$1b to widen school choice
Adele Wong and Beatrice Siu
Friday, January 09, 2009
Secondary schools will be allowed to choose the medium of instruction for various subjects from September next year, according to a HK$1 billion plan unveiled by the government yesterday.
However, schools choosing to use English must ensure that 85 percent of students in a class are among the top 40 percent of students in Hong Kong.
Read more here: http://www.thestandard.com.hk/news_detail.asp?pp_cat=30&art_id=76781&sid=22172385&con_type=1
Report Suggests Georgia Lags in Teaching English to Language Learners
Georgia is among 20 states where the number of English language learners in schools more than doubled between 1995 and 2005. A report released today by Education Week suggests the state is not keeping up with other parts of the country to help them become proficient in the language.
The report shows that in the 2006-2007 school year, fewer than 6 percent attained language proficiency, compared with a 17 percent national average. And a smaller percentage were making progress toward proficiency than the national average, too.
Read more here: http://publicbroadcasting.net/wabe/news.newsmain?action=article&ARTICLE_ID=1454365§ionID=1
Teaching English should take priority
“New teachers finding their way,” (Sunday article) and what’s good and bad about the accompanying photos: The good is the obviously earnest, intent and attractive Port Chester kindergarten teacher with her lucky class; the bad is the scheduling of Spanish in the morning and English in the afternoon.
It should be the reverse, with more time spent in the morning emphasizing English, and Spanish in the afternoon. Moreover, why should many children whose native language is Spanish need further instruction in that language?
Read more here: http://lohud.com/article/20090108/OPINION/901080359/-1/SPORTS
The Truth About Teaching English in Foreign Countries #4: The Knitting Circle
When I first entered this field, I wish somebody would have warned me about the various lions dens I would be entering. Of course, I was naive not to consider the politics of a foreign education system.
Many people begin teaching in schools where they forget about how long their coworkers may have been teaching there. Some teachers have been there as long as 20, 30, even 40 years. Furthermore, as in most cultures, the majority of these teachers are women who have been sharing an office, possibly for too long.
Read more here: http://www.bloggernews.net/119334
Good teaching is a talent
What makes a good teacher? Knowledge of subject is only a partial answer. Much more is required: A good teacher simplifies the complex, enlivens dry or dull material. And, even where subject matter is difficult to master, the good teacher instills an eagerness to meet the challenge.
You must have been blessed with a few such guiding angels as you climbed the learning ladder. They are the ones who made the difficult seem easy and the dry stuff come alive in the classroom.
If you listen to some politicians who continually use public education as their favorite vote-getting whipping boy, the answer lies in merely making sure teachers become better educated.
Read more here: http://www.mercurynews.com/alamedacounty/ci_11409277?nclick_check=1
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