For MASSPTA

Act against video game violence

Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood urges you to t ell the Video Game Industry that Interactive Violence is Not for Children

On July 10, Take Two Entertainment will release Manhunt 2, a game that is being called the goriest and most violent game ever released. In Manhunt 2, players can saw their enemies' skulls in half; mutilate them with an axe; castrate them with a pair of pliers; and kill them by bashing their heads into an electrical box, where it is blown apart by a power surge.

If that wasn't disturbing enough, the game will be released on the interactive Nintendo Wii gaming system. On Wii, players will not merely punch buttons or wield a joy stick, but will actually act out this violence. A reviewer for the gaming website IGN describes using a saw blade to "cut upward into a foe's groin and buttocks, motioning forward and backward with the Wii remote as you go." The game is so horrifically violent that the British ratings board has just banned the game in the UK!

Tell the video game industry that Manhunt 2 must be an Adults Only rating so that it will not be marketed or sold to children by visiting: ( http://www.democracyinaction .org/dia/organizationsORG/ccfc /campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY =11891&t=SansSignupBox.dwt ).
The Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood
http://www.commercialfreechild hood.org//

Added on June 19, 2007 by formasspta

View comments (0) Add comment

Rally for Social Justice

Community Rally for Social Justice - Support of the Governor's tax package "Strengthening Our Communities" Thursday, June 21, 1 - 3 p.m. State House Grand Staircase, Outside Governor's Office Help Increase Assistance to Hard-Pressed Cities and Towns. The Municipal Partnership Act would close the outdated telecom loophole, give localities more flexibility to raise revenue locally, and enact cost saving measures including helping municipalities reduce health costs. The Massachusetts PTA is proud to endorse the Governor's Municipal Partnership Act. We encourage our PTA representatives to raise their voice for this important initiative. Michelle Tremont, President, Massachusetts PTA

Added on June 19, 2007 by formasspta

View comments (0) Add comment

Free K-12 Chemical Safety Workshops for Schools

There are "serious chemical management issues" in many Massachusetts schools. These problems include large chemical stockpiles, highly hazardous materials, and unsafe chemical use, storage, and disposal practices..." ( Massachusetts Office of Technical Assistance for Toxics Use Reduction )

The Laboratory Safety Institute (LSI) is accepting requests for " Free" One-Day Laboratory Safety Workshops for K-12 Science, Art and Technology Teachers and Administrators. During the 2006/2007 academic year, LSI trained over 300 teachers and administrators at 16 locations across the Commonwealth.

Also, Leadership in Safety, LSI's free three-hour training program, gives senior administrators, principals and their staff a clearer understanding of their role in creating a more effective school health and safety program. LSI is now accepting requests to bring this free training to your school. Preference will be given to those that can schedule 6 or more hours and have 40 or more participants, but all requests will be considered. Program funding by the Massachusetts Department of Industrial Accidents. To register or for more information please contact Shannon Severin at severin@labsafety.org or call 508-647-1900.

The Laboratory Safety Institute (LSI), A Nonprofit International Organization for Safety in Science and Science Education, 192 Worcester Road, Natick, MA 01760-2252 508-647-1900 www.labsafety.org

Added on June 15, 2007 by formasspta

View comments (0) Add comment

A voice for MCAS perspective

A voice for MCAS perspective in Berkshire Eagle Editorial

Wednesday, June 13

The Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System test is here to stay for public school students, but efforts can still be made to redirect it to its original mission to evaluate the progress of schools and students and away from the end-all-and-be-all of education that it has become. Governor Patrick's appointment of Ruth Kaplan, the cofounder of the Alliance for the Education of the Whole Child and an MCAS opponent, as the Massachusetts Parent Teachers Association to the state Board of Education, will give a voice to those who believe that MCAS has too narrowed the focus of education by forcing teachers to build classwork around a standardized test that will determine if students are able to graduate. Not every student tests well and not every test teaches everything a student needs to learn. We hope Ms. Kaplan, will help introduce some needed flexibility to an education system that is becoming dangerously rigid.

Best regards,
Marilyn Segal, Director, Citizens for Public Schools
marilyn@citizensforpublicschool s.org