Recess improves 3rd graders classroom behavior--maybe

The What Works Clearinghouse provides an evaluation of a study which found that teachers report better classroom behavior when students have regular access to recess. WWC also cautions that the populations that have regular access to recess were different in several ways from the populations that didn't, and these differences may or may not have been corrected for by data analysis.

Barros, R. M., Silver, E. J., & Stein, R. E. K. (2009). School recess and group classroom behavior. Pediatrics, 123(2): 431–436.
(online access to this article is available through the UNLV Libraries)

Research Funding Webinars scheduled

The National Center for Special Education Research (NCSER) and the National Center for Education Research (NCER) within the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) will host a series of webinars related to research funding opportunities in May. Six types of webinars are planned.
Information about the specific trainings are offered here: http://ies.ed.gov/funding/webinars/

Grants available to bring book authors to schools

Target is currently accepting grant applications. The on-line application process takes about 15-minutes and the grants can be used next year to bring authors to schools! Grants will be awarded from $1,000-$3000. Target will accept grant applications online between March 1 and May 31, 2009, for programs taking place between October 1, 2009, and September 30, 2010. See: http://sites.target.com/site/en/company/page.jsp?contentId=WCMP04-031821

If the adjuncts are treated well....

Not surprisingly a new study described in today's Chronicle found that when adjuncts receive benefits, they are more satisfied with their salaries (compared to those paid the same with no benefits) and with their decision to have an academic career. What is more enlightening is the link between adjuncts receiving benefits and the satisfaction reported by full-time faculty at those same institutions.

Lots of discussion about student financial aid

Where do you stand on the emerging proposals to revamp student aid for higher education? An article today (April 23) from Inside Higher Ed compares two recent plans--one from the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators and the other published last fall by the College Board. An article in yesterday's (April 22) issue of Inside Higher Ed discussed the president's new proposal.

University lectures on YouTube

Just read this posting in the CHE's Wired Campus blog about YouTube now claiming to host complete lectures from over 200 colleges and universities.

Guide on using RTI for students struggling with math

"Assisting Students Struggling with Mathematics: Response to Intervention (RtI) for Elementary and Middle Schools." This new guide from the What Works Clearinghouse provides eight specific recommendations intended to help teachers, principals, and school administrators use Response to Intervention (RtI) to identify students who need assistance in mathematics, and to address the needs of these students through focused interventions. The guide also describes how to carry out each recommendation, including how to address potential roadblocks in implementing them.
The guide is linked from this page:
http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/publications/practiceguides/#rti_math_pg

Arne Duncan offers tips on applying for funds

Thought you might be interested in this recent article from Education Week where Arne Duncan (our Secretary of Education) spells out some tips for applying for federal stimulus monies. See also the tab I added to the Grants guide with many more links to information on the ARRA funds, opportunities, and processes.

Awesome Stories: Media resources for educators

We are said to learn best from stories and the Awesome Stories web site puts that strategy to good use by offering narratives about people, events, history and more. Each narrative is enriched with audio and video clips, images, and primary documents. There are databases for all the media that are freely available to teachers once you sign up . Lesson plans are offered as is a monthly newsletter that highlights current events. This month there's the story behind the story of the movie "The Soloist" which talks about music and about schizophrenia. Great resource.

New data on post-secondary students

The National Center for Education Statistics has released the first round of results from the 2008 National Student Postsecondary Aid Study (NPSAS:08). This nationally representative study provides the most up-to-date and comprehensive look at postsecondary student characteristics and student financial aid for the 2007-08 academic year.

NPSAS:08 data are a rich source of information on student demographics, family background, education and work experiences, and student financial aid, including federal, state, institutional, and other sources. The NPSAS:08 study contains a sample of 128,000 students which represent 21 million undergraduates and 3 million graduate students enrolled in postsecondary education anytime between July 1, 2007 and June 30, 2008.

Selected NPSAS:08 Findings.

* Nearly two-thirds (66 percent) of all undergraduates received some type of financial aid. For those receiving any aid, the total average amount was $9,100.

* About one-half (52 percent) of all undergraduates received grant aid, and more than one-third (38 percent) obtained student loans. The average grant amount was $4,900, and the average loan amount was $7,100.

* Nearly one-half (47 percent) of all undergraduates received some type of federal student aid. About one-fourth (28 percent) received an average of $2,800 in federal Pell grants, and about one-third (35 percent) obtained an average of $5,100 in federal student loans.

* Among undergraduates financially dependent on their parents, 28 percent came from families with incomes under $40,000 and another 28 percent from families with incomes of $100,000 or more.

* Three-fourths (74 percent) of all graduate students received some type of financial aid, with an average amount of $17,600. Forty-three percent took out an average of $18,500 in student loans, and about one-fifth (22 percent) received tuition aid from their employers.

To view, download and print the report as a PDF file, please visit:
http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2009166

To Use the Data Analysis System (DAS) online, please visit:
http://nces.ed.gov/dasol/

Student research assignments--what do we want them to learn

This is not a rhetorical question...the editorial musings from a librarian at Princeton (Inside Higher Ed, April 13) on the seemingly changeless questions and confessions she gets from students doing research assignments should make us all think about how we can help students address the underlying information gaps and misconceptions. She offers suggestions for both departmental faculty as well as librarians to help students learn more from the process. I also loved her acronym for the way most students approach research based assignments: "WIGWAM research (Wikipedia – Internet – Google – Without Anything More"

Free training available in using National Longitudinal Transition Study 2 (NLTS2) database

The National Center for Special Education Research (NCSER), within the Institute of Education Sciences, will sponsor a 3-day advanced studies seminar on the use of the National Longitudinal Transition Study 2 (NLTS2) database. The NLTS2 is designed to support research on a wide range of topics pertaining to youth with disabilities as they move from secondary school into adult roles. This seminar is open to advanced graduate students and faculty members from colleges and universities nationwide and to researchers, education practitioners, and policy analysts from federal, state, and local education and human services agencies and professional associations.The seminar will be held in Washington, DC on July 14-16, 2009. There is no fee to attend the training seminar. NCSER will provide training materials as well as computers for hands-on practice. NCSER will also pay for transportation and hotel accommodations. Participants will be responsible for their meals during travel and while in Washington, DC.Please visit http://ies.ed.gov/ncser/whatsnew/conferences/nlts2_DBtraining.asp to view the full announcement and application information for the seminar.