Oak Ridge Today

Roane State’s Stephens honored for her work

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DeAnna Stephens

Roane State Community College assistant professor of English DeAnna Stephens earned two honors this spring.

Stephens won the poetry competition at the Tennessee Williams New Orleans Literary Festival.

She also received first place in the fiction category at the Tennessee Mountain Writers Conference Awards Banquet.

Stephens said she was very excited when informed in mid-March that she was a finalist in the Tennessee Williams New Orleans Literary Festival. Before she won, Stephens said she hadn’t planned to attend the event.

Things changed, especially since the recognition included a $1,000 prize, a free pass to the festival, and the opportunity to read her poems to an appreciative audience, a press release said. [Read more…]

Roane State Community College to host free Summer Bridge Program

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Roane State Community College will host a free Summer Bridge program for Tennessee Promise students July 13-31 at the college’s main campus in Harriman.

The free three-week program prepares students to potentially test out of learning support (remedial) courses and start their freshman years college-ready.

Roane State has 60 openings for its Summer Bridge program. The deadline to apply is June 15. Spots can fill up quickly. [Read more…]

Education Foundation grant takes English language learners on Titanic voyage

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Glenwood Elementary Ice Water Experiment

Students test the icy cold waters as they study the Titanic voyage and the sinking of the ship in a project developed for English language learners. (Submitted photos)

 

English language learners in Oak Ridge’s four public elementary schools are becoming experts on the Titanic as they conduct science experiments to learn about icebergs, build boats with straws, and explore the historic event as they read history and fiction.

The first- through fourth-graders are taking “A Titanic Voyage for English Language Learners,” a project helping them become more confident in their English skills through a variety of learning experiences. The four English as a second language, or ESL, teachers received a $1,544 grant from the Oak Ridge Public Schools Education Foundation last year to buy materials needed for the multi-school project.

The grant will also make possible a field study on May 5 at the Titanic Museum in Pigeon Forge, where students will draw on their studies to have discussions and ask questions as they build on their knowledge of the Titanic and of English.

“They are getting science, social studies, and all the language domains: listening, speaking, reading, and writing,” said Cherie Adcock, ESL teacher at Woodland Elementary School. “Their response has been great, and they are excited.” [Read more…]

Oak Ridge Schools announces ACT results for 2013-2014 graduates

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The ACT college entrance examination “assesses high school students’ general educational development and their ability to complete college-level work.” Students are tested in English, mathematics, reading, and science. They receive a score between one and 36 for each test and also a composite score, which averages the performance on all four subject tests.

The ACT is widely accepted as the premier college entrance examination.

Oak Ridge Schools Superintendent Bruce Borchers said: “In the Oak Ridge Schools, we believe it is crucial for our students to perform well on the ACT examination. It is one of our Seven Keys to College and Career Readiness, and we are proud of how students perform on the ACT and of our teachers who prepare them. This year is no exception.”

The 2014 Oak Ridge High Schools graduating class significantly outperformed the state and national averages on each of the subject components of the ACT examination as well as the overall composite. In fact, Oak Ridge’s 2014 graduating class achieved higher in English, mathematics, reading, and composite than any other ORHS graduating class in the past five years. In addition, the percent of ORHS’s 2014 graduates that met or exceeded all four of the ACT College Readiness Benchmark Scores was far higher than the state and nation. [Read more…]

Guest column: Why going 1:1 is important in Oak Ridge Schools

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Oak Ridge Schools Header

By Tracey Beckendorf-Edou

By now, most of us have heard of the 1:1 (one to one) initiative, meaning that every Oak Ridge student would have a device to use both at home and at school. The following are a few of the reasons why going 1:1 is important.

Mostly, it’s better for kids

We live in a world today in which children learn through technology and are often more engaged with what they are learning when technology is incorporated. Technology does not replace good teaching, but it enhances good teaching. Technology does not replace face-to-face communication, but it adds other modes of communication. Does that mean that technology would be included in every lesson? Of course not. Students still need to explore our world in other ways. Going 1:1 does not require teachers to give up their wonderful non-technology related lessons or for students to be glued to their devices 24/7.

But going 1:1 leads us to think: What’s possible? How can students interact with what is happening outside the walls of the classroom? How can students collaborate with people from across the world? How can students receive immediate feedback so that they can improve on their mistakes immediately? For some examples of what that looks like elsewhere, please see here. [Read more…]

ORHS again ranked sixth-best in state

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Oak Ridge High School

Oak Ridge High School is pictured above.

Oak Ridge High School has again been ranked sixth in Tennessee in an annual ranking of the best high schools in the state.

The ranking by U.S. News and World Report said ORHS is among the Top 1,000 high schools in the nation, ranking No. 894.

At 13:1, Oak Ridge High School has a smaller-than-average student-to-teacher ratio, and it is above the state average in college readiness and student proficiency in algebra and English. [Read more…]

Fifth in nation: UT graduate program in nuclear engineering

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The graduate program in nuclear engineering at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville has risen to fifth place among all universities in the country, according to the 2015 U.S. News and World Report graduate rankings released last week.

Nuclear engineering ranked sixth in the nation in last year’s list. In a press release, the University of Tennessee said it’s one of the college’s fastest growing graduate programs.

The College of Engineering’s overall graduate program also climbed to 36th among all public universities, moving up three spots since last year, the UT press release said. [Read more…]

Reunirse con nosotros para practicar la conversación inglés (Spanish version)

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Únase a nosotros para conversar inglés, café y aperativos.

Cuidado a los niños y ayuda con las tareas escolares para los niños en edad escolar (edades 6-10) estarán disponibles.

Clases de inglés formales comenzarán en enero de 2014.

Para mas información llame a 865-483-3787. [Read more…]

English conversation evening on Wednesday at Grace Lutheran

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Grace Lutheran Church is having its second English conversation evening on Wednesday evening.

It’s scheduled from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. Wednesday at the church, which is at 131 W. Gettysburg Ave. in Oak Ridge.

“Join us for conversation, coffee, and snacks,” a press release said. Child care will be available, and there will be homework help for school-age children from 6-10. [Read more…]