Parent Cortical Mass

Week's Best Articles on Learning and Education, for Parents

The opt-out movement is gaining critical mass. More than 180,000 students in New York refused to take the state’s exams. In one Seattle high school, 100% of the junior class opted out. Wide-spread civil disobedience exposes education reforms as a house-of-cards. NCLB, accountability, teacher evaluations, and common core are bundled. (It’s almost as bothersome as a cable package deal.) Five articles below, with left, right and center viewpoints, will get you informed. 2 3 4 5 6 We’ve talked about the 30 million word gap. But, it’s more than just the number of words spoken by parents to their babies. Sarah Spark’s article explains the nuance. 1 How do parents protect the privacy of their kids’ school data? Privacy laws were passed when information was kept on paper forms in file cabinets. Who do parents hold responsible if data is not secure? It’s unclear. Know your family rights. Check out this just-published parent guide! 7

Parenting

How to Finish College in 4 Years: What Parents Need to Know - Grown and Flown

A Neglected Factor in Picking a College - Daniel Willingham, Science & Education Blog

Love and Merit - David Brooks, New York Times

The Wolf of Conditional Love - McCord Clayton, The Dad App

Negativity & Kids' Brains: How to Help Kids Stay Positive - Marilyn Price-Mitchell, PhD, Roots of Action

Who Is the 21st Century Man? - Maria Shriver & Josh Levs, HuffPost

Learning

Hearing About Math at the Table Improves Preschoolers’ Skills - Menachem Wecker, Deseret News

1 Key to Vocabulary Gap Is Quality of Conversation, Not Dearth of Words - Sarah D. Sparks, Ed Week

The Linguistic Genius of Babies [video] - Patricia Kuhl, TED

We Think Better on Our Feet, Literally - Neuroscience News

Can Neuroscientists Dispel the Myth of Learning Styles? - Pete Etchells, The Guardian

Education

What Can Technology Do for Tomorrow's Children? - Arne Duncan, Medium

2 More Than 180,000 New York Students Boycotted State Exams - Gonzalez & Blau, NY Daily News

3 Anti-Test 'Opt-Out' Movement Makes A Wave In New York State - Anya Kamenetz, nprEd

4 Teachers' Unions Fight Standardized Testing, and Find Diverse Allies - Taylor & Rich, NYT

5 Feds Play Race Card to Crush Parents' Revolt Against Common Core - David French, National Review

6 Opt Out Movement: A Test of Education Reform - Andy Smarick, Common Core Watch

How Video Games Can Make Our Kids Smarter - Greg Toppo, Flypaper

College for the Masses vs. College Isn't for Everyone - David Leonhardt, NYT

Resources

7 A Parents' Guide to Student Data Privacy - ConnectSafely, Future of Privacy Forum, PTA

Is There Really a Magic 8 Ball App? Signs Point to Yes - coolmomtech

20 Things You Didn't Know About... Galaxies - Katherine Kornei, Discover Magazine

5 Awe Inspiring National Parks for Your USA Road Trip - Charli Moore, WanderLusters

Read a few articles each week, and gain parent cortical mass! If you enjoy our weekly article roundup, please email it to a friend, or share on social media. Thank you!

Week's Best Articles on Learning and Education, for Parents

This week free-range parenting went from a philosophical to a legal debate. A few weeks back police picked up two children (ages 10 and 6) as they walked home from their neighborhood park. Authorities said their parents were responsible for “unsubstantiated child neglect.” Then, police picked up their kids a second time. The parents, “free-rangers,” are outraged. They intend to file a lawsuit, to clarify parents’ rights. 1 This week educators in the Atlanta schools' cheating scandal were sentenced to prison terms ranging from one to seven years. Was this just, or is the school accountability system guilty? 2 3 4 For seven years reauthorizing No Child Left Behind has been gridlocked in Congress. This week a rewrite of the law passed the Senate committee unanimously. The new bill, named the Every Child Achieves Act, moves to the Senate floor. It’s a step. 5 Check out the amazing scrolling graphic of Mt. Everest. It conveys the “tallest mountain in the world” like you’ve never seen! 6

Parenting

1 The Murky Law on Free-Range Kids - Amanda Kolson Hurley, CityLab

There's Never Been a Safer Time to Be a Kid in America - C. Ingraham, WashPost

Kids Take More Risks Crossing Streets Than Parents Think - Lisa Rapaport, Reuters

Helicopter Parents Can Be a Good Thing - Julie Hiltz, PDK Sage Journals

5 Ways to Smooth Transition from Senior Year to College - Annie Berning, Grown and Flown

6 College Experiences That Make College Worth It - Brandon Busteed, Gallup

Encouraging Teenagers to Read, by Choosing From Non-YA Shelves - Jessica Lahey, New York Times

Learning

Babies Learn Best When Surprised - Janice Wood, PsychCentral

Letting Go of Executive Control Speeds Learning of Motor Tasks - Geoffrey Mohan, L.A. Times

Self-Affirmations May Calm Jitters, Boost Performance - ScienceDaily

Emotional Intelligence: The Social Skills You Weren't Taught in School - Eric Ravenscraft, Lifehacker

Wait for It: Delayed Feedback Can Enhance Learning - Tori Rodriguez, Scientific American

Education

We Should Be Asking Why and How We Test, Not Just How Often - Linda Darling-Hammond, HuffPost

End the Education Wars - Frederick M. Hess, US News

The Lost Purpose of School Reform - Diane Ravitch, New York Review

2 Accountability on Trail in Atlanta - Robert Pondiscio, US News

3 Teachers Were Offered Bonuses for Test Scores. Of Course They Cheated - Annie Murphy Paul, WP

4 Cheaters Never Prosper - Dana Goldstein, The Marshall Project

5 NCLB Rewrite Heads to Senate Floor - Allie Bidwell, US News

PISA's Potentially Dangerous Problems, And What to Do - Yong Zhao & Alma Harris, Washington Post

Resources

6 How Tall is Mt Everest? [Amazing Scrolling Graphic] - Johnson, Berkowitz, Gamio, Washington Post

The Math Question That Went Viral - Terrance F. Ross, The Atlantic

Fun Way to Learn About Leonardo da Vinci: Read His Resume - Marc Cenedella, Cenedella

7 Wonderful Books that Help Kids Make Sense of Death - Maria Popova, BrainPickings

Get Your Kids to Vote on the Children's Choice Book Awards - CBC

Read a few articles each week, and gain parent cortical mass! If you enjoy our weekly article roundup, please email it to a friend, or share on social media. Thank you!

Spring Break

This week Parent Cortical Mass takes a break. Why? My daughter and her husband just had their first child! She’s healthy and beautiful!   

This is my first grandchild. Everything you’ve heard about becoming a grandparent is true. What a unique feeling of happiness. It’s the next generation!

We will resume our weekly article roundup on Monday, April 20, 2015.