In places like Afghanistan, most children do not go to school and the ones that do often attend small fundamentalist religious schools. Those children lucky enough to have families willing to send them receive a less than stellar education; 25% of the teachers are illiterate.
Even with incredible tools like the solar-powered XO laptop, designed specifically for children in the developing world, trying to find qualified teachers in places where most of the adults are no more educated than the children is a daunting task.
You can’t simply give a laptop to a child and expect them to learn on their own… can you?
Nepal
Philippines
Pakistan
Sierra Leone
OLPC tried it and as it turns out, you can. Not only do the children teach themselves how to read and write, 50% of them also teach their parents how to read and write.
The key to a better world, says Nicholas Negroponte, founder of One Laptop Per Child, is to “use the kids as agents of change.”
A simple laptop can give disadvantaged children in remote areas an understanding of the outside word, creating a more educated, hopeful, and tolerant global population.
You can earn donations to help educate children in developing countries by supporting One Laptop Per Child on SocialVibe.
For many of us, the idea of being hit on the behind by a teacher for misbehaving in class is almost unfathomable. Still, it’s legal (and not uncommon) in 20 US states.
Minority students and children with special needs are more than twice as likely to be hit by teachers.
Congresswoman Carolyn McCarthy of New York wants to put an end to it. She’s proposing an act that would ban any form of corporal punishment in public schools and private schools that receive federal funding.
"The bottom line is that if we don't allow beatings in prisons or in mental institutions, then it's time we stop allowing it in our schools."
Many argue that paddling is an import disciplinary tool when all else fails, but others are outraged by the idea and claim that the potential long-term effects are not worth the immediate result. According to a child’s health guide by Children's Hospital Boston:
"The more children are spanked, the more anger they report as adults, the more likely they are to spank their own children, and the more likely they are to approve of hitting a spouse. Spanking is also associated with higher rates of physical aggression, more substance abuse, and an increased risk of crime and violence when older children and adolescents are spanked.”
On the other side of the argument is Memphis City School Board member, Kenneth Whalum Jr. who is pushing for the return of corporal punishment in his district.
"The problem in Memphis, like many other large, poor and urban school districts, is that poverty creates an insurmountable boundary against a child receiving a well-rounded education. When you remove the ability for the school to discipline students, as they did in the old days, you are creating a system that serves to undermine students' progress in school."
Do you have a silly human trick? It could be your ticket to Vegas! Animals like elephants don’t enjoy doing tricks; they perform out of fear (see this previous post). We humans however are constantly coming up with cool new ways to entertain each other!
Cirque du Soleil
Unwilling performer
Willing Cirque du Soleil performers
There are lots of great shows (even circuses) that entertain without abusing animals. Cirque du Soleil is a great one and peta2 wants to give you tickets to check it out… in Las Vegas!
Want to get your hands on those tickets? We thought so. Here’s how:
1. Record a short vid of yourself performing a trick
California judge, Vaughn Walker has declared California’s Prop 8 unconstitutional, saying that it “does nothing more than enshrine in the California Constitution, the notion that opposite-sex couples are superior to same-sex couples.”
Governor Schwarzenegger released a statement in support of the decision, saying:
"Today's decision is by no means California's first milestone, nor our last, on America's road to equality and freedom for all people."
The Proposition, which banned same-sex marriage was passed in November of 2008 but did not invalidate any marriage performed before it’s passage.
Judge Vaughn has not decided whether or not same-sex marriages can be performed yet since the case is likely to be appealed immediately by opponents.
While many argue that same-sex marriage damages the sanctity of marriage, opponents of Prop 8 point to divorce rates and argue that even convicted rapists and murders have the right to marry from jail if they so choose, and (even if you think it’s gross) a 19-year-old can legally marry a 99-year-old. Why should law-abiding, productive members of society be singled out because of their sexual preferences?
Back in June, two of the richest men in the world, Bill Gates and Warren Buffett, announced their mission to
convince every billionaire in the US to pledge at least 50% of their wealth to charity. Now, 38 more have joined them in an effort to make the largest charitable impact in history.
Gates and Buffett
You can’t help but be inspired by the grace and generosity shown by this group of people. Some were born into privileged families, and some worked hard for every penny, but all share the same sentiment: sharing what you don’t need with those who need it desperately is a moral obligation.
The current average donated by the super rich is 10-12% but Buffet says that when you’ve accumulated that much money, you can easily afford to give upwards of 90% without having to give up anything you could possibly want. He’s personally pledged 99%.
Joining Buffett and Gates are Barry Diller, creator of Fox Broadcasting, and wife, designer Diane Von Furstenberg, George Lucas (yes, as in Star Wars), and Michael Bloomberg, Mayor of New York City and the 8th wealthiest person in the US. Barron Hilton (Paris’s grandpa) is also on the list, having already pledged 97% of his wealth back in 2007.
Ted Turner, founder of CNN, who donated the first billion dollars to start the UN Foundation signed up too, saying that his charitable donations have been the best investments he’s ever made.
“Those dollars have improved lives, saved species, fought disease, educated children, inspired change, challenged ideas and opened minds.”
Bill Gates strongly believes that making sure the world’s wealthiest citizens are aware of how the poorest live is the key to creating change on a grand scale. “If we were aware, we would want to help out, we'd want to get involved.”
Although they are focusing on reaching out to fellow billionaires, they emphasize that they are inspired by people of all means and backgrounds and encourage everyone to give what they can, be it money or time.
With the money donated by these millionaires, and some time (and maybe a bit more money) donated by the rest of us, the world could end up looking like a much different and more hopeful place.
Have kids? The vast majority of these billionaires say that they learned about the importance of giving by watching their parents help others.
You can see the full list and read the billionaires’ personal statements at givingpledge.org
The FBI is demanding that Wikipedia remove their seal from the Bureau’s entry. Wikipedia seems amused. They say that the FBI is twisting the law, and although they find that “entertaining,” they will not be complying.
'Problematic'
The FBI says that having the seal displayed is “problematic” since anyone could use it to impersonate an agent and break the law. They pointed to a statute that they say makes Wikipedia legally obligated to remove the pic. Unfortunately, they left out a few key words when sending it over to Wikipedia's general counsel.
Also unfortunate for the FBI is the fact that Wiki is far from the only place to find a picture of that seal - seriously, google it. Actually, we did that for you.
A quick Google search returns about 84,000 images of the seal
Wikipedia (The Wikimedia Foundation) says that even if someone did find a way to break the law with an image copied from them, they’re not the ones breaking the law and any way you slice it, “problematic” is not illegal.
“Entertainingly, in support for your argument, you included a version of 701 in which you removed the very phrases that subject the statute to ejusdem generis analysis. While we appreciate your desire to revise the statute to reflect your expansive vision of it, the fact is that we must work with the actual language of the statute, not the aspirational version of Section 701 that you forwarded to us… In short, then, we are compelled as a matter of law and principle to deny your demand.”
What do you think of the response? If the case goes to court, which side do you think will win?
Last week, school board members in Wake County, North Carolina voted 5 to 4 to eliminate busing, a move that many say is the beginning of resegregation.
Since 2000, Wake County students have been assigned to schools based on making sure that each school had students from a variety of economic backgrounds.
Parents have complained about their children having to travel long distances, spending extended periods of time each day on bus rides to help create diversity. They argue that their children should be able to attend school in their own neighborhoods and that all that time spent traveling each day would be better spent learning.
Opponents of the move say that convenience is no reason to end busing and that the current system creates the most equitable situation for all children.
Image by Rex Babin
In places where neighborhoods are often (unofficially) racially segregated, attending school with students from all backgrounds prepares children for life in a multicultural world and allows them to form relationships with children they might never come across in their own communities.
There are people of both races on each side. While some argue that all children benefit from diverse environments, others point to studies showing that segregation still exists within racially “diverse” schools, with black students being more that 50% more likely to be sent to “special needs” classes and advanced classes being dominated by white students.
They contend that those students would be better served at schools where black students would dominate all classes, including the advanced ones, even if it means segregation.
Still, it’s difficult to attract high quality teachers to poor schools and busing ensures that no school in the county is dominated by students from poor families.
According to Gary Orfield, co-director of the Civil Rights Project at UCLA,
” The South had the most racially integrated schools in the nation after the civil rights efforts of the late 1960s, but it’s going backwards fast now.”
The Supreme Court decided in 2007 that public school districts could not use race as a deciding factor in assigning students to schools but economic diversity has been used as a means of creating racial diversity.
The primary goal here is to provide a quality education for all children, regardless of which school they attend or which race is most prevalent in the classrooms.
The next 15 months will be spent creating a plan that the board believes will best serve students in all neighborhoods. Melanie Smollin at TakePart makes a great point:
“After all, for America to achieve its fullest potential, every child needs a fair shot at reaching his own.”
Do you think they’ll be able to devise a plan that will benefit children from all neighborhoods?
