Are poverty and ignorance becoming synonymous?

This article gives several explanations as to why the educational gap between poor and rich students is growing.  Do they seem convincing to you?  Do you think the same trend is happening in Slovakia?  Should something be done about this, or is it inevitable, or even perhaps not entirely negative?  (Be sure to read both "pages" of the article.)

Excommunication from the church of science

Do you lean towards materialism, or do you think science has an unwelcome tendency to ignore phenomena that it cannot explain?  Some of the phenomena treated in this article are life after death, intuition and memory.  Also, it touches upon the relation between science and religion, science and mind-altering drugs, and science and pets.

Just say no to horalky

This is the last entry you can comment on for the second half of February.

What is your relationship to sugar?  What do you think about the proposal of banning the underage purchase of sugary products?  How about taxing purchases more highly or an anti-sugar educational campaign?   Do you admire the researchers who came out with the report for going against powerful companies like Coca-Cola?

Fiction’s function

Do educational practices such as tests make students become reductionist readers?  Does it irritate you if the stories you read have morals or are moralizing?  What is fiction for if not for teaching us to live better or improving our academic abilities?  If it’s just for fun, why teach it in school?  (Be sure to click on “continue reading” for the full article.)

The skull and crossbones over Berlin

Do you think that voting for new and untried parties like this one is a good way to fight against old (and corrupt?) political practices?  Does the pirate party have good ideas in terms of making democracy more direct and transparent?  Should stuff be free on line, or do you agree with the recent crackdowns on file-sharing sites?  Would you vote for the pirates?

Spare the rod, raise a rioter

This article is a reaction to claims that the recent riots in the UK would not have happened had parents used physical punishment to discipline their children.   Are many of the problems with young people today caused by a lack of dscipline at home, or are other factors more important?  Are you for or against the corporal punishment of children?  When is the line between discipline and abuse crossed, and how can laws best prevent the latter?  What do you think about this writer’s arguments against spanking/smacking?

I’ll show you mine if you show me yours

When is sharing things good for a relationship and when does sharing between partners go too far?  How important do you think it is for teenagers to have “trust rituals” like this one?  Is the need the same for adults?  What can parents do about something like this, if anything?

Reacting too strongly to building reactors?

This is an article about the increasing tensions between Iran and the West over the former’s nuclear enrichment program.  What do you think of this author’s stance?  Is allowing the country to enrich uranium a dangerous step, or is it simply Iran’s right to do so?  Are the sanctions put in place a good idea, or will they make the situation worse?  What is the best way to prevent war and at the same time prevent countries from developing nuclear weapons?

Is this censorship, pray tell?

This is the last entry you can comment on for the first half of February.

What do you think of the policies toward prayer in American (public) schools?  What should the role of religion be in an educational setting?  What limits should freedom of speech have on school grounds?

Mooching mocha drinkers

If you owned a cafe, would it be with or without Wi-Fi?  And if you had it, would you do something to make sure customers didn’t abuse the privilege?  As a customer at a cafe, how long do you feel comfortable sitting before ordering something else?  Have you ever been made to feel that you have overstayed your welcome?

Someone in my situation...

What do you think about the requirements for obtaining a residence permit here?  Do you think Fernando’s experience is a typical one?  Should Slovakia encourage or discourage immigrants?  Is the Migration Information Center a good idea?

What sports fans can accomplish

Do fans have a tendency to take sports too seriously?  Would you rather play sports or watch?  Can watching sometimes be the more demanding role as this article suggests?  Are you convinced by the ideas presented here for how fans can help to influence results?

Testing (no) testing

Perhaps this would be a more appropriate article for you a year from now, when you will be taking standardized tests, such as the SAT.  What criteria do you think universities should use to select prospective students?  What role should tests play in this process?  What role should tests play in assessment in general?  Is there too much emphasis put on testing in the IB programme or too little?  What about in Slovak high schools and universities?

Dolls or rocket ships?

This was something we started to discuss in class, so here is more fodder if you would like to continue.  So, should parents accept the natural inclinations of their children or try to get them to be more flexible and develop other parts of their personalities?  What would you do if you were a toy manufacturer/marketer?

Shelling it out for blockbusters and penny-pinching for indies

This is the last entry you can comment on for January.

How important is going to the cinema to you?  If it is, what can be done to save cinemas in the age of DVD's and downloading from the net?  Are cheaper prices a way to get people coming back to see films?  What would be good criteria for deciding which films would be cheaper?  Feel free to follow the links to the articles which this article is responding to.