Resistance

Growing number of educators boycott standardized tests

"Since 2002, standardized tests have taken on more significance as federal mandates, beginning with the No Child Left Behind law, pushed schools to give annual tests and report the results publicly. The Obama administration has upped tests' importance by rewarding states whose schools tie student test scores to teacher evaluations. But the decision by a group of Seattle teachers to boycott a standardized test this winter could spill out to other cities as a decade of frustration over testing simmers. Since then, teachers at two more Seattle schools have said they'll sit out the test, with the approval of leading academics and both major U.S. teachers unions." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGrowing number of educators boycott standardized tests

How California’s Online Education Pilot Will End College As We Know It

"Today, the largest university system in the world, the California State University system, announced a pilot for $150 lower-division online courses at one of its campuses — a move that spells the end of higher education as we know it. Lower-division courses are the financial backbone of many part-time faculty and departments (especially the humanities). As someone who has taught large courses at a University of California, I can assure readers that my job could have easily been automated. Most of college–the expansive campuses and large lecture halls–will crumble into ghost towns as budget-strapped schools herd students online." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingHow California’s Online Education Pilot Will End College As We Know It

Maryland county school board to own all students’ work with copyright policy

"A county school board in Maryland has proposed a copyright policy that would allow it to take ownership of all work produced by students and faculty — even work created off campus during personal time. A Prince George’s County Board of Education proposal obtained by WTOP says that 'any works' created by students or employees 'are properties of the Board of Education even if created on the employee’s or student’s time and with the use of their materials.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMaryland county school board to own all students’ work with copyright policy

Idaho lawmaker’s bill forces students to pass ‘Atlas Shrugged’ test to graduate

"The chairman of the Idaho Senate’s Education Committee says that he introduced a bill to require all students to read Ayn Rand’s 'Atlas Shrugged' because the book 'made my son a Republican.' State Sen. John Goedde (R) introduced the bill in committee on Tuesday to mandate that each student pass a test on the novel before they are able to graduate from high school, according to The Spokesman-Review." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingIdaho lawmaker’s bill forces students to pass ‘Atlas Shrugged’ test to graduate

America’s Baby Bust

"For more than three decades, Chinese women have been subjected to their country's brutal one-child policy. Those who try to have more children have been subjected to fines and forced abortions. Their houses have been razed and their husbands fired from their jobs. As a result, Chinese women have a fertility rate of 1.54. Here in America, white, college-educated women—a good proxy for the middle class—have a fertility rate of 1.6. America has its very own one-child policy. And we have chosen it for ourselves. Forget the fiscal cliff, the sequestration cliff and the entitlement cliff. Those are all just symptoms. What America really faces is a demographic cliff." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingAmerica’s Baby Bust

The government has your baby’s DNA

"Newborn babies in the United States are routinely screened for a panel of genetic diseases. Since the testing is mandated by the government, it's often done without the parents' consent. In many states, such as Florida, where Isabel was born, babies' DNA is stored indefinitely. Many parents don't realize their baby's DNA is being stored in a government lab, but sometimes when they find out, as the Browns did, they take action. Parents in Texas, and Minnesota have filed lawsuits, and these parents' concerns are sparking a new debate about whether it's appropriate for a baby's genetic blueprint to be in the government's possession." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingThe government has your baby’s DNA

Massachusetts bans vehicles at 4 p.m.; offenders face fine up to $500, 1 year in jail

"Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick has declared a state of emergency for blizzard that could bring near 3 feet of snow. Patrick signed an executive order banning all vehicles from roadways starting at 4 p.m. today. Ban applies to all roadways, including highways and secondary roads. Any one caught driving after 4 p.m. faces up to one year in jail and $500 fine." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMassachusetts bans vehicles at 4 p.m.; offenders face fine up to $500, 1 year in jail

Amish leader sentenced to 15 years for beard-cutting ‘hate crimes’

"The leader of an Amish cult — who allegedly ordered followers to forcibly cut the beards and hair of those who criticized his leadership — was sentenced to 15 years in prison. The 67-year-old Samuel Mullet Sr. was convicted not just of assault but of hate crimes, as prosecutors said the victims’ right to religious expression was violated. The sentence sat between what the government asked for — life in prison — and what the defense sought, which was at most two years. Fifteen others implicated in the crimes were sentenced to between one and seven years in prison." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingAmish leader sentenced to 15 years for beard-cutting ‘hate crimes’

Arizona Politician Parodied By Fake Twitter Accounts Pushes Bill To Make Online Impersonation A Felony

"Arizona State Representative Michelle Ugenti has proposed a bill that would make it a class 5 felony to impersonate someone online 'with the intent to harm, defraud, intimidate or threaten.' That last part, obviously, limits the purely parodical accounts, but the definitions of those words could be quite broad, and the risk of an overly broad interpretation is quite real. Considering that class 5 felonies in Arizona come with a 'presumptive sentence of a year and a half imprisonment,' you would hope that the definitions here would be a lot clearer." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingArizona Politician Parodied By Fake Twitter Accounts Pushes Bill To Make Online Impersonation A Felony

Seattle Mayor Orders Police to Dismantle Its Drone Program After Protests

"In an amazing victory for privacy advocates and drone activists, yesterday, Seattle’s mayor ordered the city's police agency to cease trying use surveillance drones and dismantle its drone program. The police will return the two drones they previously purchased with a Department of Homeland Security grant to the manufacturer. In May of last year, we urged concerned citizens to take their complaints to their local governments, given Congress has been slow to act on any privacy legislation. The events of Seattle proves this strategy can work and should serve as a blueprint for local activism across the country." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingSeattle Mayor Orders Police to Dismantle Its Drone Program After Protests