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25% of Idaho High School Graduates Need Remedial Classes as Entering College Freshman at Boise State

By Erik Makrush
June 29, 2010
Almost a quarter of Idaho high school graduates attending Boise State University are so far behind on their English and math skills, they're required to take remedial courses to catch up. In some cases, more than half of the students from an Idaho high school arrive unprepared for basic freshman-level college classes. Data from Boise […]
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Singing the praises of district virtual schools

By Mitch Coffman
June 19, 2010
The teachers’ union hymnal, which is echoed by most opinion writers, has the following lyrics: public schools and public school teachers are always entitled to more. Education is to be exempted from the diminished income many of us are living with these days. And if you have a problem with any of this, you are […]
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Are Idaho’s Colleges and Universities really feeling the effects of State Government budgets crunches?

By Erik Makrush
June 10, 2010
Across the state, the sour economy is forcing businesses, families and government agencies to cut back. But state's colleges and universities are figuring out ways to avoid the same dramatic cuts as everyone else. Idaho's publicly-funded higher education institutions are fending off big budget cuts with a combination of under estimated student enrollment and big […]
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Seat belts and Obamacare: Twin tools of the Nanny State

By Wayne Hoffman, IFF’s former President
June 9, 2010
For months, we freedom lovers have been bemoaning the socialistic atrocity that is Obamacare. But keep in mind where Obamacare originated: In general, it is from the belief of politicians that they can make you do things under the altruistic notion that a law is in your or society’s best interests. That’s a notion that […]
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Boise mayor lobbies for city sales tax

By IFF
June 5, 2010
Boise Mayor Dave Bieter wants approval for a city sales tax so more can be spent on transit projects and education. In Thursday’s State of the City address, Bieter called on Gov. Butch Otter and the Legislature to give cities the power to invoke local-option sales taxes. He said if Boise had such authority, a […]
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The online learning revolution

By Mitch Coffman
June 2, 2010
Many people who have put a lot of thought into it – and many others who have also bet something of their fortunes on it - believe the future holds a customized learning experience for every student. Odds are it will not look exactly as pictured in the 2009 Star Trek reboot movie with little […]
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Unsolicited Advice and Online School

By Mitch Coffman
May 26, 2010
High voter turnout makes passing school district bonds and levies difficult, and it’s not going to get any easier in the future. Historically, school districts have been allowed to hold elections on obscure days at unusual polling locations. Districts count on turning out teachers and parents with students enrolled in the affected schools, and low […]
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Attitude adjustment

By Mitch Coffman
May 18, 2010
From the May 15, 2010 Idaho Falls Post-Register: Teacher negotiations are the last piece of the budget puzzle in Rexburg, where trustees are trying to make about $3 million in cuts. Last week, teachers turned down the trustees' proposal of 10.5 percent in pay cuts over three years . . . . Sherri Christensen, REA […]
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School districts have yet to consider pay, benefit changes

By Wayne Hoffman, IFF’s former President
May 10, 2010
All across the state, local school districts are holding meetings, hearings and work sessions to figure out how they’ll come to terms with $128 million in cuts approved by the Legislature and Gov. Butch Otter. So far, most of the recommendations fail to impress. Many school districts are resorting to the old standby — turning […]
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Who benefits?

By Mitch Coffman
April 29, 2010
A school district trustee’s job is to administer for the benefit of a school district. That is not the same thing as administering for the benefit of students. A trustee in Rexburg said too much in the Rexburg Standard Journal’s “Madison School District cuts school year by one week, saving $100,000” on April 24: Madison […]
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Paying for what you get.

By Mitch Coffman
April 26, 2010
Even the most casual news observer has surely noticed it by now: public education budgets are dropping. For many school boards and administrators it’s the first time, ever, they’ve had to think about making do with considerably less. The public trough is emptying – or at least becoming less full – at many levels of […]
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Getting what you pay for?

By Mitch Coffman
April 19, 2010
My husband is a Sony fan. He has strong preferences following many years of selling consumer electronics. I personally have not been such a careful student of the variances between brands of stereos, TVs and DVD players. However, my marriage has taught me (among other things) Sony’s products are more dependable, last longer and are […]
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