Matthew Yglesias » Regular Needs Children

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Matthew Yglesias » Regular Needs Children

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Matthew Yglesias points out that if you believe that special needs children and their families need support, then it isn't much of a stretch to realize that other children and their families may also need support... by way of Tom Hoffman...

It’s nice, I suppose, that Sarah Palin’s experience raising a special needs child has awakened her to the importance of generous public support for such children. And it’d also be nice to think that John McCain’s embrace of this issue reflects a genuine Palin-inspired awakening on his part, rather than a cynical recognition that standard conservative policies that would normally evade attention despite their hideously immoral consequences would be highlighted by the case of Trig Palin. And so good for them. Obviously, special needs children deserve to have their needs taken care of. But of course all children have a lot of needs. And the moral logic that supports taking care of the needs of children with special needs also, of course, supports the idea of supporting all children with their needs.

The Lightning Rod - The Atlantic

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The Lightning Rod - The Atlantic

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Reminds me a bit of our former leadership... I'll leave it at that...

MICHELLE RHEE CHARGED IN as chancellor of the Washington, D.C., public schools wielding BlackBerrys and data—and a giant axe. She has made a city with possibly the country’s worst public schools ground zero for education reform, and attracted a cadre of young zealots some critics call “Rhee-bots.” Now the changes that she insists schoolchildren need are colliding head-on with the political wants of adults.

Powering a clean energy revolution

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Powering a clean energy revolution

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Google has created a little web calculator to help people realize some of the simple steps they can do to save energy, money, and reduce their carbon footprint. A nice tool to use with students when discussing energy conservation...

Spooked by high energy prices? Save money with these tips.

Halloween is nearly here, and the days are getting shorter. Does the prospect of high energy prices this winter make your blood run cold? Check out how much you can save by taking the following simple steps.

Marking work in Google Docs | ICT in my Classroom

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Marking work in Google Docs | ICT in my Classroom

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At Lewis we have been using Google Docs with our older students and staff this fall. Tom Barrett has been using Google Docs with his students for a while and his web site is a great resource for those just starting out...

What is the best way to give feedback on a piece of work produced in Google Docs? What formatting tools are most appropriate to use when leaving comments? How do you organise 30 to 60 pieces of work handed in to you? How do children hand in work? What new possibilities does this process uncover?

Greater access to voting information

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Greater access to voting information

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A voting resource from Google...

At Google, we pride ourselves on helping people find things on the Internet. And every four years in America, Google Trends shows that people are searching to find voting information, like how to register and where to vote.

It's hard to believe that in 2008, information so important to U.S. citizens and the democratic process isn't well organized on the web. To solve this problem, we've released our US Voter Info site, an effort to simplify and centralize voting locations and registration information.

Tom Barrett's Proposal to use Google Docs for Online Reporting to Parents | ICT in my Classroom

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My Proposal to use Google Docs for Online Reporting to Parents | ICT in my Classroom

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Tom Barrett is planning to use a shared Google Doc to update the parents of his students on their progress in class...

What follows is a proposal I submitted to my headteacher regarding a trial of the use of Google Docs (as part of the Education Apps) to deliver online reporting

Lapham's Quarterly

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A friend pointed me to a publication called Lapham's Quarterly. Laphman's is a quarterly publication that targets a single topic in each issue. The contributors are contemporary and historical writers.

LAPHAM'S QUARTERLY sets the story of the past in the frame of the present. Four times a year the editors seize upon the most urgent question then current in the headlines - foreign war, financial panic, separation of church and state - and find answers to that question from authors whose writings have passed the test of time.

photo.jpgYou can learn more about the format of Lapham's Quarterly here. The latest issue is titled Ways of Learning and deals with education. The preamble , Playing with Fire, is available online...

Google to Digitize Newspaper Archives - NYTimes.com

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Google to Digitize Newspaper Archives - NYTimes.com

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This is an expansion of a service that Google already has in place with The New York Times. The Washington Post and Time magazine... Another great primary source for research...

Google has begun scanning microfilm from some newspapers’ historic archives to make them searchable online, first through Google News and eventually on the papers’ own Web sites...

iPhone stand in action on Flickr - Photo Sharing!

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iPhone stand in action on Flickr - Photo Sharing!

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Turn your iPhone into a bedroom clock...

I'd been after a nice looking digital clock for the bedroom for ages, so I was pleased with the 'Digital Clock' app from the iPhone App Store. It's quite customizable (colour, brightness and digit style) and auto-rotates. Only problem is you have to leave it on all night - which used to drain the battery almost flat, until I discovered the 'Airplane Mode'!

Safety Concerns Eclipse Civic Lessons as Schools Cancel Classes on Election Day - NYTimes.com

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Safety Concerns Eclipse Civic Lessons as Schools Cancel Classes on Election Day - NYTimes.com"

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I find this kind of sad. I remember working at my old school on election day with the community coming in. Was a great learning opportunity for my students. Of course then Oregon went to vote by mail... I hate vote by mail... I always liked going to the polling place. Now I fill it out my ballot at my kitchen table... not the same...

“In a post-Columbine, post-9/11 world, we shouldn’t be opening the doors at our schools on Election Day, and just hoping everything will be O.K.”

How Nate Silver Went From Forecasting Baseball Games to Forecasting Elections -- New York Magazine

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How Nate Silver Went From Forecasting Baseball Games to Forecasting Elections -- New York Magazine"

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Nate Silver of fivethirtyeight.com is profiled in New York Magazine. This guy writes about my two favorite things, baseball and politics...

Nate Silver is a number-crunching prodigy who went from correctly forecasting baseball games to correctly forecasting presidential primaries—and perhaps the election itself. Here’s how he built a better crystal ball."