A challenge unmet

Chicago elementary school students with learning or emotional disabilities miss far more school days than their peers without disabilities, the Tribune found in an analysis of internal attendance data from the district.

These missed days undermine the education of an already-vulnerable population.

Consider the students in grades K-8 whose designated primary diagnosis is a learning disability — a disorder generally affecting the ability to use or understand language. On average, each of these 17,000 students racked up two weeks of truancy and excused absences in the 2010-11 school year. That's about 20 percent more than those with no disability.

Also frequently gone from school were the 1,500 elementary students with a primary diagnosis of an emotional disorder — children whose behavior or feelings impede their learning and ability to get along with others.

On average, students in grades K-8 with an emotional disorder missed four weeks of school to truancy and other absences. They also accrued 10 times as many suspension days as children without a disability, the Tribune's analysis found.

Federal law requires schools to provide these students with counselors, aides and other support to help them succeed, and it specifically protects them from being excluded from school through excessive suspensions or informal push-outs.

But in Chicago, advocates for the disabled say, many children with learning and emotional disabilities go undiagnosed for too long and are then given inadequate assistance. Alienated from classrooms they find humiliating and unrewarding, youth tend to tune out or lash out, leading to suspensions and other missed days.

One school report for a student with a learning disability showed that "an intervention for minor infractions has been for her mother to bring or keep (the girl) home with her in order to avoid further escalation of (the girl's) anger and behavior."

That intervention — which advocates for the disabled called a potential violation of federal law — "has resulted in poor exposure to the general education curriculum," the report noted.

Chicago Public Schools officials denied that the intervention was intended to keep the child at home in violation of school policies or the law.

While not commenting specifically on any Chicago cases, Harvard University education professor Thomas Hehir said excessive suspensions and informal exclusions from school are a nationwide problem for youth with disabilities.

"Once you get into that pattern, the implicit message you're giving the child is that school is not important, you don't need to be here," Hehir said. "It becomes a vicious circle."

Students with learning and emotional disabilities "are kids who have a lot of potential," Hehir added. "It's a myth that they can't be highly successful in school, if given the appropriate supports."

Read the full story, "A challenge unmet," as a digitalPLUS member. To view videos and photos and for a look at the rest of the series, visit chicagotribune.com/truancy.

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Microsoft's Surface tablet has "modest" start: Ballmer

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Steelers, Chiefs tied at 10 after three

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Ben Roethlisberger left Monday night's game with a right shoulder injury, and the Pittsburgh Steelers were tied with the Kansas City Chiefs 10-10 after three quarters.

Roethlisberger was replaced by Byron Leftwich after being sacked by Justin Houston three plays into the second half. Roethlisberger was officially termed as questionable to return to the game.

Jamaal Charles had 19 carries for 86 yards and a touchdown for upset-minded Kansas City (1-7), which began the day with a five-game losing streak and had not held a lead in regulation yet this season.

But the Chiefs grabbed a 10-0 at rainy Heinz Field on Charles' 12-yard touchdown run midway through the first quarter and Ryan Succop's 22-yard field goal 40 seconds into the second quarter.

Shaun Suisham hit a 35-yard field goal and Mike Wallace had a tying 7-yard touchdown catch for the Steelers (5-3), who carried a three-game winning streak into the game.

The Chiefs had a chance to take the lead on their first possession of the second half, but Dwayne Bowe's 22-yard touchdown reception was called back because of a holding penalty and Succop missed a 33-yard field goal.

Kansas City again thought it had touchdown less than a minute later when Houston scooped up what was called a Leftwich fumble and returned it 21 yards into the end zone. A replay review showed the play was instead an incomplete pass.

The Chiefs also were flagged for a group touchdown celebration, and the 15-yard penalty was enforced, allowing the Steelers to keep the ball instead of facing a fourth and long.

Roethlisberger was 9 for 18 for 84 yards before leaving the game. Making only his second appearance since Sept. 27, 2009, Leftwich was 1 for 3 for 31 yards through three quarters.

Wallace made a terrific catch in the corner of the end zone on a fade route from Roethlisberger with 3:16 left in the second. He pulled the ball in with one hand and secured it between his legs as he rolled toward the out-of-bounds line. The touchdown call withstood a video review.

Kansas City's Matt Cassel, in for the injured Brady Quinn (concussion), was 6 for 13 for 90 yards at the end of the third quarter.

A week after posting a career-high 147 yards rushing in a 24-20 win at the New York Giants, Isaac Redman spent the rest of the first half on the bench after he fumbled at the Pittsburgh 11 on the Steelers' third possession. After missing the Giants game due to a right quadriceps injury following consecutive 100-yard rushing games, Jonathan Dwyer replaced Redman and had 50 yards on 14 carries through three quarters.

The Steelers would move within a game of AFC North leader Baltimore with a victory Monday night. Pittsburgh hosts the Ravens (7-2) next Sunday night.

Steelers offensive coordinator Todd Haley is facing Kansas City for the first time since being fired as head coach of the Chiefs late last season.

Led by Charles, Kansas City boasts the AFC's best rushing offense (149.9 yards per game) but is 15th in passing in the conference.

Cassel has thrown 11 interceptions in only 142 pass attempts this season — seven more than Roethlisberger has in more than twice as many passes.

The Chiefs have 29 turnovers — by far the most in the NFL — but had none in the first half Monday. Redman's fumble was the Steelers' ninth turnover of the season.

As it has been for the past five weeks, Pittsburgh was without All-Pro safety Troy Polamalu due to a calf injury. Also inactive for the Steelers were wide receiver Antonio Brown (ankle), running back Rashard Mendenhall (Achilles) and starting right tackle Marcus Gilbert (ankle).

___

Online: http://bigstory.ap.org/NFL-Pro32 and http://twitter.com/AP_NFL

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U2′s Bono to urge U.S. politicians not to cut aid programs

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Irish rocker and anti-poverty campaigner Bono will appeal to Democrats and Republicans during a visit to Washington this week to spare U.S. development assistance programs from cuts as Congress tries to avert the looming “fiscal cliff” of tax hikes and spending reductions early next year.

The U2 lead singer’s visit comes as the Obama administration and congressional leaders try to forge a deal in coming weeks to avoid the economy hitting the “fiscal cliff” – tax increases and spending cuts worth $ 600 billion starting in January if Congress does not act.

Analysts say the absence of a deal could shock the United States, the world’s biggest economy, back into recession.

Kathy McKiernan, spokeswoman for the ONE Campaign, said Bono will hold talks with congressional lawmakers and senior Obama administration officials during the November 12-14 visit.

During meetings he will stress the effectiveness of U.S. foreign assistance programs and the need to preserve them to avoid putting at risk progress made in fighting HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria, she said.

Bono, a long-time advocate for the poor, will argue that U.S. government-funded schemes that support life-saving treatments for HIV/AIDS sufferers, nutrition programs for malnourished children, and emergency food aid make up just 1 percent of the U.S. government budget but are helping to save tens of millions of lives in impoverished nations.

The One Campaign would not elaborate which lawmakers and senior Obama administration officials Bono will meet.

On Monday, Bono will discuss the power of social movements with students at Georgetown University. He will also meet new World Bank President Jim Yong Kim for a web cast discussion on Wednesday on the challenges of eradicating poverty.

(Editing by W Simon)

Music News Headlines – Yahoo! News

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British medical journal slams Roche on Tamiflu

LONDON (AP) — A leading British medical journal is asking the drug maker Roche to release all its data on Tamiflu, claiming there is no evidence the drug can actually stop the flu.

The drug has been stockpiled by dozens of governments worldwide in case of a global flu outbreak and was widely used during the 2009 swine flu pandemic.

On Monday, one of the researchers linked to the BMJ journal called for European governments to sue Roche.

"I suggest we boycott Roche's products until they publish missing Tamiflu data," wrote Peter Gotzsche, leader of the Nordic Cochrane Centre in Copenhagen. He said governments should take legal action against Roche to get the money back that was "needlessly" spent on stockpiling Tamiflu.

Last year, Tamiflu was included in a list of "essential medicines" by the World Health Organization, a list that often prompts governments or donor agencies to buy the drug.

Tamiflu is used to treat both seasonal flu and new flu viruses like bird flu or swine flu. WHO spokesman Gregory Hartl said the agency had enough proof to warrant its use for unusual influenza viruses, like bird flu.

"We do have substantive evidence it can stop or hinder progression to severe disease like pneumonia," he said.

In the U.S., the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends Tamiflu as one of two medications for treating regular flu. The other is GlaxoSmithKline's Relenza. The CDC says such antivirals can shorten the duration of symptoms and reduce the risk of complications and hospitalization.

In 2009, the BMJ and researchers at the Nordic Cochrane Centre asked Roche to make all its Tamiflu data available. At the time, Cochrane Centre scientists were commissioned by Britain to evaluate flu drugs. They found no proof that Tamiflu reduced the number of complications in people with influenza.

"Despite a public promise to release (internal company reports) for each (Tamiflu) trial...Roche has stonewalled," BMJ editor Fiona Godlee wrote in an editorial last month.

In a statement, Roche said it had complied with all legal requirements on publishing data and provided Gotzsche and his colleagues with 3,200 pages of information to answer their questions.

"Roche has made full clinical study data ... available to national health authorities according to their various requirements, so they can conduct their own analyses," the company said.

Roche says it doesn't usually release patient-level data available due to legal or confidentiality constraints. It said it did not provide the requested data to the scientists because they refused to sign a confidentiality agreement.

Roche is also being investigated by the European Medicines Agency for not properly reporting side effects, including possible deaths, for 19 drugs including Tamiflu that were used in about 80,000 patients in the U.S.

____

Online:

www.bmj.com.tamiflu/

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Chicago's top employers named

The Chicago Tribune released its annual Top Workplaces survey Monday, with a broad cross section of companies -- and dozens of new names -- earning recognition as the best places to work in Chicago. 

Abt Electronics and Coyote Logistics repeated as the top large and midsize employers, respectively, with iD Commerce + Logistics making the list for the first time as the top-ranked small company.  

This is the third year the Tribune has partnered with Workplace Dynamics to rank the top 100 companies as judged by their own employees, using criteria ranging from clued-in managers to flexible work schedules. More than 1,600 companies were invited to participate, with a record 254 completing the survey.

Pennsylvania-based Workplace Dynamics partnered with 32 newspapers and surveyed 1.5 million employees nationwide last year as part of its research efforts into what environments are best for employees. 

"We all spend an awful lot of time at work," said Doug Claffey, CEO of Workplace Dynamics. "Creating a really great workplace for employees is something that I think businesses have an obligation to do.  In addition to making money, you need create an environment where your people want to be."

Beyond Glenview electronics retailer Abt,  the top five large companies were Hyatt Hotels, Baird & Warner, ATI Physical Therapy and FedEx -- all new to this category this year.

Chicago-based Coyote Logistics was followed by kCura, Slalom Consulting, Edward Jones and Mercy Home for Boys & Girls among companies with 250 to 999 employees.  

Wood Dale-based id Commerce topped Webster Dental, 2011 winner Red Frog Events, Assurance Agency and LeasePlan USA among small companies.

Full survey results and a variety of top workplace profiles will be published in a magazine insert included in Tuesday's Chicago Tribune.

rchannick@tribune.com | Twitter @RobertChannick

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Texans knock out Cutler, beat Bears 13-6

CHICAGO (AP) — The Houston Texans kept taking the ball away from the Chicago Bears. Then they took their quarterback out of the game.

Arian Foster finished with 102 yards rushing and a touchdown catch, and the Texans intercepted Jay Cutler twice before knocking him out of the game with a concussion on their way to a 13-6 victory over the Chicago Bears on Sunday night.

In a showdown between two of the NFL's best teams, the Texans (8-1) beat the Bears (7-2) at their own game. They came away with four takeaways against a team with a plus-16 turnover differential and Tim Dobbins delivered the biggest blow when he drove his helmet into Cutler late in the second quarter.

"I think we showed them we can win any game, any situation, any time, any place, tough weather conditions, tough place on the road, a very good football team," defensive end J.J. Watt said. "We won, so say what you want."

Foster was the only reliable offensive weapon on either side, particularly in the first half when he ran for 85 yards and made a sprawling catch for a 2-yard touchdown to put Houston ahead 10-3.

Otherwise, neither team got much going on a soggy night. The Texans did just enough, and now they're tied with Atlanta for the league's best record after the Falcons were upset by New Orleans.

"It's huge for us, we were 7-1 going in, to come out 8-1 in a hostile place, given the weather and the team we were playing, that's a tough group to go against," said Matt Schaub, who threw for just 95 yards and was picked off twice by Tim Jennings.

Andre Johnson, Schaub's top target, had just four catches for 35 yards with Charles Tillman on him. Former Bear Danieal Manning helped set the tone, forcing a fumble by Kellen Davis on Chicago's first play from scrimmage and picking off Cutler later in the first quarter.

Cutler completed just 7 of 14 passes for 40 yards with two interceptions in the first half and was seen in street clothes after the game being driving off on a cart by team officials. Jason Campbell threw for 94 yards in the second half.

"You never want to lose anybody, especially our starting quarterback," receiver Brandon Marshall said. "He is our leader, he is the heart and soul of our offense so we definitely want him to have a quick, speedy recovery. In the meantime, Campbell is more than capable. There was no heads hanged down when Jay was down. There was no complaining. We understand we have a starting quarterback in the backup so we're fortunate to have him. There will be no drop off in our offense."

Marshall managed 107 yards receiving but also dropped a pass in the end zone. Matt Forte never got going, running for 39 yards.

But the biggest sequence came when Cutler got hurt.

The Texans had just gone up 10-3 on a lunging 2-yard touchdown catch by Foster. A scrambling Cutler took a helmet-to-helmet hit from Dobbins after unleashing a pass on third down at midfield late in the first half.

There were offsetting penalties on the play. Cutler got called for an illegal forward pass because he was beyond the line of scrimmage and then got drilled by Dobbins, who was called for unnecessary roughness.

Cutler stayed in and the drive ended with his second interception. Kareem Jackson picked off a pass intended for Marshall in double coverage at the Houston 27.

"It's tough," Campbell said. "That what defenses try to do."

Was it a cheap shot?

"He caught him right under the chin," Campbell answered.

Cutler was in for the final drive of the half, but Campbell started the third quarter, sending a big chill through Soldier Field.

After all, the Bears crumbled last season after Cutler injured his thumb, spoiling a 7-3 start. They went into a tailspin with Caleb Hanie and finished 8-8, costing general manager Jerry Angelo his job. With Campbell now in the mix, the Bears believe they could at least survive, and that theory could be put to the test in a big way with a game at San Francisco next Monday night.

"If I have to play, of course, during the week I will get those practice reps and get the guys used to (me)," Campbell said. "And they will get used to me as a quarterback, until Jay is ready. That's something that we have all week to get ready for. We don't have to work that out during the middle of the game."

Campbell couldn't lead them back in the second half, although there was plenty of blame to go around for that.

Robbie Gould kicked a 24-yard field goal late in the third period, but missed a 48-yarder early in the fourth that would have made it a one-point game. Shayne Graham kicked a 42-yarder for Houston to make it 13-6 with 4:49 left.

"It shows we can win in any environment, in any situation," Watt said. "Our team prevailed and obviously a lot of perseverance."

___

Online: http://pro32.ap.org/poll and http://twitter.com/AP_NFL

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Protective eye gear cuts field hockey injuries

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Fewer high school field hockey players get head and face injuries when they're required to don protective eyewear, according to a new comparison of states with and without those policies in effect.

Researchers were looking into worries that the equipment, while preventing eye injuries, might encourage players to get more physical and violent overall - which they termed "the gladiator effect" - leading to an increase in injuries.

"There's often this concern… that if we provide additional protection in the way of some type of equipment or padding that players will then be more aggressive and actually create more injuries because of the increased aggression," said Andrew Lincoln, head of sports medicine research at MedStar Health Research Institute at Union Memorial Hospital in Baltimore.

However that did not appear to be the case, and concussion rates, for example, were similar in states where eyewear was and was not required during the study.

Lincoln, who was not involved in the new research, said that in addition to concerns about athletes becoming more aggressive, some administrators were worried about the negative effects of adding more equipment for athletes to buy and more rules for referees to enforce. Cages used for eye protection run about $25 to $80.

When a similar mandate was introduced in high school girls' lacrosse, he added, veteran athletes were not fans.

"There was a strong negative reaction among players who had played the game for a number of years and were not used to using it and thought it affected their vision negatively," Lincoln told Reuters Health.

He said it was reassuring that the new analysis didn't find an increase in concussions or other collision-related injuries in states that had protective eyewear rules.

"We have very few of these formal evaluations of a safety intervention or a policy change in various sports," Lincoln said. Even though it made sense that eyewear would reduce at least certain kinds of injuries, "We're never quite sure how things are going to work out in real life."

The new research covers 180 high schools during the 2009 and 2010 fall field hockey seasons. In 2009, six states had policies mandating protective eyewear for their athletes: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York and Rhode Island.

As of 2011-2012, the National Federation of State High School Associations now requires all field hockey players wear the equipment.

At high schools included in a sports-injury database, there were 212 eye, face and head injuries during the 2009-2010 and 2010-2011 seasons. Those types of injuries are most often due to athletes being struck by a wooden field hockey stick or a ball, researchers led by Dr. Peter Kriz from Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island, said.

In states that required protective eyewear, the average 20-athlete team had one of those injuries for every 106 practices and games. In states without those requirements, that rate was one injury for every 72 practices and games for each team.

There was one eye injury among 39 schools with equipment requirements during those seasons, compared to 21 eye injuries in 141 teams in states without the mandate, according to findings published Monday in Pediatrics.

"This study adds to an accumulating body of evidence, most recently demonstrated in high school women's lacrosse, that mandated protective eyewear effectively and significantly reduces the incidence of head and facial (including eye) injuries in female athletes where injury from player contact and playing equipment pose risk," Kriz told Reuters Health in an email.

"We encourage players to adopt protective eyewear early, at a young age, regardless of the contact/collision sport they play. Wearing this gear will become second nature, and they will transition easier to other sports requiring facial protection."

Lincoln agreed that it's easiest for younger players to adopt the new gear, before they're used to playing without it.

"I hope different sport governing bodies look at these studies and will be more open to protective equipment for games," he said.

SOURCE: http://bitly.com/kSEGVh Pediatrics, online November 12, 2012.

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Hathaway says 'Les Mis' made her feel deprived

NEW YORK (AP) — Anne Hathaway credits her new husband Adam Schulman for helping her get through the grueling filming of the screen adaptation of "Les Miserables."

In "Les Mis," the 30-year-old actress plays Fantine, a struggling, sickly mother forced into prostitution in 1800s Paris.

Hathaway lost 25 pounds and cut her hair for the role. She tells the December issue of Vogue, the part left her in a "state of deprivation, physical and emotional." She felt easily overwhelmed and says Shulman was understanding and supportive.

The couple wed in September in Big Sur, Calif. Hathaway wore a custom gown by Valentino whom she collaborated with on the design. Working with the designer is a memory she says she will "treasure forever."

The December issue of Vogue hits stores Nov. 20.

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Online:

http://www.vogue.com/

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Leo Burnett adviser is marketing's digital provocateur

On a warm September day in Chicago, Rishad Tobaccowala counseled a roomful of Leo Burnett executives on how to sell high-tech gadgets — told in terms of hot dogs.

Tobaccowala, who has spent 30 years at Leo Burnett and affiliated agencies, described the $14 Chicago-style hot dog sold at the Allium restaurant inside the Four Seasons Hotel.

"Every single thing in that hot dog has been homemade," he says. "They make the ketchup, they make the mustard, they make the bread. But I don't think they tell us how they make the hot dog or the mustard or the bun."

His point is that consumers want transparency, but only up to a point.

"They're looking for magic where they can feel and see the result without necessarily understanding how the hell it happened," Tobaccowala says. "Any technology that tries to explain how it's done is like a magician showing his trick. It doesn't work."

Analogies and metaphors are tools of the trade in the advertising world. But Tobaccowala doesn't aim to convey cute or clever messages to consumers. His audience, instead, is marketers and colleagues trying to understand how consumers will relate to media and advertising in the future.

His pioneering work in online advertising and ability to convey complex concepts in simpler terms has made Tobaccowala, a 53-year-old Indian-born executive, a go-to adviser among marketers and colleagues in a rapidly changing industry.

Unusual among advertising executives, he doesn't have any direct clients, nor does he run a business unit.

That relative freedom allows him to speak with refreshing candor, said Doug Moore, vice president of advertising and media at General Mills Inc., which uses Leo Burnett's sister agencies for advertising and media planning. Moore credits Tobaccowala for encouraging the company behind Cheerios and other wholesome brands to try bolder marketing, which led to a campaign using the Cheech and Chong comedy duo to promote Fiber One cereal.

"He's not pitching a particular agency or a particular project," Moore said. "He's very generous in how he puts our agenda first. That's very unusual in the advertising or consulting space."

Tobaccowala's role inside Publicis Groupe, the giant French advertising and marketing firm that owns Leo Burnett, is to be a student of culture, think deep thoughts and spot trends. His official title is chief strategy and innovation officer at Chicago-based VivaKi, which Publicis started in 2008 to accelerate the digital activities within its media and digital companies.

Tobaccowala is known for his linguistic flourishes and profanity, which he uses for dramatic effect rather than to express anger.

"He's a provocateur," said Andrew Swinand, the former president of Starcom MediaVest Group, a media agency owned by Publicis. "Part of Rishad's genius is to say you're doing everything wrong, but in a really polite and funny way that makes you feel good about it."

Morning reading awakens the right brain

Tobaccowala's dream job is a demanding one. He wakes every morning at 4:30, two hours before his wife. He spends the first hour reading, often dipping into several books at a time, usually fiction and nonfiction that has nothing to do with marketing or business. His current reads: "Sweet Tooth," a novel by Ian McEwan; the massive "Infinite Jest" by David Foster Wallace; and a book on contemporary architecture called "10 x 10."

His choice in books has a purpose.

"The nature of my job, which has to do with where the world is going, tends to be math-driven and very tech-driven and very digital and very science-driven," said Tobaccowala, who majored in mathematics at the University of Bombay. "It's a lot left brain."

The most successful companies, though, fuse left brain and right brain, or science and art, he says. Tobaccowala finds a lesson for marketers in this bit of truth. They are trying to motivate human beings, after all.

"Marketers who basically believe this all about technology are mistaken," he says. "They think we are computing agents. Silicon chips compute, and carbon forms dream."

His belief in stimulating both halves of his brain extends to his writing in two distinct blogs. One is called "Re-imagining," where he posts news and musings about the arts, music and literature. He addresses marketing and workplace culture in his left-brained blog, "Re-inventing."

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