Could Texas textbook changes end up in California? | News10.net | Sacramento, California | Education

Could Texas textbook changes end up in California? | News10.net | Sacramento, California | Education

Education News Could Texas textbook changes end up in California? Comments After the Texas state school board adopted landmark changes to textbooks last week, one California lawmaker is pushing his proposal to make sure those changes don't end up here. Vacaville music students play 8 hours straight to save their teachers Comments Vacaville played host to an eight-hour music marathon Saturday as students from almost every school in the district came to perform to save music teachers' jobs and music programs. Perfect attendance earns Elk Grove senior a new car Comments Nine graduating seniors in the Elk Grove Unified School District woke up early for the chance to win a new car. California students, districts sue over budget cuts Comments Robles-Wong et al. vs. State of California asks the court to declare the current school finance system unconstitutional because the state doesn't provide enough money to meet its own educational requirements. Grand jury report urges concessions from Sacramento teachers union Comments A grand jury report made public Wednesday singled out the Sacramento City teachers union in Sacramento City Unified School District's budget woes.

more >> More Education News Weird Science: Students celebrate scientists with experiments of their own Judge rules summer fee hikes OK at CSU Elk Grove teachers plan protest over layoffs Teacher of the Month May 2010 - Greg Kalthof Obama delivers speech on education at Hampton University Center Unified parents take saving teaching jobs in their own hands Sacramento's Cristo Rey High celebrates as entire senior class heads for college Taking a closer look at public charter schools Bill seeks to keep 4-year-olds out of California kindergartens

What is Happening in RTT applications? � The Quick and the Ed

What is Happening in RTT applications? � The Quick and the Ed

What is Happening in RTT applications?

by Rob Manwaring

Everyone knows about the huge move that Colorado has made to lanch it into one of the frontrunner spots in the second round of Race to the Top. But, what have other states been doing to improve their chances. Democrats for Education Reform have been keeping a close eye on things. Take a look at what some key states are up to (here).

A Middle Ground on Seniority Policies

by Rob Manwaring

The back and forth in the last couple of weeks over seniority layoff policies goes something like this. When districts are forced to lay off teachers based on seniority policies, those layoffs happen disproportionately at schools serving low income students. Research has shown that high rates of teacher turnover impacts the achievement levels at schools. This results in a civil rights issue because of the disproportionate impact that these policies have on the most disadvantaged students. (SeeNational Journal discussion and new CRPE report for more details on the debate and research).
On the other side, the best argument seems to be that districts do not have good teacher evaluation systems,

A Middle Ground on Seniority Policies � The Quick and the Ed

A Middle Ground on Seniority Policies � The Quick and the Ed

A Middle Ground on Seniority Policies

by Rob Manwaring

The back and forth in the last couple of weeks over seniority layoff policies goes something like this. When districts are forced to lay off teachers based on seniority policies, those layoffs happen disproportionately at schools serving low income students. Research has shown that high rates of teacher turnover impacts the achievement levels at schools. This results in a civil rights issue because of the disproportionate impact that these policies have on the most disadvantaged students. (SeeNational Journal discussion and new CRPE report for more details on the debate and research).
On the other side, the best argument seems to be that districts do not have good teacher evaluation systems, and until such evaluation systems are in place, any policy for teacher layoffs other than based on seniority would end up being arbitrary and could actually discriminate against veteran teachers because they are more expensive. In the long run, clearly districts need to improve the quality of their teacher evaluation systems for a lot of reasons including this one. Then the debate devolves into a fight over what are the right measures for an evaluation system. Over the next couple of years, we will learn a lot about measuring the effectiveness of

Still guessing at size of state cuts, city grows closer to layoffs | GothamSchools

Still guessing at size of state cuts, city grows closer to layoffs | GothamSchools

Still guessing at size of state cuts, city grows closer to layoffs

by Maura Walz

With the clock ticking down toward probable layoffs, school officials say the fiscal picture hasn’t grown clearer in the last month.
Department of Education officials are still aiming to give principals their preliminary school budgets on June 1, Chancellor Joel Klein told City Council today. “That said, things in Albany are changing each day and our situation remains fluid,” said DOE spokeswoman Ann Forte.
As they decide exactly when to release school budgets, officials are seeking to strike a delicate balance. Principals need enough time to plan how to work large cuts into their budgets. But officials are also hesitant to pull the trigger on announcing exact cuts and layoffs too early, for fear of having to retrace their steps if a state budget follows soon thereafter.
City officials are currently anticipating that, unless Albany passes a less austere budget than the governor’s current proposal, the city schools will lose as many as 6,400 teacher positions — 4,400 of them through layoffs — and schools will face cuts that are much larger than the 4.9 percent reductions they saw this year.

Primers for Congressional Hearings on the Reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act | Alliance for Excellent Education

Primers for Congressional Hearings on the Reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act | Alliance for Excellent Education

Primers For Congressional Hearings On The Reauthorization Of The Elementary And Secondary Education Act

In the weeks since the Obama administration released its blueprint for revising ESEA on March 13, the U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee and the U.S. House Education and Labor Committee have held multiple hearings on the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, currently known as No Child Left Behind. The Alliance for Excellent Education has prepared primers for each hearing that contain useful facts, flaws in current law, and recommendations for how to improve federal policy on the subject featured in each hearing.

WaPo’s Strauss fact checks the NY Times Mag and Brill’s “last stand.” � Fred Klonsky's blog

WaPo’s Strauss fact checks the NY Times Mag and Brill’s “last stand.” � Fred Klonsky's blog

WaPo’s Strauss fact checks the NY Times Mag and Brill’s “last stand.”

by preaprez

The Reformers (“Reformers,” the “de-reformers,” the “so-called reformers”) went all dewy-eyed over Steven Brill’s less than brilliant anti-union hackery in Sunday’s NY Times Magazine.
But the ever-vigilant Washington Post Answer Sheet columnist, Valerie Strauss was fact checking. Gosh. A reporter doing fact checking. A hell of a concept.

The truth may not be as compelling, but it has the virtue of being, well, true. Some charter schools are excellent and work wonders with kids. Some do an average job, and some are awful. There is no evidence that charter schools are

CHARTER SCHOOL SCANDALS: Albuquerque charter schools

CHARTER SCHOOL SCANDALS: Albuquerque charter schools

Albuquerque charter schools

by The Perimeter Primate

Most recent story posted first.
APS Questions Charter School Superintendent Salary: APS Raises More Questions About Charter Schools (KOAT.com, March 11, 2010)

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. -- The Albuquerque Public School district is questioning why a charter school superintendent makes more money than the mayor of Albuquerque.
Scott Glasrud oversees three charter schools, Southwest Primary, La Luz Del Monte and Southwest Secondary.
According to reports, he oversees slightly fewer than 500 students and gets paid $204,000 per year.
Winston Brooks, superintendent of the Albuquerque Public School district, supervises 94,000 students and makes $256,000 per year.
"I think a $204,000 salary for 500 kids is absolutely outrageous," said Marty Esquivel, president of APS school board.
Esquivel said this raises questions about accountability in the charter school system and

Qoobole! | The Latino Social Network

Qoobole! | The Latino Social Network

Qoobole! unites, empowers & represents Latino culture & community!

Welcome to Qoobole!, the social media portal that connects the Latino community to organizations, programs and causes.

Grand Opening of the Parent Resource Center Education News & Comment

Education News & Comment

Superintendent Jonathan P. Raymond

Invites you to attend the

Grand Opening of the Parent Resource Center

Sacramento City Unified School District Parent Resource Center Grand Opening

Race to Top Uber Analyst Smarick Bolts for NJ - Politics K-12 - Education Week

Race to Top Uber Analyst Smarick Bolts for NJ - Politics K-12 - Education Week

Race to Top Uber Analyst Smarick Bolts for NJ

by Michele McNeil

Andy Smarick, the Fordham Fellow who perhaps knows as much about the Race to the Top competition as the folks at the U.S. Department of Education, will have to leave his wonky federal analysis, insights, and general blogginess behind when he takes on a new job as deputy education commissioner in New Jersey.
He'll work as the lone deputy under Commissioner Bret Schundler, who was a controversial pick for newly elected Republican Gov. Christopher Christie.
Smarick officially starts his new role sometime this summer, probably in early August (although if New Jersey were wise, it would tap his expertise as it puts the finishing touches on its Round 2 Race to the Top application, due June 1).
So what prompted Smarick's change from an inside-the-Beltway wonk to state government bureaucrat?
"In my lifetime there hasn't been a more exciting time to work for a state in education reform," he told me this afternoon.
Smarick, a former education department official under President George W. Bush, has cemented his role in the D.C. education wonk world with his writings on Race to the Top and turning around low-performing schools. He's been quoted in the Baltimore Sun, New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, and, yes, frequently in EdWeekand on this blog.

NEA Organizes EduJobs Call-In Blitz for Wednesday | Intercepts

NEA Organizes EduJobs Call-In Blitz for Wednesday | Intercepts

NEA Organizes EduJobs Call-In Blitz for Wednesday

by Mike Antonucci

Click here to read:
1) NEA Organizes EduJobs Call-In Blitz for Wednesday
2) Do Early Retirements Actually Save Money?
3) Minnesota Teachers to Receive Pay to Write College Recommendations for Students
4) Cure for Union Apathy: Contested Elections
5) New York Judges Court Teachers’ Union
6) Florida Education Association Endorses Crist and Meek
7) Scheduling Note
8) Last Week’s Intercepts
9) Quote of the Week

New York City’s Antiquated Seniority Rules Hurt Children Most - The Daily Beast

New York City’s Antiquated Seniority Rules Hurt Children Most - The Daily Beast

We’re Firing the Wrong Teachers

by Joel Klein

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Julie Jacobson / AP PhotoThousands of New York City’s strongest teachers are in danger of losing their jobs—with no consideration given to their talent, only how long they’ve been teaching. And the real losers will be children, says Schools Chancellor Joel Klein.

When the principal at P.S. 40 in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, talks about the impact on students of one of her best teachers, Malvola Lewis, her eyes fill with tears.

After growing up in homeless shelters, Lewis earned an education degree from Brooklyn College and returned to her old neighborhood to teach at P.S. 40, a historically hard-to-staff school. Now she’s one of the school’s strongest teachers; her students are making more progress than almost any other class in the school.