Cheating in Atlanta Schools: Cover-Up Now Investigated

The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution states, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.” This amendment has protected the right of young American students to express themselves throughout history, even if what they have to say is not complimentary or even popular.

However, free speech has become muddied waters since the advent of online forms of expression. A court in Pennsylvania has proven that fact with two rulings that suggest the discussion is not over in regards to off-campus speech conducted over the Internet. We’ll take a look at both of these cases that have garnered much publicity in recent months, as well as the most recent rulings by the court. We’ll also consider the questions that were not answered by these landmark cases that leave schools and students unsure of how to move forward in the era of online expression.

What the 3^rd U.S. Court of Appeals Decided

According to a report in Wired, the Philadelphia-based 3^rd U.S. Court of Appeals heard two long-running cases this month involving the freedom of students to express their opinions online. Both of the students involved in these cases posted content on MySpace that mocked their principals. The students were both suspended by their schools for the content and

Gay-straight student alliances have been formed in schools for more than two decades. Still, many students face seemingly insurmountable odds in getting their extracurricular organizations accepted in the public school system. Schools across the country have tried to keep these clubs from forming despite an act that clearly states the rights of students of all types of sexual orientation. Recently, Education Secretary Arne Duncan sent a “Dear Colleagues” letter to school districts, reminding them of a law passed by the Reagan administration that allows LGBT students to organize clubs and alliances on school property. We will examine that letter, as well as the 1984 legislation that requires schools to treat all extracurricular activities equally regardless of race, religion, or sexual orientation.

The Problem for Gay-Straight Student Support Groups

According to an article in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the problem with gay-straight support groups in public schools came to the forefront of public policy in 2006 when White County High School in Georgia tried to ban a gay-straight alliance student club from forming at the school. The argument was taken to court, where Federal District Judge William C. O’Kelley wrote a 35-page decision that issued a permanent injunction requiring the school to allow the group to meet on its campus. However, this is not the first time a situation involving a gay-straight club was taken to court.

In 2000, Colin vs. Orange Unified School District also resulted in a ruling that required a school

Many schools around the country are failing to live up to academic expectations. Some are finding that the training of the teacher makes the difference in the quality of the education their students receive. Enter Teach for America – the education industry's equivalent of "boot camp" for aspiring teachers, providing the training and experience they need to succeed in even the most challenging academic environments. But is Teach for America really the knight on the white horse or a way to take the community out of the education process? This article will take a look at the pros and cons of this teacher training program.

This video explains the admissions process for Teach America.

What is Teach for America?

Teach for America started as an undergraduate thesis for Wendy Kopp during her studies at Princeton University. According to the organization's website, Kopp believed numerous college students would be willing to assume teaching positions over more lucrative careers if the proper training corps was in place to prepare them. During its inception year in 1990, Teach for America trained 500 men and women to teach in six low-income communities around the United States. Today, that number has grown to 28,000, making Teach for America the largest provider of teachers to low-income areas.

The approach taken by Teach for America is to train up a corps of teachers from over-achieving college students,

School districts are expected to perform at a particular level according to standards set at both the state and federal levels. When schools within that district fail to meet their expectations adequately over time, measures must be taken to ensure students get the quality of education they need to succeed. While most parents, educators, and lawmakers agree with this fundamental principle, the path to meeting those goals is often controversial. That is especially true when failing schools are met with a takeover by the state government – which is happening in many school districts today.

The Anatomy of a State Takeover

States do not take over schools overnight or because of one round of poor test scores. Many states have policies where schools cannot be touched until they have been on probation for an extended period, and their test scores have not improved significantly during that time. In most states explored in this article, school districts had as much as six years to turn around their academic achievement before the state government considered getting involved. However, even when schools have adequate time to reverse their poor performance levels, state takeovers of schools are not considered lightly, and many parents, students, educators, and lawmakers do not readily accept them.

When a state government does determine it is time to take control of a specific, low-performing school, that process can look different from state to state and even from school to school. The typical model is for the