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In this interview, Neil Virani, an LAUSD Human Resources Division teacher adviser, discusses the District Intern Program and special education.

You’ve done it. You’ve studied hard for four years and made your way to high school graduation. Your college has been chosen, the mini fridge and floor lamp are packed in the overstuffed car, and you’ve said goodbye to your home-town friends. But one thing is weighing on your mind – how do I afford this? The thing is – most can’t.

Matthew Peterson, Co-founder, Chief Executive Officer, and Senior Scientist at MIND Research Institute, spoke about his involvement in the Institute and the overall state of mathematic learning in our nation. Peterson points to a number of alarming statistics that indicate how high school students are graduating with drastically inefficient math skills.

Dr. Thomas Armstrong,  ASCD author of The Power of the Adolescent Brain: Strategies for Teaching Middle and High School Students, as well as, numerous other publications, sat down to discuss the intersection of education with mental health and the effects of teaching methods on the adolescent brain. Dr. Armstrong stresses the need for a better-balanced approach to education that concentrates on both the emotional brain and the reasoning mind.

It’s ok; I was just . . .

Dr. Berger recently posed questions to Dr. Gustavo Lara González, ABE/GED Department Chair at Moreno Valley School District, about his journey from Mexico to the U.S. and his entrance into an educational system that not only earned him a Ph.D. but led him to become a leading Adult Learning advocate. Lara González shares a backdrop to his early student life in Mexico and how he blended his past learning into his teaching methods in the United States. Most of all, Lara González demonstrates how his hardened pursuit of a higher education and eventually teaching, led him to become a leading proponent of Adult Learning, avowing him to lessen the hurdles of his past for others.

John McLaughlin sits down to discuss recent news surrounding Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA) and the unfortunate tendency to pigeonhole the field of autism. McLaughlin warns against limiting therapy methods in favor of a “check box” approach made popular by insurance companies looking to set pricing and organize treatment protocols.

edCircuit Opinion

edCircuit Opinion
It was a very eventful year for The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education, commonly referred to as FIRE. There has been a great deal of pressure on Colleges and Universities to publicly confront issues amongst the student body including race, sexual assault, gay rights and politically correct comments. Many would argue that these institutions are getting too involved, others say that they are not intervening enough.