TEACHERS WHO LOVE THEIR WORK

Teachers from across the nation recently gathered together in Rockefeller Plaza, and virtually through Facebook, Twitter, and an online chat for the second annual Teacher Town Hall hosted by NBC's Education Nation. One topic that elicited some strong opinions among the participants was that of how to prepare students for the future.www.futurekidseducation.com/ Towards the beginning of the segment, host Brian Williams of NBC asked: "Is your job as educators, as institutions, to educate kids, or to get them ready for the wider world?" Annie Bogenschutz, a community resource coordinator for Cincinnati Public Schools, answered that in her experience, kids come to school carrying all sorts of baggage, whether that be hunger, homelessness, or a lack of support at home, and that in Cincinnati, educators try to align their school goals with resources to help students face the world around them. Kids can't learn when they are grappling with these issues, said Bogenschutz. She explained that her district incorporates services such as after-school programming, health and mental health programs, extra-curricular activities, and mentoring to help kids succeed not just in school, but also in life

But there was a stir in the room when Williams asked why students are unprepared for college. Survey results for the teachers at the summit showed that 52 percent believed it was due to lack of academic prep, 34 percent because of lack of student motivation, and 14 percent due to lack of encouragement. A national survey conducted by Scholastic and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation showed that 41 percent believed it was due to lack of academic prep, while 35 percent thought it to be lack of student motivation and 24 percent because of lack of encouragement.

WHOSE HEAD SHOULD ROLL?

"we talk equality but we impliment differantation so in reality we have a two tiered school system" Dr  Martin Prew, The University of Limpopo is oiling the wheels of the patronage machine around expelled ANC Youth League leader Julius Malema through two multimillion-rand contracts handed to his close associates.
The beneficiaries, Mandla Seopela and Collins Foromo, are linked to the Friends of the Youth League, which Malema and his allies set up as an alternative structure to the ANC Youth League after his expulsion from the ANC The Mail and the guardian was told the higher education department had questioned the awarding of the two university contracts, but the university's senior management, which cited the Higher Education Act as protecting their autonomy,denied it.most people consider the university as taking part in fraud especially because Malema is involved.http://disqus.com/forums/mail-and-guardian/university_of_limpopo_fuels_malemas_mining_revolution/trackback/ :read more

WE SHOULD BE RECIEVING CORRECTIONS INSTEAD OF CORRUPTION

People don’t realize that there is as much corruption in the private education sector as in the public sector for the corrupt counter party that offers the bribe or corrupt payment is in the private sector.
There is corruption in all its forms- favoritism, nepotism, bribery and influence peddling in the education sector, which is now taking first place in the Corruption Ranking.
Corruption occurs among many groups of actors from policy makers

at the government level to providers of education at the school level, such as teachers and principals. Corrupt practices in the educational sphere can include bribes, illegal fees for admissions and examinations, examination frauds, preferential promotions and placements for teachers and charging students for ‘tutoring services’ to cover the curriculum needed to pass mandatory examinations and that should have been taught in the classroom. Illegal practices in textbook procurement, meal provision, and infrastructure contracting and so on are other malpractices.
Educationists point out those students who are educated in corrupt systems may not learn the skills needed to take advantage of available opportunities and to contribute to economic and social development. A third impact could be added to this list: corruption’s impact on core values and ethics during the formative years of young people’s lives. Corruption in education may undermine an entire generation’s core values regarding accountability, personal responsibility, and integrity as seems to have been done since the take-over of denominational schools in the early 1960s. Corruption may also affect learning outcomes. Countries with higher levels of corruption tend to have higher dropout rates. In fact, dropout rates in countries with low corruption and highly efficient government services are 26 percentage points lower than dropout rates in countries with high corruption and low efficiency according to studies carried out by educationists.