In the News

UW Study Finds Kids Love to Gossip; Also: Fire = Hot, Water = Wet
Researchers at UW recently studied students at six elementary schools in Seattle to learn how they communicate with and about each other. Turns out they talk a lot about who may or may not be carriers of cooties. In other words, they gossip a lot. Other revelations include: kids love cartoons, hate broccoli and will not stop picking their noses. More...

Care Clinic Clears Path for Disabled
Psychologists with the University of Washington CARE Clinic diagnose and treat a range of neurodevelopmental disabilities, from autism and Asperger's syndrome to learning disabilities and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. The clinic, which served 420 families from across the state last year, has a clientele ranging in age from 2½ to 79. More...

Education on the Elwha
UW uses upcoming dam removal to study teaching techniques. The National Science Foundation awarded O’Mahony and UW Professor John Bransford a one-year RAPID (Rapid Response Research) grant. The pair is using the $200,000 to study teaching methods regarding the Elwha River and the upcoming removal of its two dams. Half of the more than 300 participating middle-school students from nearby Port Angeles are doing traditional science projects with PowerPoint presentations. The other half will create five-minute videos that tell the story of the watershed’s past, present and future, including the swamping of local tribal land, the blocking of more than 70 miles of superb habitat from five salmon species, and the biggest dam-removal project in U.S. history.
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Don't Cut Out the Center: The Centrality of the Central Office
When district leaders must cut their budgets, they look first to their central office, but Michael A. Copland and Meredith I. Honig advise against following that instinct. More...

New Director of UW's Robinson Center Plans Challenging Classrooms for All Children
Nancy Hertzog had one heck of a first day teaching elementary school: One of her students pulled the fire alarm and then vanished—later he was found hitchhiking by the assistant superintendent—as fire and police forces descended on the school. It was 1977, in Williamsburg, Va., recalls Hertzog, now the new director of the University of Washington's Robinson Center for Young Scholars. More...

Spencer Foundation Names Professor Diana E. Hess Senior VP
The Board and staff of the Spencer Foundation are pleased to announce the appointment of Diana E. Hess to senior vice president. An alum of the UW College of Education, Hess is currently professor of education at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her research interests include curriculum and instruction in social studies, education policy and law. More...

Teach for America Seeks Foothold in Seattle Area
Teach for America is working to bring its corps of young college graduates here to teach in Seattle-area schools next fall. Dean Tom Stritikus is quoted. More...

Forming Letters is Key to Learning, Memory, Ideas
Virginia Berninger is quoted on her work regarding handwriting. You can read a Wall Street Journal article in English or click through to Tendencias in Spanish.