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Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Are teachers taught how to use tests? | EdNewsColorado

Are teachers taught how to use tests? | EdNewsColorado:


Are teachers taught how to use tests?

The National Council on Teacher Quality is out with another report on teacher preparation, this time focusing on how well future teachers are trained in effective use of assessment data.
Pencil on test paperThe report takes an overall gloomy view of the situation, concluding, “School districts, states and teacher preparation training programs have yet to establish what knowledge a new teacher should have to enter a classroom with some facility for applying data to improve classroom instruction. In fact, the field has struggled to incorporate data driven decision making into its program


Report: DPS must set higher goals

A report released Tuesday by four education advocacy groups calls on Denver Public Schools board members to adopt higher goals for improving student achievement and increasing quality schools at all grade levels.
The report, True North: Goals for Denver Public Schools, states the five broad goals outlined in the district’s current strategic plan “lack rigor, structure and consistency” and that “too few of these goals … either focus on or prioritize academic achievement.”
For example, the report notes two of the district’s goals – to increase access to full-day kindergarten and to see higher enrollment – are worthwhile but should not be among the top priorities listed in its Denver Plan.
“We are hard-pressed to accept that this should be one of five major goals for a school district – particularly as


Wednesday Churn: Yet another R2T

Daily Churn logoWhat’s churning:

Now school districts will get a shot at federal Race to the Top funds without having to go through their state governments.
Education Secretary Arne Duncan on Tuesday announced proposed rules for a new R2T iteration containing nearly $400 million, a program for which districts will apply directly.
The money is to be targeted on programs “to create plans for individualized classroom instruction aimed at