School Stories

So-called “brain training” programs designed to help boost students’ attention and working memory are coming under scrutiny from the Federal Trade Commission, as some claims have outpaced both the initial hopes and subsequent evidence. Last year, the FTC declared open season on brain-training programs, both those directed at classrooms and for general public use. Last […]

Read the full story

A show-stopping school of innovation today can quickly devolve into tomorrow’s has-been. Keeping track of who’s doing what in the diverse field of blended learning, which mixes online and in-person education, isn’t easy. There are few sure things in life, but the lightning-fast rate of change in education technology is a given. The Blended Learning […]

Read the full story

A pair of local moms is on a mission to launch a Russian dual-language program at a neighborhood public school that would split class time between the two tongues. Olga Ilyashenko said she was passionate about preserving her family’s Eastern European culture and couldn’t imagine her son not getting to read Dostoyevsky’s “Crime and Punishment” […]

Read the full story

A new course offered by a Brooklyn cultural learning center is hoping to help build a “cultural foundation” for children by teaching toddlers Swahili and languages of the African Diaspora. Crayons & Culture, which opened at 188 Madison St. near Nostrand Avenue in October, is launching Swahili classes this spring to “immerse children in a […]

Read the full story

In an interview, the chancellor described new efforts to promote school diversity. This summer, schools Chancellor Carmen Fariña started a new ritual: Every third Saturday of the month, she sits down with a top deputy and spends a couple hours talking about school diversity. “How are we going to get it done? What are some […]

Read the full story