The Houston Chronicle reports that the state's new student-athlete steroid testing has found much steroid use, but some suspect it might be a bit too early in the process to know. The story says a state contractor has tested more than 10,000 kids and found only two positives. Steroid testing became a big issue around here a few years back following reports out of Northeast Tarrant County that some kids were using.
The Austin-American Statesman reports today that a new law intended to standardize how GPAs and class rankings are calculated could play havoc with students who have been in the Top 10 percent of their class academically and thus are guaranteed admission to a state university.
The No. 1-ranked Aledo Ladycats softball team will be honored Sunday at the Texas Rangers baseball game at the Ballpark in Arlington. The team's "Honorary Ladycat" Jessie Hall _ the 6-year-old Aledo girl who recently underwent brain surgery at Johns Hopkins in Baltimore _ also will be honored with a pregame presentation which she'll view vias digital media. So come on out, wearing pink, to support the teens and their tiny fan.
Here's something that will be of interest to high school seniors starting in 2009-10.
The Los Angeles Times reports that students seeking to put the best shine on their college applications will be able to choose which of their SAT scores to share with admissions officers and which to hide.
The new policy will allow students to take the widely used college entrance exam multiple times without admissions officers seeing their less-than-stellar efforts, the newspaper reported.
From the article:
"Students were telling us the ability to have more control over their scores would make the test experience more comfortable and less stressful," said Laurence Bunin, senior vice president of the SAT. ". . . We can do that without in any way diminishing the value and integrity of the SAT."
The College Board, the nonprofit organization that owns the test, made the change at a time when some universities are placing less emphasis on standardized testing in choosing prospective freshmen and as the rival ACT exam is gaining popularity. The new SAT scoring option, approved Thursday by the College Board's trustees, mimics the ACT's long-standing policy.
Most high schools celebrate the graduation of their seniors with joyful _ sometimes raucous _ commencements. But Weatherford school officials have gone a step further. In addition to commencement for 406 graduates from its high school, the district held a recognition ceremony for 46 students who earned GED diplomas through its Community Education program. Hats _ or should we say caps _ off for all the graduates.
Today on star-telegram.com, John Austin takes a look at the increasing number of public and private schools using anti-plagiarism software to check students' work. Officials say it's good that high schools are doing this because it helps students get used to the idea before they get to college, where the temptation to pull something off the Internet during an all-nighter to meet an early-morning deadline can be too strong to resist. In other words, it's a chance for high schools to nip such behavior in the bud.
Teachers can also use the software to help students understand what needs to be cited and what doesn't -- something that professional writers never get wrong. Really!
Whoops, I missed one. The Texas Education Commissioner has ordered Houston's Sam Houston High School to shut down after not meeting minimum academic standards for the sixth year. Like Austin's low performing high school, Houston has the option of reopening the closed high school under another name and new staff and new direction. Let's hope these two are it.
It's a dubious honor, but Austin's Johnston High School will be the first school in Texas to be closed due to poor test scores. Facing its fifth "academically unacceptable" rating based on its preliminary TAKS scores, Austin district officials announced the closure. Staff at Fort Worth's Polytechnic High School, which has held the unacceptable rating for three years, are crossing their fingers that their school won't meet the same fate.
Northwest school district officials are finalizing details, recruiting volunteers and seeking additional sponsors for the national Student Council Conference, which is expected to draw more than 2,000 students to North Texas this month.
The conference, June 25-28 at Northwest High School, will include small-group workshops, leadership activities, state group meetings and a mock presidential election.
Northwest High has been planning the event since four years ago, when it won the bid to host the annual conference.
Read more here.
