Duncan to Florida: Tutoring Doesn't Work
U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said today he doesn't understand why Florida passed a law requiring districts to continue offering free tutoring to students in struggling schools.
Florida is one of 11 states that got a waiver from many of the requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act. That means districts in the Sunshine State no longer have to put aside 20 percent of their Title I money for tutoring and school choice.
But lawmakers in Florida still think tutoring is a good idea and passed a law requiring districts to set aside 15 percent of their Title I funding for the program. The law takes effect in July.
Duncan doesn't think that was a smart move, and said so at a meeting of the Florida Council of 100, a non-profit organization comprised of business leaders in the state that advises the governor and other policy makers on key issues.
He pointed to a recent U.S. Department of Education study, which examined so-called
SES WHAT A MESS: More on Dallas ISD & the federal tutoring program | Dallas ISD Blog | dallasnews.com
More on Dallas ISD & the federal tutoring program | Dallas ISD Blog | dallasnews.com:
Matthew Haag & I wrote Sunday about DISD's frustrations with a tutoring program required under the No Child Left Behind law. Twenty-six DISD schools must offer the tutoring, also called Supplemental Educational Services, to poor kids. DISD said they've found evidence of fraudulent billing by at least two SES providers. Beyond that, district officials say, they see little evidence that the tutoring actually helps, given all the money spent on it. Here's what Patricia Burch, a researcher at the University of Southern California, had to say:
The SES program is a good idea in principle. It is a good idea to use Title I funds to provide more instruction as needed to kids whose families might not be able to afford private tutors. But much of the
SES IS A MESS: Comptroller finds improprieties with another tutoring provider | GothamSchools
Comptroller finds improprieties with another tutoring provider | GothamSchools:
Holes in the Department of Education’s oversight of tutoring companies that work in city schools allowed one of
SES IS A MESS: Suit: Princeton Review charged city for tutoring it didn’t provide | GothamSchools
Suit: Princeton Review charged city for tutoring it didn’t provide | GothamSchools:
This chart from the Justice Department's lawsuit
This chart from the Justice Department's lawsuit SESISAMESSSESIAMESS SES IS A MESS Supplemental Educational Services
Guidance for Supplemental Educational Services:
GUIDANCE
Guidance for Supplemental Educational Services
The U.S. Department of Education provides non-regulatory guidance for the implementation of the supplemental educational services provisions of No Child Left Behind. The Department also sends letters to individual jurisdictions with further clarification, if more information is sought, or if a state, district, or local education agency is not in compliance with the law.
GUIDANCE
- Supplemental Educational Services Guidance
MS Word (1.15MB) | PDF (304KB) - Information and guidance for private schools becoming SES providers.