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Monday, July 22, 2013

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LAUSD Superintendent John Deasy ordered to submit a succession plan





Education Headlines

Monday, July 22, 2013

New 'Common Core' standards aim to help students think critically

Steven Oberlander asks his 35 fifth-graders to compute 20 percent of 80 and the students immediately begin tapping their answers into the wireless keyboards on their desks.

County superintendent's pact detailed

County Superintendent Randy Ward received a $25,000 contribution to his retirement package and eight additional days of vacation when his contract was extended two years by the county Board of Education last month.

San Diego educator is new superintendent

Alvord Unified School District has hired a new superintendent. Sid Salazar, assistant superintendent for Quality Neighborhood Schools in San Diego Unified School District, will start work July 29.

Palmdale school board approves furloughs, pay cuts for teachers, staff

At a time that schools statewide are starting to restore cuts made during the five-year recession, the Palmdale School District board has authorized unpaid furloughs, salary reductions and a cap on employee health benefits to deal with a budget crunch.

LAUSD Superintendent John Deasy ordered to submit a succession plan

Los Angeles Unified board member Bennett Kayser, part of a majority that has been increasingly critical of Superintendent John Deasy, sent a letter Friday to the schools chief demanding a plan spelling out who is in charge when he's gone.

iPads on the way for education overhaul

School districts are going on computer buying sprees as they ramp up for the introduction of the Common Core curriculum in fall 2014 and the state's new online tests in 2015.

School districts moving quickly to meet national education standards

A year from now, school districts in California, 44 other states and Washington, D.C., will be preparing to launch the Common Core standards, a new set of English and math benchmarks designed to better prepare students for college and careers. With the deadline looming, education leaders across Southern California are scrambling to train teachers, create lessons and buy computers in time for the online assessments slated to begin in 2014-15.

Alternative education for troubled California students raises questions

Across America, alternative schools have become the proverbial safety net for troubled students when all else fails. Some education experts, however, say it's become too easy for educators to dump kids there who might benefit more from more nurturing and tutoring at home schools.

Vargo: Let districts choose from an effective marketplace of Common Core providers

After a long period of hesitation, California has finally gotten serious about the Common Core State Standards. The $1.25 billion recently allocated for implementation of the new standards has sent a clear message to district leaders that California is committed to the Common Core. This funding is a start, but providing the tools districts will need in the time available will be a major challenge for state leaders.

Fensterwald: Districts leave Washington without waiver but still confident one is coming

Representatives of nine California districts did not head home from Washington on Friday, after two and a half days of intense discussions with federal officials, with the waiver from the No Child Left Behind law that they had been hoping for.

Free lunches for youth in San Jose and elsewhere go uneaten

While child advocates worry about poor children going hungry in the summer, free lunch programs have meals going uneaten. By law, they are required to offer meals to the community and serve any youth who shows up. But not many kids do.
Friday, July 19, 2013

Oxnard School District moves closer on Seabridge school

The Oxnard School District board Wednesday approved a draft agreement with the city of Oxnard on a joint-use park next to an elementary school planned for 2021.

Evaluation: School board struggles with teamwork, respect

The Desert Sands Unified school board believes it works well — just not together. As a whole, the school board members are appropriately focused on student achievement and district progress, but individual members struggle to work as a team and show each other respect. This is the most interesting of the findings from the school board’s first self evaluation, which was discussed during a board meeting earlier this week.

School district may reconsider reimbursement vote

Public outcry regarding a Sweetwater school board decision not to reimburse a member of the bond oversight committee for travel has the school board president considering a do-over.