Sacramento Press / Fall in Sacramento

COMMUNITY JOURNALISM AT ITS BEST

Sacramento Press / Fall in Sacramento:

"images from photographer David Roberts, taken during his bike rides around Sacramento."

More of the best and brightest heading to community college - washingtonpost.com

More of the best and brightest heading to community college - washingtonpost.com:

"Kira Cassels applied to 11 colleges and got in to every one. The kitchen of her Laurel home came to resemble a high school guidance office, the breakfast table buried beneath brochures and financial aid forms from destinations such as the University of Virginia and Franklin & Marshall College.

This Story

• The best and brightest take a detour
• The Answer Sheet: Should two-year community colleges offer bachelor's degrees?
• Your Take: A good way to save cash?

Patrick Awuah on educating leaders | Video on TED.com

Patrick Awuah on educating leaders Video on TED.com:

"Patrick Awuah makes the case that a liberal arts education is critical to forming true leaders.

About Patrick Awuah

After working at Microsoft for almost a decade, Patrick Awuah returned home to Ghana and cofounded Ashesi University, a small liberal arts college that aims to educate Africa's next generation… Full bio and more links"

THE EDUCATION FRONT Blog | The Dallas Morning News

THE EDUCATION FRONT Blog The Dallas Morning News:

"Kay Hutchison finally got into education issues in her gubernatorial campaign last week, and, for the most part, I thought she laid out some good ideas. Rick Perry has been all over her for copying some of his ideas. But, you know, I don't care where ideas come from as long as they can benefit kids in school.

Here are a couple of areas where I think her proposals stand out:"

First, she wants to focus on middle schoolers with strategies that will keep them from dropping out once they get to high school. I doubt anyone's been elected governor because of their middle school policies, but she is really on the mark here. As many educators know, kids tend to make progress in elementary school, then fall off once they hit middle school. In some cases, they fall so far behind, they give up and dropout by the time they reach ninth or tenth grade.

What Hutchison proposes is an "accelerated middle school initiative." Here's what her press release says:

"Hutchison will propose an Accelerated Middle Schools initiative to help middle school students who are behind grade level "catch up" by covering core academic curriculum at an accelerated pace. With individualized e-Learning, and a focus on core subjects necessary for graduation, students one or two years behind grade level will be able to catch up to their peers and stay on track."

VSP Company Hiring for 21 Positions in Rancho Cordova — The Rancho Cordova Post

VSP Company Hiring for 21 Positions in Rancho Cordova — The Rancho Cordova Post:

"Eyefinity/Officemate, a VSP Company, has announced they will be hiring for 23 positions within their company, and 21 of those jobs will be located in Rancho Cordova.

Ten positions are currently available and can be accessed on VSP’s website, and the remaining positions will open early next year. The positions that will be available include ”product managers, implementation specialists and coordinators, training specialists, quality assurance specialists and software support representatives,” VSP Public Relations Officer Jace Duval said."

Superintendent hires teacher as chief of staff

Superintendent hires teacher as chief of staff

Sacramento City Unified School District Superintendent Jonathan P. Raymond
announced today he has hired Dr. Teresa Cummings, a district math teacher and instructional expert, as his chief of staff. Cummings will focus on strategic planning to help improve learning district wide and improving support to schools. She begins work in her new position today.

“Dr. Cummings brings an important teacher perspective as chief of staff as well as a strong commitment to involving parents in the education of their children,” Raymond said. “She has had great success in reaching out to and teaching underserved students. The magic and learning happens in the classroom, and Teresa understands that.”

Since 2004, Cummings has worked at Hiram Johnson High School where she taught Prealgebra, Algebra 1, physical education and California High School Exit Exam preparation. She also has taught at the middle school, community college and university levels and has been a strong supporter and participant in the district’s Parent Teacher Home Visit Program as a teacher.

“I believe in the direction Superintendent Raymond is moving the district—putting children first,” Cummings said. “I wanted to be part of the change.”

Cummings earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from California State University, Chico. She earned her Ph.D. in education from the University of Illinois, Chicago where her doctoral studies emphasized curriculum design for urban youth.

Cummings lives in the district and is married to a district math teacher. She has three children and has served on the Peter Burnett Elementary School site council as a parent.

“Urban school districts become great by teaching themselves to greatness. With the
contributions and dedication of staff like Teresa, we will get there,” Raymond said.

http://www.scusd.edu/Pages/default.aspx

DIGITAL LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS: Tools and Technologies for Effective Classrooms

DIGITAL LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS: Tools and Technologies for Effective Classrooms:

"I’m heading to Austin next week for a summit on 'Redefining Teacher Education for Digital Age Learners'. If you’re an experienced teacher or currently enrolled in a teacher preparation program, your feedback is urgently needed. Now's your chance...

This invitational summit is scheduled for Dec 6-8, 2009, where education leaders from across the US will be gathering to discuss the future of teacher preparation programs (http://www.redefineteachered.org/). While the invited attendees are an impressive and experienced group, I know there are many important perspectives from practicing (or retired or pre-service) teachers that need a voice, too. Here’s how you can help."

Dan Brown: The "Achilles Heel" of Education Reform is Slashed by Michael Bloomberg

Dan Brown: The "Achilles Heel" of Education Reform is Slashed by Michael Bloomberg:

"High-stakes testing is a bullet train barreling through education reform; you're either on the train, on the sidelines, or waving your hands in frantic protest, only to be run over.

Last week's education speech by emboldened New York City Mayor-for-Life Bloomberg (who just dropped nine-figures of his own cash on his re-election bid) is depressing news to people on the ground in schools. Conducting the Testing Express, Bloomberg announced:"

"As [Secretary of Education] Arne [Duncan] had said a number of times, 'A state can't enter Race to the Top if it prohibits schools from using student achievement data to evaluate teachers and that's why California just repealed its prohibition on doing so.'

"In New York, the State Legislature passed a law last year that actually tells principals: You can evaluate teachers on any criteria you want - just not on student achievement data. That's like saying to hospitals: You can evaluate heart surgeons on any criteria you want - just not patient survival rates! You really can't make this up! Thankfully, the law in New York is set to expire this June - but that is not enough.

"We will urge the State not just to prohibit but to require all districts to create data-driven systems to comprehensively evaluate teachers and principals. And we want New York City to lead the way..."

Privacy Rights Clearinghouse | Empowering Consumers. Protecting Privacy.

Privacy Rights Clearinghouse Empowering Consumers. Protecting Privacy.:

"Welcome to Our New Website!

Privacy Rights Clearinghouse is pleased to welcome you to our re-designed website. Our new site incorporates user-oriented features that make it easier for visitors to quickly find and share information. We’ve also updated our widely popular privacy compilations, including our Online Information Brokers List and our nationally-recognized Chronology of Data Breaches.

Using the open source software Drupal, our new site allows PRC's privacy advocates to update the site more frequently - without compromising the privacy of our visitors."

"SAVE Sacramento"

"SAVE Sacramento"

The Sacramento City Teachers Association CTA/NEA announced a press conference to "SAVE Sacramento" tomorrow, Tuesday December 1, 2009 at 10 am in front of City Hall. SCTA President Linda Tuttle is the featured speaker.

Who Needs Mathematicians for Math, Anyway? by Sandra Stotsky, City Journal 13 November 2009

Who Needs Mathematicians for Math, Anyway? by Sandra Stotsky, City Journal 13 November 2009:

"The statistics on U.S. math performance are grim. American eighth-graders ranked 25th out of 30 countries in mathematics achievement on the 2006 Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), which claims to assess application of the mathematical knowledge and skills needed in adult life through problem-solving test items. We do better on the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS), whose test items are related to the content of school mathematics curricula. (Differences in participating countries aren’t significant.) But according to Mark Schneider, a former commissioner of education statistics at the Department of Education, the United States lags behind too many countries in “overall mathematics performance and in the performance of our best students.” And achievement gaps between different student groups within the United States, Schneider says, are “about the same size or even bigger than the gap between the United States and the top-performing countries in TIMSS.”"

The Economic Benefits of Reducing High School Dropout Rates in America's Fifty Largest Cities | Alliance for Excellent Education

The Economic Benefits of Reducing High School Dropout Rates in America's Fifty Largest Cities Alliance for Excellent Education

The Economic Benefits of Reducing High School Dropout Rates in America's Fifty Largest Cities

In the nation's fifty largest cities and their surrounding areas, nearly 600,000 students dropped out from the Class of 2008. These students dropped out at a great cost to themselves, but also to their communities, including the businesses they would have used and the state and local governments to which they would have paid taxes.

Thanks to the model that the Alliance for Excellent Education has developed with the generous support of State Farm® and in partnership with Economic Modeling Specialists, Inc., it can now project how reducing the number of dropouts in half, for just this single high school class, will result in tremendous economic benefits for the business community in those areas and their state and local governments.

This is game-changing research. For the first time ever, the Alliance can demonstrate in dollar terms how every business, every taxpayer and every community benefits when the dropout rate is reduced. It is also able to show that without a doubt, the student is not the only one who benefits from increased educational attainment.
The initial findings from the model answer these and other economic questions for the cities listed below:

How much in additional wages would each metro area benefit from if it reduced the number of high school students who fail to graduate with their class by 50 percent?

What percentage of these new graduates would continue their education after high school? What percentage would earn bachelor's degrees?

How much will annual state and local property, income, and sales tax revenue grow as a result of these new graduates' higher incomes?

To view the combined economic benefits for all fifty cities, read the national analysis.

To view a report for a particular city, please click on it in the list below.

Albuquerque, NM
Memphis, TN
Atlanta, GA
Miami, FL
Austin, TX
Milwaukee, WI
Baltimore, MD
Minneapolis, MN
Boston, MA
Nashville, TN
Charlotte, NC
New York City, NY
Chicago, IL
Oklahoma City, OK
Cleveland, OH
Omaha, NE
Colorado Springs, CO
Philadelphia, PA
Columbus, OH
Phoenix-Mesa, AZ
Dallas-Ft. Worth-Arlington, TX
Portland, OR
Denver, CO
Sacramento, CA
Detroit, MI
San Antonio, TX
El Paso, TX
San Diego, CA
Fresno, CA
San Francisco-Oakland, CA
Honolulu, HI
San Jose, CA
Houston, TX
Seattle, WA
Indianapolis, IN
Tucson, AZ
Jacksonville, FL
Tulsa, OK
Kansas City, MO
Virginia Beach, VA
Las Vegas, NV
Washington, DC
Los Angeles - Long Beach, CA
Wichita, KS
Louisville, KY
National Analysis

Additional Documents

Press Release: Read the national press release from the Alliance for Excellent Education, which includes quotes from Bob Wise, president of the Alliance and former governor of West Virginia, and Ed Rust, Chairman and CEO of State Farm®.

Frequently Asked Questions: The Alliance for Excellent Education has prepared a list of frequently asked questions about the cities included in the analysis, more information about the economic model, and future calculations the Alliance will release from the model, among others.

Technical Notes: The technical notes document includes a more sophisticated explanation of how the model was constructed and how specific calculations were performed.

A Washington State Fight, a Nationwide Debate - Curriculum Matters - Education Week

A Washington State Fight, a Nationwide Debate - Curriculum Matters - Education Week:

"Some readers may already be aware of a battle unfolding in Washington state over tough new graduation requirements in math, science, speaking, and writing. State schools Superintendent Randy Dorn has proposed delaying the implementation of the mandate, which has rankled Gov. Chris Gregoire and members of the state school board. But while the story carries a Washington state dateline, it reflects a fight that has played out with what seems like increasing frequency in state capitals around the country in recent years.

Dorn is arguing that the state's students simply aren't ready for the new requirements, that current course requirements don't match the test schedules, and that the mandates need to be phased in more slowly. Here's a sample of his argument, from an op-ed in the Spokesman-Review:"

Our new math and science learning standards won't be tested until spring 2011 (math) and spring 2012 (science). That's... continue reading at edweek.org

Study Sees Little Traction for NCLB's Tutoring Provisions - Inside School Research - Education Week

Study Sees Little Traction for NCLB's Tutoring Provisions - Inside School Research - Education Week:

"A study by the Government Accountability Office made waves a few years ago when it estimated that only about a fifth of students were getting the free tutoring services they were entitled to receive under the federal No Child Left Behind Act. As most of you know by now, the 8-year-old law requires Title I schools that fail to hit their achievement targets under the law for three or more years in a row to offer free tutoring, or supplemental education services, to their students. The GAO report looked at data for the 2004-05 school year and found that only 20 percent of eligible students took advantage of the free tutoring that year. That was an improvement from the previous school year, but it still wasn't good enough."

Now fast-forward two more school years, and what you find is that not much has changed—at least not if you believe the estimates cited in a new report released last week by the National Center for Education Statistics. The report draws on data for the 2006-07 school year from a nationally representative sample of households. It finds that only 22 percent of students in persistently failing, Title I schools received free tutoring services from that year, according to their parents. That compares with 13 percent of students in a comparison group of public schools. (Under the law, states can require all chronically failing schools to offer tutoring, which is why some of the non-Title I schools in this sample provided tutoring, too.)

Education Week: Dropout Costs Priced for 50 Major U.S. Cities

Education Week: Dropout Costs Priced for 50 Major U.S. Cities:

"'The Economic Benefits of Reducing High School Dropout Rates in America’s Fifty Largest Cities'

If half the students who dropped out of the class of 2008 had graduated, they would have generated $4.1 billion more in wages and $536 million in state and local taxes nationally in one average year of their working lives, according..."

Education Week: When Roads Diverge: Tracking the Charter Movement

Education Week: When Roads Diverge: Tracking the Charter Movement:

"When two roads diverge in a yellow wood, in poetry and in life, one must choose. After picking a path to follow, inevitably you ask the unanswerable question: What would have happened if you had chosen the other path?

Now we know what happens, at least in education, thanks to a remarkable study of charter schools in New York City. And that study, released in September, suggests that it’s time to widen one of the roads. ('N.Y.C. Study Finds Gains for Charters,' Sept. 30, 2009.)"

Education Week: New Head of U.S. Research Agency Aims for Relevance

Education Week: New Head of U.S. Research Agency Aims for Relevance:

"If improving the “rigor” of education studies has been the watchword for much of the work carried out by the U.S. Department of Education’s key research agency over the past seven years, “relevance” and “usefulness” seem to be shaping up as twin themes for the half-dozen years ahead."

At least that’s the message John Q. Easton, the new director of the department’s Institute of Education Sciences, is communicating as he speaks to national groups around the country. Five months into his six-year term, the 60-year-old Mr. Easton has perfected what he calls his “five-bullet talk” on his plans for the $617-million-a-year agency, founded in 2002. While not yet a hard and fast agenda, his presentation outlines his own goals for the direction the government plans to take in shepherding federal education research.

One point that Mr. Easton makes clear is that while promoting rigorous research through randomized experiments will be an important part of that agenda, it won’t be the agency’s guiding star as it was under his predecessor, Grover J. “Russ” Whitehurst.

Teacher absences: Are they excessive and do they hurt students? | Get Schooled

Teacher absences: Are they excessive and do they hurt students? Get Schooled:

"Most discussions about school attendance focus on students. Now, U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan wants to talk about teachers.

Duncan has made teacher attendance one of the measures to determine which low-achieving schools receive federal improvement funds. So, for the first time, the federal government will collect data on how many days teachers miss classes each year.

The reason is simple: Research shows that students suffer a small, but significant decline in academic performance as a result of teacher absences."

Kids should get moving to avoid obesity | Health | Reuters

Kids should get moving to avoid obesity Health Reuters:

"NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Vigorous exercise may be an especially good way to keep kids lean, but sitting around, in and of itself, doesn't appear to have a major role in making them fat, new research shows.

Nevertheless, there are still plenty of reasons to avoid too much sedentary 'screen time,' Dr. Ulf Ekelund of the MRC Epidemiology Unit in Cambridge, UK and colleagues say, given potential negatives including 'violence and aggressive behavior, poor academic performance, and poor body image.'"

Why Parent-Driven Schools - Parent Driven Schools

Why Parent-Driven Schools - Parent Driven Schools


Why Parent Driven Schools

As parents, it can be difficult to obtain information about your children’s education options or to evaluate that information once you have it. Deciphering “education-speak” isn’t easy. But, every parent wants their children to be grounded in an education that opens doors to future opportunity and success.

Nothing will change in schools today if parents do not take control of their children’s education. If your child is in a district or system that is parent-driven, that means you should be driving.

Where does Parent Driven Schools Come in?

We understand that parents are busy people.

That’s why we exist to give you the information, tools and resources you need to become the solution to the education crisis in this country. If you don’t know how to “drive” your school, we do! If you’re not sure what a “market-based education system” is, have no fear. We can get you there.