| News Articles from January, February and March 2010 |
|
The following news articles contain information on educational issues.The views in these articles are not
necessarily those of the Commonwealth Education Organization, but are posted for your information.
|
| |
| |
March 31, 2010,
RURAL ‘DROPOUT FACTORIES OFTEN OVERSHADOWED
Some high schools are fighting the odds by employing research-based strategies.
>>read more>> |
| |
March 29, 2010
ONLY TWO STATES WIN RACE TO THE TOP
“Independent evaluators gave the two winners especially high marks for their accountability standards and for implementing systems to track student performance. Both have also pushed to expand the growth of charter schools, which are publicly funded but independently run.”
>>read more>> |
| |
March 29, 2010
(MASSACHUSETTS) FAILS STUDENTS BY DOWNPLAYING HISTORY
“The head-long rush to give skills like ‘global awareness’ and ‘cultural competence’ equal billing with academic content has led to disaster in other states. But as education historian Diane Ravitch said, ‘In the land of American pedagogy, whatever is thought to be new is always embraced more readily than what is known to be true.’ We know it’s critical to pass the bedrock principles of U.S. democracy on to our children.”
>>read more>> |
| |
March 29, 2010
VICTORY FOR VOUCHERS....
On Thursday, the Illinois Senate passed, 33-20, a bill that would offer tuition vouchers to kids now enrolled at 49 of the city's weakest schools. Most of these children come from poor families. They could use the vouchers at any parochial or other private school that admits them.
>>read more>> |
| |
March 29, 2010
‘MATH WARS' OVER NATIONAL STANDARDS MAY ERUPT IN CALIFORNIA
While math formulas and properties may be delightfully precise, how best to teach them to children is not. As the United States prepares for the first time to adopt nationwide K-12 "common core" standards, mathematicians and educators are split.
>>read more>> |
| |
March 29, 2010
QUALITY OF SCHOOL BOOKS HIT BY CHANGES
“Constant changes to the national curriculum have left school textbooks floundering in their wake, according to a major international study of maths performance published today.”
>>read more>> |
| |
March 28, 2010
OBAMA’S BLUEPRINT FOR SCHOOLS OF EDUCATION
For the first time in its nearly 100 year history, teacher education
will have to step away from progressivism/constructivism if they are
to have any chance of achieving these changes. (Editorial note.)
>>read more>> |
| |
Spring 2010
21st CENTURY SKILLS: NOT NEW, BUT A WORTHY CHALLENGE
"The past few decades have seen great progress in education reform in the United States—progress that has espe- cially benefited less-advantaged students. Today’s reformers can build on that prog- ress only if they pay keen attention to the challenges associated with genuinely improving teaching and learning. If we ignore these challenges, the 21st-century- skills movement risks becoming another fad that ultimately changes little—or even worse, sets back the cause of creating dra- matically more powerful schools for U.S. students, especially those who are under- served today."
>>read more>> |
| |
|
March 25, 2010
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT RACE TO THE TOP, THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION’S EDUCATION INITIATIVE
AEI Education Stimulus Watch: Special Report 3
In his latest AEI Education Stimulus Watch (ESW) report, former deputy assistant secretary of education Andy Smarick notes that RTT’s success is premature and drastically inflated. Using numerous examples, particularly at the state and local level, Smarick chronicles and analyzes the program’s many obstacles and weaknesses.
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
March 24, 2010
DUNCAN’S SELECTIVE-SCHOOLS LIST IN CHICAGO SYMBOLIZES HAVES/HAVE-NOTS SPLIT
When he led the Chicago schools, Arne Duncan kept a list of all the big shots who asked for help in getting certain children into the city's best public schools.”
>>read more>>
March 12, 2010
ENTIRE GRADUATING CLASS OF URBAN PREP CHARTER ACADEMY ACCEPTED IN COLLEGE
“Chicago's Urban Prep Charter Academy has a mission -- for its students to graduate and succeed in college. Now, for the first graduating class at the high school, it's mission accomplished.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
March 22, 2010
UNIONS, PUBLIC SCHOOLS AND MINORITY CHILDREN
“The main beneficiaries of education alternatives are minority children. Yet, at the state level, unions provide a unified lobbying front to block such initiatives.”
>>read more>> |
| |
|
March 20, 2010
DON’T LET FEDS CONTROL LOCAL EDUCATION
“...a national, one-size-fits-all curriculum would be highly political, beset by special interest lobbying, and almost certainly diluted by teachers unions and education bureaucrats unaccountable to parents and voters..... The problem with the proposed national standards is the same thing that bedeviled No Child Left Behind and nearly every reform since the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965: The remorseless needs of bureaucracy always trump the needs of children.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
March 19, 2010
PRINCIPAL, TEACHER CLASH ON CHEATING
Could we be addressing widespread cheating in the wrong way? Could more honors systems, giving students more responsibility, change the culture of copying?
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
March 19, 2010
REINVENTING THE LEAD BALLOON-TEAM-BASED LEARNING
“.. while inflated grades look better on report cards, a student's grade should reflect what he or she knows, not what the student who's sitting in the next seat knows. Even in a "real world" that values collaboration, the point of a test is to find out how good a resource someone will be when someone else asks him or her for help later on. Employers may value team players, but first they're looking for competent players.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
SPRING 2010
WHAT HAPPENED WHEN KINDERGARTEN WENT UNIVERSAL?
“My results indicate that state funding of universal kindergarten had no discernible impact on many of the long-term outcomes desired by policymakers, including grade retention, public assistance receipt, employment, and earnings.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
March 17, 2010
INVESTIGATE THE EDUCATION SCHOOLS!
“...op-ed pieces in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reveal that education professors’ concerns diverge dramatically from those of regular folks when it comes to the importance of learning facts.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
March 17, 2010
BOYS TRAIL GIRLS IN READING ACROSS STATES
"A new study on gender differences in academic achievement, offering what it calls 'good news for girls and bad news for boys,' finds that, overall, male students in every state where data were available lag behind females in reading, based on an analysis of recent state test results. At the same time, in mathematics, a subject in which girls have historically trailed, the percentages of both genders scoring 'proficient' or higher were roughly the same, with boys edging out girls slightly in some states and girls posting somewhat stronger scores in others."
>>read more>>
|
| |
March 16, 2010
CHARTER SCHOOLS AND STUDENT PERFORMANCE
“One study of 29 countries found that the level of competition among schools was directly tied to higher test scores in reading and math.”
>>read more>> |
| |
March 16, 2010
WHAT IF A COLLEGE EDUCATION ISN’T FOR EVERYONE?
“The problem...is that many high schools focus so much on college that low-achieving students fall through the cracks. A Public Agenda report this month raises similar concerns about high school guidance counseling. It follows up on a December survey that concluded most young workers who don't have a college degree "are in their jobs by chance, not by choice," and that guidance toward a career path "is hardly clear and purposeful."
>>read more>> |
| |
March 16, 2010
BACK TO BASICS
“(T)hese draft “common core” standards are light years better than we had any right to expect. They appear to be better than the standards most states now rely on. And they represent a vision of well-educated girls and boys that conservatives should applaud.”
>>read more>> |
| |
|
March 15, 2010
EXPERTS URGE CREATION OF ‘AMERICA’S TEACHER CORPS’
“A high-powered panel of teacher-quality experts released a paper this morning proposing a new federal program called America's Teacher Corps that they claim would recognize the best teachers, reduce interstate barriers to teaching, increase access of students in high-poverty school to highly effective teachers, and make the profession more attractive to newcomers.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
March 15, 2010
MORE CIVICS EDUCATION NEEDED, ADVOCATES SAY
Florida lawmakers are listening and may require more classes — and testing — on the subject. Some state lawmakers in Florida think their civics education is some of the worst in the nation. Many believe they can fix this by more lessons on civic responsibility, government and key historical documents.
>>read more>> |
| |
|
March 15, 2010
L.A. UNIFIED PANEL RECOMMENDS CHANGES IN TEACHER EVALUATIONS
“High-performing teachers should earn more pay, tenure should be more difficult to achieve and teacher reviews should be tied to student test scores, a Los Angeles school district panel is expected to recommend Tuesday.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
March 14, 2010
EDUCATION GROUPS LAUD, CRITICIZE OBAMA 'NO CHILD' OVERHAUL PLAN
“The Obama administration's plan to make sweeping changes to the 2002 No Child Left Behind education law is getting mixed reaction among educators: Teachers unions complained that teachers are being scapegoated by the overhaul; a school board leader praised it but called for more flexibility; and an administrators group said it was just glad to see NCLB go away.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
March 14, 2010
FORGET GOOFING AROUND: RECESS HAS A NEW BOSS
“The school is one of a growing number across the country that are reining in recess to curb bullying and behavior problems, foster social skills and address concerns over obesity. They also hope to show children that there is good old-fashioned fun to be had without iPods and video games.”
>>read more>> |
| |
March 12, 2010
WHEN IT COMES TO EDUCATION, THE PAST IS OUR FUTURE (from the UK)
Child-centred learning is turning out school-leavers without the skills for life.
>>read more>> |
| |
March 10, 2010
POP QUIZ: WOULD YOU PASS NEW EDUCATION STANDARDS?
'World News' Tests You on the Newly-Proposed National Guidelines.
>>read more>> |
| |
|
March 10, 2010
THEY SPEND WHAT? THE REAL COST OF PUBLIC SCHOOLS
“Although public schools are usually the biggest item in state and local budgets, spending figures provided by public school officials and reported in the media often leave out major costs of education and thus understate what is actually spent.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
March 9, 2010
MANY NATIONS PASSING U.S. IN EDUCATION, EXPERT SAYS
One of the world’s foremost experts on comparing national school systems told lawmakers on Tuesday that many other countries were surpassing the United States in educational attainment, including Canada, where he said 15-year-old students were, on average, more than one school year ahead of American 15-year-olds.
>>read more>> |
| |
|
MARCH 5, 2010
EDUCATION FINALISTS PICKED
D.C. and 15 States Vie for U.S. Funds to Shake Up Ailing Schools; a Few Raise Eyebrows
“The states that made the cut in the $4.35 billion Race to the Top competition were Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina and Tennessee.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
March 3, 2010
TEACHERS FEEL IGNORED IN EDUCATION DEBATE
“The survey "Primary Sources: America's Teachers on America's Schools" asked some 40,000 U.S. public school teachers for their opinions on testing, merit pay and other issues. The results show many teachers feel ignored in the debate over how to improve America's schools.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
March 3, 2010
BAD ADVICE, NO ADVICE
“(T)here appears to be a correlation between the degree to which students have a good counseling relationship, and whether they make decisions that land them at the right institutions, and with a plan to pay for college.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
March 2, 2010
FITNESS MAY BOOST KIDS' GRADES
“Study finds link between physical health and academic test scores Fit bodies may bring kids better test scores in school, a new study finds.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
March 2, 2010
GRANTS DESIGNED TO IMPROVE SCHOOLS THAT TAKE DRASTIC ACTION
“President Obama yesterday announced a new intervention program for 5,000 of the nation's lowest-performing schools, available to districts where officials take actions as drastic as firing principals, clearing out staff and even shuttering some campuses.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
March 2010
NUMBER WARS: SCHOOL BATTLES HEAT UP AGAIN IN THE TRADITIONAL VERSUS REFORM-MATH DEBATE
“Weak student scores fuel the fight in mathematics education
One sentiment unites almost all math professionals—after decades of wrangling, the system still isn’t working. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. high school students ranked in the bottom quarter in math performance, as compared with students of nations belonging to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development. In a future expected to depend even more on science, health and technology, that is bad news indeed.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
February 27, 2010
SURVEY ASKS STUDENTS WHEN THEY LOST VIRGINITY
“A team of lawyers who advocate for parental rights is working with parents whose children attend Ventura High School in Southern California to raise a formal objection after teachers had students fill out a survey on sex with questions such as "Are you sexually active" and "If not, why not?" “
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
February 25, 2010
PLAN TO FIRE ALL ITS TEACHERS ROILS POOR RHODE ISLAND CITY
“No more than half those instructors would be hired back under a federal option that has enraged the state's powerful teachers union, earned criticism from students, and brought praise from U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan and some parents.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
February 25, 2010
SCHOOL DISTRICT WANTS STAFF TO SET WELL-GROOMED EXAMPLE
“(T)he school board is poised to approve a new dress code for administrators as a way of setting an example for students and teachers to follow. ‘Dress does make a difference,’ Carroll (superintendent) said. ‘Proper attire helps create a professional atmosphere. It conveys the message that this is a place of business.’ .....’We know that on days when ... students were allowed to dress down, the discipline problems went up,’ he said.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
February 2010
WHY RACE TO THE MIDDLE?
First-Class State Standards Are Better than Third-Class National Standards
“In short, the rush to move from 50 state standards to a single set of standards for 50 states in less than one year, as well as the lack of transparency in CCSSI’s procedures, have excluded the kind and extent of public discussion merited by the huge policy implications of such a move. We urge the U.S. Congress, the U.S. Department of Education, and local and state school boards to insist on the development of first-class national standards in mathematics and ELA, and in a properly deliberative manner.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
February 2010
HOMEWORK: PERSUADE YOUR PARENTS TO FILL OUT THE CENSUS
“The U.S. Census Bureau has launched an aggressive campaign targeting school children in an effort to influence their parents to participate in the 2010 Census. The program is part of a $13 billion national public information effort, and will reach about 56 million students in 118,000 schools.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
February 22, 2010
AN INTERVEIW WITH NEAL McCLUSKEY: NO EVIDENCE OR RESEARCH FOR NATIONAL STANDARDS
“The impetus behind my paper was to delve into the actual research on national standards, going beyond the extremely simplistic argument that those who beat us have national standards. If the nation is going to be pushed into having a single, government-imposed standard for every public school and student I thought the empirical research should at least be discussed.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
February 22, 2010
HELP PICK NON-FICTION FOR SCHOOLS
“Educators say non-fiction is more difficult than fiction for students to comprehend. It requires more factual knowledge, beyond fiction’s simple truths of love, hate, passion and remorse. So we have a pathetic cycle. Students don’t know enough about the real world because they don’t read non-fiction and they can’t read non-fiction because they don’t know enough about the real world.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
February 19, 2010
SUIT: SCHOOL WEBCAMS SPY ON STUDENTS AT HOME
“A suburban Philadelphia school district used the webcams in school-issued laptops to spy on students at home, potentially catching them and their families in compromising situations, a family claims in a federal lawsuit.”
>>read more>>
February 23, 2010
WAS BIG BROTHER WATCHING OUR KIDS IN MCCRACKEN COUNTY SCHOOLS?
“...the ‘snoopware’ issue in Pennsylvania may be a problem elsewhere.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
February 19, 2010
DOWN WITH PARENT POWER
“If a school's average test scores are low, parents may circulate a petition demanding one of a set of options set out in the law, including closing the school, turning it into a charter school or firing or reorganizing the staff. If 51 percent of the school's families, or 51 percent of a larger group of parents whose children are on track to attend the school, sign the petition, the change takes place unless the school district can persuade the state to choose a different option because the parents' solution is impossible or harmful.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
February 19, 2010
CRISIS IN AMERICAN PUBLIC EDUCATION
“(N)ot all American schools are failing. Many are very successful…but they are independent of the government. That private, parochial, and home schooled students achieve higher test scores than public school students is a well-known documented fact. These illustrate the benefits to students from competition in the education market place.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
February 19, 2010
SOCIALIST STUDIES: LEFT, LEFT, LEFT ...
“A new shocking report on social studies "professionals" using classrooms as leftist indoctrination centers should prompt parents and taxpayers to reassert local control over public education.”
>>read more>>
(The full report, "Indoctrination without Apology: Social Studies Teachers Share Strategies on How to Mold Students," is available here.)
|
| |
|
February 18, 2010, 10:08 PM
A DIPLOMA IN 10th GRADE?
“The Times reported this week that under a program starting next year, some high school sophomores in eight states will have a chance to earn a diploma and head straight to community college. To do so, however, they will have to pass academic tests known as board exams. If they don’t pass the tests in the 10th grade, they can take them again in their junior and senior years. What are the benefits of a fast-track approach through high school? What are the possible problems and risks?”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
February 18, 2010
HIGH SCHOOLS TO OFFER PLAN TO GRADUATE 2 YEARS EARLY
“Dozens of public high schools in eight states will introduce a program next year allowing 10th graders who pass a battery of tests to get a diploma two years early and immediately enroll in community college.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
February 18, 2010
THE DECLINE AND FALL OF STUDENT WRITING
“Writing aids such as spellcheck may mean fewer technical errors in student work than a generation ago, but English professor Joel Shatzky’s comparison of student work from earlier decades leads him to the conclusion that the quality of student writing has declined markedly.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
February 21, 2010
NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND TO CHANGE
“ "We're hoping that, rather than a knee-jerk reaction to move to a new government system, there will be some discussion among the stakeholders," said Allwein, of the school boards association.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
February 18, 2010
LAWMAKERS TO LAUNCH BIPARTISAN EFFORT TO REWRITE NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND
“(T)hey will team up to rewrite the No Child Left Behind education law, a rare show of bipartisanship in the polarized Congress.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
February 17, 2010
EDUCATION: TOO IMPORTANT FOR A GOVERNMENT MONOPOLY
“Today we spend a stunning $11,000 a year per student -- more than $200,000 per classroom. It's not working. So when will we permit competition and choice, which works great with everything else?”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
February 16, 2010
SKYDIVING WITHOUT PARACHUTES
“I am hopeful that the Seattle court decision will at least force evidence to be considered. Of course, this means that school boards may now carefully craft answers to dismiss evidence that is presented and come to a decision that won’t be ruled arbitrary and capricious. But at least they will have to work a bit harder in refuting the evidence that jumping out of airplanes without parachutes leads to death.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
February 16, 2010
HOME-LANGUAGE SURVEYS FOR ELL’S UNDER FIRE
“A growing chorus of people are saying that some school districts are overzealous in categorizing students as English-language learners in the aim of complying with federal and state laws to ensure that children of immigrants get extra help with English. They contend that the information requested on the home-language survey that parents are commonly asked to fill out when they enroll their child in a public school can be misleading or misused.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
February 16, 2010
THE SECRET OF SCHMITZ PARK ELEMENTARY SCHOOL IS SINGAPORE MATH
“In the war over school math — in which a judge recently ordered Seattle Public Schools to redo its choice of high-school math — Schmitz Park is a redoubt or, it hopes, a beachhead. North Beach is a redoubt for Saxon Math, a traditional program. Both schools have permission to be different. The rest of the district's elementary schools use Everyday Math, a curriculum influenced by the constructivist or reform methods.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
February 14, 2010
FALSE START
“ (T)he results (of a new study) were finally released: Former Head Start participants were no better off than their non-Head Start peers by the end of first grade.....the devastating results of the Head Start evaluation should warrant a national discussion about federal and state approaches to preschool.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
February 13, 2010
L.A. SUPERINTENDENT PROPOSES SHORTENING SCHOOL YEAR
“The head of the Los Angeles Unified School District proposed shortening the school year by six days in an effort to minimize layoffs as part of a looming budget deficit.”
>>read more>>
|
|
|
February 11, 2010
IN NATIONAL FIRST, KENTUCKY ADOPTS COMMON STANDARDS
“Kentucky yesterday became the first state to adopt common academic standards that were drafted as part of a nationwide initiative to establish a widely shared and ambitious vision of student learning.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
February 10, 2010
CUTS TO TAX CREDIT PROGRAM THREATEN SCHOLARSHIP FUNDS
“(T)he program gives partial tax credits to businesses for contributing money to fund private education, removing some low income families from the public school system and saving the taxpayers money. If cuts to EITC force parents to remove their children from the private schools they are attending now and enroll them in a public school, taxpayers become responsible for funding their education.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
February 9, 2010
LESSON PLANS: A TEACHER SPEAKS
“What's it like teaching inside the school that’s become a national model for community improvement? A Promise Academy instructor explains.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
February 8, 2010
TEACHERS FEAR COST-CUTTING MEASURE WILL HURT THEIR RETIREMENTS
“As an impending spike in required contributions for public school pensions weighs on the minds of school directors, teachers are worried that a move to mitigate the cost to school districts could hurt their retirement.... Most school districts have not budgeted for the spike, however, and Act 1 prevents them from raising taxes enough to cover the deficit. Without action from Harrisburg, districts will be forced to cut programs.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
February 08, 2010
INNER-CITY SCHOOLS NEED A POLITICAL KATRINA
“If there was evidence that billions of dollars directed into new spending was going to improve education, we taxpayers might be prepared to be put on the hook.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
February 4, 2010
JUDGE REJECTS SEATTLE’S HIGH SCHOOL MATH PROGRAM
“Seattle's so-called "Discovery" math curriculum doesn't add up for a King County Superior Court judge, who rejected the style of instruction Thursday and ordered the district to try again.... In her ruling, (she) noted that the state's Board of Education had declared the curriculum ‘mathematically unsound’ and that the state Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction did not recommend the curriculum.”
>>read more>>
Link to the Judge's ruling
February 7, 2010
JUDGE TELLS SEATTLE SCHOOL BOARD: DO THE MATH
“FINALLY someone has stood up to the institutional urge at Seattle Public Schools to adopt constructivist or reform math: Judge Julie Spector of King County Superior Court ruled Thursday that the district's adoption of the Discovering series of high-school math texts was ‘arbitrary’ and ‘capricious.’ “
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
February 6, 2010
CRITICS STANDARDS PUSH THREATENS ED GAINS
“Caught between wanting to participate in the process {of helping with national standards} while protecting the high benchmarks already set for Massachusetts students, education officials insist they will settle for nothing less than the rigorous curriculum already in place. Critics, however, worry that the state could find itself pressured by the lure of federal grants and other incentives to adopt the new standards and undermine nearly two decades of achievements that have lead to national and international accolades.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
February 3, 2010
OBAMA’S EDUCATION PLAN ERRS IN ABANDONING ‘PROFICIENCY’ GOAL
"...backing away from the goal that all students achieve proficiency on their state exams is a mistake in a field where nothing short of high-stakes testing grabs the attention of students, parents, teachers, and school administrators."
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
February 2, 2010
FAILURE RATE FOR AP TESTS CLIMBING
“The number of students taking Advanced Placement tests hit a record high last year, but the portion who fail the exams — particularly in the South — is rising as well, a USA TODAY analysis finds.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
February 2, 2010
ADMINISTRATION OUTLINES PROPOSED CHANGES TO ‘NO CHILD’ LAW
"The administration proposed replacing that system, known as adequate yearly progress, with a new accountability system that officials said would more fairly characterize schools’ academic progress."
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
February 2, 2010
GOVERNMENT ITSELF NEEDS AN EDUCATION
“Education reform's congruence with health care reform stems from the same peppy expectation that the central government is both well-placed and well-qualified to direct the remedial process. The central government is huge and hyper with lots of taxpayer money. The government thinks that means it can tell ordinary people what they need, when in fact the realities of health and education are larger than any government could ever master.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
February 02, 2010
EFFECTIVE EDUCATION
“A new federally funded study shows the effectiveness of abstinence education among a group of 12-year-olds in an urban public school: After two years, 33 percent of the students in the abstinence class had lost their virginity compared to 52 percent of the students enrolled in a class on safe sex. The findings throw into question the Obama administration’s decision to eliminate $170 million in funding for abstinence programs, in light of the president’s promise to “make scientific decisions based on facts, not ideology.” The study, released Monday in the February edition of Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, concluded that “abstinence-only interventions” might be important for delaying sexual debuts.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
January 2010
UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA PLANS TO RE-EDUCATE TEACHERS
“A civil liberties organization and other critics are denouncing the recommendations of the Race, Culture, Class and Gender Task Group at the University of Minnesota flagship Twin Cities campus for its proposal that race, class and gender form the "overarching framework" of all teacher education coursework. The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) dispatched a letter to the University President Robert Bruininks in November urging the university's College of Education and Human Development to "change course." FIRE director Adam Kissel warned that if the task group achieved its stated goals, "the result will be political and ideological screening of applicants, remedial re-education for those with the 'wrong' views and values, and withholding of degrees from those upon whom the university's political reeducation efforts proved ineffective." He wrote that, "These intentions violate the freedom of conscience of the university's students. As a public university bound by the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, the university is both legally and morally obligated to uphold this fundamental right." “
>>read more>> |
| |
January 2010
CAGES OF THEIR OWN DESIGN: FIVE STRATEGIES TO HELP EDUCATION LEADERS BREAK FREE
“The education profession is notorious for its resistance to change. School leaders often claim that collective bargaining agreements, state and federal regulations, and budget concerns prevent them from pursuing effective school reform. The culture of the K–12 leadership environment is one that often seeks consensus over progress and collegiality over accountability. But breakthrough leadership is possible in schools. This Outlook offers five strategies to help reform-minded educators step boldly out of self-defeating mind-sets into the turbulence of change.”
>>read more>> |
| |
January 31, 2010
(PENNSYLVANIA’S) INTERMEDIATE UNITS TO DESIGN GRADUATION TESTS
“The state's 29 intermediate units are working to develop an alternative to the mandatory graduation exams the state will spend $201 million to develop.”
>>read more>> |
| |
January 31, 2010
FROM FISH TO INFINITY
"Crazy as it sounds, over the next several weeks I’m going to try to do something close to that. I’ll be writing about the elements of mathematics, from pre-school to grad school, for anyone out there who’d like to have a second chance at the subject — but this time from an adult perspective. It’s not intended to be remedial. The goal is to give you a better feeling for what math is all about and why it’s so enthralling to those who get it."
>>read more>> |
| |
January 29, 2010
STATE POLICY FOR TEACHER QUALITY GETS ‘D’
“Pennsylvania earned a "D" for policies to promote teacher quality, according to a report card released by a national advocacy group on Friday. Most states did as badly or worse in the report by the National Council on Teacher Quality, which advocates for tougher teacher evaluations and more rigorous teacher preparation.”
>>read more>> |
| |
January 28, 2010, Volume 10, Number 4
OBAMA’S SUPER-DOUBLE-SECRET EDU-JUDGES
“Race to the Top has delivered some benefits, no bones about it. It has spurred several states to raise caps on charter schooling, revisit teacher pay, and strike ludicrous rules that prohibited states and districts from using student learning to evaluate or compensate teachers...So why the secrecy? Why turn the crown jewel of the administration’s $110 billion in education stimulus spending (and foundation of its efforts to reshape American schooling) into a backroom operation?”
>>read more>> |
| |
January 28, 2010
EXPERTS SAY A REWRITE OF NATION’S MAIN EDUCATION LAW WILL BE HARD THIS YEAR
“In his State of the Union address, President Obama held out the hope of overhauling the main law outlining the federal role in public schools, a sprawling 45-year-old statute that dates to the Johnson administration. But experts say it would be a heavy lift for the administration to get the job done this year because the law has produced so much discord, there is so little time and there are so many competing priorities.”
>>read more>> |
| |
January 27, 2010
GERMAN HOME SCHOOLERS GRANTED U.S. POLITICAL ASYLUM
“A German couple who fled to Tennessee so they could home school their children has been granted political asylum by an immigration judge in Memphis.”
>>read more>> |
| |
|
January 24, 2010
SINGAPORE MATH A SUCCESS SO FAR IN FAYETTE CO. (Kentucky)
“So-called "Singapore math" features problems that often are more complex than American textbooks contain. It demands deep mastery of a few math concepts, rather than an overview of many different ideas. And it aims to give students a basic understanding of how math works, rather than a simple rote system for finding answers.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
January 21, 2010
RACE TO THE MIDDLE?
"To qualify, Mr. Duncan said states had to, among other things, lift caps on charter schools and remove barriers to using student records to identify good teachers and reward them. He's also said that 'there will be a lot more losers than winners.' "
>>read more>>
|
| |
January 21, 2010
IS IT A ‘RACE TO THE TOP’ OR A QUICK PLUNGE TO THE BOTTOM?
“....under the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), which is still the law of the land today, there is a prohibition against creating a national testing system, a prohibition against creating a huge national database, and a prohibition against creating national standards.”
>>read more>> |
| |
|
January 21, 2010
QUALITY OF QUESTIONS ON COMMON TESTS AT ISSUE
"Most experts in the testing community have presumed that the $350 million promised by the U.S. Department of Education to support common assessments would promote those that made greater use of open-ended items capable of measuring higher-order critical-thinking skills.
But as measurement experts consider the multitude of possibilities for an assessment system based more heavily on such questions, they also are beginning to reflect on practical obstacles to doing so."
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
January 20, 2010
CHOICE EDUCATION CHIEFS
"(T)he country's two newest governors, Republicans Bob McDonnell of Virginia and Chris Christie of New Jersey,... have tapped strong school choice advocates to head their state education departments."
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
January/February 2010
WHAT MAKES A GREAT TEACHER?
“For years, the secrets to great teaching have seemed more like alchemy than science, a mix of motivational mumbo jumbo and misty-eyed tales of inspiration and dedication. But for more than a decade, one organization has been tracking hundreds of thousands of kids, and looking at why some teachers can move them three grade levels ahead in a year and others can’t. Now, as the Obama administration offers states more than $4 billion to identify and cultivate effective teachers, Teach for America is ready to release its data.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
January 2010
HEAD START: A $150 BILLION FAILURE
"(A) new report published by the Department of Health and Human found that the $150 billion that taxpayers have “invested” in Head Start since 1965 is yielding zero lasting benefits for participating children."
>>read more>>
Head Start Impact Study Executive Summary |
| |
|
January 17, 2010
COMMON-CORE STANDARDS UNDER FIRE (blog posting)
“When the man overseeing the common-core standards initiative admits that the deadlines for completing the work are “insane,” you know we may be headed for trouble.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
January 16, 2010
FIX THE U.S. EDUCATION SYSTEM-IT'S IN THE NATIONAL INTEREST
“The failure to prepare tomorrow's leaders in math and science is a threat to our country's global standing. For far too long, policy makers have turned a blind eye to our crumbling public education system. This is no longer exclusively an education issue -- this is now also a national security issue.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
January 14, 2010
SCHOOL DAZED: RACE TO THE TOP IS ON (But Texas isn’t at the starting line)
“When Gov. Rick Perry nixed the state's application earlier this week, he explained that the money would come with too many federal strings attached. Mostly he complained that Texas would have to adopt a national curriculum.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
January 14, 2010
WILL WE DO WHAT IS NECESSARY FOR OUR CHILDREN?
“The team needed to help students reach this goal includes conservatives who believe in individual responsibility and liberals who understand that education provides children with a path to a different, more positive future. The goal we should continually focus on is learning.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
January 14, 2010
HOME-SCHOOLING 'THREAT' TURNED AWAY
“Home schoolers in New Hampshire have "responded to the threat" posed by legislation that would have placed new, heavy restrictions on those who prefer to educate their own children.”
>>read more>>
|
|
|
January 12, 2010
A SERIOUS PROPOSAL
“The president of the American Federation of Teachers says she will urge her members to accept a form of teacher evaluation that takes student achievement into account and that the union has commissioned an independent effort to streamline disciplinary processes and make it easier to fire teachers who are guilty of misconduct.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
January 12, 2010
STATES LOWER TEST STANDARDS FOR A HIGH SCHOOL DIPLOMA
"The situation in Pennsylvania mirrors what has happened in many of the 26 states that have adopted high school exit exams. As deadlines approached for schools to start making passage of the exams a requirement for graduation, and practice tests indicated that large numbers of students would fail, many states softened standards, delayed the requirement or added alternative paths to a diploma."
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
January 11, 2010
STUDY: YOUTH NOW HAVE MORE MENTAL HEALTH ISSUE
"A new study has found that five times as many high school and college students are dealing with anxiety and other mental health issues as youth of the same age who were studied in the Great Depression era."
>>read more>>
|
| |
January 11, 2010
LITERACY CREEP
"Instead of bringing literacy instruction to the content areas, it makes far more sense to bring content into literacy instruction from the very start of schooling."
>>read more>> |
| |
|
January 11, 2010
THE INTERFERENCE OF THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT IN PUBLIC EDUCATION
" Why would the citizens of a federal republic founded on freedom of religion and the rights to life, liberty and private property want to put the central government in charge of educating their children?"
>>read more>>
|
| |
January 11, 2010
THE ZEITGEIST OF READING INSTRUCTION
Dan Willingham discusses reading research.
“Knowledge of the topic you’re reading about...has an enormous impact and more important, there is no ceiling—the more knowledge you gain, the more your reading improves.”
>>read more>> |
| |
|
January 10, 2010
COLLEGE RESEARCH WRITING IS NOT PART OF MOST SECONDARY SCHOOL PREPARATION
Will Fitzhugh, editor of The Concord Review, explains why it is important for high school students to write research papers. The review is believed to be the world’s only English-language quarterly review for history academic papers by high school students.
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
January 10, 2010
HOME-SCHOOLING: SOCIALIZATION NOT A PROBLEM
“This new study should cause many critics to rethink their position on the issue of socialization. Not only are home-schoolers actively engaged in civic life, they also are succeeding in all walks of life. Many critics believed, and some parents feared, that home-schoolers would not be able to compete in the job market. But the new study shows home-schoolers are found in a wide variety of professions. Being home-schooled has not closed doors on career choices.”
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
January 6, 2010
GOOD NEWS/BAD NEWS ON EDUCATION SCHOOLS
"Back in October, Secretary of Education Arne Duncan gave a speech that surprised and pleased many in the education reform community. Speaking at Columbia University’s Teachers College, Duncan said that we need to 'raise the bar' for teacher training programs so that we’ll have a new generation of teachers ready to 'significantly boost student learning and increase college readiness.' "
>>read more>>
|
| |
|
January 6, 2010
RACING TO NATIONAL TESTS?
"While everyone in educatorland obsesses over the $4 bilion competition among the states for Race to the Top (RTT) funding, the Education Department (ED) is readying a separate competition for less than one-tenth as much money that may nonetheless prove far more consequential for American education over the long term."
>>read more>>
|
| |
