Free Republic

Failure to pass exam triggered classroom murder bidManama: A university student in Saudi Arabia has shot his Jordanian teacher in an apparent act of "revenge" after he failed his exams. The student, who failed last year to pass the orientation exam in preparatory English as demanded by the university in the northern Saudi city of Ha’il to fulfil the enrolment requirements, had to take the course again and with the same teacher. On the first day, the student reportedly brought a gun to class, hiding it in his clothes, local daily Al Eqtisdaiya reported. Ten minutes into the course, the...

What will go down in high school football history, a grounds crew in Maryland mowed the artificial turf. Wouldn't it smell like something is burning? Maybe just look wrong?

An Idaho State University assistant professor with a concealed-carry gun permit shot himself in the foot with a semiautomatic handgun that accidentally discharged from inside his pocket in a chemistry classroom full of students, police said on Wednesday.

This week, millions of young people head to college and universities, aiming for a four-year liberal arts degree. They assume that degree is the only gateway to the American middle class. It shouldn’t be. For one thing, a four-year liberal arts degree is hugely expensive. Too many young people graduate laden with debts that take years if not decades to pay off. And too many of them can’t find good jobs when they graduate, in any event. So they have to settle for jobs that don’t require four years of college. They end up overqualified for the work they do,...

The World Economic Forum has released its annual report of the globe's most competitive economies. The report ranks these economies on the "12 pillars of competitiveness": institutions, infrastructure, macroeconomic environment, health and primary education, higher education and training, goods market efficiency, labor market efficiency, financial market development, technological readiness, market size, business sophistication, and innovation."Smart investment in skills and innovation is key to enhanced productivity and competitiveness," they said. "It also supports more inclusive growth by allowing everyone to contribute to and benefit from higher levels of prosperity. Economies that consistently rank high in the competitiveness rankings are those that are able to develop,...

Some two dozen West New York parents and school children protested at town hall today demanding that bus transportation be provided for some students while the Harry L. Bain School on Broadway near 62nd Street is being renovated and students attend a school six blocks away.

A culinary arts teacher at New Dorp High School is headed back to class after being formally reprimanded by the Department of Education for allowing some of his students to eat spoonfuls of cinnamon as part of a "challenge." The pungent spice, in powdered form, is known to cause gagging, vomiting and choking. Teacher Matthew Hayes, who was the subject of an investigation by the Office of Special Investigations Commissioner Richard Condon, admitted to investigators he challenged his students to try to swallow a spoonful of cinnamon as part of a lesson on flavor, taste and texture in cooking. Students...

College starts today for students across the country.With tuition costs surging, we can't help but ask, "What are they thinking?"In a new note, the New York Fed's Jaison R. Abel and Richard Deitz write that, looked at one way, these young people are making a sound investment as it now takes fewer years than ever for graduates to recoup their investment.While you used to have to work nearly 25 years to earn back what you'd fronted for your degree, only about 10 years on average are now required.  "Despite the challenges facing today’s college graduates, the value of a college...

For two millennia, great artists set the standard for beauty. Now those standards are gone. Modern Art is a competition between the ugly and the twisted; the most shocking wins. What happened? How did the beautiful come to be reviled and bad taste come to be celebrated? Renowned artist Robert Florczak explains the history and the mystery behind this change and how it can be stopped and even reversed.

Local newspapers in the US don't cover education in any depth. Maybe they'll tell you superficial and trivial stuff (for example, that a superintendent was hired or fired, that there will be a meeting next month of the school board). But you won't find anything about the nuts and bolts that determine whether you child learns to read, or learns anything at all. At first glance, this non-coverage can seem to be a mystery. Everybody's interested in education, especially parents and grandparents with kids in K-12. Probably one of the most valuable things that you could tell these people is...

The children of America have gone back to school. And, in nearly every household, there is at least one person who is standing over the kitchen sink in tears, wondering where the years have gone. I understand. Every year at this time, I remember a wonderful essay I heard on NPR the summer before The Lad first went to college. A woman talked about the day she sent her daughter to kindergarten for her first day of school. "My husband told me not to cry," she wrote, "because tomorrow she would still be in kindergarten." "But, he was wrong," the...

Now that we are essentially outside the range of all but the local radio station (singular) which plays both country and western music, my podcast listening has increased even more than it was in the past. I still listen to some broadcast shows as podcasts, which for the most part is an excellent option. Others are strictly webcast, but either way I keep my ancient mp3 player chock full of good stuff to listen to while I am working around the homestead or in the shop or on the road. Here are my favorites, in no particular order. “The Shrugging...

Back on the bombing run: One of the last two flying Lancasters pays tribute to the 55,000 Bomber Boys who never returned with flight on the route thousands of sorties took to target the Nazis MailOnline was granted exclusive access to film while flying alongside the Canadian Lancaster bomber Stunning footage shows the iconic aircraft soaring above the UK in what will be one of its final ever flights Video was shot while flying in a small aircraft just feet away from the world's second only airworthy Lancaster

Ashley Habat wasn’t thrilled that the school didn’t give her enough time to prep her son Will for picture day, reports a Jacksonville television station. Understandably, she ranted about the school on her personal Facebook page, writing, “Why is it that every single day there is something new I dislike about Will’s School? Are my standards really too high or are people working in the education field really just that ignorant?”

Earlier this year, Sonia Sotomayor appeared on ABC’s the week to plug her new book, My Beloved World. ABC reporter George Stephanopoulos declared that the Supreme Court Justice “knows that affirmative action made a difference in her life, and believes it’s still necessary.” Stephanopoulos continued, “There’s been a lot of scholarly work that says it’s not the best way to insure diversity in schools, and maybe if you focus on where people live, and how much money they make, you can get the same results, in a way that is less fractious.” To which the Justice responded, “…the problem with...

Who imagined that the Obama administration’s effort to make school lunches more nutritious (but less delicious) would encourage children to become little community organizers? The U.S. Agriculture Department has found an upside to all those “healthy” school lunches that students refuse to eat: It says schools can use the plate waste as a “learning opportunity” to turn young students into “civic-minded, community-conscious adults.” …

Young people aren't the only ones who get back-to-school blues. Pooches used to months of constant playtime can get upset when their best buddies disappear with the dog days of summer. Many dogs whine and wait eagerly at the front door but eventually adjust to the absence of their young owners when they are in class. But millions of dogs can feel abandoned, sad and unable to cope — and they look for ways to lash out.

Where's the Intelligent Design in Ohio House Bill 597? Casey Luskin August 27, 2014 5:56 AM | Permalink Just as they did back in 2006, the Darwin Lobby and the media have concocted a story that intelligent design is going to be taught in Ohio. According to a recent article in the Columbus Dispatch, "Intelligent design could be taught with Common Core's repeal," Ohio House Bill 597 "would allow intelligent design and creationism to be taught alongside evolution in science classes." You might expect that a bill to "allow intelligent design and creationism to be taught alongside evolution" would say...

A prominent Greek historian claims that it is possible for the Louvre Museum in Paris to possess artifacts from the ancient Greek tomb currently being excavated by archaeologists in Amphipolis, Greece. The fame of the ancient Greek treasures allegedly hidden in the Amphipolis tomb has recently raised concerns whether the monument will be found intact, or if it had been looted in the past. Historian, Sarantis Kargakos, speaking to Antenna TV, said that the tomb has been looted in the past and that the monument’s interior won’t be intact. “At the spot where Ancient Amphipolis is found, a village named...

Archaeologists excavating an ancient tomb under a massive burial mound in northern Greece have entered the underground structure, which appears to have been looted in antiquity. The Culture Ministry said Monday that archaeologists have partially investigated the antechamber of the tomb at Amphipolis and uncovered a marble wall concealing one or more inner chambers. However, a hole in the decorated wall and signs of forced entry outside the huge barrel-vaulted structure indicate the tomb was plundered long ago. The excavation will continue for weeks. The tomb dates between 325 B.C.—two years after the death of ancient Greek warrior-king Alexander the...