The Associated Press: NY school locked down after suicide in bathroom: "Students at a high school in western New York have been sent home after a student used a gun to commit suicide in a bathroom.

Police and emergency crews raced to Canandaigua (kan-ahn-DAY'-gwah) Academy on Tuesday morning.

Students were told over the intercom system that they were to remain in classes but were in no danger.

School spokesman Andy Thomas says police evacuated classrooms and sent students home.

Superintendent Don Raw confirmed in an e-mail to district residents that a 17-year-old senior committed suicide.

Many students were at lunch when the commotion began in the school in Canandaigua, a city of 11,000 about 30 miles southeast of Rochester."

Schools need testing - Telegraph: "The threatened boycott by teachers of next year's Sats tests for primary school pupils is to be regretted and will, we trust, be rescinded before any more damage is inflicted upon our children's education. Yes, there is much that is unsatisfactory with the testing regime. Children in this country sit too many state exams. We supported the abolition of Sats at 14 and would like to see the demise of the AS-level exam in the first year of the sixth form. Both are an unnecessary distraction in the middle of preparations for far more important tests.

However, this is not true of the Sats at age 11. There must be a reckoning at the point that a pupil makes the transition from primary to secondary education in the state sector. It is important that the child and his parents should have some idea how he has fared, but more pertinently, it is right that the school itself should be held to account. We appreciate that teachers do not like this aspect of the Sats – but how else are parents to judge the merit of a school without some objective criteria provided by an outside exam? Teaching unions object to the tests because they 'narrow the curriculum and make learning shallow'. In that case, it is the job of good teachers to ensure they are not simply regurgitative.

Top universities have lost millions from investments | Money | News.com.au: "AUSTRALIA'S biggest universities have been ravaged by the global financial crisis, with the University of Melbourne reporting a $245.7 million loss in the value of its investments and the University of NSW an $87 million writedown.

The University of Western Australia lost more than $100 million from its investment portfolio, resulting in a $63.9 million loss for the institution, The Australian reported.

Victoria University said it fell into an underlying deficit of $140,000 last year. While the net result was a surplus of $17.4 million, down from $21 million a year ago, it said that surplus was largely the result of one-off capital grant funding.

The crash of the universities' financial reserves, which will reduce their ability to fund building projects, scholarships and research, will add pressure on the federal Government to boost funding in next week's budget to the cash-strapped sector.

Melbourne University higher education professor Simon Marginson said the 'disturbing' financial results underlined the crucial importance of full research funding as recommended by two recent reports to the federal Government.

'It is more difficult for the sector to address an expanded participation agenda when an important second-level source of income has gone into red figures,' he said."

The Press Association: University work provides jobs boost: "More than 150 building jobs will be created with the construction of a new research building at NUI Maynooth.

Work formally began on the 15 million euro facility which will house three of the university's institutes after a sod-turning ceremony by Education Minister Batt O'Keeffe.

The building, expected to be completed next year, will also include a 350-seat lecture theatre and social area equipped with WiFi for student use. Professor John Hughes, NUI Maynooth president, said the start of construction was the first step in a ten-year plan for the campus."

Six universities partner with Amazon’s Kindle : Product Reviews Net: "It looks as if Amazon are looking to broaden their user fanbase with the Kindle, as they have teamed up with six universities to offer students Kindles during their studies.

As reported from BusinessWeek, Amazon’s Kindle first launched back in 2007. While it is very popular in some areas, it has proved too expensive for students to pick up.

Starting May 6th though, Amazon are preparing to release a larger version of the Kindle which will be aimed more towards academic publishers. BusinessWeek states that ’six universities including Case Western, Pace, and Princeton are partnering with Amazon and major publisher to offer the new device to students this fall.’"