GUEST COLUMN / Charter schools: Yes, they offer a life raft to urban children

As we approach Election Day, I've been troubled by some of the discussion around Question 2. My hope is you will vote "yes" for charter schools and share this message with family, friends and coworkers.

I have grown passionate about urban education after my wife Liz taught in Atlanta with Teach For America. I saw how bad a bad education can be, with teachers cheating on standardized tests for their kids and where fifth graders could not read. With all due respect to my wife, it was clear how bad the school was when the parents were fighting to have their kids in her class when she had just six weeks of teacher training.

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A charter school success story, made possible by chance

Janeé Jones gave birth to her first child nearly 12 years ago, a son named Angelo, at 7 p.m. He weighed 7 pounds and 7 ounces, and on the week of his birth, family and friends played “0777” in the Massachusetts State Lottery and won more than $500. 

Last year, as Angelo “Seven” Jones entered the sixth grade, he and his family won a different lottery, which allowed him to transfer this fall from a traditional public school to Helen Y. Davis Leadership Academy charter school in Dorchester.

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Virtual School Student Behind World Series Slugger's Wristband Guest of Honor at Ribbon-Cutting

QUEEN CREEK, Ariz.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Campbell Faulkner, the 10-year-old who inspired Chicago Cubs’ slugger Kyle Schwarber to don a green wristband during the World Series, will be the guest of honor as Arizona Virtual Academy (AZVA) and Insight Academy of Arizona’s (ISAZ) celebrate the grand opening of their third blended learning center. Faulkner, a fifth grader at AZVA and resident of Queen Creek, as well as his parents, will be on-hand to speak about Campbell’s friendship with the MLB player and about what online learning has meant in the student’s journey in dealing with a rare mitochondrial disease.

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Why online learning is on the rise for your child

In addition to connecting people through social media platforms, the internet strives to do even more: teach.

True, people find plenty of entertainment, online shopping and social networking opportunities online, but what about learning opportunities? At times, it can be difficult for parents to teach their children without passing on their preexisting learning anxieties. When it comes to the way people learn, the tools of teaching are changing.

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Vouchers 2.0 could be Education Savings Accounts [Wisconsin]

Keep this phrase in mind: Education savings accounts.

It may not be occurring at your kitchen table, but at some tables, people are talking about the future of school choice programs in Wisconsin. And these are, in many cases, important people — thought leaders and political leaders among Republicans and conservatives — who are likely to have strong roles to play when decisions are made as part of the hugely important state budget process next spring.

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Las Vegas students seek solace in online schools after being bullied

October is anti-bullying month, and local schools and organizations have made efforts to get the word out that the problem is widespread and deeply damaging.

According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Service’s website, stopbullying.gov, kids who are bullied can experience negative physical and mental health issues including depression and anxiety, changes in sleep and eating patterns and loss of interest in activities they used to enjoy. These issues may persist into adulthood.

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The evolution of online learning in policy and the classroom

In 2007, Pete Bush became the principal for Coopersville High School near Grand Rapids, which had no online learning opportunities in place. But because he knew Michigan Virtual Schools was offering new foreign language course offerings, he thought he'd seize the opportunity to help students learn in a new way and take a course the small school of just 800 students couldn't offer itself.

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Close schools because of poor test scores? Michiganders say no

Michigan residents who participated in a poll earlier this month overwhelmingly oppose closing schools based solely on test scores, believe there are other ways to fix low-performing schools, and say parents should have input in the school closing process.

The results of the poll — conducted by Public Opinion Strategies and commissioned by the Michigan chapter of PublicSchoolOptions.org — were released today. The public school options group is an advocacy group that promotes the rights of parents to choose their children's schools.

Patrick Lanne of Public Opinion Strategies said opposition to using test scores solely to close schools was strong both among Republicans and Democrats.

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