Today in America, puberty is beginning earlier than a generation ago. Researchers are debating the possible links to environmental chemicals, stress, and obesity. But regardless of cause, more and more kids are already well into puberty by the time sex education happens in school–which is usually fifth or sixth grade.
Youth Radio looks at three safety measures being used by the pros and compares them to what’s happening at the high school level.
I was the same age as Trayvon Martin when he was killed. It was the first shooting case that got national attention where I felt connected — like I could relate.
The last time most video game players were excited about virtual reality was the 1990s. Before internet browsers were commonplace and game consoles were still actively marketed by the number of bits they could process, virtual reality held out the shimmering promise of the cyberspace envisioned by science fiction authors like William Gibson: the future was going to be accessed by way of immersive technology that would project digital avatars of ourselves into detailed virtual worlds.
Want to know what kind of pictures young people are really sharing on Snapchat? Just ask them.
A couple months ago, my friend told me about a new photo sharing app called Snapchat. I downloaded it, added my friend, and soon I got a notification that I had received my first Snapchat. I opened it up, and saw my friend, Shae, giving me the McKayla Maroney “not impressed” look. Then the photo vanished.
For the first time, the SXSW festival in Austin, Texas, has added a Gaming Expo. Since the 1980’s the city has been the spiritual heart of computer gaming. Austin’s strong ties to the $67 billion dollar video game industry are now being recognized by the festival. This puts the 7,000 game developers who work in Austin– according to the IRS by way of the International Game Developers Association — in the spotlight. While conventioneers have been gathering downtown to hear about the latest trends, I went in search of Austin’s burgeoning independent game scene.
After school and evening are crunch time for most families. It’s when crucial decisions get made that affect kids’ fitness and weight—and that includes snacks. According to a poll done by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the Harvard School of Public Health and NPR, most parents believe their children are eating healthy.
As recently as a year ago, schools across the country, including the middle school in San Francisco where I used to teach, were toning down security. But since the school shooting in Newtown, school districts across the San Francisco Bay Area are ramping up safety measures.
Suspending and expelling students has become commonplace in many states including California. Recent records show more than 700,000 students suspended and 18,000…
