| December 2009 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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December 29, 2009
EDUCATION SECRETARY ARNE DUNCAN'S LEGACY AS CHICAGO SCHOOLS CHIEF QUESTIONED
“For more than seven years, starting in 2001, Duncan tried to rejuvenate his city's struggling schools: jettisoning staff, hiring turnaround specialists, shutting down those deemed beyond hope. He pushed a back-to-basics curriculum, spawned dozens of charter schools and experimented with performance pay. State and federal test scores and graduation rates rose on his watch, and Chicago became a laboratory for innovation. As a result, the reputation of its schools has improved markedly since 1987, when an earlier education secretary, William Bennett, called them the worst in the country.”
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December 29, 2009
RED FLAGS, NATIONAL PTA, AND COMMON CORE STANDARDS
“Some general and well written articles have been published recently with serious concerns about the Common Core State Standards Initiative (CCSSI), a federal push to nationalize mathematics and reading standards in American public schools.* Other, more specific, articles have focused on the National PTA’s involvement. These reports should send an alarming signal to parents, educators and legislators as that group ‘positions itself as a key player at the front line of education reform” with regards to the CCSSI’.”
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December 28, 2009
PA. HIGH SCHOOL EXAMS CLEAR ANOTHER HURDLE
“The state attorney general's office has given its approval to the Keystone Exams, leaving only one more step before the end-of-course high school exams become state policy for public schools.”
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December 27, 2009
NEW GRADING SYSTEM FOR COUNTY TEACHERS (Baltimore, MD)
“Baltimore County school administrators have ordered all teachers to begin
using a grading system next month that will require them to judge whether
each of their students has mastered more than 100 specific skills.
The system is known as Articulated Instruction Module or AIM.
Teachers must give students an A (needs Acceleration, or remedial help), I
(needs further Instruction) or M (has Mastered) for each category.”
>>read more>>
NEW GRADING SCALE TO MEASURE STUDENT 'COMPETENCIES (New Hampshire)
“As part of the shift from "standards" to "competencies," some New Hampshire schools are replacing the traditional A-to-F grading scale with a 5-to-1 scale. Teachers at Concord High School, for example, will mark students' report cards with grades ranging from 1, for students who show no grasp of a given competency, to 5, for students who have mastered it.”
>>read more>>
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December 25, 2009
SUBURBAN SCHOOLS NOT ALWAYS GREAT
“Parents and policymakers assume that because schools in the suburbs have nice lawns, new buildings, good sports programs and caring staffs that high student achievement is the natural result. The evidence shows otherwise. That’s why it’s time to look for ways to empower parents of all income levels to make better educational choices for their children.”
>>read more>>
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December 23, 2009
SCHOOLING LOW-INCOME PARENTS IN HELPING STUDENTS
“Since the 1960s, the federal government has required schools serving poor children to involve parents in their education. Under a little-noticed section of the No Child Left Behind Act, schools are instructed not only to educate students but also to help parents become more effective learning partners for their children. No longer is parent involvement defined as mothers or fathers volunteering in class. Now it is a two-way relationship, with schools expected to reach out to engage parents, including those who don't come to them -- parents who work two or three jobs, parents who speak no English, parents whose own school experiences were not positive.”
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December 22, 2009
COMMON CORE STANDARDS UNDERMINE CALIFORNIA'S GAINS
“California has clear and high content standards that have been highly praised by virtually all experts. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell were wise when they conditioned our acceptance of Common Core standards on their being on par with our own. So far Common Core standards fall far short of that goal.”
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December 21, 2009
STUDYING YOUNG MINDS, AND HOW TO TEACH THEM
“For much of the last century, educators and many scientists believed that children could not learn math at all before the age of five, that their brains simply were not ready. But recent research has turned that assumption on its head — that, and a host of other conventional wisdom about geometry, reading, language and self-control in class. The findings, mostly from a branch of research called cognitive neuroscience, are helping to clarify when young brains are best able to grasp fundamental concepts.”
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Valuable article from November 2009
BRINGING PARENTS ONTO THE TEAM: WHAT THE RESEARCH SHOWS
“Many parents would agree that developing character is crucial to helping children grow into kind and productive adults. Research shows, however, that character is also at the heart of supporting academic success. In fact, character traits such as willpower, self-discipline, and the ability to delay gratification have all been shown to be more closely related to academic achievement and other measures of success than IQ. (Nisbett, 2009) One of the most important things parents can do is cultivate a belief in the importance of hard work.”
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Winter 2009/2010
WANT TO IMPROVE CHILDREN'S WRITING?
Don’t Neglect Their Handwriting
“(I)t is important to use good common sense when thinking about hand- writing. Legible and fluent handwriting is the desired norm, but a small percentage of youngsters will not achieve this goal for a variety of reasons, ranging from physical impairments to learning disabilities.”
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WINTER 2009–2010
CREATING A CURRICULUM FOR THE AMERICAN PEOPLE
E.D. Hirsch, Jr.
“America’s three biggest educational problems are our low academic achievement relative to other nations, our lack of equalityof educational opportunity, and our failure to perpetuate a strong sense of loyalty to the national community and its civic institu- tions. A single, radical reform will go far in solving all three: a content-rich core curriculum in the early grades.”
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WINTER 2009–2010
BEYOND SINGAPORE'S MATHEMATICS TEXTBOOKS
"With America’s strong interest in Singapore’s mathematics textbooks, these researchers caution against thinking that Singapore’s high achievement comes from its books alone. In particular, they explore the preparation and support of mathematics teachers who, unlike their counterparts in the United States, are guided by a coherent national curriculum; benefit from comprehensive preparation programs that emphasize subject-matter knowledge, pedagogy, and classroombased learning; and have several options to grow as educators."
>>read more>>
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December 17, 2009
BRING PARENTAL CHOICE TO DETROIT PUBLIC SCHOOLS
Mackinac Center for Public Policy
“There's little left to argue, writes Michael Van Beek of the Mackinac Center for Public Policy. Detroit is home to the nation's worst school system. ‘Time's up,’ he writes. ‘Give the kids trapped in failed schools a chance. It's time to unleash the power of school choice.’ "
>>read more>> |
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December 17, 2009
GREEDHEAD'S CHRISTMAS: THE SEEDY SIDE OF ENTREPRENEURIAL EDUCATION REFORM
'Twas the week before Christmas, and Race to the Top
Was the vendors’ obsession and focus nonstop.
The consultants were drafting proposals for states
With smug affirmations of positive fates,
While chiefs in their gray suits and governors, too,
Looked to Arne for dollars—please, more than a few.'
>>read more>> |
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December 17 2009
EDUCATIONAL RAP
“Flocabulary is a Brooklyn-based publisher of educational rap and hip hop that is being used in lower socioeconomic school systems across the country and producing incredible results,” the group’s representative, Anna Richardson of Sunshine Sachs, claims. “The Education Research Institute of America (ERIA) just completed a study that proves Flocabulary’s efficacy in the classroom with a 25% increase in state reading test scores for those using the curriculum—which means more funding for these schools in need.”
>>read more>> |
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December 17, 2009
PA BILL WOULD ALTER TEACHERS' PENSION PLAN
“Faced with the prospect of soaring school district contributions to the state's school pension fund, the Pennsylvania School Boards Association Wednesday joined forces with a pair...of lawmakers to introduce a bill to reduce pension benefits and provide individual retirement accounts for school employees hired after July 1, 2010.”
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December 16, 2009
LEARNING STYLES: CONCEPTS & EVIDENCE
“The contrast between the enormous popularity of the learning-styles approach within education and the lack of credible evidence for its utility is, in our opinion, striking and disturbing. If classification of students’ learning styles has practical utility, it remains to be demonstrated.”
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December 16, 2009
THE WORLD'S A STAGE
Inner city students in Boston learn to understand Shakespeare.
>>read more>> |
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December 14, 2009
DUNCAN SAYS MERIT PAY SHOULD BE TIED TO STUDENT GROWTH
US News & World Report
“Ed Secretary Arne Duncan says he's not a big believer in looking at absolute test scores. ‘I am a much bigger believer in looking at growth and gain and how much a student is improving each year,’ he says.”
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December 14, 2009
CONTROLLING A CLASSROOM ISN'T AS EASY AS ABC
“Educators, administrators and experts say classroom management -- the ability to calmly control student behavior so learning can flourish -- can make or break a teacher's ability to be successful.”
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Two Articles on Tracking
December 14, 2009
EDUCATION TRACKING CONTINUES TO STIR DEBATE
“Should students of different abilities take the same class? ... Also known as ‘tracking,’ the practice sorts pupils into separate classes based on their perceived academic skill level.”
>>read more>>
December 10, 2009
OFF TRACK (Blog post on Tracking Students)
“The short answer is…tracked schools did better, but there aren’t many of them left.”
>>read more>>
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December 14, 2009
D.C. VOUCHERS ON LIFE SUPPORT
“It is distressingly clear that congressional leaders never really meant it when they said there would be a fair hearing to determine the future of the District's federally funded school voucher program.”
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December 14, 2009
SAFE SCHOOLS CZAR TIED TO LEWD READINGS FOR 7th GRADERS
“President Obama's ‘Safe Schools Czar,’ already a target of social conservatives for his past drug abuse and what they say is his promotion of homosexuality in schools, is under fresh attack after it was revealed that the pro-gay group he formerly headed recommends books his critics say are pornographic.”
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December 13, 2009
CAN CITY TEACHERS BE SOLD ON MERIT PAY PLAN?
“In coming months, Pittsburgh Federation of Teachers President John Tarka will try to persuade more than 2,000 teachers to move from a traditional, seniority-based salary scale to performance pay....Mr. Tarka says he wants to get out in front of a growing trend, give Pittsburgh Public Schools teachers new rewards for hard work and seize an opportunity to focus attention on the need for more order in district classrooms.”
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December 12, 2009
YEARS OF SCHOOLING LEAVES SOME STUDENTS ILLITERATE
“...as many as 20 percent of American adults may be functionally illiterate. They may recognize letters and words, but can't read directions on a bus sign or a medicine bottle, read or write a letter, or hold most any job. Her new book, Why cant U teach me 2 read, follows three young New Yorkers who legally challenged the New York City public schools for failing to teach them how to read — and won.”
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December 11, 2009
ALTERNATIVE NEEDED TO COMMON CORE STANDARDS
“The new consortium would endeavor to create better and more rigorous academic standards than those of the CCSSI. These alternative standards will be truly internationally benchmarked. With over twenty per cent of the American population, such a consortium of states would easily qualify as “significant” as well. Such states might even be joined by other states that do not want to embrace the intellectually impoverished and internationally uncompetitive Common Core standards.”
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December 7, 2009
WHAT JOHNNY NEEDS TO LEARN ABOUT ISLAM
“Americans, especially young Americans, need accurate information about Islam, as well as other aspects of global affairs. The more critical attitudes introduced in Texas and Florida will doubtless elicit dissatisfaction from Islamists. But Texas and Florida are wise to teach students about crucial past and present interactions between Muslims and non-Muslims, including conflicts between them and even among Muslims.”
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December 6, 2009
BILL AIMS TO TEACH SCHOOL EMPLOYEES ABOUT CHILD ABUSE
“Under Pennsylvania law, anyone who regularly comes into contact with children...is required to report suspected cases of child abuse to authorities. But those reporters are not required to be trained in how to recognize the signs of abuse or how to report it.”
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December 4, 2009
COLLEGE STUDENTS WHO CAN'T DO MATH OR READ WELL
“Every year seems to produce a burst of attention to a particular crisis in education. In 2009, the most publicized crisis is likely the staggering number of post-secondary students with severe debilities in reading and math. Estimates of those needing remedial classes before taking credit courses range from 30% of entering students to 40% of traditional undergraduates.”
>>read more>>
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December 1, 2009
CRACKPOT SCHOOLS
“Under the guise of ‘social justice,’ the fomenting of racial and socio-economic grievances has supplanted the teaching of basic skills. ‘The result is an even wider gap in learning between the poorest minorities and other students,’ says the NY Post.”
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December 2009
Two new studies in Tennessee could have long-range implications for other states:
SUPPLY & DEMAND FOR TEACHERS IN TENNESSEE
>>read study>>
PROJECTED BUDGET SAVINGS FROM INCREASED USE OF ALTERNATIVE TEACHER CERTIFICATION IN TENNESSEE
>>read study>>
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