News & Views
NEWS & VIEWS - JUNE 2006
Jun 2, 2006, 12:23
ADHD LINKED TO ADULT ANTISOCIAL BEHAVIOR
(March 2006) Crime Times reported that a long-term study by Joseph Biederman and colleagues reinforces earlier findings that damaging effects of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, last well into early adulthood.
PARENTING: CAUSE OR EFFECT OF MISBEHAVIOR?
(March 2006) Crime Times reported that a cornerstone of sociological theories about adolescent behavioral problems is that they stem from poor parenting. However, a new study, Does problem behavior elicit poor parenting? A prospective study of adolescent girls, published in the Journal of Adolescent Research, Vol. 21, No. 2, March 2006, indicates that parenting styles are typically a response to, rather than a cause of, teenage girls' misbehavior. More..
AUSTRALIA/ NEW ZEALAND HOME SCHOOLING
(April 9, 2006) Time South Pacific Magazine reported that an Australian analysis suggests the home schooling figure is about 10,000 to 20,000 kids. New Zealand shows that roughly 6,000 home schooling parents receive a government allowance of up to $NZ743 for each child they educate themselves.
IS HIGH-TECH BULLYING ON THE RISE?
(April 11, 2006) USA Today reported researchers in small-scale study at the American Educational Research Association surveyed 65 girls, ages 15-18, in an upscale Sacramento suburb in 2004. Researchers found that these self-identified female bullies most often text-messaged harassment by cell phone, preferring it nearly two to one over email, websites and instant messaging. About 45 percent had been victims of cyber-bullying. More...
COMPUTERS VS. ACHIEVEMENT
(April 11, 2006) USA today reported that a Tennessee study found that schools serving low-income children had more computers than typical schools. However, research shows using computers to teach reading in primary grades may actually have negative results.
SPATIAL LITERACY RECOMMENDED
(April 12, 2006) eSchool News Online reported that the National Research Council of the National Academy of Sciences, recommends an emphasis on Spatial Literacy in the K-12 curriculum. Since the lack of systematic instruction is creating "a major blind spot in the American educational system," spatial thinking is becoming increasingly important to technical society. More...
THERAPIST ACCUSED IN SEXUAL ASSAULT
(April 19, 2006) WNBC.com reported that therapist, Nadelias Perez, 30, of Mount Laurel, NJ, is accused of sexual assault and endangering the welfare of a 15-year-old boy. Perez was reportedly counseling the boy at the Therapeutic Live-in Center in Camden, said Bill Shralow, a spokesman for the Camden County Prosecutor's Office. More...
MALE GRADUATION RATE LOW
(April 19, 2006) The Baltimore Sun reported that a new Manhattan Institute study Leaving Boys Behind: Public High School Graduation Rates, illustrated that 72 percent of girls graduated nationwide in contrast to just 65 percent of boys in 2003. More...
US ATTORNEY GENERAL PROPOSES WEB LABELING
(April 20, 2006) CNET News.com reported the US Attorney General has proposed that website operators posting sexually explicit information must place official government warning labels on their pages. A mandatory rating system will "prevent people from inadvertently stumbling across pornographic images on the Internet," Attorney General Alberto Gonzales said. More...
TEENS CHARGED WITH PLANNING ATTACK
(April 24, 2006) The Associated Press reported that authorities charged five teenage boys with threatening to carry out a shooting spree at their high school on the anniversary of the Columbine bloodbath. Police arrested the teens after a message about the alleged plot appeared on the website Myspace.com. More...
POLICE PATROL SCHOOL
(April 24, 2006) The Associated Press reported that since the arrest of six seventh-grade boys who allegedly plotted to attack students at the North Pole Middle School, police plan to patrol the halls. Officials said the police presence is intended to help students and parents feel safe about returning to the school. On April 23, 2006, the Washington Post reported the six boys were arrested for allegedly bringing guns and knives to school.
SLAIN MOTHER WAS TIRED OF SON
(April 26, 2006) The Washington Post reported according to police sources, there were signs that indicated Katrina Powe may have physically abused her 12-year-old son who police arrested for the double murder of his mother and younger brother. According to the story, Powe was thinking about sending the boy away as she had done before because she was fed up. On April 24, 2006, an Associated Press article on MSN.com reported that a neighbor described the boy as having a volatile temper.
EPIDEMIC OF PSYCHIATRIC DIAGNOSES
(April 26, 2006) EducationNews.org reported that author Fred A. Baughman Jr., MD, filled his new book The ADHD Fraud: How Psychiatry Makes "Patients" Out of Normal Children, with real life case studies of children harmed by a diagnosis of ADHD. Baughman describes the evolution of the epidemic as well as the creation of Ritalin and its history as a drug in search of a disease.
STUDY FINDS TEN CHILD ARCHETYPES
(April 26, 2006) The Weekend Australian reported that researchers at James Cook University discovered 10 different child "typologies," which group the behavior of children and the adult perceptions of them into distinct archetypes. Reesa Sorin and Greta Galloway researched popular fiction and history books to find recurring themes in how children are perceived and presented.
GREAT DISTRACTION MYTH & ADHD CHILDREN
(April 27, 2006) Tellman Knudson, a practitioner working with adults and children with ADD and ADHD, writes that it is a mistake to take distractions away from the ADD/ ADHD child. However, when you give them more things to do by adding distractions and creating a more stimulating environment, it occupies the areas of the brain that demand stimulation and the child is in their element; he/ she really shines and is better able to accomplish something. More...
OHIO BAR THREATENS TO FINE PARENTS
(April 27, 2006) The Plain Dealer reported the Cleveland Bar Association is threatening to fine the parents of an autistic boy $10,000 for not hiring a lawyer when they brought, and largely won, a court case on their son's behalf four years ago. The Bar charged the parents with unauthorized practice of law because they did not hire an attorney to fight the court case on their son's behalf. The Ohio Supreme Court will ultimately decide the case.
PARENTAL VALUES VERSUS PUBLIC SCHOOLS
(April 27, 2006) The Boston Globe reported on the conflict parents' face when choosing between private and public education for their children. Massachusetts Lieutenant Governor, Kerry Healey, a gubernatorial candidate, explained why she and her husband decided to place their children in a private school, after another candidate challenged her on the issue.
IDAHO DETECTIVE AGENCY OFFERS YOUTH TRANSPORT
(April 28, 2006) Steven A. De Gon, President of the Idaho Detective Agency, Post Falls, ID, 877-457-9574, announced they offer youth transportation services at "very cost effective rates."
WOMEN BEST MEN IN COLLEGE, BUT NOT SALARY
(April 28, 2006) The Miami Herald reported that despite the national trend and success in college, women still fall behind men on salary after graduation. According to the article, women make up an ever-growing majority of the graduating classes in South Florida colleges and universities, and even more of those women are graduating at the top of the class.
MEXICAN PRESIDENT REFUSES TO SIGN DRUG BILL
(April 28, 2006) San Diego.com reported that Mayor Jerry Sanders, San Diego, CA, called the Mexican Senate's approval of a bill to decriminalize possession and personal use of small amounts of marijuana, ecstasy, cocaine and heroin, "appallingly stupid, reckless and incredibly dangerous." On May 3, 2006, an Associated Press story in the Washington Post reported that Mexico's President Vicente Fox refused to sign the bill into law.
ANALYSIS FINDS TUTORING DIDN'T PAY OFF
(April 28, 2006) The Star Tribune reported that a new district analysis scrutinized the dominant provider of required after-school tutoring in Minneapolis, MN. According to the story, the provider did not produce any better reading gains for students in tutoring than those who skipped tutoring last year. Under the federal "No Child Left Behind law," public school districts must offer tutoring to all students.
JUDGE PROPOSES YOUTH MENTOR PROGRAM
(April 29, 2006) The Brownsville Herald reported Cameron County Judge Gilberto Hinojosa is proposing a faith-based youth mentoring program to help keep kids out of the Darrell B. Hester Juvenile Justice Center. "These programs really work as long as you put time and effort into it. You can help so many kids stay out of places like the juvenile justice center."
http://www.brownsvilleherald.com/ts_more.php?id=70509_0_10_0_C
THE TROUBLE WITH BOY TALK
(April 30, 2006) The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported that numerous experts on teens, gender issues and sexuality, believe our "just say anything" culture normalizes the trash talk of Howard Stern and "South Park," crossed with the language of ESPN and sports talk radio. Dr. Michael Kimmel, professor of sociology at SUNY Stony Brook, and an expert on masculinity, said, "this kind of verbal violence toward women is part of the guy culture today, one that young boys are pressured to be a part of lest they be thought less than manly."
DO SUICIDES SHOW SCHOOL STRESS?
(May 1, 2006) The Washington Post reported mental health experts say that it is rarely one thing that prompts someone to kill themselves. More often, a complex set of pressures leads teenagers to feel as if they have no alternative to suicide. Mental health experts say the key to prevention is creating an environment where kids feel comfortable talking about what is on their minds.
CLD HOSTS 28TH CONFERENCE
(May 1, 2006) The Council for Learning Disabilities (CLD), Mount Pleasant, SC, 843-971-2980, is hosting the 28th International Conference on Learning Disabilities on October 20-22, 2006, at the Hilton McLean Tysons Corner, McLean, VA.
PROBE CHRONICLES ABUSE IN ROMANIA
(May 11, 2006) The Washington Post Foreign Service reported that a US advocacy group inspected several hospitals in Romania and found that institutionalized children were continuing to be abused.
RECLAIMING YOUTH CONFERENCE DATES
(May 1, 2006) Larry Brendtro, PhD, Founder, Reclaiming Youth International, Lennox, SD, 800-647-5244, announced the dates for the this year's Reclaiming Youth Conference, titled The Resilience Revolution, are June 24-27, 2006, in Rapid City, SD.
IVY BOUND TEST PREP OFFERS TUTORING
(May 2, 2006) Ivy Bound Test Prep tutors can help students maximize their SAT test scores. The website offers free practice tests as well as other helpful resources for students looking to raise their SAT test scores.
STUDENTS USING IM - EMAIL OUTDATED
(May 3, 2006) eSchool News online reported NetDay's third annual "Speak Up" survey, sponsored by Dell, Inc. and the BellSouth Foundation, found that about 65 percent of students in grades 6-12 said they use email or Instant Messenger (IM) every day. However, the survey results reveal that students are much more likely to use IM to communicate with each other than email.
PROGRAM TO COMBAT GEOGRAPHIC ILLITERACY
(May 4, 2006) eSchool News online reported the National Geographic is leading a new multimedia campaign to boost the geographic literacy of students with a new web site, MyWonderfulWorld.org. The site provides resources for parents and teachers to help kids become more geo-savvy because according to the statistics from the Roper Poll, for example, 6 out of 10 students couldn't find Iraq on a map of the Middle East despite it being a major news item for years.
DUKE UNIVERSITY: IMPORTANCE OF MORAL ED
(May 5, 2006) The Canon City Daily Record Opinion page reported Duke is relearning a key lesson: No education is complete without character education. At Duke, the public shame brought about by the antics of its lacrosse team may bring it back to teaching the basis for all other learning.
GUARDS SUFFOCATED BOY AT BOOT CAMP
(May 5, 2006) The Associated Press reported the findings of a second autopsy on Martin Lee Anderson, 14, conflict with the initial ruling from a different medical examiner. The first medical examiner reported that the boy died from complications of sickle cell trait, a usually benign blood disorder. The second medical examiner found the boy died from suffocation at the juvenile boot camp.
VIDEO CAN DISTORT THE CHILD BRAIN
(May 6, 2006) The Ledger-Enquirer reported infants and toddlers should not watch television, said Michael Gurian, a therapist, educator and author of the best-selling book The Wonder of Boys. "Viewing these programs does not let the toddler brain develop the way it should. It forces the brain to move too fast from image to image."
DIFFERENT DRUG REHAB PROGRAMS
(May 8, 2006) RuralNorthwest.com reported a press release that compared Drug Rehab Programs using Behavioral Modification, Long-Term Religious methods and Biophysical methods, rather than just the 12-Step method, for drug and alcohol recovery.