SAN ANTONIO (September 27, 2013) – IDEA Public Schools, a nationally recognized public charter school network, celebrated the opening of its thirtieth school, IDEA South Flores, with a ribbon cutting earlier today while highlighting expansion plans. The ribbon cutting featured Mayor Julian Castro, IDEA founder and CEO Tom Torkelson and IDEA San Antonio region executive director, Rolando Posada.

The addition of IDEA South Flores to IDEA Public Schools’ growing network brings the San Antonio total to four schools serving nearly 1,000 students. IDEA Public Schools entered the San Antonio region when it partnered with The Carver Academy, founded by NBA legend David Robinson, in February of 2012. Robinson, an IDEA San Antonio regional board member, was unable to attend the event, but left a video message for the audience. “IDEA Public Schools is committed to doing whatever it takes to closing the achievement gap, and we’re just getting started,” he said.

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CNN aired a special on Friday, August 30th hosted by Soledad O'Brien that looked at African American students in education today and the gap in achievement between these students and their white counterparts. The special - Great Expectations: A Black in America Special - followed the stories of three at-risk students for a year at Harvest Prep/Seed Academy in Minneapolis where Direct Instruction is utilized. 

Earlier in the day, Ms. O'Brien sat down with CNN's morning show to discuss the documentary

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The Series Guide for the new Direct Instruction math program, Connecting Math Concepts: Comprehensive Edition, is now available! Contact your local McGraw-Hill representative to get your copy. Not sure who your representative is? Call McGraw-Hill at 800-334-7344.

You can also find additional information on the Connecting Math Concepts: Comprehensive Edition program on McGraw-Hill's website.

The National Institute for Direct Instruction has free downloadable Facilitator and Study Guides for Clear Teaching available to assist leaders in guiding staff or other study groups through the book. Clear Teaching, written by veteran journalist Shepard Barbash over a period of 10 years, is a well-researched, highly readable introduction to Direct Instruction (DI), a systematic teaching approach which for more than 40 years has dramatically improved learning outcomes for students of all abilities and from all walks of life. The book looks at the development of DI through the early experiences of its creator, Zig Engelmann; explains the principles that underpin this approach; and looks at DI's reception in the world of teaching, where it has been effectively shunned despite a formidable research base and example after example of transformative success.

For a free downloadable Study Guide, click HERE.
To download a Faciliator's Guide for studying Clear Teaching, click HERE.