said current state public school teacher tenure and dismissal rules are unconstitutional. First, we hear from Plaintiffs’ lead co-counsel Marcellus A. McRae with the group Students Matter which brought the Vergara case.  “The Court has reaffirmed the fundamental principle that constitutional rights do not depend on a child’s skin color or zip code.  They apply to everyone equally. The Court’s well-reasoned decision goes to the heart of the evidence and is an unmistakable victory for students, parents, teachers, and the teaching profession.” Next,  California Teachers Association and its parent union, the NEA, called the ruling “deeply flawed” and vowed to appeal. Frank Wells is with the CTA. “It’s a strongly worded ruling but it’s not supported by a strong body of evidence…It’s another example of the ‘blame teachers first’ approach to solving complex education problems.” The court ordered a stay on implementing the decision pending appeals. 

Raw Reaction Vergara v. California Court Ruling

Raw reaction interviews to today’s landmark CA Superior Court ruling which said that current state public school teacher tenure and dismissal rules are unconstitutional. The ruling could change the way teachers are hired and fired. First, we hear from Plaintiffs’ lead co-counsel Marcellus A. McRae with the group Students Matter which brought the Vergara case.  “The Court has reaffirmed the fundamental principle that constitutional rights do not depend on a child’s skin color or zip code.  They apply to everyone equally. The Court’s well-reasoned decision goes to the heart of the evidence and is an unmistakable victory for students, parents, teachers, and the teaching profession.” Students Matter is looking at other states to file similar lawsuits. Next,  the California Teachers Association and its parent union, the NEA, called the ruling “deeply flawed” and vowed to appeal. Frank Wells is with the CTA. “It’s a strongly worded ruling but it’s not supported by a strong body of evidence…It’s another example of the ‘blame teachers first’ approach to solving complex education problems.” The court ordered a stay on implementing the decision pending appeals. @Ericnpr & Npr_Ed on Twitter 






Raw Reax to Landmark CA Court Case Vergara v. California

There's a steady stream of hype surrounding the pluses and pitfalls of classroom tablet computers. But for a growing number of special education students tablets and their apps are proving transformative. The tablets aren't merely novel and fun. With guidance from creative teachers, they are helping to deepen engagement, communication, and creativity. Listen in 

Ericnpr

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