For the third time in recent weeks the Banned Books Awareness series once again focuses on some rather disturbing trends from Canada. Incidents of censorship by the border patrol, negative reactions to fiction based on historical documents, and now it seems Dr. Seuss has been branded too political for the classroom. Yertle the Turtle (1958) […] … learn more→

Todd Parr has written over 30 children’s books, and he is the winner of two National Parenting Publication Awards, as well as three Oppenheim Gold Awards; but his The Family Book (preschool-grade 2; 2004) has stirred up some controversy. In a whimsical, engaging way, the daily lives of all kinds of families are depicted, celebrating their […] … learn more→

One of our legacies from the last century, which was dominated by two world wars and the cold war, is a sense of security that is defined almost exclusively in military terms. It so dominates Washington thinking that the U.S. foreign affairs budget of $701 billion in 2009 consisted of $661 billion for military purposes […] … learn more→

A study examining children\’s schooling in Andhra Pradesh, India, has revealed a dramatic rise in the number of parents opting for fee-paying private schools over state-funded government schools. Even low-income families are \’voting with their feet\’, according to the new research led by the University of Oxford. Researchers tracked 3,000 children who were randomly selected […] … learn more→

The furore following the announcement that Jenny Craig CEO Amy Smith would address a gathering of hundreds of girls\’ school teachers has once again brought the uncomfortable issue of corporate presence in schools to light. The public response – that school groups should not be seen to endorse the dieting industry – is certainly warranted. […] … learn more→

March is National Reading and Grammar Month here in the United States. It is built around the birthday of Dr. Seuss, as March 2 is honored with a National Read Across America Day. Libraries and schools from coast to coast held reading parties and celebrated the written word; but for all the festivity, we have […] … learn more→

As the American era of global dominance draws to a close, higher education becomes more important than ever. … learn more→

When I was very young, the father of the neighbor’s family – a young academic – suddenly disappeared. The young academic was working, I was later told, on original research upon which he had pinned the hopes for his career. Nearing the completion of his work, however, a professor he had been working with published […] … learn more→

Most people are familiar with the classic saying, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it,\” uttered by George Santayana. He, himself, identified as an American and wrote exclusively in English, but the famous philosopher was born in Madrid and was a lifelong Spanish citizen even though he was raised and educated […] … learn more→