Yahoo! News: Education News

Harsh Lesson of Diverse Schools: Minority Kids Learn They're Being Short-Changed
The Surprising Reason Girls in Pakistan Are Getting Obama’s Attention
Why a remote Idaho school is arming teachers with guns
College students invent wheelchair that moves like a Segway and climbs stairs
Marketing and Communication Programs in Business School a Draw for Women
eBook subscription service Epic! is bringing books to kids
SF mayor announces plan to provide affordable housing for teachers

Harsh Lesson of Diverse Schools: Minority Kids Learn They're Being Short-Changed

Posted: 22 Oct 2015 04:33 PM PDT

Now a Columbia University sociologist has found that integrating urban public schools can not only help minority kids succeed in the classroom but also be a powerful factor in raising those students' awareness of racial and economic inequality. Studies have shown that low-income students who are educated in better-funded schools or more financially integrated communities tend to perform better than their peers stuck in high-poverty, under-resourced schools, said Carla Shedd, author of the new book Unequal Cities: Race, Schools and Perceptions of Injustice. For her book, Shedd interviewed middle school–age public school students from some of Chicago's poorest communities.

The Surprising Reason Girls in Pakistan Are Getting Obama’s Attention

Posted: 22 Oct 2015 04:21 PM PDT

Malala would be proud: Though his daughter Malia will be headed off to college soon, President Barack Obama is focusing on making education a possibility for hundreds of thousands of Pakistani girls. After meeting with Pakistan's Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif this morning, Obama announced a joint plan to provide 200,000 Pakistani girls with equal access to education. The campaign follows the recent launch of First Lady Michelle Obama's "Better Make Room" campaign, which is geared toward inspiring American teens to pursue higher education.

Why a remote Idaho school is arming teachers with guns

Posted: 22 Oct 2015 02:15 PM PDT

Elsewhere in the state, public schools are trying it. A small school district in Garden Valley, Idaho, decided to arm school employees last summer. "We just have to protect our kids and we didn't want to do it in a haphazard way," Marc Gee, Garden Valley School District superintendent, told KBOI News.

College students invent wheelchair that moves like a Segway and climbs stairs

Posted: 22 Oct 2015 07:22 AM PDT

Scientists are still trying to figure out how to restore full locomotion to patients who have suffered debilitating accidents that forced into wheelchairs. But until procedures that can reconnect the brain to lower limbs become widely available, other researchers are studying ways to improve life in a wheelchair. One of the obstacles to overcome is obviously stairs, and a team of inspiring students from Switzerland built an amazing electric wheelchair that can climb stairs by itself. DON'T MISS: Report says iPhone 7 may feature Apple's most dramatic design changes ever Called the Scalevo, the device in the following video was developed by 10 students from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology and the Zurich University of the Arts. "The great thing is that everything

Marketing and Communication Programs in Business School a Draw for Women

Posted: 22 Oct 2015 06:00 AM PDT

Unlike MBA programs that are often male-dominated, specialized master's degree programs in marketing and communications at business schools attract a large percentage of women. In 2015, 60 percent of programs saw an increase in applications from women -- a higher increase than for most other specialized master's degrees, according to a September report from the Graduate Management Admission Council. Experts say marketing programs can be especially enticing options for women eager to hone their business skills because they will be surrounded by role models and peers who share their interests.

eBook subscription service Epic! is bringing books to kids

Posted: 21 Oct 2015 06:22 PM PDT

If the true power of digitization lies in expansion of access, then children's eBook subscription service Epic! has struck gold. Today, less than two years after its initial launch, the company announced that more than 10 million books have been read on the Epic! platform, and with a library that is growing every day, this number and perhaps children's interest in reading will continue to burgeon. With instant access to over 10,000 books with a $4.99 monthly subscription, parents are being afforded brand new ways to bring an enormous and high-quality digital library into the comfort of their own homes. And today, Epic! also added 500 Spanish and bilingual Spanish/English books to its library, further broadening the young horizons of our posterity. "Spanish is the most popular non-English language in the U.S., and one of the fastest-growing languages worldwide," noted Epic! CEO Suren Markosian. "Epic!'s new library of high-quality Spanish and bilingual Spanish/English books will allow Spanish speakers and those with a desire to learn Spanish instant access to these books as part of Epic!'s unlimited library." Related : Read these tea leaves to see if the signs point toward a career in computer science Better still, the platform has also added 1,000 new audiobooks so that children can consume literature in all different forms — "We know from research how important it is for children to hear spoken language and have stories read to them," Markosian added. "Audiobooks allow a child to listen and imagine as the story takes shape in their mind." With more than 2 million books read last month alone and more than 100,000 books being read every day, Epic! is certainly helping shape the stories of kids across the country. And perhaps more importantly, the platform is reinvigorating an interest in reading that seemed to be losing ground to games, television, and other forms of media. But a number of parents have noted that Epic! has helped bring books back to the entertainment forefront. "My child is now choosing to read on the iPad instead of playing games because of Epic!," one proud mama wrote. Another called Epic! a "godsend" for parents who don't have time to run to the library, find new and interesting books, and potentially incur late fees. And it isn't just parents who are benefiting from the epic service at Epic! In a program called Epic! for Educators, the company offers an entire library's worth of books to elementary school teachers and librarians across the U.S. and Canada, all for free. As the company points out, given the shrinking library and education budgets in many public schools across school districts, this service allows for unparalleled access both in and out of the classroom. So get Epic! and get your child reading.