Auto mechanics perform alignments by lining up the direction of the wheels so the vehicle is pointed in a straight line. Curriculum alignment follows the same principle, with the “wheels” being curriculum, instruction, standards and assessment. Research indicates this kind of alignment can point a school or district toward improved student achievement.
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The federal law governing special education is called the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, or IDEA. It is codified in Title 20, United States Code, starting at section 1400. It was initially passed in 1975. A number of major reauthorizations have taken place. The two most recent were in 1997 and in December 2004. The December 2004 changes took effect, for the most part, on July 1, 2005. The changes made in the 2004 Act are numerous and varied, but perhaps not revolutionary. Continue Reading »

FOR $1, a smart shopper can get one Butterfinger candy bar, three cans of cat food or five Christmas cards. Now, Connecticut’s tourism officials have to stretch a buck for statewide marketing campaigns — over an entire year.
After two years with a budget of $4.3 million a year, the state’s Commission on Culture and Tourism has to make do this fiscal year with just $1 allocated by the legislature in September for statewide promotions. The agency will get another lonely dollar next year. Continue Reading »

THE approximately 70 pieces presented in “Exotic Encounters: Art, Travel and Modernity in the Collection of the Bruce Museum” may seem an incongruous lot. Paintings, sculptures and prints are displayed alongside American Indian beaded leather, carved African pipes and a Chilkat ceremonial blanket. There’s an Irish Belleek urn, tiny silk shoes from China, two elephant tusks nearly six feet tall and a stuffed six-plumed bird of paradise. rent kiev apartment
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