Positive Aura Of Charter Schools Wearing Thin
March 3, 2016, 2016 Subscribe
THIS WEEK: Concentrated Poverty In Schools … ADHD Linked To Adult Expectations … More Money For Pre-K … New Teacher Evaluations Fail … Who’s Regulating For-Profit Colleges?
TOP STORY
The Positive Aura Of Charter Schools Is Wearing Thin
By Jeff Bryant
“A new survey of voters across the country reveals growing concerns about charter schools. The poll … found the public … generally opposes expansion of charters. Huge majorities in the poll expressed strong support for a wide range of charter schools reforms that the industry often opposes.”
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NEWS AND VIEWS
The Concentration Of Poverty In American Schools
The Atlantic
“In almost all major American cities, most African American and Hispanic students attend public schools where a majority of their classmates qualify as poor or low-income … Researchers have found that the single-most powerful predictor of racial gaps in educational achievement is the extent to which students attend schools surrounded by other low-income students.”
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Could Adults’ Expectations Drive Up ADHD Diagnoses in Kids?
Health Day
“Rates of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) have risen globally, and adults’ unreasonable expectations of young children could be one reason why, researchers suggest … Between 1981 and 1997, U.S. children dedicated more and more hours per week to studying. The biggest change was seen among 6- to 8-year-olds.”
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Nationwide Bipartisan Trend: State Pre-K Funding Increases
New America Foundation
“Almost two-thirds of states plus the District of Columbia funded pre-K at higher levels last year than the year prior … The spending trend on pre-K among states reflects a positive shift in national attitudes towards the value of early education.”
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Very Few Teachers Receive Poor Job Ratings, And New Evaluations Haven’t Changed That
The Washington Post
“Are the new evaluations – many of which incorporate test scores or other measures of student learning – any better at identifying poor teaching? Not really … The median proportion of teachers deemed below proficient has ticked up from less than 1 percent to less than 3 percent.”
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Who’s Regulating For-Profit Schools? Execs From For-Profit Colleges
ProPublica
“College accreditors have come under scrutiny recently for allowing for-profit schools to collect billions in federal aid despite low graduation and high default rates. Accreditors are supposed to be watchdogs for college quality… So who are the people behind the beleaguered accreditor? … Two-thirds of them have worked as executives at for-profit schools while sitting on the council. A third of the commissioners came from schools that have been facing consumer-protection lawsuits, investigations by state attorneys general, or federal financial monitoring.”
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