Should teachers and students be Facebook friends?

By KBell in According to K

I'm pretty sure it would have been considered inappropriate to poke a teacher back when I was in school. But my, how social media has changed things. You may have heard about Missouri's new law that prohibits teachers from communicating ...

Prayers for the Fox Family

By KBell in According to K

The Fox family is trudging through another blow from ALS with the same hope, faith and laughter that has carried them through the last four years. Craig is in the ICU at Citizens Medical Center with the second bout of ...

Wanna hang out?

By KBell in According to K

I'm looking for a fun back-to-school feature story. I was thinking about following a kindergartner through his or her first all-grown-up day at school. Know anyone who would want that day chronicled by yours truly? Or maybe you have a ...

Are you there, readers? It's me, Kayla

By KBell in According to K

Today I interviewed a local author, Brenda O'Bannion, about her new children's book, "Patchwork Annie." Her enthusiasm for writing and for getting kids interested in both the creation and consumption of literature was contagious. It made me reflect on the ...

Cabs are here: The return of Jersey Shore

By KBell in According to K

Promise you won't tell anyone my secret? I watch "Jersey Shore." And I like it. The MTV show is returning tonight with fist-pumping vengeance, and I'm excited to finally alleviate my Snookie withdrawals. Keep in mind, I'm not a 12-year-old ...

Are Internet Explorer users dumb?

By KBell in According to K

That was the headline that enticed me to click on a CNN story last week that cited a study finding users of Microsoft's Internet Explorer Web browser had a lower IQ than users of say, Firefox or Google Chrome. That ...

One time... at band camp...

By KBell in According to K

I can't even tell you how many unoriginal idiots repeated that famous "American Pie" line to me in high school. Make fun of us all you want. But band is cool, most likely because the fools who made fun of ...

Am I alive? Surviving TEA's Judgment Day

By KBell in According to K

My mind is mush. All I see are acronyms. TEA. TAKS. STAAR. VISD. OMG! Today was Judgment Day. At 1 p.m., the TEA released accountability ratings for all Texas schools and districts. The gist is this: ratings plummeted, but not ...

RIP TAKS

By KBell in According to K

It's the moment anxious Texas test-takers have been waiting for: the death of the TAKS test. But don't celebrate just yet, for in its place, a new beast will resurrect. This year's freshman class will be the first to graduate ...

Attack of the TAKS

By KBell in According to K

I've been simultaneously dreading and eagerly counting down the hours until 1 p.m. Friday. That's when the Texas Education Agency will release accountability ratings for school districts and campuses. The Advocate already has a newsroom-wide game plan for how to ...