NPR Education
Hands-On Kids' Museums Make Learning Fun
Immersion and interaction are the name of the game at children's museums around the country. NPR's Neda Ulaby visited WaterWays in San Jose and the Dinosphere in Indianapolis to see the next generation of kids' museums firsthand.
Historically Black College Fights To Stay Alive
Morris Brown College may not open its doors to students in the spring. The historically black college in Atlanta faces mounting bills as students, parents and faculty weigh an uncertain future. Stanley Pritchet, the school's acting president, discusses the crisis at Morris Brown.
Black Colleges Seek Shelter From Economic Storm
The financial woe faced by Morris Brown College is just the latest example of how a wounded economy creates serious challenges for higher education in America, and the nation's Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) are no exception. Many of the schools already operate with limited resources. Hear analysis on the financial health of America's black colleges.
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A Family Grows When Both Parents Deploy
Life can be tough for any family when one parent deploys to Iraq or Afghanistan. But what happens when both Mom and Dad go to war at the same time? The Doney family found a creative solution.
Blue Man Group Creates High-Tech NYC Preschool
The founders of the quirky Blue Man Group trio have opened a preschool in New York's East Village with a padded room, climbing wall and light floor with high-tech games. The Blue School — at up to $27,000 a year — is an experiment to help kids explore "divergent thinking."
Why Are Spanish Schools So Behind?
Spanish schoolchildren have consistently ranked near the bottom in comparisons of reading, math and science skills with those of other industrialized countries. Lately that's proving extremely problematic.
Museum Field Trips Tailored To Teach To The Test
School field trips are falling off the curriculum as teachers feel pressure to fill class time with basic skills. Museum directors are working to make their exhibits more field-trip friendly to lure teachers and students back from the classrooms.
A Master Bricklayer Preserves His Craft
Melvin Moore, 75, teaches beginner "brickies" this age-old craft. His masonry work can be seen at the Kennedy Center, the Library of Congress and buildings at nearly all the major universities in Washington, D.C.
Rod Blagojevich And The Poetry Slam
With his back against the wall, the Illinois governor turns to ... Rudyard Kipling? Turns out the English poet is a favorite of high-profile people in times of crisis.
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L.A. School Helps Kids By Forcing Them To Work
South Central Los Angeles has a nearly 50 percent dropout rate. At Verbum Dei High School, they're trying a new approach: requiring students to work part-time. The program seems to be working; in past years, every single student has gone on to college.
Chicago Schools Chief Is Obama Education Pick
President-elect Barack Obama has named Arne Duncan of Chicago as his secretary of Education, drafting a fellow Chicagoan who has been associated with innovations in that city's troubled schools. Obama said Duncan was a "hands-on" practitioner of school reform.
Duncan Appointment Examined
Before being named President-elect Barack Obama's Education secretary, Arne Duncan ran Chicago schools for seven years. Chester Finn, Jr., president of Thomas B. Fordham Institute, a Washington, D.C.-based, education think tank, offers his insight on the appointment.
Obama Looks To Chicago For Education Secretary
President-elect Obama announced Tuesday his pick for secretary of education, calling Chicago schools chief Arne Duncan a hands-on reformer with a proven record of success.
Education Secretary To Be Named Tuesday
President-elect Barack Obama is said to have chosen Chicago schools chief Arne Duncan to serve as education secretary. Duncan has run the country's third-biggest school district for the past seven years. He has focused on improving struggling schools, closing those that fail and getting better teachers.
Economist House Call: Graduates Seek Future
Phil and Jenn Sandifer are working on their dissertations at the University of Florida. They own their home but worry about what to do with it if they have to move for jobs. Economist Simon Johnson considers the wide-angle view of their situation.
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Chicago Schools Chief To Be Education Secretary
President-elect Obama is reported to have picked Chicago schools chief Arne Duncan to serve as his education secretary. Duncan, who has run Chicago schools for seven years, is known for his efforts to reform urban public education. An announcement is expected Tuesday.
Chicago Schools Chief To Head U.S. Education Dept.
President-elect Barack Obama has chosen Chicago schools chief Arne Duncan to serve as education secretary, NPR confirmed Monday. Obama planned to announce his choice Tuesday morning, according to two people with knowledge of his decision.
Teens See Themselves In Photos Of Immigrants
A group of teens in Los Angeles took cameras to tell stories of immigrants in America. For some students of first-generation immigrant families, this meant looking inward.
Students Respect Authori-tay Of 'South Park' Class
It takes more than activism or scholarly texts to get some young people really interested in debate about religion or social issues. For one college course, it takes some foul-mouthed fourth-graders who are leading authorities on everything politically incorrect.
Economic Downturn Hits Liberal Arts School
In the past few months, Washington College, a small liberal arts college on the bucolic eastern shore of Maryland, has seen almost $60 million sucked out of its $170 million endowment. The faculty, administration and students now wonder what the future holds.
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