Thing #7b: Revisiting the Reader

Until today, I was waaaaaay behind on my reader. A week-long wedding in Vegas will throw off a lot of routines, even if you're not the bride, I've learned.

In any case, I read through all of my updates (well, skimmed all and read through some) this morning to jumpstart my day. After reading this short post from The Choice blog of the NYTimes, I was definitely ready to tackle the lawn and blow off some steam. The post explained that student loan defaults have been vastly underreported, with $50.8 billion worth of loans in default at the end of the 2009 year.

I know, I know, this isn't about English, reading, ESL, or even yearbook. But it's a concerning subject to me for many reasons. If this trend continues, the way education loans are awarded and limited may change, further limiting higher education possibilities for students with an economic disadvantage. My particular subject area has a ridiculously high percentage of Eco. Disadv. students who I'm hoping to encourage to attend college one day.

Middle school may seem a little early to start the real planning, but for these students, they need to hit the ground running as freshman to have a real shot at earning enough financial aid to make their dreams come true. It's good for all secondary teachers to keep tabs on, I feel.

Source: Student Loan Default Rates Come Under Scrutiny By RACHEL GROSS