Education

Two students from a school in Dallas were suspended after one of the girls tried to save the other’s life by sharing her asthma inhaler. The two 7th grade girls attending Schrade Middle School in Garland, Texas, are now facing up to 30 days in alternative school. The school says it was an automatic decision when a controlled substance is involved. RT reports: Earlier in the week, 12-year-old Indiyah Rush offered her classmate, Alexis Kyle, 13, who has asthma, her inhaler when she saw her wheezing and gasping during gym class at Vernon Schrade Middle School in Dallas.

Portland Community College, a public college that serves 90,000 students calls itself the largest secondary education institution in Oregon, is staging a “Whiteness History Month” plainly designed to convince white students to despise themselves and their culture. That’s not how the PCC website puts it, of course:

A new study has revealed that nearly a third of teachers across the UK are feeding hungry students in their classes. According to the survey, children are turning up for school too hungry to learn and teachers are bringing in food for desperate pupils. Trade unionists have blamed the hunger crisis on Tory austerity measures. The Mirror reports: Nearly one in three has resorted to feeding children in class – and some staff even give kids cash to buy food.

A new bill filed this week by Virginia Delegate Mark Cole would require that schools ensure students are using restrooms that correlate to their “correct anatomical sex”. The bill defines anatomical sex as: the physical condition of being male or female, which is determined by a person’s anatomy. Under the legislation, any student who violates the bathroom rules could be fined $50 by law enforcement. As noted by Crooks and Liars, under the bills definition, the only way for anyone to determine such a thing would be to examine the student’s genitalia as they enter the restroom.

I’ve been reading theology this week, preparing for my talks next weekend in Wichita. I came across a basic concept that clarified my thoughts: a symbol is something that both points to something greater, and participates in it.

With that in mind, this Inside Higher Education interview with Sidonie A. Smith, a “noted humanities professor” who has written a new book about the crisis in the humanities, is a symbol of that crisis. Observe how she talks: