February 19, 1997 - Another winter sports season is wrapping up for Minnesota high school teams. State tournaments in gymnastics, wrestling, hockey and basketball are just weeks away. But far from the noise and sweat of gymnasiums and ice arenas, other high school teams are also preparing for tournament competition. The Minnesota State High School Quiz Bowl tournament is scheduled March 6th and 13th in Burnsville. Quiz Bowl teams stress brains over brawn and pit some of the area's brightest students against one another in competition as fierce as any athletic event. Minnesota Public Radio's Tim Pugmire reports.
February 12, 1997 - Statewide standardized testing would be required for Minnesota primary and secondary schools under an agreement reached at the capitol this week. The Senate added a testing provision to the bill restoring 337-million dollars in planned cuts to schools. The bill now goes to a conference committee. Legislators and state education officials must now agree on what kind of tests should be used to measure academic achievement. Minnesota Public Radio's Tim Pugmire reports... --------------------------------------------------------- | D-CART ITEM: 7006 | TIME: 5:21 | OUTCUE: sound out --------------------------------------------------------- Minnesota's top education official says statewide standardized testing is the key to improving education for all students in the state. Robert Wedl, commissioner of the Department of Children, Families and Learning says
February 5, 1997 - Many Minnesota educators are embracing President Clinton's call to make college-level education available for everyone. In his State of the Union address Tuesday night, Clinton said at least two years of college should become as universal as a high school education is now. Local educators say it's an achievable goal.... as long as the funding is there. Minnesota Public Radio's Tim Pugmire reports... President Clinton says his number one priority for the next four years is to ensure all Americans have the best education in the world. His goals include enabling every 18-year-old to go to college, and every adult
February 4, 1997 - A new elementary magnet school in Maplewood might be one of the most complex educational operations in the state. The school is supported financially by three districts, yet the school has its own district number and school board. The school is a voluntary desegregation project involving urban and suburban students. The curriculum has a duel focus of multicultural education and environmental studies. On top all this, the school is operating year-round. Minnesota Public Radio's Tim Pugmire takes a look at what could be a model for the future of elementary schools... The seeds for Tri-District school were planted seven years ago when Saint Paul school district officials began talking to neighboring suburban districts
January 28, 1997 - State education officials say they want more students out of classrooms learning about life in the real world. The Minnesota Department of Children, Families and Learning is preparing to launch a 23-million dollar school-to-work project. It's aimed at creating new educational experiences relevant to life and work...and giving students the skills needed to enter the workforce. Minnesota Public Radio's Tim Pugmire reports... --------------------------------------------------------- | D-CART ITEM: 0626 | TIME: 6:05 | OUTCUE: s.o.c. --------------------------------------------------------- It's an ageold problem...and an age old childhood excuse... students lose interest in learning when the subject seems irrelavant. The school-to-work movement tries to spark interest
January 22, 1997 - Authorities have arrested the man they say threatened to blow up the Department of Natural Resources headquarters in Saint Paul. State officials closed five state buildings as a precaution to what they described as a serious threat from the disgruntled, former employee. They also say the man was an explosives expert. Minnesota Public Radio's Tim Pugmire reports... Police arrested the 33-year-old former D-N-R employee this morning at a residence in Stillwater, after getting an anonymous tip. The suspect allegedly made terroristic threats against state employees and facilities yesterday, prompting officials to close five buildings, including the D-N-R headq
January 20, 1997 - MPR’s Tim Pugmire profiles Seed Academy and Harvest Preparatory School, an African American private school in North Minneapolis. The school began in 1985 as a pre-school program in its founders' house. Ten years later there are 300 students enrolled in pre-school through sixth grade.
January 15, 1997 - MPR’s Tim Pugmire reports on the debate over potential removal of the children’s book series “Goosebumps” in some Minnesota school libraries, including titles such as “The Horror at Camp Jellyjam.” The Goosebumps debate began last Spring at Johnsville Elementary School in Blaine.
December 27, 1996 - President Clinton and a growing number of the nation's educators are calling for uniforms in public schools as a way to restore order to unruly classrooms. Supporters say uniforms improve learning and behavior. Opponents say a mandatory uniform policy can infringe on a childs right to public school education. There are only two public schools in Minnesota with uniforms, one in Minneapolis and one in Saint Paul. The Saint Paul school district recently adopted a policy allowing individual schools to adopt uniforms, if parents approve.
December 5, 1996 - State lawmakers opened a new chapter in public education six years ago by creating an alternative school structure for new and innovative learning programs. Minnesota's first charter school opened in 1992. Today, there are 19 schools with enrollment totaling 21-hundred students. State education officials are currently reviewing the progress of charter schools. The Department of Children, Families and Learning will present a report to the state legislature in January. Charter school advocates say they're creating a flexible and creative learning option for children, but some question whether the schools have enough money to succeed.