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Times Education Commission: Our children are behind before they even begin

W hat the Times Education Commission has been able to do is to ask those difficult questions that perhaps all of us working in education would prefer to avoid because, let’s be frank, they’re just very hard to answer.

When a third of businesses surveyed by the Commission say that their workforce is lacking basic literacy and numeracy skills, and when our own survey published in the spring found that, on average, half of all children were not ready to start school; then we really do need to be asking — and answering — some serious, thorny questions.

When we have clear problems in attainment at both ends of the education pipeline, when starting school and embarking on a career, then I believe the word crisis is absolutely appropriate. For me, the answers to easing that crisis lie in improving the life chances of many of those between birth and four years old.

A few basic facts about human development help shine a spotlight on the situation. At birth, the brain has reached about 25 per cent of its ultimate development. By the age of three, it’s 80 per cent and that’s before children have even encountered a classroom or a teacher. Most of the brain is developed before a baby can talk.

By the age of five, 85 per cent of a child’s language is in place. This is the age at which many children first start to be introduced to the English language at their school. We are not starting with a blank canvas when “education” is officially initiated; most of the paint has dried and for too many, it’s incredibly hard to shift.

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So, if disadvantage sets in early, it tends to sink in deeply. A child’s development score as young at 22 months is an all too accurate predictor of where they will be educationally at the age of 26.

Some 40 per cent of the attainment gap that can be seen at the age of 16 is already in place before those children even start school at the age of five.

By the age of three, most disadvantaged children are, on average, already more than 1.5 years behind their more affluent peers. They are beginning life with an invisible ball and chain attached to them.

The blunt reality is that our neglect of the early years means that more children are behind before they begin. In our recent report published this spring, nine out of ten of the teachers we spoke to could identify at least one pupil in their incoming class at five years old with language skills that were so badly underdeveloped that they could not articulate their name or answer even very simple questions. During one-on-one interviews conducted alongside our survey, some teachers told researchers that the majority of their new pupils were developmentally very far behind expectations for their age, for instance, not toilet trained, struggling to socialise with other children, express themselves or understand basic instructions.

All of which have immense implications for the individuals concerned and for society at large. It is this waste of human potential that is the real reason why nations such as South Korea and Estonia are ahead of us.

Research and our own experiences strongly suggest that if you are not ready for school aged five, the chances are you will fall behind throughout your school career and then in life.

None of the above is new or unknown but it’s almost as if the state is silent until children reach the age of five.

We are mid-way through exam season, always an important time for young people, but after three years of cancelled exams, this year takes on a new significance. Success will mostly be measured by the numbers who get the grades at A Level to get into university. This is why the “debate” over which target to adopt for higher education, is one that verges on the farcical. The sort of children who haven’t had a fair crack at the whip at such a young age are not likely to be at the front of the queue either for a degree course or to get onto a much sought-after apprenticeship.

It will be 15 years this summer since Tony Blair stood down as prime minister. For many of those taking A levels now, to a very large extent, they will have already have had their future prospects set back in 2007. This is not an outcome that he or anyone else, including his critics, should be proud of. The target we need is that by 2030 as close to 100 per cent as possible of children who start school at the age of five are ready to even begin the education that’s right for them.

At Kindred Squared we don’t want to be another voice just calling for more funding. We think it’s how we invest in education. Every pound spent on Early Years saves the state £13 pounds in later catch-up interventions. We want to see more innovation, which is why we’ve started rolling out lessons developed by Oxford University to secondary schools to teach young people about the rapid brain development of babies and how that defines good parenting. We’re educating pupils before they become parents or carers.

This isn’t about just blaming parents either. We all want the best for our children, whatever our circumstances, but we must be asking about the infrastructure and support for parents and carers that need it most. Could we be doing more to spell out what being “school ready” means especially when the neuroscience has improved so much in the last two decades? Could we better target what we already spend to deliver a bigger bang for our buck?

We really need a new national conversation about the vital importance of Early Years.

Felicity Gillespie is director of Kindred Squared

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Edited by Maya Alkateb-Chami, Jane Choi, Jeannette Garcia Coppersmith, Ron Grady, Phoebe A. Grant-Robinson, Pennie M. Gregory, Jennifer Ha, Woohee Kim, Catherine E. Pitcher, Elizabeth Salinas, Caroline Tucker, Kemeyawi Q. Wahpepah

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• ISSN: 0017-8055
• eISSN: 1943-5045
• Keywords: scholarly journal, education research
• First Issue: 1930
• Frequency: Quarterly

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The Harvard Educational Review (HER) is a scholarly journal of opinion and research in education. The Editorial Board aims to publish pieces from interdisciplinary and wide-ranging fields that advance our understanding of educational theory, equity, and practice. HER encourages submissions from established and emerging scholars, as well as from practitioners working in the field of education. Since its founding in 1930, HER has been central to elevating pieces and debates that tackle various dimensions of educational justice, with circulation to researchers, policymakers, teachers, and administrators.

Our Editorial Board is composed entirely of doctoral students from the Harvard Graduate School of Education who review all manuscripts considered for publication. For more information on the current Editorial Board, please see here.

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2023-2024 Harvard Educational Review Editorial Board Members

Maya Alkateb-Chami Development and Partnerships Editor, 2023-2024 Editor, 2022-2024 [email protected]

Maya Alkateb-Chami is a PhD student at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Her research focuses on the role of schooling in fostering just futures—specifically in relation to language of instruction policies in multilingual contexts and with a focus on epistemic injustice. Prior to starting doctoral studies, she was the Managing Director of Columbia University’s Human Rights Institute, where she supported and co-led a team of lawyers working to advance human rights through research, education, and advocacy. Prior to that, she was the Executive Director of Jusoor, a nonprofit organization that helps conflict-affected Syrian youth and children pursue their education in four countries. Alkateb-Chami is a Fulbright Scholar and UNESCO cultural heritage expert. She holds an MEd in Language and Literacy from Harvard University; an MSc in Education from Indiana University, Bloomington; and a BA in Political Science from Damascus University, and her research on arts-based youth empowerment won the annual Master’s Thesis Award of the U.S. Society for Education Through Art.

Jane Choi Editor, 2023-2025

Jane Choi is a second-year PhD student in Sociology with broad interests in culture, education, and inequality. Her research examines intra-racial and interracial boundaries in US educational contexts. She has researched legacy and first-generation students at Ivy League colleges, families served by Head Start and Early Head Start programs, and parents of pre-K and kindergarten-age children in the New York City School District. Previously, Jane worked as a Research Assistant in the Family Well-Being and Children’s Development policy area at MDRC and received a BA in Sociology from Columbia University.

Jeannette Garcia Coppersmith Content Editor, 2023-2024 Editor, 2022-2024 [email protected]

Jeannette Garcia Coppersmith is a fourth-year Education PhD student in the Human Development, Learning and Teaching concentration at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. A former public middle and high school mathematics teacher and department chair, she is interested in understanding the mechanisms that contribute to disparities in secondary mathematics education, particularly how teacher beliefs and biases intersect with the social-psychological processes and pedagogical choices involved in math teaching. Jeannette holds an EdM in Learning and Teaching from the Harvard Graduate School of Education where she studied as an Urban Scholar and a BA in Environmental Sciences from the University of California, Berkeley.

Ron Grady Editor, 2023-2025

Ron Grady is a second-year doctoral student in the Human Development, Learning, and Teaching concentration at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. His central curiosities involve the social worlds and peer cultures of young children, wondering how lived experience is both constructed within and revealed throughout play, the creation of art and narrative, and through interaction with/production of visual artifacts such as photography and film. Ron also works extensively with educators interested in developing and deepening practices rooted in reflection on, inquiry into, and translation of the social, emotional, and aesthetic aspects of their classroom ecosystems. Prior to his doctoral studies, Ron worked as a preschool teacher in New Orleans. He holds a MS in Early Childhood Education from the Erikson Institute and a BA in Psychology with Honors in Education from Stanford University.

Phoebe A. Grant-Robinson Editor, 2023-2024

Phoebe A. Grant-Robinson is a first year student in the Doctor of Education Leadership(EdLD) program at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Her ultimate quest is to position all students as drivers of their destiny. Phoebe is passionate about early learning and literacy. She is committed to ensuring that districts and school leaders, have the necessary tools to create equitable learning organizations that facilitate the academic and social well-being of all students. Phoebe is particularly interested in the intersection of homeless students and literacy. Prior to her doctoral studies, Phoebe was a Special Education Instructional Specialist. Supporting a portfolio of more than thirty schools, she facilitated the rollout of New York City’s Special Education Reform. Phoebe also served as an elementary school principal. She holds a BS in Inclusive Education from Syracuse University, and an MS in Curriculum and Instruction from Pace University.

Pennie M. Gregory Editor, 2023-2024

Pennie M. Gregory is a second-year student in the Doctor of Education Leadership (EdLD) program at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Pennie was born in Incheon, South Korea and raised in Gary, Indiana. She has decades of experience leading efforts to improve outcomes for students with disabilities first as a special education teacher and then as a school district special education administrator. Prior to her doctoral studies, Pennie helped to create Indiana’s first Aspiring Special Education Leadership Institute (ASELI) and served as its Director. She was also the Capacity Events Director for MelanatED Leaders, an organization created to support educational leaders of color in Indianapolis. Pennie has a unique perspective, having worked with members of the school community, with advocacy organizations, and supporting state special education leaders. Pennie holds an EdM in Education Leadership from Marian University.

Jennifer Ha Editor, 2023-2025

Jen Ha is a second-year PhD student in the Culture, Institutions, and Society concentration at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Her research explores how high school students learn to write personal narratives for school applications, scholarships, and professional opportunities amidst changing landscapes in college access and admissions. Prior to doctoral studies, Jen served as the Coordinator of Public Humanities at Bard Graduate Center and worked in several roles organizing academic enrichment opportunities and supporting postsecondary planning for students in New Haven and New York City. Jen holds a BA in Humanities from Yale University, where she was an Education Studies Scholar.

Woohee Kim Editor, 2023-2025

Woohee Kim is a PhD student studying youth activists’ civic and pedagogical practices. She is a scholar-activist dedicated to creating spaces for pedagogies of resistance and transformative possibilities. Shaped by her activism and research across South Korea, the US, and the UK, Woohee seeks to interrogate how educational spaces are shaped as cultural and political sites and reshaped by activists as sites of struggle. She hopes to continue exploring the intersections of education, knowledge, power, and resistance.

Catherine E. Pitcher Editor, 2023-2025

Catherine is a second-year doctoral student at Harvard Graduate School of Education in the Culture, Institutions, and Society program. She has over 10 years of experience in education in the US in roles that range from special education teacher to instructional coach to department head to educational game designer. She started working in Palestine in 2017, first teaching, and then designing and implementing educational programming. Currently, she is working on research to understand how Palestinian youth think about and build their futures and continues to lead programming in the West Bank, Gaza, and East Jerusalem. She holds an EdM from Harvard in International Education Policy.

Elizabeth Salinas Editor, 2023-2025

Elizabeth Salinas is a doctoral student in the Education Policy and Program Evaluation concentration at HGSE. She is interested in the intersection of higher education and the social safety net and hopes to examine policies that address basic needs insecurity among college students. Before her doctoral studies, Liz was a research director at a public policy consulting firm. There, she supported government, education, and philanthropy leaders by conducting and translating research into clear and actionable information. Previously, Liz served as a high school physics teacher in her hometown in Texas and as a STEM outreach program director at her alma mater. She currently sits on the Board of Directors at Leadership Enterprise for a Diverse America, a nonprofit organization working to diversify the leadership pipeline in the United States. Liz holds a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a master’s degree in higher education from the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Caroline Tucker Co-Chair, 2023-2024 Editor, 2022-2024 [email protected]

Caroline Tucker is a fourth-year doctoral student in the Culture, Institutions, and Society concentration at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Her research focuses on the history and organizational dynamics of women’s colleges as women gained entry into the professions and coeducation took root in the United States. She is also a research assistant for the Harvard and the Legacy of Slavery Initiative’s Subcommittee on Curriculum and the editorial assistant for Into Practice, the pedagogy newsletter distributed by Harvard University’s Office of the Vice Provost for Advances in Learning. Prior to her doctoral studies, Caroline served as an American politics and English teaching fellow in London and worked in college advising. Caroline holds a BA in History from Princeton University, an MA in the Social Sciences from the University of Chicago, and an EdM in Higher Education from the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Kemeyawi Q. Wahpepah Co-Chair, 2023-2024 Editor, 2022-2024 [email protected]

Kemeyawi Q. Wahpepah (Kickapoo, Sac & Fox) is a fourth-year doctoral student in the Culture, Institutions, and Society concentration at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Their research explores how settler colonialism is addressed in K-12 history and social studies classrooms in the United States. Prior to their doctoral studies, Kemeyawi taught middle and high school English and history for eleven years in Boston and New York City. They hold an MS in Middle Childhood Education from Hunter College and an AB in Social Studies from Harvard University.

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“Educated,” by Tara Westover

By Alexandra Schwartz

I am far from the first critic to recommend Tara Westover’s astounding memoir, “ Educated ,” but if its comet tail of glowing reviews has not yet convinced you, let me see what I can do. Westover was born sometime in September, 1986—no birth certificate was issued—on a remote mountain in Idaho, the seventh child of Mormon survivalist parents who subscribed to a paranoid patchwork of beliefs well outside the mandates of their religion. The government was always about to invade; the End of Days was always at hand. Westover’s mother worked as a midwife and an herbal healer. Her father, who claimed prophetic powers, owned a scrap yard, where his children labored without the benefit of protective equipment. (Westover recounts accidents so hideous, and so frequent, that it’s a wonder she lived to tell her tale at all.) Mainstream medicine was mistrusted, as were schools, which meant that Westover’s determination to leave home and get a formal education—the choice that drives her book, and changed her life—amounted to a rebellion against her parents’ world.

This story, remarkable as it is, might be merely another entry in the subgenre of extreme American life, were it not for the uncommon perceptiveness of the person telling it. Westover examines her childhood with unsparing clarity, and, more startlingly, with curiosity and love, even for those who have seriously failed or wronged her. In part, this is a book about being a stranger in a strange land; Westover, adrift at university, can’t help but miss her mountain home. But her deeper subject is memory. Westover is careful to note the discrepancies between her own recollections and those of her relatives. (The ones who still speak to her, anyway. Her parents cut her off long ago.) “Part of me will always believe that my father’s words ought to be my own,” she writes. If her book is an act of defiance, a way to set the record of her own life straight, it’s also an attempt to understand, even to respect, those whom she had to break away from in order to get free.

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21st Century Skills: Learning for Life in Our Times.

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Movie Review | 'An Education'

Beware of Strangers Bearing Champagne

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By A.O. Scott

• Oct. 8, 2009

Literature is full of cautionary tales of innocent young women seduced by smooth-talking rakes. Jenny, a dutiful student and a passionate consumer of modern novels and French pop records, has surely encountered more than a few such stories. But at 16 and in a terrible hurry, she seems less inclined to learn from the mistakes of wayward romantic heroines than to join their ranks.

In a Henry James novel, Jenny would be an eager American ingénue arriving in Europe to drain the cup of experience to its dregs. But in “An Education,” a sprightly and slippery new film adapted from a short, sharp memoir by the British journalist Lynn Barber, she is a middle-class adolescent, languishing in the London suburb of Twickenham in 1961.

Jenny, played with preternatural wit by the 24-year-old British actress Carey Mulligan, is passionate, inquisitive and smart, bound for Oxford and stifled by her starchy private school and her anxious, proper parents (Cara Seymour and Alfred Molina).

One rainy afternoon, a snake slithers into the drab little garden of Jenny’s life, and her curiosity about this suave stranger is accompanied by a sense of relief. At last, something is going to happen. He seems quite harmless at first — interesting, but not in a dangerous way. His name is David, he is around 30, reasonably handsome (played by the quietly dashing Peter Sarsgaard), Jewish and fluent in a language of style and culture that Jenny is only beginning to learn. Noticing that she is lugging her cello, David chats with her about the British composer Edward Elgar, and before she knows it, he is squiring her to art auctions and concerts, plying her with Champagne and cigarettes and airy, high-minded talk.

Another shoe is sure to drop, but the director, Lone Scherfig, and the screenwriter, Nick Hornby, let it float gradually and gently to the ground. It is vital to the movie’s delicate, comic tone that intimations of the predatory, duplicitous aspects of David’s character do not emerge too suddenly. Jenny is smitten, and so, rather astonishingly, are her parents, in particular her conservative and unworldly father, who all but delivers his daughter to her seducer tied up in a bow, believing that this is an opportunity for her social advancement.

The audience, too, needs to be fooled for a while, and Mr. Sarsgaard handles a tricky role with sly aplomb, allowing doubt and then revulsion to mix, drop by drop, into our impression of him. David and his fabulous friends, Danny and Helen (Dominic Cooper and Rosamund Pike), turn out not to be the high-living swells Jenny takes them for, but something rather more tawdry. And yet, even as she begins to see through them, and David in particular, Jenny plays along with their charade, as if determined to follow her experiment to its conclusion.

This turns out to be both foreseeable and surprising. Jenny makes no secret of her relationship with David, which becomes the talk of her school, attracting the concern of a sad, kindly young teacher (Olivia Williams) and the fierce disapproval of the headmistress (Emma Thompson, taking a practice run at her inevitable portrayal of Margaret Thatcher).

But Jenny’s course is set. It’s not that she’s out of control — quite the contrary. She is deliberately and systematically, with what she imagines to be full knowledge of the consequences, seeking out what the vestigial Victorianism of her era would see as her ruin.

And the era itself is the real subject of “An Education,” which catches Britain around the time when, as Philip Larkin put it in his famous poem, “sexual intercourse began.” There is a bit of that stuff in “An Education,” but it’s more the symbol of other kinds of experience than the reverse. What Jenny craves is not the fact of sex — though she does make sure to schedule the loss of her virginity — but full access to an ideal of sexiness, a world that is the opposite of the boring little England she knows and loathes. Even as David is taking advantage of her innocence, she is, at first unwittingly and then more brazenly, using him to find her way to that world, which she identifies especially with France.

In the film’s historical view Jenny is a generational pioneer, and Ms. Scherfig and Mr. Hornby make some effort to reckon the costs of her exploration as well as the thrills. Tears do flow after the Champagne is all drunk. But the filmmakers themselves seem too intoxicated by the mystique of the period to take full account of the sad, bleak aspects of the story they have to tell. At crucial moments the movie recoils from its own implications and finds a default tone of wry comedy when something more stringent and difficult is called for.

But if in hindsight “An Education” might make you a little queasy, it is hard to resist, like David himself. Some of this allure arises from the appeal of a moment in the past that seems, in “Mad Men” and beyond, to be enjoying some cultural cachet. And Ms. Scherfig, a Danish filmmaker whose previous work includes “Italian for Beginners,” the only comedy the Dogme 95 movement has ever produced, and the morbidly charming “Wilbur Wants to Kill Himself,” catches some of the headlong energy of the British and French New Waves that were part of Jenny’s world.

Even as its heroine blazes a path toward the new, “An Education,” perhaps inevitably, drifts toward nostalgia. The film might have had some of the heft and complication of a novel but instead, as with so much of Mr. Hornby’s work, like “High Fidelity” and “About a Boy,” it is content to be a deftly turned pop artifact. It’s a pleasure — which I don’t mean entirely as a compliment.

“An Education” is rated PG-13. Its sexual implications are not as troubling as they should be.

AN EDUCATION

Opens on Friday in Manhattan.

Directed by Lone Scherfig; written by Nick Hornby, based on a memoir by Lynn Barber; director of photography, John de Borman; edited by Barney Pilling; music by Paul Englishby; production designer, Andrew McAlpine; produced by Finola Dwyer and Amanda Posey; released by Sony Pictures Classics. Running time: 1 hour 40 minutes.

WITH: Carey Mulligan (Jenny), Peter Sarsgaard (David), Dominic Cooper (Danny), Rosamund Pike (Helen), Alfred Molina (Jack), Cara Seymour (Marjorie), Matthew Beard (Graham), Emma Thompson (Headmistress), Olivia Williams (Miss Stubbs), Sally Hawkins (Sarah), Amanda Fairbank-Hynes (Hattie) and Ellie Kendrick (Tina).

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Letters to the editor: art auction collab success.

By Riverhead News-Review

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We wanted to share that “New Views for Old Pews,” the collaborative art auction to benefit the Center for Advocacy, Support and Transformation and North Fork Contemporary, was a resounding success! A little background: Sixteen pews that had outlived their usefulness in the former 19th-century Southold church that CAST now calls home were offered to selected artists, artisans and craftspeople to be creatively transformed into objects better suited to their new roles in the community. These newly transformed pews were auctioned last Saturday night and the event raised well over $10,000 for the two collaborating not-for-profit organizations.

Our sincere gratitude goes out to the artists for all their hard work — Hideaki Ariizumi, Brad Ascalon, Glynis Berry, Scott Bluedorn, Christian Demchak, Garance, Jay Hodges, Larissa Killough, Joyce Orrigo, Will Paulson, Verona Penalba, Adam Straus and Allan Wexler. Thank you to our auctioneer, Barry Bergdoll, professor of art history at Columbia University and former architecture curator at MoMA, the great staff at CAST, and the entire North Fork Contemporary, Inc. team.

Generous financial support for the project came from North Fork Side by Side, Peconic Green Growth and private contributors. And special thanks to Landscaping by Oswaldo for their help in transporting the pews. And finally, we want to thank all those who came out to participate! It made for a great evening!

Sean Elwood

The Golden Rule should guide us

Please send sincere congratulations to the citizen who wrote a letter recently for a meaningful, fact-filled letter about the coming election. I have been composing the very same sentiments for the last few weeks as I get more angry and stressed by what this unhinged former President has done to this country. I see and hear hatred, un-American activities, the trial of the century revelations and a general sense of dread everywhere I go and in every news report I see. It is unbelievable to this senior citizen born during World War II to have a replay of those horrific events.

As a retired history teacher, grandmother and proud citizen of America, I hope all your readers examine their consciences, consider consequences of four more years of drama, trauma, dysfunction, allegiances with dictators like Putin, lies and attacks on just about every minority residing here. America First, America White, America Christian is history that failed.

My and my husband’s Irish immigrant parents and grandparents, as well as every other ethnic group, have contributed greatly to this wonderful melting pot of ideas, writings, inventions and customs that we can all embrace. I had wished we all moved from the ”Irish need not apply” signs and welcome new immigrants in an enlightened era.

As for the ambitious Latino workers who keep my condo in beautiful condition working long hours for little pay, I say thank you and welcome you if you obey the rules for entry and teach us all the value of hard work leading to citizenship. The Golden Rule of “do unto others as you would have them do unto” you is basic humanity.

Elizabeth Weiss

Hotels are not the problem

Farm stands create traffic jams, not hotels! We promote tourism and when they come they are not allowed on our beaches and they have no place to sleep. Don’t get me wrong, I have nothing against farmers or tourists, but to deny a businessperson their right to pursue their dream that’s within the local laws and guidelines is absurd. In my 60-plus years in Southold, I cannot think of one highly controversial project when allowed to be completed that did not benefit us. In fact, traveling our roads and especially Route 25 is far more aesthetically pleasing than it was 60 years ago. A healthy business environment is essential to Southold’s future. 

Robert Guarriello

He was wrong on loan forgiveness 

I’m sorry, Mr. Gismondi, that at 63 you are so angry at people who have taken a different path than you did (“I worked hard for what I have,” April 18). I’m 74 and I know that that much anger hurts you, not the people you resent. My wish, as I approach the exit ramp of life, is to hope later generations will have a better quality of life and if forgiving student loans helps, I applaud it. I’m appreciative to the teachers who taught me, my children and grandchildren. I’m appreciative of government employees who deliver mail, and keep our environment somewhat safe. What I’m trying to say is that it is much easier on my wellbeing to embrace a positive outlook. I’ve been called a Pollyanna. That’s OK. The glass is half full and it’s clean water.

Rosellen Storm

Yes, vote wisely in November

I am moved to respond to Stephen Tettelbach’s opinion, advising us all to “Vote wisely in November.” I see Mr. Tettelbach has indeed drank from the “Anti-Trump Kool-Aid,” stating that Republicans feel Trump has been appointed by God to do great things. Sorry to break it to you Mr. Tettelbach, only God can do great things. Let’s not talk about lies, narcissism, nepotism and greed. I’m afraid our current president has a large share in all of the above; however, you apparently have chosen to close your eyes to it.

This president has opened up our borders in a way our country has NEVER seen! The amount of illegal immigrants entering our country is absolutely unfathomable! Who are these people? Does anyone know where they have gone? We are spending millions of dollars feeding and housing them, and yet they have the audacity to complain about their accommodations and the taste of the food! Please, Mr. Tettelbach, do not jump on the uniformed bandwagon, talking about “Trump’s lackeys,” saying that President Biden was “ready to sign into law a plan to deal with immigration much more effectively.” Why wasn’t that done from the get-go? I’m sure you are aware, that on the very first day of his presidency, Biden reversed Trump’s border wall initiative along our southern border. All President Biden has to do is simply sign an executive order closing the border, it’s that simple, but making President Trump the scapegoat is always a better option for this administration. 

Regarding the economy, apparently the president has not been to the grocery store lately. Paying $7 for a pound of ground beef, and $3.59 for a gallon of gas? So, yes, I too advise everyone to vote wisely in November.

Karen Gerrity

Our democracy is imperiled

I am a “baby boomer” and proud New Yorker. In my lifetime, I have seen many phenomenal, historic events: man walking on the moon, the best popular music of all time (’60s music is still used in ubiquitous commercials), the ’69 Mets, Jets, and Knicks winning championships, Woodstock, muscle cars and the gaining and taking away of fundamental human rights. 

Like every other human under God, I have sinned and have my shortcomings. In my later years I try to be fair and sensible, leading to a progressive lifestyle. No one is perfect, but we all have equal rights. The Republican Party has been an insidious, fearful and forceful player in exploiting unforeseeable flaws in the U.S. Constitution to benefit their unpopular agenda. The MAGA candidate for president in 2024 has said that he wants to do away with the Constitution and be a dictator on day one of his presidency. That phenomenal and historic event is one that I do not wish to experience. 

Ari Berman recently published an article in Mother Jones (“The Democracy Bomb,” May-June 2024), which lays out the frightening course of events that has led to our current exposure to class warfare. 

Berman makes a succinct case for how autocracy is inevitable unless the unafraid and reasonable majority in our nation enacts a sea change through a historic vote against a party whose candidate has been accused of fraud and sexual assault while under indictment for electoral fraud and trying to overturn a free and fair election. I put my personal beliefs and my extremely successful country over any political party affiliation and certainly over any accused criminal. 

I urge all voters to read Berman’s article that attempts to shine a light on the perils our democracy faces. And it is my belief that the democracy I have lived under for so many years is far superior to any dictatorship or autocracy awaiting to change history for the worst. 

Peter Meeker

We must draw the line somewhere

Fiction is spreading faster then fact in today’s America. Why? Simply put, a lack of leadership everywhere! Hateful speech accepted on the college campus. A president who tries to thread the needle between all sides. A Congress more interested in party than country. Education is meant to teach us how to discern right from wrong. Doing the right thing is always best. How do you know if it’s right? Listen to your heart understand your values. “Death to America” is not free speech; it is hateful speech. It should not be tolerated. No one, not one person in this country, should feel unsafe. 

If we are to remain America and continue to grow, our leaders must lead and not continue to be ambiguous. The wishy washy just does not cut it. It is time to draw the line.

Robert Bittner

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Book reviews

Conflict Graffiti, by John Lennon

Stefano Bloch applauds a brilliant account of what street art can reveal about people, places and politics

American Exceptionalism, by Ian Tyrrell

Carrie Tirado Bramen enjoys a wide-ranging analysis of an important concept that has recently been neglected by scholars

Albert Camus and the Human Crisis, by Robert Emmet Meagher

Robert Eaglestone reflects on the limits of hagiography

The Private Life of William Shakespeare, by Lena Cowen Orlin

Peter J. Smith gets drowned in the detail of an ambitious study of the playwright’s milieu

Life Is Simple, by Johnjoe McFadden

Geoffrey Cantor has mixed feelings about a bold attempt to put a 14th-century friar at the heart of our understanding of science

Bette Davis Black and White, by Julia A. Stern

Lucy Bolton is intrigued by an analysis of changing racial attitudes based on the career of a great Hollywood icon

Climate, Catastrophe, and Faith, by Philip Jenkins

Ruby Guyatt enjoys a wide-ranging account of how developments in religion have often been shaped by changes in the climate

Rationality, by Steven Pinker

Martin Cohen takes issue with a polemic that seems to skate over some of the deeper dimensions of logic and scientific method

The Anthropocene Unconscious: Climate, Catastrophe, Culture, by Mark Bould

John Gilbey is intrigued and disturbed by an occasionally irreverent account of how environmental disaster haunts popular culture 

Dogopolis, by Chris Pearson

Susan McHugh enjoys a detailed analysis of how our relations with dogs reveal some essential truths about what it means to be human

Affluence and Freedom: An Environmental History of Political Ideas, by Pierre Charbonnier

John Barry enjoys a bold attempt to rethink our political priorities in the light of the ecological crisis

Shakespeare’s Englishes, by Margaret Tudeau-Clayton

Peter J. Smith enjoys a powerful analysis of how the work of the Bard cuts through simplistic notions of national identity

The Dissolution of the Monasteries, by James Clark

Ann Hughes enjoys a richly detailed account of how Henry VIII imposed his power over the church

Cities in the Anthropocene, by Ihnji Jon

Richard J. Williams applauds an unusually optimistic case for environmentalism

Permanent Crisis: The Humanities in a Disenchanted Age, by Paul Reitter and Chad Wellmon

Johann N. Neem enjoys a sharp historical analysis of why the humanities always seem to be overpromising on what they can do

The Future Is Feminine: Capitalism and the Masculine Disorder, by Ciara Cremin

Georgina Murray applauds a bold attempt to put gender at the heart of a wider political critique

Time’s Witness: History in the Age of Romanticism, by Rosemary Hill

R. C. Richardson enjoys a vivid account of how the French Revolution helped shape new ways of understanding the past

Decolonizing Politics, by Robbie Shilliam

Angelia R. Wilson applauds an analysis seeking to bring far more diverse voices into the study of politics

Wonderworks: Literary Invention and the Science of Stories, by Angus Fletcher

Deborah D. Rogers is unconvinced by an ambitious attempt to apply the insights of neuroscience to centuries of literature

Surviving Katyn: Stalin’s Polish Massacre and the Search for Truth, by Jane Rogoyska

Geoffrey Alderman admires a definitive account of a wartime massacre that remains controversial today

Imagining Socialism: Aesthetics, Anti-politics, and Literature in Britain, by Mark A. Allison

Charlotte Jones enjoys a historical account of radical politics that may have important lessons for today

Political Football, by Wyn Grant

Stephen Mumford enjoys a brilliant analysis of what has gone wrong with the world’s most popular sport, which is less convincing on solutions

The Wealth of Refugees, by Alexander Betts

David Owen on a compelling case for interdisciplinary analysis of refugee economies

Living with Shakespeare, by Geoffrey Marsh

Lisa Hopkins enjoys a vivid picture of the part of London where Shakespeare once resided

Women of Ideas: Interviews from Philosophy Bites, edited by Suki Finn

Rebecca Buxton is thrilled by a rich and accessible collection that challenges the age-old assumption of male-dominated philosophy

The Fetters of Rhyme, by Rebecca Rush

Peter J. Smith admires a bold attempt to show how details of poetic form reflected deep political and religious divisions in early modern England

Humanist Reason, by Eric Hayot

Robert Eaglestone finds much to admire in an unapologetic attempt to justify the humanities in their own terms

Erotic Love in Sociology, Philosophy and Literature, by Finn Bowring

Jane O’Grady is frustrated by a minutely calibrated study of centuries of reflections on eroticism

Bettering Humanomics, by Deirdre Nansen McCloskey

Laura Harvey applauds an attempt to bring more humanistic modes of thinking into the ‘dismal science’

Disguised Academic Plagiarism, by Michael V. Dougherty

David A. Sanders enjoys a vivid account of the many crafty ways academics steal the words of others

The Dating Divide: Race and Desire in the Era of Online Romance, by Celeste Vaughan Curington and others

Kalwant Bhopal is impressed by a sobering analysis of how racial attitudes shape even our most intimate interactions

Conquering Peace: From the Enlightenment to the European Union, by Stella Ghervas

Gabriel Paquette is impressed by an ambitious account of how a continent has kept trying to reinvent itself after major wars

The Price You Pay for College, by Ron Lieber

Deborah D. Rogers learns how the privileged make college admissions processes work in their favour

The Haunted House in Women’s Ghost Stories, by Emma Liggins

Ruth Heholt discovers how supernatural fiction is deeply revealing about changing attitudes to class and gender 

Café Europa Revisited: How to Survive Post-communism, by Slavenka Drakulić

Kristen Ghodsee applauds a journalist’s essay collection that offers sharp insights into post-communist eastern Europe

Geographies of Food, by Moya Kneafsey and others

Jeremy MacClancy has mixed feelings about a wide-ranging attempt to create ‘mindful food citizens’

Book Wars: The Digital Revolution in Publishing, by John B. Thompson

Robert Eaglestone relishes a business history that is as much of a page-turner as a novel 

The Gun, the Ship and the Pen, by Linda Colley

Lincoln Allison enjoys a broad, sometimes speculative account of the mania for written constitutions that took hold in the 1750s

Is Free Speech Racist?
, by Gavan Titley

Martin Myers applauds a bold attempt to re-examine one of the sacred cows of liberal societies

The Agile College: How Institutions Successfully Navigate Demographic Changes, by Nathan Grawe

Gabriel Paquette enjoys a bold attempt to offer solutions for universities threatened by shrinking student numbers and declining revenues

The Hidden Spring: A Journey to the Source of Consciousness, by Mark Solms

Anil Seth has mixed feelings about an ambitious study of consciousness that draws extensively on psychoanalysis

A People’s Tragedy: Studies in Reformation, by Eamon Duffy

Ann Hughes enjoys a set of sharp, wide-ranging essays by a historian who revolutionised our understanding of early modern Europe

Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, by Amanullah De Sondy and others

Robert A. Segal applauds a comprehensive survey of the distinctions and similarities between the three great Religions of the Book

Writing and Righting: Literature in the Age of Human Rights, by Lyndsey Stonebridge

Bryan Cheyette praises an ambitious account of the place of literature in addressing today’s fundamental issues of persecution and injustice 

The Politics of Maps: Cartographic Constructions of Israel/Palestine, by Christine Leuenberger and Izhak Schnell

David Newman applauds a judicious study of the Middle Eastern politics of cartography

The Diseased Brain and the Failing Mind, by Martina Zimmermann

Matthew Broome is impressed by a study of our changing ideas about dementia that combines scientific and cultural analysis

Extraterritorial: A Political Geography of Contemporary Fiction, by Matthew Hart

Charlotte Jones is fascinated by a study of the places in between and their significance in contemporary fiction

Not Even Past: The Stories We Keep Telling about the Civil War, by Cody Marrs

Catherine Clinton enjoys a rich analysis of how the echoes of America’s bloodiest war still resound today

An Event, Perhaps: A Biography of Jacques Derrida, by Peter Salmon

Devorah Baum applauds a timely attempt to take on the naysayers and give the French philosopher his due

Now streaming on:

"An Education" tells the story of a 16-year-old girl who is the target of a sophisticated seduction by a 35-year-old man. This happens in 1961, when 16-year-old girls were a great deal less knowing than they are now. Yet the movie isn't shabby or painful, but romantic and wonderfully entertaining.

It depends on a British actress named Carey Mulligan , who in her first major feature role is being compared by everyone with Audrey Hepburn . When you see her, you can't think of anyone else to compare her with. She makes the role luminous when it could have been sad or awkward. She has such lightness and grace, you're pretty sure this is the birth of a star.

All very well and good, you're thinking, but how is this film a romance? Oh, it's not so much a romance between the teenager and the middle-aged man. That only advances to the level of an infatuation. It's a romance between the girl, named Jenny, and the possibilities within her, the future before her, and the joy of being alive. Yes, she sheds a few tears. But she gets better than she gives, and in hindsight, this has been a valuable experience for her.

But wait? Doesn't this girl have parents? She certainly does. Jack and Marjorie ( Alfred Molina and Cara Seymour ) are proper, traditional middle-class parents in the London suburb of Twickenham, and there's nothing but love in the home. They aren't wealthy or worldly, but they wish the best for their girl and are bursting with pride that she's won a scholarship to Oxford. Then she springs David ( Peter Sarsgaard ) on them.

This is a smooth operator. He sees her standing at a bus stop in the rain, holding her cello case. He offers her a lift in his sports car. He engages her in conversation about classical music. He "happens" to run into her again, and they have a nice chat. He wonders if she might enjoy...

You see how it goes. He opens a door she eagerly wants to enter, to concerts, plays, restaurants, double dates with his fascinating friends, talk about the great world when the boys at school have nothing to say. At some point, it must become clear to her that he intends to sleep with her if he can, but by now she's thinking that he very possibly can.

I forgot to tell you about her parents. They dote and protect, but are very naive. David is good-looking, well-dressed, well-spoken and very, very polite. He has "taken an interest" in Jenny because, why? He is impressed by this young woman's mind and enjoys sharing his advantages. He offers implicit guarantees of her safety, and they're so proud of her, they believe a wealthy older man would be interested for purely platonic motives. They're innocents. Jenny will be safe with him for a weekend in Paris -- because he has an aunt who lives there and will be her chaperone?

Paris! The city embodies Jenny's wildest dreams! And to see it with a worldly dreamboat like David, instead of going there on the boat-train with a grotty, pimply 17-year-old! Is she cynically taking advantage of David for her own motives? Well, yes. Now close your eyes and remember your teens and tell me you don't forgive her at least a little.

Part of the genius of "An Education" is that it unfolds this relationship at a deliberate pace. Sarsgaard plays an attractive, intelligent companion. He is careful to keep a distance. Must be a good trout fisherman. To some degree, he's truthful: He enormously enjoys this smart, pretty girl. He loves walking along the Seine with her. He knows things about the world that she eagerly welcomes.

Yes, he's also a rotter, a bounder, a cad, a dirty rotten scoundrel. But you can't get far in any of those trades if you're not also a charmer. To some degree, Jenny welcomes being deceived. The screenplay by Nick Hornby (" About a Boy " and " High Fidelity ") is based on a memoir by a real person, the British journalist Lynn Barber. It became well-known in the U.K. that when she was 16, she had a two-year affair with a man named Simon in his late 30s.

There are many scene-by-scene parallels between book and movie, and much closely adapted dialogue. We know that Lynn Barber is smart and that she was pretty when she was 16. But her affair wasn't such a great experience, at least not in its second year. What transforms it in "An Education" is Mulligan, who has that rare gift of enlisting us on her side and making us like her. She's so lovable that whatever happens must be somehow for Jenny's benefit. She glows.

So young women, let this movie offer useful advice. When a man seems too good to be true, he probably isn't -- good, or true. We all make mistakes when we're growing up. Sometimes we learn from them. If we're lucky, we can even learn during them. And you must certainly see Paris. Do not count on meeting the aunt.

Barber writes: "What did I get from Simon? An education -- the thing my parents always wanted me to have... I learned about expensive restaurants and luxury hotels and foreign travel, I learned about antiques and Bergman films and classical music. But actually there was a much bigger bonus than that. My experience with Simon entirely cured my craving for sophistication. By the time I got to Oxford, I wanted nothing more than to meet kind, decent, straightforward boys my own age, no matter if they were gauche or virgins. I would marry one eventually and stay married all my life and for that, I suppose, I have Simon to thank."

Lynn Barber's full account: http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/2009/jun/07/lynn-barber-virginity-relationships

Roger Ebert

Roger Ebert was the film critic of the Chicago Sun-Times from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, he won the Pulitzer Prize for distinguished criticism.

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Film credits.

An Education (2009)

Rated PG-13 for mature thematic material involving sexual content and for smoking

100 minutes

Cara Seymour as Marjorie

Emma Thompson as Headmistress

Carey Mulligan as Jenny

Peter Sarsgaard as David

Alfred Molina as Jack

Directed by

• Lone Scherfig
• Nick Hornby

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World's Top EdTech Companies of 2024

How TIME and Statista Determined the Top EdTech Companies of 2024

The pandemic may no longer have the same grip that it used to on the way that we go about our daily lives—workers have returned to offices and students are back in the classroom. But a new global ranking by TIME and Statista of the 250 top EdTech companies suggests that online learning is here to stay.

Nine of the top 15 most successful EdTech companies in the world are focused on providing online learning. The rankings are based on a formula evaluating financial strength and industry impact. 

Eruditus, the top EdTech company in the global rankings, reported a revenue of close to $400 million for the financial year ending in June 2023, up 75% over the prior year. The EdTech platform offers online courses from more than 80 universities around the world, including business schools at the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Cambridge, and MIT. Eruditus says it has so far educated more than 500,000 people across 80 countries.

Eruditus was incorporated in Singapore but made news this year for reportedly shifting its headquarters to India. “It is a fact that the Indian stock markets are far more attractive than the global peers," co-founder and CEO Ashwin Damera told Indian news-outlet Min t in January.

The U.S. dominates the list, making up more than one-third of the slots. China trails behind with 10% and the U.K. has just over 6%. Two companies from Brazil also made it into the top 10: Afya runs medical schools and offers online classes in various health fields; Vitru Education provides online and on-campus classes in Brazil to, the company reports, more than 900,000 undergraduate and graduate students.

Brazil’s EdTech market has been growing rapidly for years. The country has struggled with education. In Brazil, just 57% of adults aged 25 to 64 have completed upper secondary education, much lower than the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) country average of 79%, putting it nearly last among the 41 countries studied by the OECD for educational attainment. And the OECD's 2018 Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) ranked Brazil 40 of 41 countries studied for students’ skills in reading, math, and sciences. The private sector has capitalized on the opportunity to offer online learning.

“Students that are older, that have worked for a bit, have some kind of education qualification but are upgrading so they can get a better job, they value convenience and affordability,” says Jitin Sethi, managing director at LEK Consulting, focused on education in the Americas. “That creates a unique opportunity to innovate.”

In addition to highlighting 250 top EdTech companies, Statista and TIME also published a Rising Stars ranking to spotlight organizations that had the highest revenue growth rates over the last three years, of companies that submitted applications. Scaler Academy, an online learning platform based in India that teaches coding, system design, and career development skills, topped that list. — Sanya Mansoor

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Times Education

Educating global citizens for tomorrow's challenges, customer experience.

Description

Times Education is a leading education institute, which provides quality oriented training on UG, PG and NIOS courses. Mainly situated in Abu dhabi, Sharjha and Dubai. Our institute mainly focus on BA, BBA, BCA, BCOM as UG courses, MBA, MCA, MCOM as PG courses.Times Education offers admission with National Institute of open schoooling – NIOS, 10th /Secondary schooling and 12th Class /plus two/ Senior Secondary schooling.

We are passionate about making a difference to our student’s lives. We do this by providing affordable, accessible education programs that lead to an employment outcome. Our courses are developed in conjunction with industry to ensure our students skills and knowledge that employers are looking for. All of our courses are reviewed regularly to ensure they remain current and aligned with industry demands.

If you’re considering attending our courses, chat with one of our Career Consultants who will provide you with expert advice and help you determine which courses will help you achieve your full potential.

Products and Services

• Bachelor of Education - B.Ed.
• Diploma Courses
• NIOS 12TH-Senior Secondary
• NIOS 10th –Secondary

Contact Details

• https://www.timeseducationuae.com/
• +971552269076
• [email protected]
• Next to City Seasons Hotel Electra Street Abu Dhabi United Arab Emirates
• Abu Dhabi (UAE)

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Additional Info

Phone: +971553344992 Phone: +971552269076 Phone: +97126711114 Address: Next to Burjuman Metro Khalid Bin Waleed Street Dubai United Arab Emirates

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Bba programme.

The institue promised me multiple times that the BBA programme degree will be legit. That it will be WES compatible. Made me study 1 year in one college , next year changed to another college, third year another name… and finally said this university doesn’t approve us to do distance learning from India.

Fake ,misleading and very bad service.

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Well Maintained

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Ohio steps closer to requiring public schools to limit cellphone use

The amendment requires that schools create a policy limiting cellphone use as much as possible during school hours and reducing cellphone distractions in classrooms.

The Ohio Senate voted Wednesday to require public schools to limit cellphone use in the classroom.

The amendment requires that schools create a policy limiting cellphone use as much as possible during school hours and reducing cellphone distractions. The amendment requires the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce to create a model policy for schools to adopt if they choose not to create their own.

There are exceptions for cellphone use if a phone is being used as a learning tool, to monitor a student's health condition or needed for a student's individualized education program.

Limiting cellphone use in K-12 schools has been a priority for Gov. Mike DeWine, who originally said he wanted restrictions to be decided at the district level. DeWine called for legislation to minimize students' use of cellphones in the classroom during his State of the State address on April 10.

On Tuesday, the Ohio Senate Education Committee added an amendment about school cellphone policy to House Bill 250, which would create new ways for students to earn the military enlistment seals on diplomas.

Senator Andrew Brenner, R-Powell, said the bill will help mitigate classroom distractions and learning loss. 

The bill now heads back to the House for approval. If approved by the House and the governor, the law would take effect July 1, 2025.

Erin Glynn is a reporter for the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau, which serves the Columbus Dispatch, Cincinnati Enquirer, Akron Beacon Journal and 18 other affiliated news organizations across Ohio .

USC cancels ‘main stage’ commencement ceremony

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USC announced Thursday that it is canceling its main May commencement ceremony, capping a dramatic series of moves that began last week after it informed valedictorian Asna Tabassum, who had been opposed by pro-Israel groups, that she would not be delivering the traditional speech .

In ending the university-wide May 10 graduation ceremony altogether, President Carol Folt aimed to quell the controversy that grew as the school chipped away at core parts of the ritual , drawing criticism from both pro-Palestinian and pro-Israel activists.

The cancellation took place amid unrest on university campuses across the nation stemming from the Israel-Hamas war. On Wednesday at a pro-Palestinian encampment at USC, 93 students and off-campus activists were arrested.

“With the new safety measures in place this year, the time needed to process the large number of guests coming to campus will increase substantially,” USC said in its announcement. “As a result, we will not be able to host the main stage ceremony that traditionally brings 65,000 students, families, and friends to our campus all at the same time and during a short window from 8:30 a.m. to 10 a.m.”

Photos: Tensions grow as pro-Palestinian demonstrations on college campuses continue

Pro-Palestinian protests grew Thursday at California colleges and universities, including a new encampment at UCLA that drew a crowd of counterprotesters.

April 26, 2024

A university spokesman did not reply to a request to interview Folt, who has not spoken publicly about the cancellations.

At least 23 satellite graduation ceremonies at USC’s schools and colleges will continue as scheduled, in addition to smaller departmental receptions.

“We understand that this is disappointing; however, we are adding many new activities and celebrations to make this commencement academically meaningful, memorable, and uniquely USC, including places to gather with family, friends, faculty, and staff, the celebratory releasing of the doves, and performances by the Trojan Marching Band,” USC said in a statement.

The university also announced that it will require tickets for “all commencement events taking place on May 8-11” and direct “all campus access through specific points of entry.”

It said that tickets would be limited to eight per graduating student and that they would not be transferable.

“There will be an appeal process if more tickets are needed,” said the letter, which added that commencement events would include a security screening “similar to those for attending athletic events at the Coliseum.” Guests at the Coliseum enter through a metal detector and their bags are X-rayed. USC also said only clear bags would be allowed at graduation events.

USC valedictorian’s grad speech is canceled: ‘The university has betrayed me’

Asna Tabassum was selected as USC valedictorian and offered a slot to speak at graduation. The university canceled her speech after pro-Israel groups criticized her Instagram.

April 16, 2024

Since citing unspecified security threats as the reason for canceling Tabassum’s speech, USC has seen a series of on-campus protests, including this week’s pro-Palestinian encampment.

University officials had followed their cancellation of Tabassum’s speech by calling off a speech by film director Jon M. Chu and appearances on the main stage by honorary doctorate recipients, including tennis legend Billie Jean King, saying they wanted to “keep the focus on our graduates.”

Some of the smaller commencement ceremonies will still host keynote speakers, including King, who is scheduled to address Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism graduates on May 10.

King has not responded to interview requests from The Times.

National Endowment for the Arts Chair Maria Rosario Jackson, who was also deprived of the chance to receive an honorary degree on the main stage, is scheduled to deliver a May 10 keynote speech to graduates of the USC Sol Price School of Public Policy.

Via an NEA spokeswoman, Price declined an interview request.

Actor and activist Sean Penn will also still give a May 11 address to graduates of the Alfred E. Mann School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, according to his representative.

LAPD arrests 93 people at USC amid Israel-Hamas war protests

LAPD officers in riot gear arrested 93 people on trespassing charges as they cleared an encampment at the center of the USC campus that formed in protest against the Israel-Hamas war.

April 24, 2024

The last time the main USC commencement was canceled was in 2020 after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Those graduates participated in online and in-person ceremonies the next year, along with the Class of 2021.

“This is a rather unusual commencement, to put it in obvious terms,” said Donal Manahan, a USC biologist who has been the university marshal for the main stage ceremony since 2016. “It’s the whole country going through it.”

William Tierney, a university professor emeritus at USC’s Rossier School of Education and an expert in higher education policy and administration, said he blames Folt for the university’s failure to engage “in difficult dialogues.”

“This president hasn’t even made a statement. She’s gone. She’s invisible,” he said. Instead, he added, “the university has determined it’s a dangerous place and locked it down. ... And now we’ll cancel the main commencement because it is so dangerous for us to have a dialogue.”

“We could protect the Obamas when they came to campus,” Tierney said, referring to former President Obama and his wife attending their daughter Sasha’s graduation last year. “We could protect the campus at other times. But now it’s simply too dangerous? That just fails the leadership test across the board.”

USC junior Lawrence Sung said he was disappointed to not have a chance to celebrate his graduating friends at the main stage event.

“This is a massive overreaction,” said Sung, who studies international relations. “If USC was to choose the worst option at every step of the way in this controversy, this would be it.”

The saga at USC began April 15, when Provost Andrew T. Guzman released a campus-wide letter citing unnamed threats that came after the university announced Tabassum as the valedictorian and a scheduled speaker. Guzman said the attacks were of an “alarming tenor” and “escalated to the point of creating substantial risks relating to security and disruption at commencement.”

Guzman did not say what the threats were or who was targeted. A spokeswoman for the Los Angeles Police Department told The Times that the agency had no crime reports regarding violent threats targeting Tabassum or the commencement ceremony.

The complaints focused on a link on Tabassum’s Instagram profile to a pro-Palestinian website that said, “Zionism is a racist settler-colonialist ideology,” and “One Palestinian state would mean Palestinian liberation and the complete abolishment of the state of Israel” so that “both Arabs and Jews can live together.”

Tabassum has denied she supports antisemitic views and said she is being singled out as a hijab-wearing Muslim woman.

Then last Friday, USC called off an appearance by Chu — the director of “Crazy Rich Asians” — and other commencement honorees. In canceling those events, USC cited “the highly publicized circumstances surrounding our main stage commencement program.”

In an interview prior to Thursday’s announcement of the main stage cancellation, Joel Curran, USC’s senior vice president of communications, said the decision about Chu and honorary degree recipients was made in order to avoid putting them “in an awkward situation” to address the valedictorian controversy or the Israel-Hamas war.

“We are putting them in an awkward situation, difficult situation. There have been a lot of conversations around commencement. We do not want to put them in that position,” Curran said.

Last week, 11 members of the Advisory Committee on Muslim Life at USC — more than half the membership — resigned in protest of the decision on Tabassum. Folt had convened the group in mid-2023 amid complaints of anti-Muslim bias on campus.

USC is one of dozens of colleges and universities where tensions have grown in recent weeks over free speech and protest over the Israel-Hamas war, including Columbia, Yale, UC Berkeley and Cal Poly Humboldt.

In its Oct. 7 attack on Israel , Hamas militants killed about 1,200 people and took roughly 240 hostages. Gaza health authorities say Israel’s retaliatory war has killed more than 34,000 Palestinians. According to the United Nations, 2 million Gazans are living in near-famine conditions.

Times staff writers Angie Orellana Hernandez and Jenna Peterson contributed to this report.

More to Read

13 days that rocked USC: How a derailed commencement brought ‘complete disaster’

April 27, 2024

Pro-Palestinian protests grow at California campuses as opposing demonstrators clash at UCLA

April 25, 2024

Biden’s Morehouse College graduation invitation draws backlash

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Jaweed Kaleem is a national correspondent at the Los Angeles Times. Based in L.A. with a focus on issues outside of California, he has traveled to dozens of states to cover news and deeply reported features on the complexity of the American experience. His articles frequently explore race, religion, politics, social debates and polarized society. Kaleem was previously based in London, where he was a lead news writer on Russia’s war on Ukraine and spearheaded European coverage for the Times, including the Global California initiative. Before joining The Times in 2016, he reported on religion for HuffPost and the Miami Herald, where he was a member of a Pulitzer Prize finalist team recognized for coverage of Haiti. His reporting has also received awards from the Society of Professional Journalists, the Society for Features Journalism, the Asian American Journalists Assn., the South Asian Journalists Assn. and the National Headliner Awards.

Matt Hamilton is a reporter for the Los Angeles Times. He won the 2019 Pulitzer Prize for investigative reporting with colleagues Harriet Ryan and Paul Pringle and was part of the team of reporters that won a Pulitzer Prize for its coverage of the San Bernardino terrorist attack. A graduate of Boston College and the University of Southern California, he joined The Times in 2013.

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What the New Overtime Rule Means for Workers

One of the basic principles of the American workplace is that a hard day’s work deserves a fair day’s pay. Simply put, every worker’s time has value. A cornerstone of that promise is the  Fair Labor Standards Act ’s (FLSA) requirement that when most workers work more than 40 hours in a week, they get paid more. The  Department of Labor ’s new overtime regulation is restoring and extending this promise for millions more lower-paid salaried workers in the U.S.

Overtime protections have been a critical part of the FLSA since 1938 and were established to protect workers from exploitation and to benefit workers, their families and our communities. Strong overtime protections help build America’s middle class and ensure that workers are not overworked and underpaid.

Some workers are specifically exempt from the FLSA’s minimum wage and overtime protections, including bona fide executive, administrative or professional employees. This exemption, typically referred to as the “EAP” exemption, applies when: 

1. An employee is paid a salary,  

2. The salary is not less than a minimum salary threshold amount, and 

3. The employee primarily performs executive, administrative or professional duties.

While the department increased the minimum salary required for the EAP exemption from overtime pay every 5 to 9 years between 1938 and 1975, long periods between increases to the salary requirement after 1975 have caused an erosion of the real value of the salary threshold, lessening its effectiveness in helping to identify exempt EAP employees.

The department’s new overtime rule was developed based on almost 30 listening sessions across the country and the final rule was issued after reviewing over 33,000 written comments. We heard from a wide variety of members of the public who shared valuable insights to help us develop this Administration’s overtime rule, including from workers who told us: “I would love the opportunity to...be compensated for time worked beyond 40 hours, or alternately be given a raise,” and “I make around $40,000 a year and most week[s] work well over 40 hours (likely in the 45-50 range). This rule change would benefit me greatly and ensure that my time is paid for!” and “Please, I would love to be paid for the extra hours I work!”

The department’s final rule, which will go into effect on July 1, 2024, will increase the standard salary level that helps define and delimit which salaried workers are entitled to overtime pay protections under the FLSA. 

Starting July 1, most salaried workers who earn less than $844 per week will become eligible for overtime pay under the final rule. And on Jan. 1, 2025, most salaried workers who make less than $1,128 per week will become eligible for overtime pay. As these changes occur, job duties will continue to determine overtime exemption status for most salaried employees.

The rule will also increase the total annual compensation requirement for highly compensated employees (who are not entitled to overtime pay under the FLSA if certain requirements are met) from $107,432 per year to $132,964 per year on July 1, 2024, and then set it equal to $151,164 per year on Jan. 1, 2025.

Starting July 1, 2027, these earnings thresholds will be updated every three years so they keep pace with changes in worker salaries, ensuring that employers can adapt more easily because they’ll know when salary updates will happen and how they’ll be calculated.

The final rule will restore and extend the right to overtime pay to many salaried workers, including workers who historically were entitled to overtime pay under the FLSA because of their lower pay or the type of work they performed. 

We urge workers and employers to visit  our website to learn more about the final rule.

Jessica Looman is the administrator for the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division. Follow the Wage and Hour Division on Twitter at  @WHD_DOL  and  LinkedIn .  Editor's note: This blog was edited to correct a typo (changing "administrator" to "administrative.")

• Wage and Hour Division (WHD)
• Fair Labor Standards Act
• overtime rule

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