The Christian Science Monitor
REVIEW: WARS, GUNS, AND VOTES

On a recent Amtrak trip from Philadelphia to Boston, my friend Andrea found herself sitting behind a woman who yammered loudly on her cellphone all the way through New York and up past New Haven. Finally, Andrea tapped the woman on the shoulder and asked her to speak more quietly. The request did not go over well. “If you touch me again,” the woman replied, “I’m going to break your finger”…[full text]

The New America Foundation
RETHINKING THE WAY TEACHERS ARE TRAINED

When No Child Left Behind (NCLB) became law in 2001, it mandated that all classrooms be staffed by a “highly qualified” teacher, re-igniting the debate around how teachers are trained and recruited.  At the center of the debate are Alternative Certification (AC) programs. These programs fast-track teacher candidates with prior “real-world” experience… [full text]