April 28, 1998 - CHILD PSYCHOLOGISTS TELL US THAT EVEN VERY YOUNG CHILDREN ASK THE KIND OF QUESTONS THAT CAN ONLY BE CALLED SPIRITUAL.... WHO CREATED THE EARTH? WHY AM I HERE? HOW DO I KNOW WHAT'S RIGHT AND WRONG? SOME CHILDREN FIND ANSWERS TO THESE QUESTIONS IN CHURCH.....OTHERS DEVELOP A MORAL SENSE COMPLETELY SEPARATE FROM ORGANIZED RELIGION. ALL THIS MONTH, MINNESOTA PUBLIC RADIO IS EXPLORING THE ROLE RELIGION PLAYS IN EVERYDAY LIFE IN A SERIES OF STORIES, COMMENTARIES, AND SPECIAL PROGRAMMING. MARY STUCKY REPORTS ON THE IMPORTANCE OF MATTERS SPIRITUAL IN THE LIVES OF CHILDREN.
April 28, 1998 - The latest 8th grade test scores will not be released until Thursday, but school districts and state officials are already battling over what the results mean. An organization representing 24 metro-area school districts is accusing state officials of misusing and distorting the test scores to advance a political agenda. But state officials struck back today, defending their testing policies and their motives. Minnesota Public Radio's Tim Pugmire reports... This was the third year of 8th grade testing in reading and math...but the first every school in the state had to participate. Last year, about one third of all students tested failed, prompting a public outcry...a
April 30, 1998 - This year's eighth graders scored better than those of years past on the Basic Skills Tests in reading and math. The tests are Minnesota's first step toward tough graduation standards. The class of 2000 must pass the tests to get a diploma. A passing grade is 75-percent or better. State officials say the scores show schools are making needed improvements but there is a lot of work yet to do. Minnesota Public Radio's Tim Pugmire reports... Statewide, 68-percent of the 8th graders tested in February passed the basic skills reading test, up from 59-percent last year. In the math test, 71-percent passed, up just one percent from a year ago. Bob W
April 30, 1998 - We've all been children once, but sometimes it's difficult to remember exactly what it was like to be nine years old. It's an age when kids are trying to understand the confusing language and rules of adults while constantly being thrust into new situations. It's frustrating when things don't make sense, and aren't fair. Author Nicholson Baker, who is often intrigued by things most of us overlook, decided to capture the essence of being nine years old, but he knew he wasn't qualified to do it. So he turned to his real-life daughter Alice. He carefully jotted down her many adventures, real and imagined, as she adjusted to a new school in England. The result is the book "The Everlasting Story of Nory." --------------------------------------------------------- | D-CART ITEM: 6123 | TIME: 7:18 | OUTCUE: "...new duties in the offing." ------------------------------------------
May 1, 1998 - Some analysis of the results of the 8th grade basic skills tests, with Kate Trewick, Assistant Commissioner for Teaching & Learning at the MN Dept of Children, Families and Learning; David Heistad, Director of Research, Evaluation and Assessment for the Minneapolis Public Schools; and State Rep. Becky Kelso, Chair of the House K-12 Education Finance Division. The group also answers listener questions. Sandra Peterson, the President of the Minnesota Federation of Teachers, is also interviewed.
May 6, 1998 - Nationally-known testing experts are joining state education officials in defending Minnesota's 8th grade reading exam. The basic skills test came under fire last week, when the Association of Metropolitan School Districts claimed it's harder than an 8th grade reading level. Representatives of the association and state leaders squared off yesterday during a House subcommittee hearing on the test debate. Minnesota Public Radio's Tim Pugmire reports... Thousands of Minnesota students have failed the 8th grade basic skills tests each of the past three years. But the scores are rising. Results from this year's tests, released last week, showed a nine percent jump in reading, while math scores improved just one-percent for a year ago
May 11, 1998 - MPR’s Art Hughes reports on a highway dedication of James Wright’s poem “The Blessing.” It was written after a ride with his friend Robert Bly as they pulled their car off the road and encountered a pair of horses.
May 11, 1998 - The State Board of Education has given final approval to the most contentious piece of Minnesota's new high school graduation standards. "Profile of Learning" is a blueprint all students must follow to graduate from high school, beginning with the class of 2002. The new results-oriented standards mean significant changes in public schools statewide. Minnesota Public Radio's Tim Pugmire reports... State education officials have been working on the new graduation standards for years, but the past six months have been the toughest, as legislators tried to delay or scrap the changes. The Profile of Learning w
May 12, 1998 - Kate Trewick, assistant commissioner of the Department of Children, Families and Learning; and State Senator Larry Pogemiller, chair of the Senate K-12 Budget Committee, discuss the newly approved graduation standards called "Profile of Learning." Trewick and Pogemiller also answer listener questions.
May 13, 1998 - The director of the Mayo Clinic Nicotine Dependence Center says Minnesota's tobacco trial will prove to be one of the most significant public health developments of the latter part of the 20th century. Dr. Richard Hurt was the state's first witness in the case. He testified nicotine is a drug and said tobacco companies conspired to hide its addictiveness. Dr. Hurt told Minnesota Public Radio's Brent Wolfe the trial is as important as any warning issued by the surgeon general.