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THE NEWS
ACADEMIC PREPARATION
Manitoba to raise truancy age to 18, other provinces may follow suit
By Steve Lambert, Winnipeg Free Press
Manitoba is set to become the latest province to force students to stay in school until they either graduate or turn 18. It's part of a growing national movement based on the belief that anything less than a high school diploma is not enough in today's job market. "We want to raise the bar," Education Minister Nancy Allan said Thursday. "If you only have a Grade 10 education (minimum requirement), you can be slamming the door for these students, so we want to make sure that we're preparing our students for the modern economy." Allan plans to table a bill in the coming days to raise the minimum age for dropping out of school to 18 from 16. Students would only be allowed to leave earlier if they earned their high-school diploma or joined a recognized workforce training program.
Should schools pay poor kids to do well?
By Kristin Rushowy, Toronto Star
Paying poor kids to do well in school gets low marks from many experts. But hiring them as paid mentors or to assist in local research projects — essentially giving them a school-based, part-time job so they can help out their families — is worth exploring, they say. “Paying for grades, it’s something that just sounds like a bribe,” said Jeff Kugler, executive director of the Centre for Urban Schooling at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education at the University of Toronto. “I think that if it’s part of a project or process they’re involved in with the school, or if they’re mentoring another kid in the building, that’s work, and people do that for money anyway.” Chris Spence, director of education for the Toronto District School Board, recently floated the idea of giving needy kids cash for doing well in school.
Schools offering lessons in emotions, social development
By Erin Anderssen, Vancouver Globe and Mai
The kindergarten students at Renfrew Elementary School in Vancouver often begin the school day with a few minutes of mindful breathing. The exercise, meant to teach them how to calm themselves in moments of stress, is followed up with specific education about their brains, such as the role the amygdala plays in anxiety. “We use the scientific words,” principal Andy Powell-Williams says. “They draw their brains. They are learning that they can be in control.” As the students progress through the grades, they receive age-specific lessons about optimism and empathy, and how to listen to their own emotions.
POSTSECONDARY ACCESS SUCCESS
Graduates rate Alberta post-secondary an A+
By Alberta News Release
Campus Alberta is getting a more than passing grade from recent graduates. The latest Graduate Outcomes Survey shows that nine out of ten post-secondary graduates from the 2007-08 school year are satisfied with the overall quality of their educational experience. The survey also looked at demographics, employment, financing and student debt. “It is encouraging to see that students not only feel they are getting a quality education, but that they are also landing rewarding careers after they graduate,” said Doug Horner, Minister of Advanced Education and Technology. “Our Campus Alberta institutions can take pride in the excellent learning opportunities they provide to Albertans.” Across Campus Alberta, the graduate survey found that student loan levels were declining and that four in ten graduates accessed government financial assistance.
New First Nations post-secondary institution – “A new door to the future of first nations opens”
By Canada NewsWire
It was in the presence of Ghislain Picard, Chief of the Assembly of First Nations of Quebec and Labrador, Pierre Corbeil, Quebec's Minister responsible for Aboriginal Affairs, representatives of the federal government, Dawson College, Cégep de l'Abitibi-Témiscamingue and partnering companies Sono Vidéo and Polycom that the First Nations Education Council announced the creation of a collegial studies centre, an important component in the founding of the new First Nations Post-secondary Institution. "Today, a new door to the future of First Nations opens", declared Chief Ghislain Picard at a press conference attended by some fifty First Nations members. "The institution, to be established in Odanak, will quickly become a source of pride for our nations. It will ensure the emergence of a new generation of leaders for our communities", asserted Lise Bastien, Director General of the FNEC.
Fanshawe researchers call for province-wide strategy on student literacy
By Fanshawe College News Release
Are Ontario’s colleges doing enough to help students who struggle with literacy? For the past year, Fanshawe College researchers Dr. Roger Fisher and Whitney Hoth have been wrestling with that question. Their response, a comprehensive research study on the topic entitled, College-Level Literacy: An Inventory of Current Practices at Ontario Colleges, was released by Fanshawe College and the Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario (HEQCO), with important implications for the college system. The report provides a snapshot of how the language skills of college students are being evaluated and what colleges are doing to help students who do not meet the required level of language proficiency. All 24 of Ontario’s public colleges were surveyed.
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
Economy doesn’t stymie study abroad
By Allie Grasgreen, InsideHigherEd
Worries that the worldwide economic downturn would trigger a slip in international education should be largely alleviated by this year’s "Open Doors" report, which shows that during the peak of the recession, international student enrollment continued to rise and -- for the first time in the report’s history -- the total number of U.S. students who studied abroad declined slightly. Also, China overtook India as the country sending the most international students to the U.S. Open Doors 2010 was expected to reflect the foundering economy because of how -- and when -- the report's data are collected. This year’s report measures the most recent numbers available: international students in the U.S. in 2009-10 and American students abroad the year before that.
French University Rankings draw praise and criticism
By Maia De Le Baume, The New York Times
A new French government survey that ranks public universities by graduate students’ employment rates after graduation has already earned both praise and criticism from academics. The Ministry of Higher Education and Research surveyed 43,000 graduate students from 63 of France’s 83 universities. The study found that, on average, 91.4 percent of students were employed within 30 months of graduation, rising to 92.3 percent for those with degrees in science, technology or health. “The result is interesting in itself,” said Jacques Fontanille, president of the University of Limoges, which came 38th in the ranking, with 91.2 percent. “It shows that French universities worked well.”
Moving teacher training from universities will ‘risk quality’
By Sarah Cunnane, Times Higher Education
Proposals from Michael Gove that could see funding for teacher training moved from universities to schools risk "throwing out the baby with the bathwater" as far as quality is concerned, according to the head of the University Council for the Education of Teachers. James Noble-Rogers said that if the education secretary's White Paper, expected in the next few weeks, removed universities from the equation it would be "damaging" for the quality of training and for schools. "Ofsted (the schools inspectorate) inspects all university teacher training courses and has found nearly 90 per cent of them to be good or outstanding. And 85 per cent of newly qualified teachers tell the Training Development Agency that their training is good and relevant.
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