Well this is interesting: The President and Arne Duncan are celebrating Obama’s first anniversary in office by pushing states to come up with bold ways to reform education. Until recently, it seemed to me that education had fallen off the administration’s priority list entirely. Then Obama delivered his intense and hated-by-conservatives stay-in-school plea (follow that link for video and transcript), where he put the onus on kids to take responsibility for their own education, and now there’s this.Built into the stimulus plan was $100 billion for education-and from that huge pot of cash is this little-known effort, announced this past summer called the Race to the Top. Well, it’s getting a big push today, and the idea is this: Spur states to compete for the $4.35 billion in grants, because competition begets innovation, and innovation is what schools need-bad.To qualify for the money, states must meet certain criteria. They have to show they are able to build systems to measure success; that they can design and adopt internationally recognized success standards; commit to turning around crappy schools, possibly through charters; and that they are willing to reward teachers for student performance. Wait, what?That all sounds good, except the part where charter schools get a broad bump and the part about merit pay, which immediately disqualifies some states. California, for instance, had a law in place that prevented schools from rewarding teachers based on student performance, but they quickly overturned it.The whole merit-pay thing been controversial for some time. One study showed a decrease in student performance when teacher pay was tied to it (though the study allowed that this might have just been a poorly implemented program). Other studies show the opposite. No matter, other states have made similar moves-and frankly, can you blame them? Politics aside, these schools need money if they’re going to be able to adopt better practices, boost teacher retention and up student performance. The teaching to the test model has to go, but with limited resources, that’s been next to impossible. Still, it strikes me as a little dicey when states start rushing to change controversial laws just to qualify for much-needed financial supportThe grant winners will be announced in January. Stay tuned.Image via
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Man’s dog suddenly becomes protective of his wife, Internet clocks the reason right away
The online community came through in a big way.
Reddit user Girlfriendhatesmefor’s three-year-old pitbull, Otis, had recently become overprotective of his wife. So he asked the online community if they knew what might be wrong with the dog.
“A week or two ago, my wife got some sort of stomach bug,” the Reddit user wrote under the subreddit /r/dogs. “She was really nauseous and ill for about a week. Otis is very in tune with her emotions (we once got in a fight and she was upset, I swear he was staring daggers at me lol) and during this time didn’t even want to leave her to go on walks. We thought it was adorable!”
His wife soon felt better, butthe dog’s behavior didn’t change.
Otis knew before they did. Canva Girlfriendhatesmefor began to fear that Otis’ behavior may be an early sign of an aggression issue or an indication that the dog was hurt or sick.
So he threw a question out to fellow Reddit users: “Has anyone else’s dog suddenly developed attachment/aggression issues? Any and all advice appreciated, even if it’s that we’re being paranoid!”
The most popular response to his thread was by ZZBC.
Any chance your wife is pregnant?
ZZBC | Reddit
The potential news hit Girlfriendhatesmefor like a ton of bricks. A few days later, Girlfriendhatesmefor posted an update and ZZBC was right!
“The wifey is pregnant!” the father-to-be wrote. “Otis is still being overprotective but it all makes sense now! Thanks for all the advice and kind words! Sorry for the delayed reply, I didn’t check back until just now!”
Redditors responded with similar experiences.
Anecdotal I know but I swear my dog knew I was pregnant before I was. He was super clingy (more than normal) and was always resting his head on my belly.
realityisworse | Reddit
So why do dogs get overprotective when someone is pregnant?
Jeff Werber, PhD, president and chief veterinarian of the Century Veterinary Group in Los Angeles, told Health.com that “dogs can also smell the hormonal changes going on in a woman’s body at that time.” He added the dog may “not understand that this new scent of your skin and breath is caused by a developing baby, but they will know that something is different with you—which might cause them to be more curious or attentive.”
The big lesson here is to listen to your pets and to ask questions when their behavior abruptly changes. They may be trying to tell you something, and the news may be life-changing.
This article originally appeared last year.
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14 images of badass women who destroyed stereotypes and inspired future generations
These trailblazers redefined what a woman could be.
Throughout history, women have stood up and fought to break down barriers imposed on them from stereotypes and societal expectations. The trailblazers in these photos made history and redefined what a woman could be. In doing so, they paved the way for future generations to stand up and continue to fight for equality.
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Why mass shootings spawn conspiracy theories
Mass shootings and conspiracy theories have a long history.
While conspiracy theories are not limited to any topic, there is one type of event that seems particularly likely to spark them: mass shootings, typically defined as attacks in which a shooter kills at least four other people.
When one person kills many others in a single incident, particularly when it seems random, people naturally seek out answers for why the tragedy happened. After all, if a mass shooting is random, anyone can be a target.
Pointing to some nefarious plan by a powerful group – such as the government – can be more comforting than the idea that the attack was the result of a disturbed or mentally ill individual who obtained a firearm legally.
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