Home | Resources | ATPE News | Winter 2009 | News Briefs
News Briefs
Benefits of biculturalism
A new study shows that Latino adolescents are happier and healthier if they have a good mix of U.S. and Latino culture in their lives.
Conducted by researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and released in The Journal of Primary Prevention, the study looked at the lives of 281 students and one of each student’s parents. The results of the study show that if Latino students are involved with their heritage culture and their parents take steps to integrate into American culture, fewer of them are likely to engage in risky behavior such as abusing drugs and alcohol and dropping out of school.
The study also suggests ideas for increasing biculturalism in schools, including dual-immersion programs in which children whose primary language is English and Spanish-dominant speakers learn both languages in the same classroom.
Source: Education Week
Risky online business
For two years, researchers in Taiwan followed nearly 2,300 seventh-grade students and found that more than 10 percent had formed an addiction to the Internet. Children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), depression or social anxiety issues are at a greater risk to become addicted.
Internet addiction has yet to become an official diagnosis, but symptoms can include spending more time than intended on the Internet, an inability to cut down on time spent online, a preoccupation with Internet activities, and exhibiting anxiety or boredom when not able to go online.
ADHD and hostility issues were linked to addiction in all children, but boys have a higher risk of becoming addicted than girls. Girls suffering from depression or social phobias are also at risk, as are those children who spend more than 20 hours a week online, those who go online every day and those who participate in online gaming.
Currently, Internet addiction is not as widespread in the U.S. as it is in Asian countries. But with the ever-increasing availability of the Internet and the daily use of computers, whether at school or home, Internet addiction could become a widespread childhood illness. Internet addiction can’t be treated with computer “abstinence” in such a technology-reliant culture; instead students’ Internet usage must be limited to a reasonable amount per week, and those with problems such as ADHD and depression should be monitored for signs of addiction from an early age.
Source: www.eschoolnews.com
Draft test released to measure technological literacy
A draft of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) assessment of technological literacy was released in August, and the first assessment is scheduled to be administered in 2012. Technological literacy is defined in the draft as the “general understanding of technology coupled with a capability to use, manage and assess the technologies that are most relevant in one’s life, such as the information and communication technologies that are particularly salient in the world today.” The term technology encompasses a wide range of items, from automobiles to computers.
The computer-based assessment, scheduled to be given to a sample of U.S. students in fourth, eighth and 12th grades, will gauge students’ understanding and use of technological tools and their design, students’ information-gathering capabilities, and the impact technology has on society. Students taking the assessment will be asked to demonstrate knowledge of technological tools and solve problems using the tools.
Source: Education Week
Foggy windows to learning
Many children struggling in the classroom might not have academic issues but vision problems.
According to the American Optometric Association (AOA), as many as 60 percent of children classified as
problem learners might have vision problems rather than developmental ones. These problems might manifest as difficulties with reading, seeing the board from a distance or following along with the rest of the class.
The reasons vision problems often go unnoticed vary. Many schools do offer vision testing, but the basic tests don’t always find more complex issues. Children also don’t know what isn’t “normal” and therefore don’t know how to explain why they’re having problems. And it’s not well-known that one in four children has sight issues; in a recent study, the AOA surveyed 1,000 adults and found that 90 percent didn’t realize childhood vision issues were so prominent.
Source: Teacher Magazine
Districts no longer DARE
A number of school districts in north Texas have dropped the Drug Abuse Resistance Education (DARE) program from their curriculum recently and moved instead to life skills courses and district-specific programs.
The popularity of the program has waned in the past decade, but the change in north Texas comes in part in the wake of tighter budgets; DARE programs can cost upward of $500,000 a year for larger cities. Arlington ISD dropped its participation more than seven years ago due to funding cuts. Time is also an issue—standardized testing and new math and science requirements take more of students’ time—as is the effectiveness of the program. Fort Worth ISD cancelled its participation nearly five years ago due to lack of data.
Educators in Grapevine-Colleyville ISD will still be working with police departments to present drug-free information in life skills classes, which have been extended from the elementary school level into middle school. Not all districts have decided to go other routes, however; Burleson ISD recently renewed its DARE contract.
Founded in 1983 by the Los Angeles Police Department, the DARE program reaches more than 25 million students each year in 70 percent of districts in all 50 U.S. states. It’s also taught in more than 40 countries worldwide. Since 2003, changes have been made to modernize the program and increase its effectiveness. The high school program is being modified to be video-based, and the general curriculum has been extended to include topics such as cyberbullying, gangs and over-the-counter drug abuse that can be tailored to each community.
Source: www.star-telegram.com
©istockphoto.com/saul herrera-rag doll, mikael domkier-internet addict, a.e. knost-vision test
More ATPE News
Take a chance on wellness
A novice idea
The thank-you files
Capitol Comment
Legal Opinions
Educators' Exchange
In the Classroom
Para-educators' Place
News Briefs
Snip-its
Tech Support
Web Bytes
Foundation News
Your Association News