Giving freshmen a peace of mind; N. Texas leads way in separate schools for crucial 9th-grade year

Sunday, August 19, 2001 Page 1A Giving freshmen a peace of mind N. Texas leads way in separate schools for crucial 9th-grade year By Joshua Benton Staff Writer When they arrive for the first day of school, high school freshmen are worried about finding their lockers, navigating the cafeteria and not getting lost on the […]

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Ratings improve for area schools; DISD reduces low performers; Highland Park, Carroll, Sunnyvale earn exemplary ratings

Friday, August 17, 2001 Page 1A Ratings improve for area schools DISD reduces low performers Highland Park, Carroll, Sunnyvale earn exemplary ratings By Terrence Stutz and Joshua Benton Staff Writers Buoyed by higher test scores, Dallas-Fort Worth area schools climbed higher up the state’s accountability charts, according to the Texas Education Agency’s annual report card. […]

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State’s dropout rate continues to fall, but data controversial; Critics say accounting system is flawed, problem much worse

Friday, August 17, 2001 Page 25A State’s dropout rate continues to fall, but data controversial Critics say accounting system is flawed, problem much worse By Joshua Benton Staff Writer The Texas Education Agency reported Thursday that the state’s annual dropout rate had declined from 1.6 percent to 1.3 percent in the last year, continuing a […]

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Recruiting the future of education; Students learn joy of teaching at A&M system’s summer camps

Monday, July 23, 2001 Page 1A Recruiting the future of education Students learn joy of teaching at A&M system’s summer camps By Joshua Benton Staff Writer COMMERCE – “I want you all to close your eyes.” Gwen Boyter, an education professor at Texas A&M-Commerce, is talking to about 45 high school students. They do as […]

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Fun in the sum; Here’s the problem: How to keep kids from forgetting math skills during break

Thursday, July 12, 2001 Page 1A Fun in the sum Here’s the problem: How to keep kids from forgetting math skills during break By Joshua Benton Staff Writer When Lawrence Seidman’s two children were on summer break from elementary school, he could almost see their math skills slipping away. “They were losing some every day, […]

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Summer TAAS puts heat on test-takers; 20,000 hope to pass exams this week

Sunday, July 8, 2001 Page 1A Summer TAAS puts heat on test-takers 20,000 hope to pass exams this week By Joshua Benton Staff Writer Anxiety about passing the Texas Assessment of Academic Skills is part of being young in Texas. Students worry about everything from acing long division to filling in the bubbles on their […]

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Yes, she can: 21-year-old overcomes odds to get diploma

By Joshua Benton Staff Writer Page 17A When Angelica Vega dropped off her son, Arnulfo, at kindergarten each morning, the boy sometimes became confused. “I’d tell him, ‘Mama’s going to school,’” Ms. Vega said. “He’d say, ‘You go to school, too, Mama?’ Then, at night, we’d do our homework side by side.” Ms. Vega, 21, […]

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Teachers, students voice frustration with DISD; Informal survey reveals hopes and concerns

By Joshua Benton Staff Writer Page 1A The state comptroller’s report on Dallas schools starts with 908 pages of financial analysis and management critiques. It ends with 120 pages of voices from the classroom. Stuck in appendixes at the end of the two-volume document are the complaints and concerns of more than 2,000 11th- and […]

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Dwindling incentive: Less pay has fewer teachers pursuing master’s degrees

By Joshua Benton Staff Writer Page 13A For decades, it has been a deal that teachers have been willing to make. They invest time and money to earn a master’s degree. In exchange, they get prestige, better teaching skills and higher pay. But in Texas, fewer teachers are agreeing to the bargain as the incentives […]

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Dallas County could see truancy courts by the fall

By Joshua Benton Staff Writer Page 29A Dallas County is working to create four courts that will handle the thousands of truancy cases generated each year by chronically absent Dallas schoolchildren, officials said. The new courts, two of which could debut as soon as October, will be designed to ensure that truancy cases are heard […]

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