| August, September, October 2011 News Articles |
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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.
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October 31, 2011
WASHINGTON’S HALLOWEEN TRICKS FOR EDUCATION
“Particularly troubling with the proposed plan is that it gives Washington stronger control over the nation’s classrooms by requiring states to adopt ‘college- and career-ready’ standards. Requiring states to adopt these national standards as a condition of receiving Title I funds represents a significant federal overreach into the content taught in local schools.”
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October 30, 2011
VOUCHER CRITICS ARE MISLEADING THE PUBLIC
“Critics like to contend the data on vouchers are incomplete or inconclusive…Yet most vouchers analyses conclude their impact is difficult to tease out because programs are so small and the competing monopoly, traditional public schools, so intractable, notes Jay Greene, one of the nation's foremost education researchers. Of the nine best studies -- those using the research ‘gold standard’ of random assignment -- all but one demonstrate significant positive academic benefits from vouchers. (The 10th did not find any difference.)”
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October 29, 2011
SCHOOL VOUCHERS: FOR SOME, IT’S A CONCERN ABOUT SAFETY
“Pennsylvania’s public education system needs help. Every day that passes without enacting meaningful school choice legislation that empowers parents and gives them access to more educational options, countless students slip through the cracks from a future full of hope to a future full of despair….Thousands of children statewide cannot afford to spend another year trapped in a violent, failing school.”
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October 27, 2011
TEACHER’S UNION OFFERED GRANT TO CREATE ‘ACTIVISTS’ OUT OF 1st & 2nd GRADERS
“The National Education Association (NEA), the largest labor union in the country, offered a $5,000 Learning and Leadership Grant to two Wisconsin teachers who intended to use the funds to ‘help first and second grade students’ become ‘activists.’”
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October 26, 2011
NEARLY HALF OF STATES LINK TEACHER EVALUATIONS TO TESTS
“At least 23 states and the District of Columbia now evaluate public-school teachers in part by student standardized tests, while 14 allow districts to use this data to dismiss ineffective teachers, according to the report from the National Council on Teacher Quality, an advocacy group. ”
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October 26, 2011
TEACHER’S UNION FAT CATS
“When you consider that teachers' union leaders at all levels collect lucrative sums from their unions and additional salaries from the school districts that are servile to them, the wealth they acquire at the expense of taxpayers is astounding.”
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October 26, 2011
PA STATE SENATE APPROVES TUITION VOUCHER
"The legislation would help poor people take their children out of failing schools and send them to private ones. It would provide vouchers for private schools and expand tax credits for businesses that contribute to scholarship programs for low- and middle-income children."
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Related article:
October 26, 2011
TOM CORBETT’S STAND FOR PARENT POWER
“If the voucher plan is passed, it will start another important conversation: Expanding school choice to middle-class households, especially in suburbia, who may know that the traditional districts in their communities offer mediocre instruction and curricula, but don’t have any idea of what alternatives may be.”
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October 26, 2011
SCHOOL COMPETITION RESCUES KIDS
“For years, American education from kindergarten through high school has been a virtual government monopoly. Conventional wisdom is that government must run the schools. But government monopolies don't do anything well. They fail because they have no real competition.”
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October 25, 2011
A CUSTOM EDUCATION FOR EVERY CHILD: THE PROMISE OF ONLINE LEARNING AND EDUCATION SAVINGS ACCOUNTS
"(T)he breadth of digital learning programs extends from full-time online virtual schools to occasional online instruction that supplements a student’s traditional coursework. The benefits include improved academic achievement and a better overall learning experience for students. The growth of online learning solutions changes the discussion of choice in education – the conversation moves from choosing a school to choosing individual services that specifically meet a student’s needs.
Combined with Education Savings Accounts, these advances in online learning create the foundation for unparalleled customization in a child’s education, providing experiences that better challenge students and prepare them for the real world."
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October 25, 2011
SENATE COMMITTEE ON TRACK TO MAKE NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND EVEN WORSE
“Well, The Heritage Foundation’s Lindsey Burke has read the bill and concludes that it will, in fact, make matters worse. Sure, the proposal does away with ‘adequate yearly progress’—one of the most loathed aspects of NCLB. But it would replace it with requirements that states prove that they have ‘college- and career-ready’ standards, giving Washington more control over the content taught in local schools.”
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October 24, 2011
PARENT FUROR AT BAWDY SEX ED
“Sex ed, which becomes mandatory in city middle and high schools next year, is meant to stem unplanned pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases among teens. But parents may be shocked by parts of the Department of Education’s “recommended” curriculum.”
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Related article: October 18, 2011
DOES SEX ED UNDERMINE PARENTAL RIGHTS?
Should the government force parents — at least those not rich enough to afford private schooling — to send their children to classes that may contradict their moral and religious values on matters of intimacy and personal conduct? Liberals and conservatives alike should say no. Such policies violate parents’ rights, whether they are Muslim, Jewish, Christian, Hindu, Buddhist or of no religion at all. To see why, we need to think carefully about the parent-child relationship that gives rise to the duties that parental rights serve and protect.
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Click to Read “Sex Education in NYC Schools” on their own website.
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October 20, 2011
IN DEFENSE OF SINGLE-SEX SCHOOLS
“Authentic scholarly research findings point to a much different conclusion. The Economic and Social Research Institute published a report in 2010 based on a review of nearly 100 scholarly works on single-sex and coeducation which concluded that ‘attitudes to subject areas may become more gender-stereotyped in a coeducational setting.’”
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October 20, 2011
FATHER’S ATTEMPTS TO GET PHILADELPHIA SCHOOL TO STOP THE BULLYING OF HIS FIRST-GRADE SON
“Comgbaye described his growing horror as his son came home from school bruised and shaken day after day. He said that his pleas to the teacher and principal brought no relief and that a phone call and subsequent letter to the district superintendent got no response.”
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October 20, 2011
THE MARXIST REDISTRIBUTION OF TEACHERS AND FORCED CCSS
“Good news for schools on getting rid of AYP but if you’re successful, it’s time to chop that school up and send some of those teachers to failing schools to make sure they get quality teachers too. Oh, and don’t miss the great news that the Feds aren’t mandating national standards, they’ll just force you to be on “college- and career-ready” standards. Gee, I wonder where we can find national standards that will fit that bill? Oh yeah, the CCSS are available for use.”
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October 15, 2011
STUDENT PROGRESS CAN BE TIED TO TEACHER’S SCHOOL
“(This is) hopeful because it leads researchers to the next step in their work: to take a closer look at the changes in teacher training over time in order to determine whether they are actually improving teacher effectiveness.”
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October 14, 2011
ARE CHARACTER STRENGTHS ENOUGH?
“Schools, traditionally, have had a dual mission: knowledge transmission and moral development. Socrates said it best: education should make us both smart and good. Since the Second World War, in the United States and many parts of the developed world the school’s role of transmitting a moral code been given scant attention. In a crazy bit of ‘democratic logic’ the question, “Whose moral values can I teach?” has paralyzed educators.”
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Winter 2012
LOW EXPECTATIONS
Sub title: An insider’s view of ed schools
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Winter 2012
FIXING TEACHER PENSIONS
“Teacher benefits, once a sleepy question primarily of interest to actuaries, have become a flash point in the education debate. With individual states on the hook for tens or hundreds of millions in unfunded pension and health insurance obligations, state leaders are trying to determine the severity of the situation and the appropriate response.”
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October 13, 2011
KINDERGARTEN CLASSES FIND EARLY SUCCESS WITH BLENDED LEARNING
“116 kindergartners last year participated in an experiment at a school in Los Angeles with ‘blended learning,’ where students learn from computers as well as teachers, writes Jill Barshay at the Hechinger Report.”
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October 13, 2011
PANEL REVOKES TEACHING LICENSES OF 11 IN ATLANTA
“A Georgia state commission decided...to revoke the teaching licenses of eight teachers and three school administrators in the Atlanta Public Schools, imposing the first sanctions in one of the nation's largest school cheating scandals.”
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October 13, 2011
MOST STATES TO SEEK EXCEPTION TO EDUCATION LAW
“The Education Department says 37 states, plus the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, have notified the agency that they intend to submit a plan to get a waiver around the law. Seventeen states have said they will submit a plan by Nov. 14, which means it will be reviewed in December and could be enacted as soon as early next year.”
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October 13, 2011
EDUCATION GLOBAL WARMING BOOK FOR SEVENTH-GRADERS RECALLED BY MICHIGAN MATH AND SCIENCE CENTER
“A progressive children’s book lauding Al Gore as an ‘eco-hero,’ and offers kids suggestions on global warming activism, has been recalled by the Battle Creek Area Math and Science Center ... the review of A Hot Planet revealed that, although ‘this book has some wonderful things in it, it also has some things in it that are not appropriate. There are some other pieces in there that are not based on fact.’ “
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October 12, 2011
CHOICE, CHARTERS, VOUCHERS PUSHED BY GOVERNOR CORBETT
“The plan includes changes for charter schools, new teacher evaluations and an expansion of the Educational Improvement Tax Credit program, which provides tax credits to businesses offering scholarships.”
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October 11, 2011
IS CERTIFICATION REQUIRED FOR TEACHER SUCCESS?
“(S)tate policymakers and the university should provide prospective teachers with legitimate alternatives to standard certification requiring less coursework. We should give school leaders more freedom to hire talented individuals and hold both accountable for teacher and student performance.”
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October 10, 2011
THE BIG EASY’S SCHOOL REVOLUTION
John White, superintendent of New Orleans' public schools: 'In other cities, charter schools exist in spite of the system. Here they are the system.' The story of reform and rebuilding of education after Katrina.
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October 10, 2011
CULTURE-WAR HEROINE GETS HER DUE
“If parents think their schools are safe, they’re whistling in the dark….In the name of ‘tolerance,’ the left is working hard to indoctrinate children.”
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October 11, 2011
NATIONAL FEDERATION OF REPUBLICAN WOMEN RESOLUTION
NFRW passed this resolution unanimously to ‘Defeat National Standards for State Schools’
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October 11, 2011
GOVERNOR CORBETT OUTLINES AGENDA FOR EDUCATION REFORM
"Joined by Secretary of Education Ron Tomalis and several legislative leaders in education, Corbett listed his top four priorities for school reform in Pennsylvania including: opportunity scholarships, expanding the Educational Improvement Tax Credits program, improved charter school quality and accountability, and more robust and comprehensive educator evaluations."
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October 10, 2011
EARLY DRAFT OF ‘NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND’ RE-WRITE REDUCES FEDERAL ROLE IN EDUCATION
“An early draft of a Senate committee's sweeping rewrite of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act rolls back major accountability provisions of the law's current form, known as No Child Left Behind.”
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October 9, 2011
FOR PARENTS, SCHOOL CHOICE IS EASIER THAN BALLOT INITIATIVES
“The late Nobel laureate economist Milton Friedman, who was the godfather of the modern school-choice movement, observed that the public schools teach ‘a set of values and beliefs that constitute a religion in all but name.’ The current system, he said, forces parents ‘to pay to have their children indoctrinated’ in the public schools. School choice allows children to escape this indoctrination, saves parents the trouble of overturning unpopular policies through initiatives, and forces the government to think twice about politicizing public education.”
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October 5, 2011
SAFEGUARDS BADLY NEEDED FOR GULEN CHARTER SCHOOLS
“Why the safeguards? When charter school legislation ‘blesses’ good, solid, legitimate charter schools such as KIPP, the same legislation also “blesses” the Gulen Charter Schools and their nefarious and deceptive agenda.”
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October 4, 2011
EDUCATION SAVINGS ACCOUNTS: A PROMISING WAY FORWARD ON SCHOOL CHOICE
“More than 200,000 children across the country now benefit from private-school choice options such as tuition tax credit programs, vouchers, online learning, and now, Education Savings Accounts. But millions more are assigned to public schools that fail to meet their needs. ESAs provide a promising path forward and are broadening the school choice landscape in vital ways.”
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October 4, 2011
THE PROMISE OF SPECIAL EDUCATION VOUCHERS
“In the fraught arena of school reform, few policy proposals have been more contentious than vouchers. In allocating taxpayer dollars to children whose parents want them to leave failing public schools to attend private and parochial institutions, voucher programs have drawn the ire of teachers' unions and church-state separatists, as well as these groups' political allies. And yet, despite discord and setbacks, vouchers seem to be experiencing a resurgence, specifically those programs targeting students with disabilities, says Marcus Winters, a senior fellow with the Manhattan Institute.”
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October 3, 2011
HOME CLASSROOMS STEADILY GROW IN POPULARITY
“Allegheny County had 970 home-schooled children in the state in 2007, fifth-most of any county, according to the latest data from the Pennsylvania Department of Education. That year, 565 students were home-schooled in Westmoreland County. Statewide, there were 22,136 home-schooled children, down from 24,415 in 2003.”
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October 3, 2011
EVERYDAY MATH JUST DOESN’T ADD UP
“Many of the teachers stated that because the EDM program teaches on the conceptual level it would be a good fit for advanced and above average students. But what about the average and less than average students who comprise about 80% of the population on a standard bell-shaped curve? The EDM requires high level thinking which is not for everyone.”
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October 3, 2011
WHAT IF THE NFL PLAYED BY TEACHERS’ RULES?
"Imagine a league where players who make it through three seasons could never be cut from the roster."
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October 2, 2011
SOLAR ENERGY CURRICULUM
Sub-title: Biased lesson plans for middle- and high-school students are disguised as math and science curricula
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October 1, 2011
A PUSH TO IMPROVE TEACHERS COLLEGES
"The Obama administration announced a new $185 million competition Friday that would reward colleges for producing teachers whose students perform well on standardized tests. The competition would require states to provide data linking collegiate teaching programs inside their borders to the test scores of their graduates' students. Under the proposal, to be eligible for the money, states would have to ratchet up teacher-licensing exams and close persistently low-performing teacher-training programs."
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October 1, 2011
THE LATEST CRIME WAVE: SENDING YOUR CHILD TO A BETTER SCHOOL
"Only in a world where irony is dead could people not marvel at concerned parents being prosecuted for stealing a free public education for their children."
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October 2011
THE LEARNING REVOLUTION: HOW SCHOOLS & BLENDED LEARNING TRANSFORM STUDENTS
“Studies have demonstrated the important role of parents in the educational process of
their children. Cyber schools have become a viable, cost-efficient, accountable, and quality
educational option for tens of thousands of students and their families. Blended learning
also offers much promise: By incorporating interactive learning and technology, it gives
schools the opportunity to track student learning and pace instruction for every child,
improving academic performance and interest.”
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September 29, 2011
OUR ACHIEVEMENT-GAP MANIA
"(A)chievement-gap mania has led to education policy that has shortchanged children in many ways, says Frederick M. Hess, director of education policy studies at the American Enterprise Institute."
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September 29, 2011
FLORIDA SCHOOL DISTRICTS REFUSE TO DISTRIBUTE CONSTITUTION BOOKLETS
"Two Florida school districts won’t be handing out pocket-sized Constitutions to their eighth graders because they were donated by the local 9/12 Project, prompting concerns from school officials about the “opinions and viewpoints” the booklets contain."
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September 29, 2011
FAILURE’S ROOTS IN SCHOOL OR POVERTY?
"The only way to close the achievement gap is for parents to get involved, Perry thinks, by moving their children to successful schools. 'If you are a failing school, I think you should be shut down,' he said, either by the elimination of funding or by allowing students to leave. 'You're leaving (students) behind by leaving them in failing schools.' "
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September 28, 2011
WHAT’S THE PURPOSE OF PUBLIC EDUCATION ANYWAY
"Barely enough time has passed for bologna sandwiches to begin rotting in school lockers, yet the 2011-2012 school year is shaping up to be one of the stinkiest ever, if we’re measuring in episodes of putrid political correctness and radicalism."
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September 26, 2011
WITH WAIVERS, NATIONAL STANDARDS ANYTHING BUT VOLUNTARY
"Now, the conditions-based NCLB waivers, with their requirement for national standards, get to the heart of the matter: The Common Core State Standards Initiative has been pushed as far as it has gotten in large part by federal dollars and pressure. This push for national standards and tests has become a federal enterprise—and a dangerous direction for our nation’s education system."
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September 26, 2011
OBAMA CIRCUMVENTS CONGRESS ON EDUCATION POLICY
"For the past few decades, the federal government has continuously increased its power over local schools, through funding with strings attached, with depressing results. Since the 1970′s federal spending on education has nearly tripled, yet student achievement has remained flat and graduation rates have not improved. However, that increased spending has had a major impact on the amount of red tape, paperwork and administrative costs imposed on local schools and teachers, taking valuable time away from their core mission – educating children."
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September 26, 2011
GEORGIA MIDDLE SCHOOL ASSIGNMENT DEPICTS ‘POSITIVE’ ASPECTS OF SHARIAH LAW
“A Georgia middle school adjusted its lessons after a father complained that his daughter’s homework assignment promoted Shariah law.”
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Related article:
September 22, 2011
PUBLIC SCHOOLS: KEY SITE FOR 'SOFT JIHAD'
"If children are not taught the true meaning of "jihad" they will not be equipped to oppose it, and in fact may even become unwitting proponents of the ideology of political domination that is rooted within the religion itself."
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September 24, 2011
CAIR/HAMAS SPREADS ISLAMIC PROPAGANDA IN FL ENGLISH TEXTBOOK
“While Islamic Indoctrination in America’s public school textbooks has been detailed in reports by groups like ACT for America, American Textbook Council, and most recently a report by Citizens For National Security (CFNS) which cites over 200 false or misleading excerpts in (27) twenty seven of Florida’s approved History and Social Studies textbooks, this is the first time to our knowledge of Islamic propaganda being reported in an English textbook.”
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Thanks to WORLD Magazine for this article:
September 24, 2011
AFRICAN AMERICAN HOMESCHOOLING ON THE RISE
"Colenburg has learned that homeschooling is difficult but doable. She almost gave up during her first year, after months of exhaustion. Her children fluctuated between enjoying learning at home and wanting to be back with their friends—but Colenburg urges first-time homeschool parents not to give up. In Harlem, Baker agrees: 'It's a really intimate experience with your child. ... I wouldn't have it any other way.' "
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September 24, 2011
SCHOOL CHOICE: THE FEDERAL CASE
"By ignoring its own research, which corresponds with other school-choice studies, government continues a lesson plan for failure -- and at an intolerable cost."
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September 23, 2011
MOM STOPS SCHOOL SEX SURVEY
"When Tessitore (the parent) complained to school officials, she was told that they hadn’t received her consent form, and if parental consent forms weren’t returned to the school, consent was assumed. They called it 'passive consent.' But Tessitore said she never received such a form in the first place."
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September 23, 2011
EDUCATION CHIEF: VARIETY IS IMPORTANT
'Mr. Tomalis...said now is the time to offer alternatives because a new generation of parents will be seeking choices in their children's education. He added that leaders of traditional public schools care more about the money they lose in tuition to charter schools than the students they lose."
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September 22, 2011
SEX SURVEY NOW A STANDARDIZED TEST FOR YOUNGSTERS
"Students as young as those in the fifth grade in Washington, DC's public schools will soon be surveyed about their knowledge of sex, contraceptives, and drug use."
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September 22, 2011
IT’S TIME FOR SCHOOL CHOICE”
“School choice places children first in the educational process. It instills competition and accountability. School choice releases the creative talents of teachers and administrators. It creates the environment and generates the energy for other reforms to take root. Finally, school choice saves taxpayers money by preserving cost-effective, quality, nonpublic schools while encouraging public schools to spend more wisely and efficiently.”
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September 21, 2011
JAY GREENE’S TESTIMONY ON NATIONAL STANDARDS BEFORE US HOUSE SUBCOMMITTEE
“The progress we were making in education, however, stalled when we started significantly centralizing education and reducing the extent of choice and competition among districts. The policies, practices, and funding of schools has increasingly shifted to the state and national governments and greater uniformity has been imposed by unionization. The enemy of high standards and improving outcomes is centralization.”
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September 21, 2011
NEW MATH EQUALS TROUBLE, EDUCATION EXPERT SAYS
“The study, titled Math Instruction that Makes Sense, ‘demonstrates conclusively that traditional math education methods are superior to the highly ineffective, discovery-based instructional techniques that are in vogue now in educational curricula,’ said a news release from the public policy think tank.”
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September 20, 2011
THE MYTH ABOUT TRADITIONAL MATH EDUCATION
“The education establishment continues to advance faddish techniques such as group and collaborative learning, inquiry-based and problem-based learning, while it pays lip service to traditional approaches, calling it a “balanced approach”. While there are aspects of teaching and texts of the past that could definitely be improved, the question remains why the educational establishment remains intent on throwing the baby out with the bath water.”
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September 18, 2011
PEARSON SENDS EDUCATION COMMISSIONERS ON FREE TRIPS
“Mr. Jennings of the Center on Education Policy says there needs to be more of a wall between test companies and state officials. ‘We shouldn’t let these companies — that make tests, textbooks, curriculum materials — buy the loyalty of educators the way the drug companies have bought the loyalty of doctors,’ he said.”
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September 18, 2011
TEACHERS, EXPERTS STRESS IMPORTANCE OF CURSIVE
“Cursive is not just about writing,” said Claire Wilkins, director of the Satori Elementary School in Galveston. “It’s about engaging both sides of the brain. “For us, teaching cursive is a way to allow students to formulate sentences and thoughts and then they’ll be able to translate that eventually on computers.”
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September 17, 2011
THE GREAT SCHOOLS REVOLUTION
“So what are the secrets of success? Though there is no one template, four important themes emerge: decentralisation (handing power back to schools); a focus on underachieving pupils; a choice of different sorts of schools; and high standards for teachers.”
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September 17, 2011
THE HORSE BEFORE THE CART
“In Britain Michael Gove, the education secretary, has emphasised a return to core subjects such as maths, English and sciences in secondary schools. He also wants to persuade former army officers into teaching to improve discipline in rowdy schools—boot camp, if you will.”
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September 2011
MEASURING TEACHER EFFECTIVENESS: CREDENTIALS UNRELATED TO STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT
“(W)e have learned two important lessons about public school teachers: teacher quality varies dramatically; and almost nothing we know about a teacher before he or she enters the classroom accurately predicts how successful that teacher will be. Now heavily documented through empirical research, these findings should point us toward a fundamental transformation of our system for evaluating public school teachers.”
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September 16, 2011
THE PURPLE PONY
“Because social-promotion and discipline have no obvious solutions, we never hear about them. Politicians don’t like problems with no clear solutions, because they do not entail votes or money.”
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September 16, 2011
A PARENT’S HORRID NIGHTMARE: COMING SOON TO YOUR STATE?
"Informed consent is especially important when it comes to vaccination, because there is no way for you or your physician to predict if your child will be one of the children who has a devastating vaccine reaction, such as brain inflammation, immune dysregulation, or even death."
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September 15, 2011
INTERNATIONAL BACCALAUREATE IS ANTI-US CONSTITUTION
“The goal of the International Baccalaureate Organization is to impose global education standards and curriculum. This course of study is to produce global citizens, not citizens of America who are loyal to the principles of our founding documents: the Constitution and Declaration of Independence.”
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September 15, 2011
AVERAGE SCORES SLIP ON SAT
“Average scores on the SAT fell across the nation this year, with the reading score for the high school class of 2011 falling three points to 497, the lowest on record, according to a report Wednesday by the College Board, which administers the exams.”
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September 14, 2011
STATE AND LOCAL EDUCATION OFFICIALS DESCRIBE INNOVATIVE INITIATIVES TO IMPROVE SCHOOL ACCOUNTABILITY
“The House Committee on Education & the Workforce is in the process of advancing a series of education reform legislation designed to reform current elementary & secondary education law.”
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September 14, 2011
SENATOR RUBIO TO SECRETARY DUNCAN: CAJOLING STATES TO ADOPT OBAMA EDUCATION REFORMS UNCONSTITUTIONAL
Rubio: “This initiative is an overstep of authority that undermines existing law, and violates the constitutional separation of powers.”
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September 14, 2011
COURT SAYS TEACHER HAS NO RIGHT TO BANNERS REFERRING TO GOD
"To Johnson, the banners were no more an assertion of a religious point of view than the Tibetan prayer flag, Dalai Lama poster and Malcolm X poster that other teachers had in their classrooms."
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September 14, 2011
ANTI-BULLYING LAWS DON'T WORK
"Shouldn't logical people consider the possibility that the escalating problem of bullying might be related to the escalating war against bullying?"
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September 14, 2011
SAT READING SCORES FALL TO LOWEST LEVEL ON RECORD
“Scores on the critical reading portion of the SAT college entrance exam fell three points to their lowest level on record last year, and combined reading and math scores reached their lowest point since 1995.”
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September 13, 2011
BOOK REVIEW: THE GOOD SCHOOL, HOW SMART PARENTS GET THEIR KIDS THE EDUCATION THEY DESERVE
"The purpose of this book is key — to help you recognize that, just because the realtors or the neighbors or folklore says so, even your great school isn’t necessarily that good. So, do the work you need to do before you find your child is not surrounded by excellent teachers, getting a solid foundation, a well-rounded environment and an enthusiastic, energetic confidence in learning. Oh, and don’t forget that talking with your child — and knowing how critical it is that he have such communication from the early years until graduation — is critical to his success."
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September 12, 2011
THE BAIT AND SWITCH OF "SCHOOL REFORM"
Sub-title: Behind the new corporate agenda for education lurks the old politics of profit and self-interest.
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September 12, 2011
MIDDLE-CLASS SCHOOLS MISS THE MARK
“Middle-class public schools educate the majority of U.S. students but pay lower teacher salaries, have larger class sizes and spend less per pupil than low-income and wealthy schools, according to a report to be issued Monday.”
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September 10, 2011
THE TROUBLE WITH HOMEWORK
The quality of homework matters more than the quantity.
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September 8, 2011
CITY SCHOOLS DRAW FEDERAL PRAISE
"The cooperation between the Pittsburgh Public Schools administration and teachers union should stand as a model for public schools across the country, according to U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan, who visited Pittsburgh's King PreK-8 School on the North Side on Wednesday as the first stop on his second annual bus tour."
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September 7, 2011
MICROSOFT SURVEY FINDS STUDENTS LACKING IN MATH SKILLS
“Only 20 percent of college students said they felt their high-school math and science courses prepared them well enough for their college courses, according to Microsoft surveys.”
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Summer 2011
INDIA’S MANGLED SCHOOL REFORMS
“India’s reforms offer a warning about the perils of government meddling dressed up as choice. School choice advocates should stop cheering India’s new education law. Just because it contains something resembling vouchers doesn’t mean that it has anything to do with empowering parents or expanding educational options.”
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***From the archives: Two articles you won't want to miss.
While this article is now 10 years old, it still provides valuable insights into school-to-work which is still a part of our public school curriculum in many areas.
*April 4, 2001
THE NEW DEFINITION OF STANDARDS IN AMERICAN EDUCATION
“The current philosophy of education that permeates primary and secondary schools is shorn of the disciplined knowledge that is fundamental for an educated citizenry. The retreat from teaching proficiency in academic math and science deprives America's youth of true critical thinking skills. The deconstruction of the humanities renders youth incapable of reasoned judgment.”
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This article reiterates the importance of Direct Instruction in the classroom:
November 20, 2010
THE ROOT: GETTING THE BEST TEACHING TOOLS TO SCHOOL
“…teaching with DI (Direct Instruction) should become the measure of effective teaching. Note also: DI wouldn't require us to wait until that great day when all teachers are stellar. DI is designed, with its set scripting, to be teacher-proof.”
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September 6, 2011
WHAT TEACHERS REALLY WANT TO TELL PARENTS
"We know you love your children. We love them, too. We just ask -- and beg of you -- to trust us, support us and work with the system, not against it. We need you to have our backs, and we need you to give us the respect we deserve. Lift us up and make us feel appreciated, and we will work even harder to give your child the best education possible."
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September 6, 2011
POLITICS, NOT MATH, DRIVING MANY MATH CLASSES
"Students need schools to focus on content knowledge and skills. Any school that refuses to do that, in the name of equity and social justice, is engaging in neither."
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September 6, 2011
ACHIEVEMENT DISPARITIES PUT PITTSBURGH PUBLIC SCHOOLS TO THE TEST
“Perhaps a larger challenge than perception over testing is the district's achievement gap between black and white students. Though 55 percent of students in city schools are black, records show white students score 28 percent higher in reading proficiency than black students and 26 percent higher in math proficiency.”
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September 6, 2011
TROUBLED SCHOOLS TRY MIMICKING THE CHARTERS
Shows how competitive pressure can drive improvements in public schools.
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September 5, 2011
IN PA, MOST TEACHERS REJECTED GOV. CORBETT'S URGING TO PAY FREEZES IN FACE OF BUDGET CUTS
Governor Corbett, “You see a lot of teachers that were laid off in districts that refused to take a wage freeze, and the parents and citizens, the taxpayers in those districts should ask why. They want to blame all the people being laid off on the fact that the [overall] budget was cut ... but they could have participated and helped get through this year and chose not to.”
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September 4, 2011
IN CLASSROOM OF FUTURE, STAGNANT SCORES
"To be sure, test scores can go up or down for many reasons. But to many education experts, something is not adding up — here and across the country. In a nutshell: schools are spending billions on technology, even as they cut budgets and lay off teachers, with little proof that this approach is improving basic learning."
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September 4, 2011
NATIONAL STANDARDS WON'T HELP, WON'T WORK
"They are executing plans for instruction in all grades and, eventually, common assessments in math and English language arts. It sounds great. But it won’t help and won’t work. Such specific standards stifle creativity and conflict with a two-century American preference for local decision-making about schools....We should focus on better teaching methods and better training of teachers, as well as school structures that help educators work more as teams."
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September 1, 2011
LOWERING THE BAR GETS A+ AT CITY SCHOOLS
“The Pittsburgh Public Schools board of education decided this summer to temporarily lower the minimum grade point average for participation in extracurricular activities, to 1.5 from 2.0 for high school students.”
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September 1, 2011
PA NEEDS TO EMULATE INDIANA’S SCHOOL CHOICE PLAN
“When we spend vast sums keeping kids in schools where education is not occurring we are wasting scarce monetary resources and the children’s time. An immoral act if there ever was one. By letting parents choose the school that best fits their child’s needs, the goal of a better education is closer to being realized. It is now up to Pennsylvania to step up and make it happen.”
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August 30, 2011
ARE TEXAS SCHOOLS REALLY THAT BAD?
“Given the huge challenges of educating children who come from single-parent homes, or who aren’t fluent in English, or who simply grew up poor, Texas isn’t doing that bad a job. In fact, Texas seems to outperform in most areas, and to do it at a significantly lower cost per pupil than many other states.”
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August 29, 2011
MORE SCHOOL CHOICE THAN EVER
“Step by step, educational options are expanding for students around the nation. Each new school year will hopefully bring with it even greater options for school choice, ensuring that all families can look forward to each academic year with the assurance that their child will be receiving the best education possible.”
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August 29, 2011
THINK YOU’RE AN AUDITORY OR VISUAL LEARNER? SCIENTISTS SAY ITS UNLIKELY
“Psychologist Dan Willingham at the University of Virginia, who studies how our brains learn, says teachers should not tailor instruction to different kinds of learners. He says we're on more equal footing than we may think when it comes to how our brains learn. And it's a mistake to assume students will respond and remember information better depending on how it's presented.”
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August 29, 2011
THE BEDROOM IN THE CLASSROOM: CLIO IS NOT AMUSED
“For those thankful that their residency insulates them from the folly of California legislators, it is important to remember that despite laws to the contrary, the United States does have a national curriculum. That curriculum is created by textbook companies, which must cater to high population states. Thereby, while the nation need not fear the actions of Wyoming’s legislature, which publishers will ignore, California’s de jure educational mandates often become the de facto curriculum for the entire country.”
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August 29, 2011
THOUSANDS LEAVE PUBLIC FOR PRIVATE INDIANA SCHOOLS
“Weeks after Indiana began the nation's broadest school voucher program, thousands of students have transferred from public to private schools, causing a spike in enrollment at some Roman Catholic institutions that were only recently on the brink of closing for lack of pupils.”
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August 28, 2011
MORE PARENTS PICKING CHARTER SCHOOLS FOR THEIR KIDS
"Some parents said they pulled their children from city schools because of communication problems with teachers and administrators, violence in the schools, lackluster programs and poor student achievement. Many of them chose to send their kids to charter schools, taxpayer-funded public schools separate from a school district."
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August 28, 2011
WHY CAN’T AMERICAN STUDENTS COMPETE?
“According to our best calculations, the U.S. could enjoy a remarkable increment in its annual per capita GDP growth by enhancing the math proficiency of its students. Increasing the percentage of proficient students to the levels attained in Canada and South Korea would increase the annual U.S. growth rate by 0.9 percentage points and 1.3 percentage points, respectively.”
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The following article is being linked to with permission from WORLD Magazine:
August 27, 2011
MONEY FOR NOTHING
“Big increases in educational spending by the government have not yielded a better educational product.”
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The following article is being linked to with permission from WORLD Magazine:
August 27, 2011
SOFT SELL
“Tax-funded charter schools founded by Turkish Muslims are trying to practice but not preach.”
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The following article is being linked to with permission from WORLD Magazine:
August 27, 2011
AUGUST TRADITION
“The school year is beginning sooner and the school day is lasting longer throughout the country.”
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The following article is being linked to with permission from WORLD Magazine:
August 27, 2011
MATH-TEARS=KAHN ACADEMY
“An increasingly popular online program is teaching children across the country to love a subject they once dreaded”
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August 26, 2011
NY APPEALS COURT RULES THAT TEACHER RATINGS CAN BE PUBLIC
"A New York state appeals court ruled Thursday that performance ratings for thousands of teachers can be made public, potentially clearing the way for the largest such data release in the country."
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Related article:
August 28, 2011
UFT PRESIDENT MULGREW IS RIGHT: KEEP THE TEACHER DATA PRIVATE
“Don't get me wrong. Student achievement should be incorporated into teacher evaluation and compensation, and transparency is a vital tool for recognizing excellence and shaming mediocrity. But a public data release is the wrong way to get there.”
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August 26, 2011
WHEN WILL I EVER USE IT?
"It all sounds sensible, even seductive. The worst ideas in education always do. “Relevant” isn’t supposed to be a synonym for dumbed-down, for example. It just always seems to work out that way. And my hunch is that students might struggle less with algebra, geometry and calculus if they showed up in high school with a strong foundation in basic math skills."
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August 26, 2011
BACK TO SCHOOL: HELPING BOYS MAN-UP IN READING
"The Center on Education Policy assessed the differences in reading scores between girls and boys and found the poor performance of boys 'the most pressing gender-gap issue facing our schools.' Nor is it an underclass or minority disparity. The lower scores of boys are found in every ethnic and socio-economic groups, including the privileged white children of college-educated parents."
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August 26, 2011
TEACHERS EARN LESS FOR A REASON
“Put bluntly, public school teachers enter college with below-average SAT scores, major in the easiest undergraduate course of study, take Master’s degrees in education that have no appreciable impact on teaching quality, and then wonder why they’re not as well paid as someone who got a Master’s in chemical engineering.”
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August 25, 2011
BRAINWASHING U
"Parents sending children off to college for the first time, beware: Their “freshman orientation” is all too likely to include being herded through a “tunnel of oppression” to learn about the evils of “white privilege,” being lectured about how they’re part of a “rape culture” or being forced to discuss their sexual identities with complete strangers -- before they even meet their first professor."
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August 24, 2011
IDEOLOGICAL BATTLES TAKING PLACE OVER TEXTBOOKS IN TWO STATES
Several different states deal with issues that are of special concern to many parents.
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August 24, 2011
EDUCATION CHIEF CRITICIZES ‘FRIVOLOUS’ REQUESTS FOR FUNDS
“The state education secretary on Tuesday criticized school districts that didn't compete for millions in federal funding for their low-performing schools. Some schools' applications also contained what Ron Tomalis called "frivolous" requests. He said one application asked for $1.3 million for more than 2,000 iPads, another for money for a swimming pool, and one school wanted $70,000 for a new auditorium sound system.”
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August 24, 2011
GREEN LIGHT MORE EDUCATION TAX CREDITS
“To fix the supply needs, the Pennsylvania General Assembly and Gov. Tom Corbett must act quickly this fall to expand the EITC program. By doing so, Pennsylvania can continue to green light a program that better suits children's needs while rescuing them from oftentimes failing and violent schools.”
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August 23, 2011
DO WE SPEND TOO MUCH ON EDUCATION?
A discussion: “Americans are spending more and more on education, but the resulting credentials — a high-school diploma and college degrees — seem to be losing value in the labor market.”
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August 23, 2011
LT. GOV. SAYS PA CYBER SUCCESS REFLECTS NEED FOR CHOICE
“Cawley announced Monday that PA Cyber had achieved Adequate Yearly Progress for the third consecutive year. The state Department of Education has not yet revealed AYP status for schools in Pennsylvania, but Cawley was able to obtain and deliver PA Cyber’s report card.”
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August 22, 2011
CALIFORNIA: THE ANTI-EDUCATION-REFORM STATE
“Across America, state after state has enacted bold, far-reaching systemic education reforms. In contrast, California has not only failed to enact such fundamental reforms, but has actually gone backwards and passed laws that reduce accountability, protect special interests and preserve the status quo.”
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August 22, 2011
THE STEALTH STRATEGY OF NATIONAL STANDARDS
“It was also interesting that once I pressed people to say why they supported nationalization out loud, the flaws and limitations of their arguments became apparent — even to themselves. Having to articulate your reasons can serve as a useful check on whether people have really thought something through.”
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Fall 2011
GETTING AT-RISK TEENS TO GRADUATION
"Two of the fastest-growing trends in online education converge in the Performance Learning Center project...a nonprofit dropout-prevention program...The PLCs call themselves an alternative to traditional schools and distance themselves from the credit-recovery factories that many districts have opened to boost their graduation rates ahead of state and federal sanctions."
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Fall 2011
THE PUBLIC WEIGHS IN ON SCHOOL REFORM
“Public education has rarely been far from the national headlines over the past year. Efforts to limit teachers’ collective-bargaining rights led to mass protests in several states. The enactment of voucher programs renewed the debate over the role of private school choice in American education. Meanwhile, the first significant budget cuts in recent memory forced public school districts to tighten their belts in unprecedented ways.”
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Fall 2011
THE 2012 REPUBLICAN CANDIDATES (SO FAR)
"The Republican candidates all stress accountability and favor school choice, though they prefer leaving the federal government out of education policy decisions. Most of them emphasize reforms to enhance teacher quality, and they question the influence of teachers unions. They support high standards, if delegated to the states to devise and enforce. What they all have in common is a belief that education needs deep reform that goes beyond anything Democrats have proposed."
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Fall 2011
UNLOCKING THE SECRETS OF HIGH-PERFORMING CHARTERS "Charter schools are approaching the ripe old age of 20. Although more work remains if we are to fully understand this complex education reform “movement,” a growing body of data and research is being compiled about its strengths, weaknesses, and impact."
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Fall 2011
MANAGING THE TEACHER WORKFORCE
"Districts across the country are rethinking layoff strategies. This is sensible, because although the simplicity and transparency of a seniority-based system certainly has advantages, it is hard to argue that it is in the best interest of students."
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August 19, 2011
SOLVING AMERICA'S MATH CHALLENGE
"Some educators believe the root of the problem lies in the early grades, where schools aren’t teaching enough of the basics. Once those students move on to higher grades and more challenging math concepts, they could be more likely to tune out. ‘The problem is a lot of kids aren’t getting those building blocks,’ said DeBenedictis. Without that base, she added, those students can ‘feel very shaky’ taking on more conceptual math problems. Possibly contributing to that problem is the difficulty schools have trying to find effective math teachers, particularly at the elementary school level. There are a lot of good teachers, and a lot of good mathematicians, but not many people who are both."
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August 19, 2011
ADF RESPONDS TO ADDITIONAL ACLU DEMANDS THAT SCHOOLCHILDREN BE EXPOSED TO PORN
"The Alliance Defense Fund has sent letters to seven public school districts across the country that urge them to reject the American Civil Liberties Union’s demand that they deactivate various Web filters that block student access to websites with sexually explicit material just because some of the sites blocked belong to homosexual activist groups. ADF assured the districts that they are well within their legal rights to retain their filters. The letters provide the districts with a list of sites that display pornographic images and sexual advice that would be accessible to students if the districts give in to the ACLU’s demands."
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August 18, 2011
MILWAUKEE PARENTAL CHOICE PROGRAM RESEARCH
"The MPCP was established in 1990 as the first urban education reform in the U.S. built around the idea of permitting parents to enroll their children in private schools of their choosing at government expense." This page has links to reports on the success of this program.
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August 17, 2011
THE ATLANTA CHEATING SCANDAL’S TOUGH LESSONS FOR BUSINESS LEADERS
“Too often, local businesses wanting to get involved in their K-12 education systems fall into this trap. Eager to be seen as ‘partners,’ they donate dollars first and ask questions later. But to be effective, business leaders must recognize that partnering with school districts or policy makers doesn’t simply mean carrying their water. It means asking tough questions and insisting on certain end results or operational targets in exchange for support.”
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This article linked with permission from WORLD Magazine:
August 17, 2011
BACK TO SCHOOL
“It’s easy to go too far one way or the other. If we over-protect our children, we create fearful adults. If we react to online immorality by banning internet use, we foster ignorance. If we over-react to bad movies and music by forbidding most watching and listening, we create rebellion. But if we’re too loose, children lose.”
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August 17, 2011
SCORES SHOW STUDENTS AREN'T READY FOR COLLEGE
"Three out of four graduates aren’t fully prepared for college and likely need to take at least one remedial class, according to the latest annual survey from the nonprofit testing organization ACT, which measured half of the nation’s high school seniors in English, math, reading and science proficiency."
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August 15, 2011
MORE PHILLY-AREA SCHOOLS TURNING TO HOUGHTON-MIFFLIN HARCOURT’S MATH IN FOCUS TO INTRODUCE SINGAPORE MATH METHODS
“Public, private and charter schools across the Philadelphia area taking advantage of revolutionary, proven way to teach math.”
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August 13, 2011
SUPER TEACHERS ALONE CAN’T SAVE OUR SCHOOLS
“Superstar teachers and great charter schools are saving thousands of young lives. But reaching into every American classroom means working with the unions—and persuading them to yield to the interests of the children their members are supposed to serve.”
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August 13, 2011
NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND: TESTING TIMES
"Mike Petrilli of the Fordham Institute in Washington, DC, says there is no question that the states need relief from the original NCLB, but thinks that Mr. Duncan is being politically tone-deaf. The row, Mr. Petrilli reckons, could jeopardize other education programs backed by the administration. That is overstating it. There will be opposition, particularly from conservatives, but Mr. Duncan was right not to wait for Congress to act. Otherwise, he would have been kept waiting a long time."
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August 12, 2011
CHARTER SCHOOLS POST HIGHER TEST SCORES, LARGELY IN MATH
"New York City charters schools once again performed better than the citywide average on this year's state exams. But that's largely because of the gains in math. Forty-five percent of charter students passed the English test, about the same as the rest of the city. But 68 percent were proficient in math - far higher than the citywide average of 57 percent."
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August 11, 2011
CHILDREN FACE LOW BAR ON MATH, READING
"Almost all states give children math and reading proficiency exams using standards that fall short of federal benchmarks, even after eight raised their requirements since 2007, a US Department of Education study found."
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August 10, 2011
SCHOOLS MISLEAD BY DUMBING DOWN THE MEANING OF 'PROFICIENT'
By offering waivers and removing the “failing” school label, the Education Department hopes to give states more flexibility and encourage them to raise standards by removing the risk they’ll be stigmatized by low test scores. But raising the bar isn’t the cure-all for states and school districts: Their students should be expected to reach it.”
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August 10, 2011
FEDERAL EDUCATION AGENDA DUMBED DOWN
"There seem to be few limits on how far the administration will go to foist its ill-conceived national standards upon states. That apparently includes slamming the door on the only escape hatch available to countless underprivileged students. What began with great promise has devolved into disaster."
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August 9, 2011
ADMINISTRATION SEEKS TO ADD MORE SCHOOLS TO VOUCHER BILL IN NEGOTIATIONS
"Education Secretary Ron Tomalis and Senate Education Committee Chairman Jeff Piccola, R-Dauphin, both expressed optimism about ongoing voucher negotiations aimed at producing a bill this fall. But a top House GOP leader said it was up to the Senate to pass a voucher bill and up to the governor to drum up public support for it."
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August 8, 2011
THE IMPACT OF OHIO’S VOUCHER PROGRAM ON PUBLIC SCHOOL PERFORMANCE
"In 2005 Ohio's legislature enacted the Educational Choice Scholarship program (EdChoice), which provides vouchers to students in chronically underperforming schools, allowing them to attend private and religious schools. Matthew Carr, a research fellow in the Department of Education Reform at the University of Arkansas, evaluates the effects of the EdChoice voucher program on the academic performance of traditional public schools. Specifically, he investigates how exposure to the threat of losing students to the voucher program affected standardized test performance in traditional public schools."
"The Impact of Ohio's EdChoice on Traditional Public School Performance," Cato Journal, Summer 2011 |
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August 7, 2011
GRADE INFLATION FOR EDUCATION MAJORS AND LOW STANDARDS FOR TEACHERS
“Students who take education classes at universities receive significantly higher grades than students who take classes in every other academic discipline…(the) reasonable explanation is that the higher grades in education classes are the result of low grading standards. These low grading standards likely will negatively affect the accumulation of skills for prospective teachers during university training. More generally, they contribute to a larger culture of low standards for educators.”
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August 5, 2011
EDUCATION ILLINOIS SCHOOL CUTS CROSSING GUARDS, BUT SPENDS $120K FOR ‘CHIEF OF EQUITY AND SOCIAL JUSTICE’
"The U46 School District in Elgin, Illinois is the second largest school system in the state and U46 has dealt with the same financial strain facing many districts around the country. Budgets have been cut to the bone, programs like physical education and art have been eliminated, but that did not prevent the school board from hiring Ushma Shah as “Chief of Equity & Social Justice,” at a cost of $120,000 a year (plus another $12,450 in benefits)."
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August 4, 2011
EDUCATION TO RAISE TECHNOLOGY CONSUMERS INSTEAD OF TECHNOLOGY CREATORS
"This framework does not expect our students to be able to do any science, or to be able to solve any science problem. This framework simply teaches our students science appreciation, rather than science. It expects our students to become good consumers of science and technology, rather than prepare them to be the discoverers of science and creators of technology."
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August 4, 2011
STUDY SAYS GUM HELPS STUDENTS WITH MATH
“According to a new study in the brainy Journal of Adolescence, eighth-graders who chew gum during math class and homework time score higher on standardized tests than their empty-mouthed classmates.”
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August 4, 2011
QUICK THOUGHTS ON THE DAMON-IZED EDUCATION DEBATE
"It’s sad that it takes a contentious interview with a celebrity going viral on the Internet to get attention paid to what are real, and complex, problems in education. It is even more depressing that when attention is paid, the message one hears is so divorced from evidence and substance."
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August 3, 2011
ON TEACHERS, STUDENTS AND SOCIAL MEDIA
“The school did not take a hard and fast stance on the issue; the point was that all of us were encouraged to think about what we were doing and to use common sense concerning our online interactions with students.”
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August 2, 2011
PENNSYLVANIA BECOMES A TEACHER STRIKE DINOSAUR
"Too bad Pennsylvania is so late to the teacher strike elimination derby. Pennsylvania stands with Vermont as the only state in the Northeast as allowing strikes. None of its neighboring states allow strikes. So why is it that Pennsylvania’s legislators cannot get this albatross off the backs of children and taxpayers?"
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August 2, 2011
VOLUNTARY PROGRAM TIES TEACHER EVALUATION TO STUDENT GAINS
"The state Department of Education this month plans to ask school districts to volunteer to participate in the pilot program in fall...State law prohibits student performance from being used to evaluate teachers, but Gov. Tom Corbett wants to change that as part of a broader effort to improve public education. The state's largest teachers union has suggested using an evaluation system that incorporates student achievement."
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August 2, 2011
U.S. EDUCATION DEPARTMENT PUSHES MAN-MADE GLOBAL WARMING, SAVING THE EARTH AS CHILDREN’S READING
"During a July event at the U.S. Department of Education, children from D.C. schools and day care centers were treated to free books, including two featuring Nickelodeon characters as part of the media organization’s “The Big Green Help” Series. One of the books promotes the idea that global warming is man made and the second book talks about what kids can do to save the Earth."
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August 1, 2011
THE POOR ARE NOT POOR BECAUSE THE RICH ARE RICH
Star Parker discusses the importance of education and school choice in improving the economic levels of Blacks in American society.
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