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Thursday, May 6, 2010

Education - Everything you need to know about the world of education.

Education - Everything you need to know about the world of education.

Strauss: Race to Top winner failed on standards

U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan (AP)













VALERIE STRAUSS
The Answer Sheet
A School Survival Guide for Parents (And Everyone Else)
Posted at 6:30 AM ET, 05/ 6/2010

Harvard study gives Race to Top winners bad grades on academic standards

One of the two states chosen by Education Secretary Arne Duncan as a winner in the first round of the $4 billion Race to the Top competition has academic standards that earned the grade of ‘F’ in a new study by Harvard University researchers, while the other state got a ‘C minus.’
Posted by Valerie Strauss | Permalink | Comments (2)
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JAY MATHEWS
Class Struggle
What's Right and Wrong With Our Schools
Posted at 12:45 PM ET, 05/ 5/2010

What happens to my high schools list if Newsweek is sold?

I can assure you that as long as I am alive and capable of carrying on the delightful work of keeping in touch with educators at our most challenging high schools every year, the Top High Schools list will be published.
Posted by Jay Mathews | Permalink | Comments (2)
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Ed Buzz: The Nation

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EducationNews.org - EducationNewsToday

EducationNews.org - EducationNewsToday

EducationNewsToday

School Committee OK’s student feedback on teachers

A measure that calls for students to provide “constructive feedback’’ to their teachers was approved by the Boston School Committee last night, after students had spent two years working for its passage.
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Mystic Valley Charter School in Malden taps savings to buy vacant car lot for $4.4m

MALDEN — Chevy vans and trucks dotted the 4-acre car sales lot on Eastern Avenue for decades. But turf playing fields and a gymnasium are in its future as Mystic Valley Regional Charter School’s campus spreads to a new corner of Malden. ... 
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Cheating probe results delayed

State officials granted a request Wednesday to extend by an extra month an investigation of 58 Atlanta schools for possible cheating on state tests A report was originally due to the state May 14.... 
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The school recession

One of the precious few points of consensus in our polarized land is that we need to do a better job educating our kids. But consensus, apparently, gets you only so far. In red states and blue, in urban, suburban and rural districts ... 
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Jay Mathews: What happens to my high schools list if Newsweek is sold?

I can assure you that as long as I am alive and capable of carrying on the delightful work of keeping in touch with educators at our most challenging high schools every year, the Top High Schools list will be published. ... 
Full story

D.C. students show gains in science and biology

D.C. school officials said Tuesday that they were encouraged by the growth students showed on the science and biology segments of last year's DC-CAS standardized tests. ... 
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Saving the Teachers

Congress must act again to prevent a wave of teacher layoffs that could damage the fragile recovery and hobble the school reform effort for years to come.... 
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On Formspring, an E-Vite to Teenage Insults

A relatively new social networking site has become a magnet for comments, many of them nasty and sexual. ... 
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New Orleans charter schools will outnumber traditional schools 2 to 1 next year

Charter schools will outnumber traditional schools two to one in the Recovery School District next school year, in an effort to rapidly shrink the roster of schools under the state-run district's direct control.... 
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Pa. Senate panel OKs charter-oversight bill

The Pennsylvania Senate Education Committee responded Tuesday to disclosures of alleged financial mismanagement at Philadelphia charter schools by unanimously approving a sweeping bill that would increase oversight of the state's 135 charters. ... 
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Principals feeling pressure to get A's

Across the city, principals are under investigation for pressuring parents, students or teachers into giving them good reviews on the secret surveys that gauge school satisfaction... 
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Blacks only school outing

A school trip for African-Americans pupils only at an Ann Arbor elementary school last week was meant to inspire them to greater achievement, but instead ignited protest from other children and their parents. ... 
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Stanley I. Greenspan, Developer of ‘Floor Time’ Teaching, Dies at 68

Dr. Greenspan was a psychiatrist who encouraged parents, teachers and therapists to participate in playtime as a gateway to learning for some children. ...
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Michigan High School Snags Obama as Speaker

President Obama will speak at the Kalamazoo Central High School graduation. The school won a Race to the Top competition. ... 
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SJC backs dismissed Lowell teacher

A former Lowell teacher who was fired because she failed state-mandated English fluency tests may get her job back as a result of a decision yesterday by the Supreme Judicial Court. ... 
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Rise & Shine: Bloomberg’s budget cuts 6,400 teacher positions | GothamSchools

Rise & Shine: Bloomberg’s budget cuts 6,400 teacher positions | GothamSchools

Rise & Shine: Bloomberg’s budget cuts 6,400 teacher positions

by Philissa Cramer
  • Without new funds, Mayor Bloomberg plans to cut 6,400 teachers. (Times, Post, NY1, Wall Street Journal)
  • The Times says the coming teacher layoffs show the country needs a second education stimulus.
  • The city is planning to spend $5 million a year on recruiting new teachers. (Daily News)
  • For the first time ever, CUNY has a waiting list, for students who apply after this week. (Daily News, NY1)
  • Political consultant Basil Smikle officially declared his plan to challenge State Sen. Bill Perkins. (Post)
  • The director of the Harlem Success lottery documentary said her funders include charter backers. (NY1)
  • The archbishop of New York outlines a strategic plan to boost Catholic elementary schools. (Post)
  • Readers weigh in on whether charter schools work, representing a wide range of views. (Times)
  • A TV documentary about for-profit education led to a selloff in for-profit schools stocks. (AP)
  • Oklahoma City schools will try NYC’s failed cell phone incentives experiment. (The Oklahoman)

Remainders: High school info sessions begin for seventh graders

by Maura Walz

Union contract limits options for school turnaround, city says

by Anna Phillips
In an attempt to improve some of the worst schools in the country, Secretary of Education Arne Duncan is offering states four methods of turning around their lowest performers. But New York City officials say the union contract here rules out one of the three —  the so-called “transformation” model — even though it’s the only one that wouldn’t cause teachers to lose their jobs.
The other three methods either turn schools into charter schools, close them down, or force their principals and at least half of the staff to be fired. “Transformation” calls for the principal’s removal, but keeps the school’s staff in place.
Yet crucially, it also requires that schools use students’ test scores as a significant factor in evaluating teachers, that merit pay be put in place, and that teachers whose students don’t show enough improvement be fired. Since New York state law bars principals from using student data in teachers’ tenure decisions and the 
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J.P. Morgan Chase Anounces Plans to Launder Tax Payer Money � Edumacation Archive

J.P. Morgan Chase Anounces Plans to Launder Tax Payer Money � Edumacation Archive

J.P. Morgan Chase Anounces Plans to Launder Tax Payer Money

by thatsrightnate
The Chicago Public Schools are facing a financial crisis.  Now, all the evidence points to this being a largely manufactured crisis to pry concessions from their employees and dollars from the state.  One thing is certain and that is that $250 million dollars that should be going to the Chicago Public Schools have been siphoned off this year from property taxes for Mayor Daley’s TIF fund.  This fund is basically his personal nest egg to spend where he sees fit.
One of the beneficiaries of this program is J.P. Morgan Chase.  Now, the use of the TIF fund is generally kept hush hush, but in December of last year, the developer of the $100 million Cabrini-Green redevelopment found himself unable to pay back a construction loan from J.P. Morgan Chase and the city came to the rescue so that 
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Schools Matter: Whoops! Duncan's Public Opposition More Than Zero

Schools Matter: Whoops! Duncan's Public Opposition More Than Zero

Whoops! Duncan's Public Opposition More Than Zero

by Jim Horn
It may be fun to find out how big of a lie Arne Duncan told the Times yesterday when he described his public opposition as "Zero." Here is a good starter, a letter from 13 state education commissioners from around the nation in clear opposition to Duncan's RTTT (my bolds). If you have others, please send them along:

April 27, 2010
The Honorable Arne Duncan
Secretary, U.S. Department of Education
400 Maryland Ave, SW
Washington, D.C. 20202-0008
Dear Secretary Duncan,
We wish to extend our sincere appreciation for the time you spent with us Monday, April 5 on the 

Seize the Initiative: Put the Heat on the White House and Your Congressman

by Jim Horn
From Beyond Chron:
Federal education policy is on the brink of change. The Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), known in its current form as “No Child Left Behind” (NCLB) is overdue for reauthorization. In response, Secretary of Education Arne Duncan recently released his Blueprint for the vision he and President Barak Obama share for our children’s education. Sadly the Blueprint carries on much of NCLB’s most destructive tactics and adds a few of its own.

High stakes testing, a narrowing of curriculum and a further imposition of a market-based framework are just a sampling of what is literally being sold to us. All this, despite the fact that 
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The Educated Guess Digital textbooks coming, quickly and surely

The Educated Guess

Digital textbooks coming, quickly and surely

Posted in Program innovation
Few high schools have yet to put them to use, but free digital textbooks keep on coming.
There are now 27 textbooks, partly or completely aligned with state standards, with two more in the wings,  following  completion last week  of the second phase of textbook review by a state agency, the California Learning Resource Network (CLRN). (Read more and comment on this post)
By John Fensterwald on May 6th, 2010

Cash-strapped districts shift their dollars

Posted in Education Excellence Committee, Equity issues, Program innovation
If triage is the new goal of K-12 education, then school districts can claim success.
A survey by the Legislative Analyst’s Office revealed that districts are cutting programs that the Legislature once considered essential in order to keep core classes going. Districts reported that the flexibility to spend “categorical” money as they choose helped them keep teachers on the job and make their budgets.
Impressed with the first year’s spending flexibility, the LAO is recommending lifting the restrictions on some of the remaining categorical programs, including class-size reduction, which the teachers’ unions will fight to preserve, and school transportation.
(Read more and comment on this post)
By John Fensterwald on May 5th, 2010

Fact-checking Poizner and Whitman

Tags: , 
Posted in 2010 elections, Charters
Amid all of the arguing over immigration, Goldman Sachs and who’s the phonier conservative, GOP gubernatorial candidates Steve Poizner and Meg Whitman spent only a few minutes talking about education during their hour-long debate in San Jose on Sunday. That may be because both believe that local control and charter schools are the cure to much of what ails  public schools.
At least that’s the bumper sticker argument they make.
But their answers to the one question on K-12 schools got me scratching my head. So I did some fact-checking and here’s what I found.
(Read more and comment on this post)
By John Fensterwald on May 4th, 2010
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Education - ContraCostaTimes.com

Education - ContraCostaTimes.com

Alamo students book tells story of search dog in Haiti earthquake
"A New Job for Pearl tells the true story of a search and rescue dog that assisted after the earthquake in Haiti. Illustrated by Rancho Romero Elementary students, it is a fundraiser for more search dog training. 
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Education | Seattle schools, Eastside schools, Snohomish County schools, Seattle universities | Seattle Times Newspaper

Education | Seattle schools, Eastside schools, Snohomish County schools, Seattle universities | Seattle Times Newspaper

Seattle school layoffs much less than in '09

Pink slips will go to 25 teachers and 11 elementary-school counselors in Seattle schools this week.
By Linda Shaw
Seattle Times education reporter
Pink slips will go to 25 teachers and 11 elementary-school counselors in Seattle schools this week.
Seattle Public Schools announced Wednesday that it will dismiss those employees effective next fall.
The numbers are smaller than last year, when the district laid off 161 teachers, counselors and other school personnel.
School officials say they are trying to minimize layoffs, and decided against sending pink slips to an additional 42 teachers without positions for the fall. That's because they think there is a good chance that jobs will open up through retirements and other departures.

New president of college named
Our annual guide includes advice on how to pick the right school, Q&As with experts on financing, resources and video tours of local universities.
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Like a Sling-Shooter Lobbing Stones at the Moon � The Quick and the Ed

Like a Sling-Shooter Lobbing Stones at the Moon � The Quick and the Ed

Like a Sling-Shooter Lobbing Stones at the Moon

by Forrest Hinton
When the junior senator from Iowa banged the gavel twenty minutes late to begin yesterday’s Senate HELP Committee hearing, I was anticipating a good, meaty policy conversation on revamping high school accountability. After all, Senator Harkin titled the Tuesday afternoon event “ESEA Reauthorization: Improving America’s Secondary Schools.” Even the witnesses promised to be a bit wonky and full of ideas: a researcher, an education policy director, several school principals and reformers.
As the meeting started, the bottom-right chamber of my heart (the policy chamber) pulsated in hopes that I would soon learn something new.  Definitions of high school success, equations tracking student learning in grades 6-12, incentives changes to NCLB—anything, really, that would herald real, substantive reform for our ailing high schools.

Senator Harkin started out fairly strong.  He began by correctly diagnosing part of the high school problem by telling everyone that an alarming 7,000 students are dropping out of school each day in the U.S.  (The other part of the high school problem, not mentioned by Harkin, is ensuring that a high school education adequately


QUICK Hits

by Forrest Hinton
Quick Hits
Quick Hits is a short compilation of question-raising news stories, blog posts, and video clips that Education Sector team members are reading and viewing each day. The content of these Hits is not necessarily endorsed by the organization or any particular team member.
Statistics is the new grammar? (Wired)
Did you catch PBS’s College, Inc. documentary last night?  If not, check it out online. (PBS Frontline)
Students taking courses from their homes or neighborhood coffeehouses?  One MA superintendent envisions what a virtual education system would mean for the state. (The Boston Globe)
Chinglish? (The New York Times)
Did you know that students in Korea attend school for 197 days each year, compared to 180 days for U.S. students?  Get more numbers on extended learning time from CAP. (Center for American Progress)


Vouchers Are a Failure, But That’s Not the Point

by Chad Aldeman
My colleague Kevin Carey earlier commented on how school voucher proponents are attempting to redefine what “success” and “failure” mean in school reform. Apparently it’s now a trend. Writing in today’s NY Times, Charles Murray acknowledges the academic failures of the Milwaukee school voucher program, but says it shouldn’t be about academics anyway. The mere fact of more parents having a choice is good enough for him:
Our children’s education is extremely important to us, and the greater good doesn’t much enter into it — hence all the politicians who oppose vouchers but send their own children to private schools. The supporters of school choice need to make their case on the basis of that shared parental calculation, not on the red herring of test scores.
Right. In exercising individual choice, people don’t factor in the greater good because their own inte
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THE EDUCATION FRONT Blog | The Dallas Morning News

THE EDUCATION FRONT Blog | The Dallas Morning News

Dallas ISD goes digital with "parent portals"

by William McKenzie/Editorial Columnist
On Monday, I went to Roosevelt High School to see what could become a very innovative way for Dallas schools to engage the parents of their students. Starting on May 17, the district is rolling out a "parent portal" at Roosevelt, Annie Blanton Elementary School and E.D. Walker Middle School. Once they work out the kinks at these schools, all campuses in the Dallas district are supposed to have parent portals.
This concept is part of the next wave in education reform, and that is the use of data in helping parents and teachers move students along. The way this will work is that parents will get an email account that gives them access to the portal. From there, they can find all sorts of information about their child's academic work.
For example, they can see the next day's assignments. They can see the latest test scores. They can see whether their child actually attended school that day. They can see how many credits are still needed to graduate. They can even see whether a college actually received their child's application.
Dr. Leicha Shaver, Roosevelt's articulate, energetic principal, pointed out that this is a bit like social networking, so perhaps it won't be too foreign to many parents. The district is basically using technologies to loop in more mothers and fathers.
Some I've talked to about this project think parents will never use this portal. Or that they could get the same information if they checked their children's backpacks. In elementary school, for instance, information comes home every day about the latest work a child has done.
But Shaver offers a hard-to-refute point: More and more people are using social network sites to communicate 
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