School Survival

The father of a 12-year-old boy paddled by a coach last week at Murfreesboro Schools has taken the matter to the police, and the case has been turned over to the deputy prosecuting attorney for consideration, according to Murfreesboro Police Chief Mark Barnes.Barnes said the boy's father is claiming that excessive force by assistant coach […]

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - An Anderson County teenager has filed a lawsuit over her temporary dismissal from a weightlifting class by a principal who feared male students might try to rape her.Anderson County High School has asked a federal magistrate to dismiss the $1 million sex discrimination suit by student Ambrea Phillips and her father."There's […]

WINFIELD, Kan. (AP) - Two students are accused of putting staples in ketchup at the Winfield high school and middle schools - an incident that has school officials reviewing their kitchen-access policy.Officials were alerted after two students eating lunch found the staples in their food Wednesday. Food service workers found more staples in the bottom […]

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) - A 5-foot-long boa constrictor caught slithering around a middle school had some help getting to class. His owner, a student at Wooddale Middle School, smuggled the reptile in his backpack on Thursday. The student, who was not identified by school officials, was disciplined.Boa constrictors, which squeeze their prey to kill, are […]

HOLLYWOOD, Fla. (AP) - A sticky situation at a school has come unglued. Police on Wednesday arrested two teenagers who they believe broke into their school last week and put glue in all the door locks.The teens, whose names are being withheld because of their age, were charged with burglary and criminal mischief, police spokesman […]

When Polish student Michael Gromek, 19, went to America on a student exchange, he found himself trapped in a host family of Christian fundamentalists. What followed was a six-month hell of dawn church visits and sex education talks as his new family tried to banish the devil from his soul. Here's his story.Editor's Note: The […]

WILDOMAR -- A claim that a preschooler was hit with a stick as a form of corporal punishment at Bundy Canyon Christian School has prompted an investigation of the private campus by social service workers and the Riverside County Sheriff's Department, officials said Monday.With parent permission, the private campus may dole out discipline in the […]

We've all read the stories about medicating hyperactive (ADHD) kids. The controversy shows no signs of ending, as parents and doctors debate the merits of diagnosing and medicating children at younger and younger ages. Chris Mercogliano has a strong opinion on the matter, and he enters the debate as an educator. In Teaching the Restless, […]

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) -- New Zealand's high school students will be able to use "text-speak" -- the mobile phone text message language beloved of teenagers -- in national exams this year, officials said.Text-speak, a second language for thousands of teens, uses abbreviated words and phrases such as "txt" for "text", "lol" for "laughing out […]

SEATTLE, Washington (AP) -- Microsoft Corp. Chairman Bill Gates said Monday that the U.S. higher education system is the envy of the world but primary and secondary schools are failing to adequately prepare students for college.In an interview with The Associated Press, Gates said the experience of being a parent of three kids -- ages […]