education
For Parents of Children with Disabilities, A Question of How Much Is Enough
The U.S. Supreme Court is weighing a decision on whether public schools are doing enough to educate students with special needs. Under federal law, students with disabilities are entitled to a “free appropriate education.” At issue, however, is what constitutes “appropriate”. In Alabama, there are more than 83,000 children with special needs. And for the parents and educators of those children, meeting educational needs is often a struggle.
Alabama High School Grad Rates Inflated, Superintendent Says
“This is a black eye for the department and it makes the education system here look bad, and in some ways undeservedly so.”
Fighting Adult Illiteracy, One Reader at a Time
Imagine not being able to read an email from your family. Or a job application. Or medication labels. How about a simple road sign? Adult illiteracy is a complex, stubborn problem. Based on conservative estimates, in the five-county area around Birmingham alone, there are more than 90,000 adults who have trouble reading and writing. There are almost as many reasons as there are people.
What Can Finland Teach Alabama About Education?
Several decades ago, Finland’s education system was considered mediocre. But starting around 2001, it came to be regarded as a powerhouse, usually at or near the top of the world’s nations on internationally normed tests. How? And can those strategies work in Alabama?
State Board Taps Consultant for New Schools Chief
It took repeated tries, but today the state school board named Michael Sentance, a consultant and former Massachusetts Secretary of Education, its choice to be new Alabama Superintendent.
The Junction: Stories from Ensley, Alabama – Janice Houston Nixon
In 1967, 12-year-old Janice Houston Nixon decided to transfer from the all-black school in her native Ensley, to an all-white school nearby. Nixon was inspired to do so by her sister, integration pioneer Carolyn Houston Crumbley Major, who we profiled in a previous episode of The Junction: Stories from Ensley, Alabama. In this latest installment of the […]
The Junction: Stories From Ensley, Alabama – An Integration Pioneer
In 1965, Carolyn Houston Crumbley Major became the first African-American graduate of Ensley High School. Producer Mary Quintas spoke with Carolyn's son, Rafaael Crumbley, and sister, Janice Houston Nixon, about Carolyn's contributions as an integration pioneer - and what her legacy means today.
Birmingham Revitalization: The View from a City School
You could call schools the glue of a community. They're starting points for friendships and networks, and they affect property values and economic development. For our series on revitalization in Birmingham, WBHM's Dan Carsen returns to a redeveloping neighborhood to see how that's playing out in the local school.
Ala. Legislature Passes Ed Budget, Teacher Pay Raise
The Alabama state legislature today approved an education budget and a teacher pay raise. Conference committees approved the measures Thursday afternoon and Governor Robert Bentley has indicated his support. Assuming he signs the legislation, teachers and other educators making less than $75,000 per year, plus all principals and assistant principals, will get a four percent raise in fiscal […]
Education Superintendent Tommy Bice Ends 39-Year Public Education Career
Bice isn’t leaving the education field. He’s the new education director for Birmingham based Goodrich Foundation.
WBHM Reporter Dan Carsen Wins Award for Outstanding Coverage of Family Issues
Public Radio WBHM 90.3 FM’s Southern Education Desk reporter Dan Carsen has won the Council on Contemporary Families 2016 Award for Radio Coverage of Family Issues for his four-part series “Bilingual Education in the South.”
Trisha Powell Crain on Top Education Stories of 2015
This year has been extremely busy on the Alabama education beat: a study commissioned by the state education department itself called school funding inadequate and unequal; state Senate President Pro Tem Del Marsh floated a draft bill that could, among other seismic shifts, tie teacher pay to student test results; and, as Alabama School Connection’s Trisha […]
More than a Quarter of Alabama’s Children Live in Poverty, Report Finds
A new study shows that more than 26% of Alabama’s children are living at or below the poverty level. The 2015 Kids Count Data Book released this week by VOICES for Alabama’s Children provides a snapshot of well-being across several indicators including education, health and safety. “Well I think any time you’re talking about the […]
Issues and Ales Extra: How to Help Teachers
WBHM’s recent Issues and Ales forum delved into the future of education in Alabama. Panelist and Phillips Academy PTA president Jerry Tate took a moment away from the discussion to answer a simple question: “How can someone, who isn’t a teacher, support education?” Listen to excerpts from Issues and Ales: The Future of Education […]
Issues and Ales Extra: Best Teacher Advice
WBHM’s recent Issues and Ales forum delved into the future of education in Alabama. Panelist and Jemison High School teacher Brooke Elliott took a moment away from the discussion to answer a simple question: “What’s the best piece of advice you received about becoming a teacher?” Listen to excerpts from Issues and Ales: The […]
Issues & Ales: The Future of Education in Alabama
This year, the Alabama Legislature voted to allow charter schools in the state and expanded the Alabama Accountability Act. What does this mean for the future of Alabama’s public and private schools? Can public education adequately prepare all Alabama children for career success? Join WBHM for Issues & Ales: The Future of Education in Alabama, […]
Trisha Powell Crain Talks Money, Politics, and More in Alabama Education
There's never a shortage of stories coming from Alabama's schools. But before WBHM's and the Southern Education Desk's "Issues and Ales" education forum Thursday evening, we wanted to shed as much light as possible on the big picture behind the headlines. For better or worse, that backdrop always includes money and therefore politics. So our education reporter Dan Carsen sat down with Alabama School Connection founder and BirminghamWatch contributor Trisha Powell Crain to talk about that and more.
College Athletes Talk Tensions Between Sports and Academics
Across the South, college football is in full swing. But football is just one of dozens of NCAA sports. In any season, student-athletes are pushing themselves on the field, in the gym, and in the classroom. They get scholarships and generate billions of dollars, but they also get hurt and struggle with their studies on […]
Jennifer Hatchett of YouthServe Talks Youth Empowerment and Radio
Jennifer Hatchett is the Executive Director of Youthserve, a group that empowers youth leadership through community service. The students worked with WBHM this summer to produce their own radio stories. She talked with WBHM's Gina Yu about the program.
U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan Talks About Fixing No Child Left Behind Law
Sherrel Wheeler Stewart talks with U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan about education and the hurdles in passing the law this year.
In Football Country, Concussions Spark A Parental Dilemma
More and more people are learning about the risks contact sports pose to the brain. So even here in football-loving Alabama, parents and young athletes are wrestling with a serious dilemma, one that could affect them decades later: to play or not to play. To help parents facing that decision, WBHM’s Dan Carsen got some […]
Common Core: Challenges and Opposition
One of the hottest issues in State Houses this year was Common Core, national math and language arts standards released in 2010 and adopted by most states. According to the National Conference of State Legislators, this year more than 730 Common Core bills were introduced across the country, including 21 state proposals for repeal. This week, the Southern Education Desk examines why these public school standards are still so controversial in the South. Today Sherrel Wheeler Stewart from WBHM explains the roots of the opposition and the challenges the standards face.
Bilingual Ed in the South: Enormous Economic Consequences
Students who don’t speak English as their first language – or “language minorities” – rank toward the bottom in almost every measure of academic achievement. Moral and legal concerns aside, even if their population were to stop rising, the situation signifies a looming hit to the national and regional economies. This week we’ve been exploring […]
