Quick Hits (8.21.12)

A glimpse at the Class of 2016. Beloit College’s Mindset List says that this year’s incoming college freshmen have never seen an airplane ticket; they share grade school memories via digital yearbooks; and when it comes time to buy textbooks, they’ll look for e-versions first. (h/t Boston Globe)

Monitoring students’ social media use. If student athletes at the University of Kentucky tweet or publicly post messages with the words “alcohol”, “doobie”, or one of 300-plus other banned words, automated software will alert their respective coaches. A similar system is in effect at the University of Louisville. (The Courier-Journal)

First look at common assessments. A sixth-grade teacher offers his opinion on PARCC’s sample assessment items and prototypes, which were released publicly yesterday. (edublogs.org)

“Munching on my Takis like I just don’t care / Then I walked up to your girl and she’s asking me to share.” Minneapolis teens make a rap music video about their favorite corner store snacks, Hot Cheetos and Takis, as part of an after-school program that teaches song writing and recording. The music video has attracted more than 1 million views on YouTube. (Beyond School/ Education Week)