December 29, 2006
Public school choice has its limits
As you might have predicted, I'm a supporter of pretty much anything that gives parents more educational options for their children, including public school choice. But public school choice isn't without its flaws:
For Jamahl Stokes of Prince William County, the decision to attend the Thomas Jefferson School for Science and Technology 30 miles away in Fairfax County came down to this quandary Suffer more than two hours of commuting round trip for the privilege of attending one of the nation's best high schools? Or enroll in the neighborhood school 15 minutes away near Manassas?
Jamahl went with T.J., as it is known, for his freshman year. Then he changed his mind. Too many nights spent awake until 1 a.m. because of football practice, the horrendous commute and piles of homework. Too many days sleeping in class.
"I definitely would have preferred having the school in Prince William," said Jamahl, 15, now a sophomore at Osbourn Park High School. "Some people get discouraged because when they hear about the prestige of T.J., they also hear about the commute, and they don't necessarily want to go through that."
Public school choice is a good thing. It gives parents options, and can get kids into better schools. But as this example illustrates, the practice is inherently limited by logistics. Adults dislike long commutes for work--who wants to make their 12-year-old do so as well? By extension, I think the practice limits the critical component of parental involvement: the greater the distance the school, the greater the difficulty on the part of the parent to be engaged with faculty.
Most parents simply want good schools in their own neighborhoods. In this respect, the program is making the predictably positive impact: in response to demand from students, Prince William school officials are considering building a version of Thomas Jefferson in the district. (Regular Edspresso readers will note that this is nothing new.) But the rate of change and response is agonizingly slow. Also, consider the type of school it would be: like Thomas Jefferson, an exclusive and extremely competitive magnet school. It would definitely fill a need, but I think most people would agree this is the sort of school that only serves outliers.
Which is why we need as many forms of choice as possible. The kids are all over the bell curve; let's allow them to go wherever they best fit.
Education News for Friday, Dec. 29
What happens to Texas high school seniors who don't pass the TAKS? - Troubles with Texas's standardized test kept more than 400 Austin seniors from donning a cap and gown in May.
Immigrant Children Shielded From State Tests, but for Whose Protection? - School districts in a number of states have been working to have children from immigrant homes exempted from state tests.
Horne asks to expand AIMS to higher math, science, social studies - Arizona schools chief Tom Horne wants to expand the state test to include subjects such as American history, chemistry and trigonometry.
More math = more dropouts - In an opinion column, Arizona's superintendent of public instruction explains his position on strengthening math standards in the state.
Learning for every age - Some Wisconsin schools try combining two grades in one classroom.
Teachers' Union Dispute Casts Doubt on Detroit Alternative Schools (Edweek.org subscription required) - A continuing dispute between the local teachers’ union and school administrators has some education officials in Detroit worried that several alternative schools that opened in August to lure high school dropouts back to the classroom will be forced to close.
DOE releases charter school 10-year anniversary report - The Florida Department of Education released a report recently commemorating the 10th anniversary of Florida charter schools, which have provided parents an additional public education option.
State to debate No Child’s fate - Whether it’s worth it for Minnesota to keep going with NCLB is up to the Legislature to decide. It will be a key topic when lawmakers convene Wednesday.
Charter school board gets slow start - The creation of a statewide charter school district in South Carolina is off to a slow start as the board waits for the people and money to run it.
Bush was bold with his education plan - Gov. Jeb Bush swept into office in 1998 with a bold platform on education - reading initiative, school-voucher program, testing and accountability - and when he leaves office Jan. 2, much of what was (and was not) accomplished will define his legacy.
The View from Sixth Grade - An interview with Ellen Berg, a sixth-grade language arts teacher in St. Louis, Missouri.
Charter school dollars burden Albany taxpayers - Letter to the editor: I'm a parent of a child in the Albany [New York] City Schools who is frustrated that programs to benefit our public schools are shelved because dollars are siphoned away toward charter schools, which in essence are private schools bankrolled with public dollars.
Check back later for more education news.
UPDATE:
L.A. school district focuses on middle school students - Aiming to curb high drop out rates in Los Angeles public high schools, district officials are beginning to focus more on middle school students.
No Child Left Behind renewal faces battle - It has shaken every teacher in every classroom, and when the No Child Left Behind law comes up for renewal next year, it faces a political battle that could last until after the 2008 election.
NEA funds host of left-wing causes - Opinion: The nation's largest teacher union, the NEA, is a self-proclaimed champion for "the cause of public education." But this year, once again, the NEA has spent member dues on all kinds of causes that have nothing to do with education.
Money politics - Editorial: Schwarzenegger is hardly the first politician to blur the line between government and campaign business, or to lean heavily on private contributors to bridge the interaction between the two. But Villaraigosa's political career will likely rise or fall depending on what he does with LAUSD — meaning he may very well owe his political life to those who bankrolled his efforts, all of whom have their own motives for their generosity.
Posted by Daily News at 05:45 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)Why We Need School Choice (Jamie Story)
Reality has set in. Texas schools are trailing much of the United States, and United States schools are trailing the rest of the world. Over the years, the “solution” offered for ailing schools has been an infusion of new resources. Unfortunately, these “reforms” have done nothing to increase outcomes, and generations of students have suffered in the meantime. We must find a true solution now.
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Posted by Featured Guest at 01:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)December 28, 2006
Year in review
USA Today has put together a snapshot of education stories from 2006. Of course the Florida ruling was mentioned, along with Spellings's new focus on higher ed. But I'm a bit surprised that more wasn't said about NCLB. Eduwonk suggests the big NCLB story this year is that no major assaults on the law have materialized in spite of plenty of threats from the NEA and assorted states. It's also worth pointing out that in spite of the Democratic takeover; now that Ted Kennedy will be back in charge, it's just a question of what the law will look like after reauthorization, not whether it will be dismantled. I'm also puzzled as to why the Skills Commission report wasn't at least mentioned; to my mind, that really helped 2006 go out with a bang.
As a side note, I had wondered why the report would be released right in the middle of December; are they trying to bury it? But truthfully, while the circumstances might not be ideal, it was probably the optimal time to release it. Next spring all eyes will be on Washington to see what the Dems are up to in Congress. Besides, in mid-December education reporters tend to have a bit more time on their hands, making it more likely this sort of thing will get more attention in the media.
Education News for Thursday, Dec. 28
Governor, Legislature Lift Enrollment Cap on Voucher Program (Edweek.org subscription required) - An end-of-year recap on school choice legislation in Wisconsin.
TEA survey shows Rhea Co. teachers underpaid - The Tennessee Education Association recently released a ranking of teacher salaries across the state.
Report: Let Teachers Own and Run Schools - A new report on restructuring the national education system recommends that school boards contract with third parties to run schools.
Bitch Slapped - A look at how Los Angeles mayor Antonio Villaraigosa's attempt to take over LAUSD lost in court.
Hispanic Pastors Gather to Support School Choice - Press release: Christian leaders and presidents of pastors associations, representing more than 200 Hispanic Christian Churches and an estimated 20,000 members in the Valley of Texas gathered in McAllen to address the demand for solutions to the crisis that exists in Latino educational outcomes in the state.
No child left behind: the football version - Letter to the editor: a spoof of NCLB.
Let the Money Follow the Student - Opinion: Washington D.C. Mayor-elect Adrian Fenty has promised to provide "qualified teachers for all children." If he is serious about that, he should put parents, not bureaucrats beholden to the American Federation of Teachers, in charge of choosing schools for them.
Blunt pulls state education nominee - Missouri Gov. Matt Blunt on Wednesday pulled his nomination of a former private school administrator to the state Board of Education, hours after state Sen.-elect Jeff Smith objected to the choice.
Reading and writing only get better with practice in every grade - Editorial: Schools have and need reading specialists. But practice in real-life situations using varied material is the way to stretch students, and show why reading and writing really matters.
Don't forget the arts - Opinion: Massachusetts Governor-elect Deval Patrick should reinvigorate the role of the arts in public education.
Check back later for more education news.
UPDATE:
Moran sees hope for education reform - When voters returned control of both houses of Congress to Democrats, they may have improved the chances of a piece of legislation written by a Republican from one of the reddest of the red states.
Local schools foot the bill for cyber students, but lack oversight - A look at increasing friction over cyber charter schools in Pennsylvania.
The teachers are all right - Are Maine teachers overpaid or not?
Reading, writing & wrangling - A look back at the bigger education stories of 2006.
UPDATE:
Challenge goes on against NCLB law - Editorial: Undaunted, efforts to correct the errors of the No Child Left Behind law continue, being carried on in three states and by the National Education Association. We hope the matter goes to the U.S. Supreme Court. Once again: the one-size-fits-all approach does not fit.
Small Rural Schools Closing Their Doors - Many rural schools are ending up as empty buildings.
Jay Mathews on the Skills Commission report
He's highly critical of the report in a number of areas, but this is a major aspect of his argument:
Almost all the ideas in the report are worthy of support. Teachers salaries should be raised substantially to attract better recruits. Standardized tests should be rewritten to encourage creative thought. Independently operated public schools should be encouraged. Spending on low-income students should be increased.
The problem is the report's fanciful notion that it would be possible -- indeed, they say it is absolutely necessary -- to do all these things at once. The report's authors propose a grand scheme to save our schools and keep India and China from turning the United States into a low-wage economic backwater. They ignore the progress made by some of their own panel members and instead assert that none of the education innovations of the past 40 years have had much effect. "The reason that nothing has made much difference is that every time we tried to change something, we did not change much of anything else," they conclude.
I definitely agree that the report's recommendations, taken together, would take immeasurable political and logistical firepower to make reality. But the next paragraph is one area where I take exception to Mathews:
Huh? Our schools need to be better, but it is also clear that they are providing the finest training in the world in just about every specialty you could name, and are giving the majority of Americans enough skills to support a middle-class lifestyle. We have gotten as far as we have by muddling along, attacking problems haphazardly, rejecting master plans, and using the liberties inherent in our political, economic and social systems to create new approaches that keep us moving forward. That is the way free enterprise democracies work.
Decentralization of educational governance may or may not be a virtue worth retaining, but I think that's a subject that deserves its own discussion. Likewise, it's too easy sometimes to conflate K-12 and post-secondary schools, which is what I think Mathews is doing here. It is our post-secondary network of technical schools, community colleges and universities, not K-12, that has produced the kind of work force Mathews describes.
There's much, much more in his article, so it's worth your time to check it out. In the meantime, I promise to comment soon much more in depth on the report and various reactions to it. (It's also worth pointing out that practically nobody has actually seen the report so far; only the executive summary can be easily accessed. Presumably the well-connected Mathews got a copy. My own shiny new edition is en route, and I plan on discussing it in detail very soon.)
Their Cheating Hearts (Derrell Bradford)
Recent weeks have been witness to yet another investigative article published by the Philadelphia Inquirer on the sad state of affairs that is the Camden Public Schools. The Inquirer, and its southern New Jersey competitor the Courier-Post, have done a pretty bang-up job chronicling the utter incompetence of the Keystone Cop Crew that masquerades as school leadership in Camden City; such a good job, in fact, that the slew of headlines is only topped by the simple understanding that Camden Public Schools just can't stop screwing up.
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Posted by Featured Guest at 01:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)December 27, 2006
Social promotion by any other name
Some months ago, NYC Educator admitted that he agreed with something in this space. I suppose it's time I returned the favor. Because I, like him, find this ridiculous:
"Seat-time credit," a policy that allows failing students to earn points toward passing a class just by sitting in their seats is treated as an acceptable practice in city high schools two years after Mayor Bloomberg declared the end of social promotion in lower grades.
The policy, which city Department of Education officials say is allowable under state regulations, says failing students may pass as long as they have good attendance and complete an independent project assigned by their teacher. Some teachers are criticizing the policy as veiled social promotion that allows schools to hide failure rates.
"We don't think you should get credit for just being alive," the United Federation of Teachers high school representative, Leo Casey, said. "It just seems to be a way for students to accumulate credits without actually doing the work."
"Hey, boss: I'm sitting here at my computer, but I'm not doing any actual, you know, work. I still get paid, right?"
I'm not necessarily a critic of mayoral control of schools, but practices like these do a great deal to discredit the practice. (Hat tip: this week's Carnival of Education, hosted by Right on the Left Coast.)
NYT: end the dance of the lemons
The sea change at the New York Times continues apace:
The United States has a long and shameful history of dumping its least effective, least qualified teachers into the schools that serve the neediest children. The No Child Left Behind Act requires the states to end this practice. But the states are unlikely to truly improve teacher quality — or spread qualified teachers more equitably throughout the schools — until they pay more attention to how teachers are trained, hired, evaluated and assigned.
To get control of the assignment process, districts will need to abandon union rules that basically guarantee senior teachers the right to change schools whenever they want — even if the principal of the receiving school does not want them — by bumping a less senior teacher out of his or her job.
Read carefully, folks--that's the New York Times calling for shedding union rules related to dumping mediocre teachers. As I've stated elsewhere: if even the NYT is getting onboard with this stuff, I'd say the debate is shifting in a positive direction.
Education News for Wednesday, Dec. 27
Charter schools letter wrong - Letter to the editor from the mother of a Chicago charter school student.
D60 won't say if it's appealing payment of $900,000 - The attorney of a Colorado school district isn’t saying when he’ll file an appeal of an arbiter’s ruling or what arguments the district will use to avoid paying $900,000 to a charter high school.
LA Mayor Appeals Block of School Law - Lawyers for Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa filed an appeal in his court battle to take control of the Los Angeles Unified School District.
Schools learn a lesson, schedule longer holiday break to aid traveling families - School districts across California increasingly are stretching their winter breaks to accommodate students who visit family in far-flung locales for the holidays.
Ask the Wrong Questions, Get the Wrong Answers - Opinion: Education Secretary Margaret Spellings’ higher ed accountability plan is a step in the wrong direction.
Little faith in education reform - Letters to the editor on a recent op-ed by Mayor Villaraigosa on his attempted takeover of LAUSD.
Ideas for education reform on the table - Editorial: With near-daily headlines trumpeting the latest education study by the latest group of experts based on the latest data, Americans probably feel yanked in 10 directions.
Preschool will be a Kaine '07 priority - Gov. Timothy M. Kaine wants to give every 4-year-old in Virginia the chance to attend preschool, a significant and costly expansion, but one that he says would justify taxpayers' investment.
Bad Guess on U.S. Future - Opinion: If the Skills Commission report's authors' fears prove true, and American living standards begin to decline because of competition abroad and poor schooling, the U.S. education system will change very quickly. But we education reporters learned long ago that most national commissions are wrong.
No Tests? College's Students Must Relearn How to Learn - College is a change for most students, a shift from memorization to analysis, from weekly did-you-do-the-homework quizzes to weighty final papers.
Check back later for more education news.
UPDATE:
Detailed report to spell out what's wrong with CA schools - At the same time they are being asked to meet ever tougher state and federal standards, California's schools face long-standing, seemingly intractable problems.
Utah is a-changing: old ideas about funding education don't cut it - Utah is changing, becoming less white and middle-class, and, as always, Utah public schools are a microcosm of the state. If the Utah Legislature's old ideas about education don't adjust to keep up with the evolving face of Utah schoolchildren, lawmakers could be writing a recipe for disaster.
A Student-Centered Approach to the Dropout Crisis (Dan Lips)
Walk into a classroom full of freshman high school students this semester and picture this: Almost a third of those students will drop out before graduation day. According to the Manhattan Institute, the public high school graduation rate for the class of 2003 was 70 percent. And the graduation rate was far lower for minority students; just 55 percent of African American and 53 percent of Hispanic students completed high school.
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Posted by Featured Guest at 01:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)December 26, 2006
Checking the math
Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel columnist/blogger Patrick McIlheran illustrates how misconceptions--big ones--still pop up when discussing school choice:
For instance, I talked to one public official who helps make state education policy and who is against school choice. Fair enough: People of good will can disagree on this.
But the official complained that the state needs to put some kind of cap on how much aid can go to schools taking students in the choice program. The grants are just too high, he said, saying, several times, that a school gets $9,100 a year for taking in a choice student.
No, it doesn’t. You can check this for yourself with the Department of Public Instruction, led by a known opponent of school choice, and I confirmed it again myself:
A private Milwaukee school that educates a child in the school choice program gets, at most, $6,501 this year. It actually gets the total of its operating and debt service cost per student — as reckoned by an outside auditor — or the $6,501, whichever is less.
As McIlheran goes on to point out, that's a gap of roughly 40%. And this is a state official talking about the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program. If misinformation is still flying about the oldest and biggest voucher program in the nation, I think it's a safe bet similar errors abound regarding programs elsewhere. (Hat tip: Owen at Boots and Sabers.)
Chicago Teachers Union prepping for strike
There's still about six months left on the Chicago Public Schools contract, but that isn't stopping the union from loading for bear:
After two decades of labor peace in the Chicago Public Schools system, the drumbeat for a teachers strike is sounding earlier and louder than ever before.
For months, Chicago Teachers Union leaders have been warning their nearly 32,000 members to save their money for the "ultimate job action."It's still unclear whether this tough talk reflects a growing dissatisfaction among rank-and file teachers or pure politicking by a union president who is seeking re-election this spring.
What is clear is that this early strike talk is making district officials and teachers nervous as they head into contract negotiations early next year. The current four-year contract will expire on June 30, about a month after teachers and assistants elect a slate of union officers.
This sounds to me like union president Marilyn Stewart running for reelection; if she had really been trying to strike fear into the district by way of some saber-rattling, I think she would have made all the strike talk a bit more public. But then, it may have merely been reflexive on her part; as noted in the article, the Windy City has a notorious history in this category. Either way, I'd say this is a sign of bad faith on the part of the union; it really would be nice if the leadership gave at least some semblance of moderation.
Posted by Ryan Boots at 09:08 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)Single-Sex is Best--Sometimes (Peter West)
“Should I put my child in a single-sex or coeducational school?” Every few weeks I get asked this question.
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Posted by Featured Guest at 05:46 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)Education News for Tuesday, Dec. 26
Marshall school board opposes Blunt choice to state school board - A Missouri school board opposes appointment of Donayle Whitmore-Smith to the state Board of Education. over her support of school voucher and tax credit programs aimed at increasing options for parents and students.
Dual credit program helps students - Salem [Illinois] Community High School (SCHS) Principal Brad Detering reported to the board of education on Tuesday night about a way that students may be able to “knock out a semester, or even two, of college while still in high school.”
Public schools managed by private companies - It's a growing trend, public schools managed by private companies. And it's likely we'll soon see more of them in New York City.
Judge scuttles mayor's school takeover plan - A judge nullified legislation giving Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa substantial authority over the Los Angeles Unified School District, a stunning setback to Villaraigosa's plans -- already in progress -- to assume direct control of dozens of Los Angeles schools.
A mayoral setback - Editorial: The mayor of Los Angeles should run the city's schools. That principle suffered a legal setback Thursday, but it's a principle — embraced in other major cities across the country — that must not be abandoned.
Wrong to seek limits on charter schools - Letter to the editor from Peter Murphy of the New York Charter Schools Association: The usual suspects of Albany's public education establishment gathered once again to demand the state Legislature limit children's public educational opportunities outside their direct control by curbing any growth in public charter schools.
Officials thrilled with school choice figures - A look at the impact of public school choice on a Massachusetts school district.
Borough subsidizing charter school - The Fairbanks North Star Borough School District is having to subsidize a charter school that emphasizes Native Alaskan culture.
Mayor Faces Setback After Judge Blocks School Takeover - Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa plotted his counterstrike Friday after a judge torpedoed his plan to partially take over the Los Angeles Unified School District, ruling that the power transfer would violate the state's constitution and the city's charter.
Mayor charts LAUSD course - His legal defeat just a day old, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa began his next line of attack Friday to gain partial control of L.A.'s school district, filing an appeal to a judge's ruling against his takeover proposal and beginning his campaign to get the people he wants on the school board.
Testing Change Puts Pressure On Schools - The U.S. Department of Education has told Virginia schools they can no longer use the Stanford English Language Proficiency test as an alternative to the Virginia Standard of Learning test for students who have limited English skills.
Teacher pay trap - Editorial: If Florida really is serious about giving teachers financial incentives to work harder, it might begin by listening to a few of those miracle workers first.
Charter schools also closing achievement gap - Letter to the editor from New York's Foundation for Education Reform and Accountability: While people make excuses for why an achievement gap persists and continue to stand in the way of expanding successful schools, the demand for high-quality charter school options -- schools that are closing that gap right now -- continues to grow.
We can't quit on school reform - Opinion from Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa: Just as so many others did for me, I intend to fight for the students in L.A. Unified — and I will not be deterred.
Villaraigosa appeals judge's decision blocking control of school district - Lawyers for Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa filed an appeal in his court battle to take control of the Los Angeles Unified School District.
School officials search for solutions to testing demands - The No Child Left Behind Act has changed the face of teaching, but Columbus [Ohio] city school officials are concerned teachers' duties are becoming more than they can fit into the school day.
Modern China, U.S. education reform - Opinion: U.S. educators and business leaders usually look from within, or possibly to Europe and Japan, when forging ideas for emulative education reform. But quite relevant and meaningful ideas about school organization, teacher efficacy, student achievement, a national curriculum, professional development schools, etc., might exist in China.
Minority kids closing gap - Brevard [Florida] Public Schools students are getting smarter, and the "achievement gap" is slowly but steadily shrinking between white students and their black and Hispanic classmates.
High court could rule school desegregation plans unconstitutional - Framingham's system for creating racially balanced schools - along with about 20 other policies in districts across the state - could be considered unconstitutional if the U.S. Supreme Court, as many expect, rules in favor of the plaintiffs in two cases it heard earlier this month.
Area educators give their wish list for No Child Left Behind - North Carolina educators have a few suggestions for the legislators who will re-evaluate the No Child Left Behind Act in 2007.
Bush built powerful legacy - Eight years after Gov. Jeb Bush won his first elected office, his two competing sides -- compassionate policy wonk and unbending ideologue -- have combined to cut an impressive figure.
Oregon preps new rules for diplomas - Oregon is working up a set of new requirements for earning a high school diploma. But the goal is not so much raising the bar — though the plan would do that for many — as it is to make sure all high school students do the work to earn a diploma that prepares them for college or work.
Tie higher pay to performance - Editorial: The Alabama Education Association is absolutely correct when it maintains that Alabama teachers deserve a pay increase this year. But it would be a pity if that higher pay consists only of an across-the-board increase that does not attempt to target those teachers who are going the extra step to improve the quality of teaching.
Voucher system would cut taxes - Letter to the editor: A sure way to lower New Jersey property taxes is to enact a school voucher system where parents may send their children to any school of their choice, private or parochial, an idea that Nobel economist Milton Friedman voiced about 40 years ago.
Schools have fewer male teachers than ever - The percentage of male teachers in Bergen County has hit an all-time low, reflecting drops across the state and nation over the last three decades.
District leaves education behind - Modesto [California] teachers are frustrated and angry with the No Child Left Behind Act because of the manner in which district officials are interpreting it.
Ball St. limits charter school - Ball State University officials have decided to shut down the middle school program at Fort Wayne's only charter school because of low test scores and enrollment.
Charter school students show improvement, report says - Indiana students enrolled in charter schools sponsored by the city of Indianapolis and Ball State University are improving academically, according to a new report by Ball State's Office of Charter School Research (OSCR).
Charter school district awaits funding - A new school district and a $13 million federal grant are primed for a journey that could double the number of charter schools in South Carolina during the next three years. There are just two holdups: the General Assembly and money.
`No Child Behind' needs a new push - Opinion: The bipartisan deal that led to the passage of NCLB in 2001 was based on a combination of rigorous school accountability measures and increased federal funding that would supposedly pay for the increased demands on schools. Inevitably there's been erosion at both ends of the bargain.
Dropout, school redesign find place in '07 education issues - Although the Mississippi education community's focus lately has been on full funding, money won't be the only issue on the table when lawmakers walk in the door Jan. 2.
Judge thwarts L.A. mayor's bid to control school district - In a ruling that could discourage mayors in California from seeking control over local school districts, a judge yesterday blocked groundbreaking legislation giving Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa authority over the city's school system.
State Plan to Transfer L.A. School Management Powers to Mayor Rejected by Judge (Edweek.org subscription required) - A Los Angeles judge has thrown out a new state law that was to transfer substantial management authority of the sprawling city school system to Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, ruling that the legislation violates California's constitution.
Union has teachers bracing for strike - After two decades of labor peace in the Chicago Public Schools system, the drumbeat for a teachers strike is sounding earlier and louder than ever before.
Early strike talk bubbles up in Chicago Teachers Union - The Chicago Teachers Union's contract expires on June 30th, and Union President Marilyn Stewart is encouraging members to save money in case there's a strike, according to a published report.
Uneven bonus plan opposed - Miami-Dade teachers whose students post the largest gains on Florida's Comprehensive Assessment Test will be eligible for bonuses of up to 5 percent of their salary under a controversial plan sent to the state last week.
Education focus is on kindergarten - Only about a third of Minnesota children are in all-day kindergarten, and that's too few in the eyes of some key policymakers.
LA parents find help with magnet schools at seminars with a twist - In the cutthroat competition to get their kids into a public magnet school, some parents are turning to support groups and a stiff drink to help them through the process.
Leading minds left behind - Advocates for gifted education say many top achievers are languishing in schools that are unable or unwilling to meet their needs.
Statewide charter school board off to a slow start - The creation of a statewide charter school district in South Carolina is off to a slow start as the board waits for the people and money to run it.
Jeb sets bar high for education - Florida Gov. Jeb Bush swept into office in 1998 with a bold platform on education — reading initiative, school voucher program, testing and accountability — and when he leaves office Jan. 2, much of what was, and wasn't, accomplished will define his legacy.
Make sure it all adds up - Opinion: High school mathematics in Arizona isn't exactly rocket science. But would it be more valuable if it were?
Schools to alter course of study - Starting in 2008, almost all North Carolina high school students will be put on a college-bound course of study.
Not over yet - Editorial: It was bad news, but perhaps not wholly unexpected, when a judge ruled Thursday that Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa's school-reform plan is unconstitutional and barred it from becoming law Jan. 1. This was just one setback in a long, but terribly important process that Villaraigosa must see through to the end — not just for his own political legacy, but for the children of Los Angeles.
Early childhood education could get major funding boost - Advocates of early childhood education in Minnesota are optimistic that the upcoming legislative session will include a major funding boost for programs that prepare children for school.
The NEA: Classroom Bullies - Opinion: It is time for the Supreme Court to deliver justice for workers nationwide and end the compulsion that exists in today’s modern labor movement.
San Antonio's proven that school vouchers work well - Opinion: As the Texas Legislature gears up for another debate over school vouchers in the coming session, naturally Texans are looking for evidence on whether vouchers work. They should look at the long-running voucher program in San Antonio. As with programs across the country, the evidence shows that vouchers work.
4-day school week gaining - An increasing number of Colorado school districts are opting for a shorter weekly schedule.
Reformers cite middle school needs - After focusing for years on younger and older students, educators in L.A. and elsewhere are looking for new ways to curb the dropout rate.
Careers become the lessons - A $10 million federal grant will help 10 Miami-Dade schools start career academies that administrators hope lead to increased student success.
Report: Federal funds reinforce inequality in school funding - Money for public schools tends to be spent more on wealthy students than poor ones, according to a report by Education Trust, a children's advocacy group with offices in Washington, D.C., and Oakland, Calif.
Fighting for fairness - A profile of the lawyer suing the federal government over NCLB.
Check back later for more education news.
UPDATE:
School Entrepreneur Named to Be a Deputy Chancellor - New York Schools Chancellor Joel I. Klein yesterday appointed the former president of Edison Schools Inc., the world’s largest for-profit operator of public schools, as a deputy chancellor, perhaps the boldest move yet in the Bloomberg administration’s effort to increase the role of the private sector in managing city public schools.
D.C. Schools Considering Unusual Deal With Nonprofit - The D.C. Board of Education is considering a no-bid contract with a little-experienced but politically connected organization to upgrade academics and facilities in some low-performing schools.
December 25, 2006
It's Christmas--go away!
For the love of Santa! What on earth are you doing here? It's Christmas Day! Go open presents, drink too much eggnog and stand under the mistletoe. (Or exercise your choice to celebrate something else!) See you tomorrow.
December 22, 2006
Education News for Friday, Dec. 22
Educators want to reopen Brown v. Board school - Fifty-six years ago, the Rev. Oliver Brown and 12 other black parents helped kick-start the civil rights movement when they tried to enroll their children in all-white schools in Topeka, Kan.
Judge tosses L.A. mayor's school takeover - A judge has thrown out a plan that would have let the Los Angeles mayor take over the city's schools, the Los Angeles Times reports.
We're losing generations here - A third straight year of stagnant scores on Indiana's mandatory achievement test prompted researchers and policymakers to call for an overhaul of the way schools teach and test Hoosier children Thursday.
Stressed kids get help coping - Heltmach's weekly sessions are an example of how teachers at Von Humboldt are embracing the concept of social and emotional learning, an innovative idea to help students learn to understand and control their feelings.
Parenting as therapy for mental health disorders - In school he was as floppy and good-natured as a puppy, a boy who bear-hugged his friends, who was always in motion, who could fall off his chair repeatedly, as if he had no idea how to use one.
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Jurassic Schools (Matthew Ladner)
The ending sequence of Jurassic Park represents one of the great movie thrills of the 1990s. For those of you who couldn’t bear to watch, Drs. Grant, Malcolm and Sadler, et al, found themselves running for their lives inside the Jurassic Park compound, followed by a nasty group of foolishly resurrected velociraptors. The raptors had our heroes surrounded, when suddenly a Tyrannosaurus-Rex appeared to chomp one of the raptors, allowing our human protagonists to slip away. The T-Rex and surviving raptor battled it out. After disposing of the raptor, the triumphant T-Rex bellows out a roar so loud that the overhanging “When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth” banner to dramatically flutters to the floor.
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Posted by Featured Guest at 08:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)Being Clear About Where Schools are Heading (Joe Nathan)
How's this for guts? The Cincinnati, Ohio Public Schools have just adopted a plan describing in clear, ambitious detail, their goals for the next five years. It's a bold, important document, one that communities all over the country can learn from. Even districts with higher achievement than Cincinnati may gain from studying their easily understood, concrete goals.
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Posted by Featured Guest at 01:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)December 21, 2006
Public school ties with homeschoolers
Washington public schools are reaching out to home educators:
In the two decades since Washington families successfully fought for the right to teach their children themselves, thousands of kids have been educated at their own kitchen tables. But in the last 10 years, homeschooling has quietly evolved.
Now, more parents are joining public school partnerships, or "alternative learning programs," to supplement their home lessons -- and more school districts are reaching out to them, offering such programs as the fast-growing Homeschool Resource Center in North Seattle.
The schools allow homeschool students to use the library and computer equipment, and pick and choose which classes they want to attend. One parent is also quoted as saying she likes the level of involvement she is able to have in her children's education.
Deeper in the article, homeschool activists express concern that this is a ploy on the part of public schools trying to get the kids back into the system. I don't see the problem: something tells me homeschooling parents are far too savvy to let that happen. Besides, I think it's a natural byproduct of competition for schools to work to bring the children back. Also worth pointing out that Cobranchi doesn't appear concerned (he seems more interested in the accompanying photo than the article itself).
A rare moment of candor
Darren of Right on the Left Coast posts a letter from the leader of an NEA local, who gives his measured opinion on the activities of the California Teachers Empowerment Network. Sure looks like CTEN is hitting a nerve with the unionists. (Hat tip: this week's Carnival of Education, hosted at The Median Sib.)
Posted by Ryan Boots at 05:52 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)Education News for Thursday, Dec. 21
They Say They Want a Revolution: Privately-Run Public Schools - Opinion: A look at media coverage of the recent report issued by the New Commission on the Skills of the American Workforce.
Charter schools 'not a panacea,' report says - Charter schools are filling a unique niche in the state's public school system, but their academic results don't differ much from those of traditional public schools, says a report issued Tuesday by the Florida Department of Education.
Voucher plan startles city schools - Columbus Superintendent Gene Harris criticized legislative plans to expand a statewide voucher program without public debate or proof that the program was working.
The Power of Influence (Edweek.org subscription required) - A transcript of an online chat between Kati Haycock, executive director of The Education Trust, Chester E. Finn Jr., president of the Thomas B. Fordham Foundation, and Christopher B. Swanson, director of the Editorial Projects in Education Research Center.
Program Widens School Funding Gap, Report Says - A $13 billion federal program to help students from low-income families has actually widened an education funding gap between rich and poor states, according to a study released yesterday.
Last chance to donate to schools and get a tax credit - The Chandler, Arizona Unified School District is working overtime to encourage residents to donate money under the state's individual tax credit program.
Test for new state teachers on hold - State officials have put a hold on a test requirement for new teachers while they ask the Arizona Legislature for money to pay for the exams. The test, which new teachers would have to take to get their permanent certification, has received a mixed reaction from Arizona’s teachers.
Policy in City High Schools Criticized as Social Promotion - "Seat-time credit," a policy that allows failing students to earn points toward passing a class just by sitting in their seats is treated as an acceptable practice in New York City high schools two years after Mayor Bloomberg declared the end of social promotion in lower grades. Some teachers are criticizing the policy as veiled social promotion that allows schools to hide failure rates.
Needed: A Governor to Launch Radical Change in Schools - Opinion: One state has to lead the way toward educational excellence. Which one will it be?
Promotion Rates Vary by District - Whether East Texas fifth-graders who flunked the reading or math sections of the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills test were promoted to sixth grade by grade placement committees depended to a great degree on which district they attend.
Expansion Of School-Voucher Program Draws Fire - Ohio legislation to make more students eligible for state-funded vouchers for private schools is coming under fire.
Special pupils gaining ground - Things are looking up for special education pupils in Richmond County, Georgia schools. A year after state officials rebuked the system's special education efforts, they are now praising it for improvement.
Schools' tax credit nearing deadline - They may not be ringing a bell outside the supermarket, but officials at Tucson-area schools are hoping to reap the benefits of charity before the end of the holiday season. With 10 days before the end of the calendar year, schools — private and public — want to remind people that they can control how their tax dollars are spent and receive a dollar-for-dollar tax credit if they donate.
One-year dips and blips not a cause for panic - A third of the way through the school year, Oregon schools are trying to make sure that improvements in state assessment scores continue and that dips and blips don't turn into downward spirals.
School reform: Hurry up & wait - Editorial: Seven classes of young people will pass out of Ohio schools before these new standards completely take effect. That's a lot of learning power - and working capital - to let slip through our fingers.
Guess who's hurt by voucher bill - Editorial: By now the pattern is clear: When public schools in Ohio take a step forward, the Legislature kicks them two steps back.
Rating 'No Child Left Behind' a failure - Opinion: The No Child Left Behind law is a fraud. That may be strong language from a school superintendent, but the law is a definite political, social, and economic con.
A book unopened - This year, more than 5,000 disadvantaged Bibb County, Georgia students who are attending failing schools are eligible for free, private tutoring sessions under No Child Left Behind laws. But so far, just 615 students - about 12 percent - are using the service.
Check back later for more education news.
UPDATE:
New bill troubles school leaders - Two education bills passed by the state Legislature Tuesday have local school leaders worried about their cost -- both in funding and loss of students.
Small school pulled from voucher program - A small Milwaukee private school in the second year of receiving payments for its students through publicly funded vouchers was removed from the program by the state Department of Public Instruction in an order released Tuesday.
Posted by Daily News at 05:51 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)The View from Behind the Counter (John Dewey)
Regular Edspresso readers know "John Dewey" is working towards certification as a math teacher. Click for his first, second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth columns. As always, he prefers to remain anonymous. -ed.
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Posted by Featured Guest at 01:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (5) | TrackBacks (0)December 20, 2006
Having a laugh
Yesterday I remarked on the Educator Roundtable, which is circulating a petition with the explicit goal to dismantle NCLB. After Roundtable leader Philip Kovacs left a comment, Ken De Rosa checked out the petition. Let's just say he's none too impressed.
Posted by Ryan Boots at 09:11 AM | Permalink | Comments (4) | TrackBacks (0)Bias in reporting on merit pay?
ABC ran a story on World News Tonight earlier this week looking at Houston's new merit pay experiment and USDOE's new pilot program. One of the teachers quoted in the story was Andrew Dewey. But did the reporter fail to acknowledge that Dewey is also vice-president of the AFT local?
Education News for Wednesday, Dec. 20
Mike is blind to promise school choice - new report from some of the nation's leading business, labor and education leaders - and hailed by none other than Mayor Bloomberg - argues that America is headed for economic disaster unless we dramatically restructure our schools.
Exam has changed how teachers teach - When there was no big stick to both measure and punish public schools, Gov. Jeb Bush re-invented Florida's education system and utterly changed the face of teaching with four words: FCAT.
Finn basks in role as standards-bearer, gadfly - (Ed Week subscription) When Chester E. Finn Jr.—already one of Washington’s best-known education policy entrepreneurs—took charge of an unknown foundation in Dayton, Ohio, in 1997, the match quickly blossomed into a fruitful marriage.
Miller brings ambition to helm of ed panel (Ed Week subscripton) When a reporter asked Rep. George Miller last week whether his agenda for early-childhood education would involve expanding Head Start or starting a universal preschool program, he had a simple answer.
A think tank takes the plungs - (Ed Week) The Thomas B. Fordham Foundation has long had a lot to say about education in the United States—what’s wrong with it and how to fix it.
Gates grant to taraget low performers - D.C. School Superintendent Clifford B. Janey said yesterday a $4.8 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation will help fund school system improvements in low-performing schools..
Check back later for more education news.
UPDATE:
Voucher plan startles city schools - Columbus Superintendent Gene Harris criticized legislative plans to expand a statewide voucher program without public debate or proof that the program was working.
Chortling over Chicago charters - Chicago's charter schools are an impressive lot. Charters often do a better job educating the most challenging students in the poorest neighborhoods and getting them into college than regular neighborhood schools do.
Ohio may expand school vouchers - During a marathon session Tuesday -- likely the last this year -- the state legislature voted to expand Ohio's voucher program to add more schools, including 16 in the Akron area.
They say they want a revolution - privately run public schools - Recommendations for improving education in America.
Charter school halts "incentive" vouchers - About a dozen parents whose children attend Spectrum Academy got some extra cash as incentive to enroll their children at the North Salt Lake charter this fall — $1,000 each, to be exact.
Charter schools narrow public-private test score gap - The DeBary school where three of her children are enrolled is like a "little bit of heaven" to Jennifer Haner....
Charter schools not "panacea," report says - A decade after their introduction in Florida, charter schools look more like traditional schools than engines of change, an education report said.
Title I money not reaching those who need it most, report says - (Ed Week subscription) As federal funding meant to help the most disadvantaged students makes its way from the halls of the U.S. Capitol down to individual schools, the dollars intended to help poor and minority students are often diverted from the most needy students, concludes a report released today by the Education Trust.
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“Be Perfect”: Ridgeview’s Second State Championship (Terrence O. Moore)
If you are looking for heart-pounding movies to check out over the break, you might try Friday Night Lights, a good movie chronicling the true story of Odessa Permian’s bid for the football state championship in the late 1980s. The movie does a great job of capturing the intensity--some would say mania--surrounding Texas high school football. Everything seems to be riding on the state championship; the local teams are just the warm-up for the Big Game. As everyone in Texas knew at the time, Permian boys did not just start playing football in high school. Their fathers and lower schools drilled them for years. By the time they played varsity, the players for the “MOJO” team were competing on a level equivalent to many small colleges. The mania for football glory has, admittedly, a less glorious underside. The players and the school did not spend a great deal of time or energy on academics. The whole town of Odessa lived and breathed what seventeen-year-old boys did on the football field. After graduating, those who did not go on to play college ball lived the rest of their lives with their glory behind them.
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Posted by Featured Guest at 01:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)December 19, 2006
Victory in Ohio!
More Ohio kids than ever before will have the opportunity of school choice (scroll down):
Students in well over twice as many schools statewide would be eligible for state-funded vouchers under a bill approved Tuesday in the House and Senate.
Students in schools that have been on academic watch or academic emergency for two of the past three years would be eligible for money to go elsewhere. Under Ohio's current voucher program, schools must have had the designation for three straight years.
That change will mean students at 236 buildings would be eligible for vouchers, compared to 99 buildings now, Education Department spokesman J.C. Benton said.
The number of slots for voucher students would stay at 14,000. The scholarships are worth $4,250 for elementary students and $5,000 for high schoolers.
Our press release is here. Thanks to Susan Zanner at School Choice Ohio and TJ Wallace at Parents Advancing Choice in Education for working nonstop on this.
A case in point
In my big ol' post from earlier today, I said that one of the reasons charters like KIPP do so well is that principals and teachers have autonomy. Cue Jay Mathews, who looks at the unusual success of first-year teacher Lisa Suben at AIM Academy in D.C.:
...one of the secrets of KIPP's success in attracting the brightest young teachers and raising achievement for low-income children throughout the country is its insistence on letting good teachers decide how they are going to teach. KIPP principals, such as Johnson, have the power to hire promising young people such as Suben and let them follow their best instincts, as long as the results -- quality of student work, level of student classroom responses, improvement in standardized test scores -- justify the teacher's confidence in her approach.
Suben could have used the lessons provided by KIPP. But she wanted to do it her way, and KIPP turned her loose to go do it. Yes, it's hard work (on top of the tough schedule she keeps, she spends three hours a night preparing the next day's lesson plan), but she likes it, and most of all it's paying off. In short:
Posted by Ryan Boots at 02:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)"Basically, there's ownership," Suben said. "That's the key. It's not that my lessons are so dramatically better than anyone else's lessons. It's just that we, the students and I, own our lessons."
Camden's cheated history
Today's challenge: read this and see if you don't become outraged.
Cheating in the Camden School District dates as far back as the 1980s, long before the 2005 school year now under state scrutiny, an Inquirer investigation has found.
For years, pockets of Camden teachers and administrators cultivated an informal culture of cheating to cope with growing pressure to boost test scores.
The cheating was orchestrated by administrators, principals, guidance counselors, teachers, and anyone else willing to cooperate, according to a dozen teachers who took part in or witnessed it, and half a dozen more who were told of such occurrences.
Their experiences span at least a third of the city's 29 schools and two decades, they said in interviews conducted during the last 10 months.
Some of my favorite events described in the article:
- "A former department chairman recalled when, in the mid-1990s, a teacher walked up and down aisles during testing and used answers written on his arms - 50 on one and 50 on the other - to help students."
- "Information such as the periodic table, math formulas - even answers to questions - was left on walls."
- "During the 2004-05 school year, a teacher at Cooper's Poynt Elementary - one of five schools identified by the state Department of Education as having suspiciously high scores - saw a guidance counselor changing students answers and asked why. 'If I don't do it, I won't have a job next year,' the counselor replied."
There's much, much more where that came from. If you think your blood pressure can tolerate it, read the whole thing. (Hat tip: Joanne Jacobs.)
Intramural fistfight?
A group calling itself the Educator Roundtable is circulating a petition to discard NCLB. Among other signatories is No Child supercritic Susan Ohanian. Interestingly, this has gotten the attention of the NEA, which is not at all onboard with this effort, prompting two "NCLB Outrage" posts from the otherwise unionist Ohanian (here and here). (Hat tip: this week's EIA Communiqué.)
Often lost in the debate is that NCLB is not an entirely new creation by the Bush Administration, but is an extension of ESEA, which was originally passed by LBJ in 1965. Frankly, the NEA's reluctance to sign on to any sort of movement to dismantle or repeal NCLB (er, ESEA) is understandable. Would you want to be the one responsible for undoing four decades of education reform (not to mention the law that brought you Title I funding)?
Our Response to Spellings's Non-Response (Rhonda Meyer)
The secretary of education has begun a nationwide tour of school districts, which she kicked off in Los Angeles last week. Now, Los Angeles has been a very active site in 2006—an administrative action that we filed with the Coalition for Urban Renewal and Education (CURE) in March, threats of mayoral takeover of the district which resulted in a slight shift of power and continues to stir controversy about who should control the schools, a reporting requirement to USDoE on compliance with NCLB and lots of changing players.
Interestingly, here’s part of what was reported about the secretary’s visit to the City of Angels:
Earlier this year, Spellings warned school districts that some states may lose money if they fail to inform parents about their right to free tutoring. The L.A. and Compton school districts have had actions filed against them in court by two organizations who claim they are not doing enough.
When asked how L.A. schools were faring with compliance under the law, Spellings said, quote: "We're pleased but we are not satisfied. I'm certainly not going to leap into sanctions."
We immediately have to ask: pleased with what? Neither LAUSD nor the California Department of Education have taken any serious action with regard to our complaint thus far. They have simply tinkered with the letter sent to parents advising them of their options (which turn out to be nonexistent), though they deny there was anything wrong with earlier letters.
All this while hundreds of thousands of Angelino children eligible for transfer to better-performing schools languish in failing neighborhood schools.
The secretary doesn’t want to leap into sanctions, yet she has been quick to grant waivers to districts and states to reorder remedies under NCLB—allowing children to remain in failing schools and get a few short hours of tutoring rather than a full day of learning in a better performing school. Let’s remember that under this law, no child is supposed to be left behind by a failing system of public schools. These children are being failed by the adults around them—teachers and district officials who are not providing them the learning opportunities they need to succeed. There are serious short-term and long-term consequences to this failure to educate.
The popular song lyric said, “I believe that children are our future; teach them well and let them lead the way.” It was popular because Whitney Houston sounded so good and because it reflects the belief that our children are a valuable national investment. We are not equipping our children for their future or our own when we fail to educate them. It is unacceptable to let that failure continue for another moment, let alone another year.
Our administrative action was filed in March. These children have begun another school year without options for better education because the adults in charge are more worried about maintaining the status quo than actually serving the children.
If the district and the state are unwilling to change the system to better serve the children, the secretary must hold their feet to the fire. She is their last best hope for an education and a brighter future.
Rhonda Meyer is director of research for the Alliance for School Choice.
Posted by Featured Guest at 11:14 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)Democratic governance of schools, part II: choice and autonomy (or: leave the coach alone!)
In Part I, I traced the creation and rather conflicted history of school boards. Recent events help illustrate that democratic governance has harmed education far more than it has helped.
Education News for Tuesday, Dec. 19
AFSA President Reacts to Controversial National Commission on Education and Economy Report - Press release: A response from Jill S. Levy, president of the American Federation of School Administrators, on Friday’s commission report by the National Center on Education and the Economy.
‘Reading First-gate’ (edweek.org subscription required) - Opinion: The Reading First scandal is part of a pervasive pattern in public education today, and is the predictable result of elected officials’ well-intentioned but incomplete approach to school reform legislation.
What Eliot and Andrew owe religious New Yorkers - Opinion: The resounding victories of Eliot Spitzer and Andrew Cuomo, New York's new governor and attorney general, were tremendous accomplishments. But in the rush to congratulate our new leaders and build consensus, we must not gloss over serious points of concern.
Editorial: Political courage key to fixing ailing schools - It’s official. America’s public-education system has been declared "insane" by a blue-ribbon, bipartisan panel of education, political and business experts. It must be fixed. And doing so will cost time and money. But what it will most require is political courage.