Morning Announcements: July 1, 2011

It's Friday again (already!?) and if we could, we'd send you home early to get a jump on the holiday weekend. If you head home early, have a quick looky-loo at some education news before you go ...

Education Week reports that experts are saying educators need training to understand common standards.

According to a recent U.S. News & World Report blog post, students can forget as much as two months’ worth of math and reading instruction over the summer, according to some reports; but for students who are unable to attend summer learning programs to keep them on track, playing certain video games or practicing skills around the house can help.

The use of analytic tools to predict student performance is exploding in higher education, and experts say the tools show even more promise for K-12 schools, in everything from teacher placement to dropout prevention, reports Education Week.

According to a recent article in Inside Higher Ed, many young people without postsecondary degrees want to return to college, but most of them don’t know how to take out federal loans to pay for it.

The Huffington Post reports on recently released Race to the Top draft guidelines for a federal competition for early learning grant money that will stress assessment, teacher training, and program alignment, according to an announcement Thursday by officials from the White House, the U.S. Department of Education and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Enjoy the Fourth of July weekend!