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Monday, August 2, 2010

Critics want full accounting of state math and reading exam debacle; commissioner wants to move on

Critics want full accounting of state math and reading exam debacle; commissioner wants to move on

Critics want full accounting of state math and reading exam debacle; commissioner wants to move on

BY RACHEL MONAHAN
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

Monday, August 2nd 2010, 4:00 AM

Education reform advocates want an inquiry into state education exams that were too easy for students to pass, and therefore gave an inaccurate measure of their educational achievement.
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Education reform advocates want an inquiry into state education exams that were too easy for students to pass, and therefore gave an inaccurate measure of their educational achievement.

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The state should investigate the school test mess, and heads should roll, outraged education reform advocates say.

But the new state education boss wants to move on - saying there's no point in finger-pointing over abysmal reading and math scores released last week for third- through eighth-graders.

"We all bear responsibility for the past," said Commissioner David Steiner. "Rather than go back...and try the impossible 'blame game,' what's crucial is to say, 'We need tests that test effectively.'"

Longtime critics of the state tests were less ready to forget past mistakes.

"If all these things are so bollixed up, why is the state's testing director still on the payroll?" said the Manhattan Institute's Sol Stern, a longtime education advocate. "There



Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/education/2010/08/02/2010-08-02_critics_howling_in_ed_test_mess.html?r=ny_local/education#ixzz0vRzDJ6tk
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Quick Takes: SEC Questions Source of Funds for $10M Gift to Michigan - Inside Higher Ed

Quick Takes: SEC Questions Source of Funds for $10M Gift to Michigan - Inside Higher Ed

SEC Questions Source of Funds for $10M Gift to Michigan The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has brought civil charges against Samuel Wyly and Charles Wyly, two brothers, for securities fraud. While the SEC is accusing them of hundreds of millions of dollars in gains through insider trading, one ...
Are UT Southwestern Faculty Failing to Oversee Residents? Some University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center faculty members have been letting medical residents operate at a public hospital with less supervision and training than is standard and generally seen as necessary, *The Dallas Morning News* ...
A Tough Transition at Medgar Evers William Pollard is drawing mixed reviews in his first year as president of Medgar Evers College. *The New York Times* reported that some faculty members and leaders of the City University of New York praise his efforts, but some of his changes are ...
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On Education - A School District That Takes the Isolation Out of Autism - NYTimes.com

On Education - A School District That Takes the Isolation Out of Autism - NYTimes.com

A School District That Takes the Isolation Out of Autism


Andy Manis for The New York Times
Garner Moss, far right, with his cross-country teammates in Madison, Wis. He is not the fastest member of the team. But he does have his own style.

By MICHAEL WINERIP

Published: August 1, 2010

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Andy Manis for The New York Times
‘After third grade there, I told my husband, Garner would go nowhere in life and the family would fall apart. We had to leave.’ Beth Moss, on why the family moved from Tennessee to Madison.
MADISON, Wis. — Garner Moss has autism and when he was finishing fifth grade, his classmates made a video about him, so the new students he would meet in the bigger middle school would know what to expect. His friend Sef Vankan summed up Garner this way: “He puts a little twist in our lives we don’t usually have without him.”
People with autism are often socially isolated, but the Madison public schools are nationally known for including children with disabilities in regular classes. Now, as a high school junior, Garner, 17, has added his little twist to many lives.
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The Educated Guess � A smarter way to divvy up turnaround money

The Educated Guess � A smarter way to divvy up turnaround money

A smarter way to divvy up turnaround money

Posted in State Board of Education, Turning around failing schools
Doug McRae has a sharp eye and a rational mind. A retired vice president in the publishing division of McGraw-Hill who follows state education policy closely, McRae saw the state’s peculiar recommendations for distributing $316 million in federal money this fall for turning around the worst performing schools and thought, There’s got to be a better way.
So McRae spent a good part of Saturday and Sunday creating a new formula for dividing up School Improvement Grant dollars that strikes me as fair and sound. Instead of giving huge sums – up to $6 million — indiscriminately, for the most part, to 63 schools and goose eggs to a dozen schools in Los Angeles Unified and 18 other schools, he’s come up with a set of reasonable criteria that school districts – even those that would get less than they had hoped – would have a hard time disputing.
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By John Fensterwald on August 2nd, 2010

LAUSD,Oakland may not get turnaround grants

Posted in State Board of Education, Turning around failing schools
Food-fight alert: Los Angeles, Oakland and Stockton unifieds are among the school districts that would get not a penny to turn around their lowest-performing schools, while most other districts – San Francisco, Fresno and San Bernadino among them – would get all or nearly full funding for all of their schools on the 113-school list.
The state Department of Education posted its recommendations late Friday (question that timing) – for the State Board of Education, which has final say over the funding, to consider on Monday. Big money is at stake – between $150,000 to $6 million per school over three years so, expect the losers to complain loudly at the meeting (if officials are not on vacation and are alerted to show up) about the method that the state and the federal Department of Education chose.
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By John Fensterwald on July 31st, 2010

Common core – a commissioner’s dissent

Posted in Common Core standards
Yesterday, I recommended that the State Board of Education on Monday approve the recommendation of the majority of the California State Academic Standards Commission to approve the common-core standards. Ze’ev Wurman was one of two commissioners to vote against the standards. He has asked for one last chance to explain why.

By Ze’ev Wurman
Commissioner, California State Academic Standards Commission
A journalist has the same right to misinterpret motives as anyone else, so I will not enter into argument with John on that (smile). But I will describe the dilemma that the Academic Content Standards Commission (ACSC) faced in a different way. This being a Silicon Valley forum, I will use a few simple engineering terms.
The legislature asked the ACSC to examine if using 100% of Common Core plus limited (up to 15%) supplementation will be able to “Ensure that the rigor of the state’s reading, writing, and mathematics academic content standards, curricula, and assessments is maintained” (SB5X 1). The Governor, State Board of Education president, and Superintendent of Public Instruction, also charged us to verify that they “meet or exceed our own” (May 2009 letter).
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California and Utah only states actively shortening school year | California Watch

California and Utah only states actively shortening school year | California Watch

California and Utah only states actively shortening school year

by Louis Freedberg
California and Utah are the only two states actively allowing schools to cut classroom time from their instructional calendars.
They join about a dozen other states that allow districts to offer a 175-day school year. More than 30 other states require a minimum of 180 days.
Last year, Hawaii slashed its school year to 163 days in dramatic response to its budget crisis. But the move triggered such fierce backlash that the Hawaii Legislature voted in June to undo the move and restore the school year to 178 days in the coming school year, and to 180 in 2011-12, using hurricane relief funds and interest-free
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Venture Philanthropy gives $5.5 million for expansion of KIPP DC charter schools

Venture Philanthropy gives $5.5 million for expansion of KIPP DC charter schools

Venture Philanthropy gives $5.5 million for expansion of KIPP DC charter schools



Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, August 2, 2010

It's another sign of private money shaking up public education in the District: A $5.5 million gift will dramatically help expand a network of high-performing charter schools in the city, with a goal of more than doubling the number of students enrolled by 2015.
The grant by Venture Philanthropy Partners, a nonprofit organization using the principles of venture-capital investment to help children from low-income families in the Washington region, will fund Knowledge Is Power Program (KIPP) schools. The grant is to be announced Monday.
"VPP recognized our ability to impact not just the students we have, but the students throughout D.C.," said Allison Fansler, president and chief operating officer of KIPP DC. "We want to set a high bar for what's possible."
Private funding has been crucial to D.C. schools, said Andrew Rotherham of the national nonprofit group Bellwether Education Partners. "If you

Interviews are regaining a foothold in college admissions process

by Daniel de Vise
WILLIAMSBURG -- Lucy King's passion for the trombone was too big to fit on a college application. So she traveled to the College of William and Mary last month to tell someone about it in person.

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Rise & Shine: Critics call for investigation of inflated test scores | GothamSchools

Rise & Shine: Critics call for investigation of inflated test scores | GothamSchools

Rise & Shine: Critics call for investigation of inflated test scores

by Maura Walz
Test score fallout:
  • New state test scores widened the gap between the city’s highest and lowest performing schools. (WSJ)
  • Principals worry what this year’s low pass rates on state tests will mean for their schools. (Times)
  • Statewide, charter schools’ scores fell farthest, but city charters still outperformed district schools. (WSJ)
  • Schools in Queens out-performed those in other boroughs on the state tests. (Daily News)
  • Critics call for an investigation into inflated scores, but state ed officials want to move on. (Daily News)
  • Diane Ravitch writes that the chances city and state officials will be held accountable are ”not promising.”
  • The Daily News: charges that the test scores show city schools have made no progress are “bogus.”
  • The Post says city students have made big gains since before the mayor took over the schools.
And in other news:
  • A homeless Bedford Academy student won a full college scholarship. (Daily News)
  • Massachusetts data links academic performance to how often students switch schools. (Boston Globe)
  • KIPP charter schools in D.C. aim to double their enrollment using a $5 mill. donation. (Washington Post)
  • Madison, Wisc. schools are nationally known for including students with autism into most classes. (Times)
  • Sally Ride, the first woman in space, has launched a science training program for teachers. (USA Today)
  • The textbook publishing market is changing as more states allow open-source texts. (Times)
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Public Waldorf schools booming in Sacramento -- but are they legal? - Sacramento News - Local and Breaking Sacramento News | Sacramento Bee

Public Waldorf schools booming in Sacramento -- but are they legal? - Sacramento News - Local and Breaking Sacramento News | Sacramento Bee

Public Waldorf schools booming in Sacramento -- but are they legal?

By Melody Gutierrez
mgutierrez@sacbee.com
Published: Monday, Aug. 2, 2010 - 12:00 am | Page 1B
Sacramento is the epicenter of the debate over whether the Waldorf system – whose educational philosophy goes back 100 years – is appropriate for a public school.
Parent interest in Waldorf schools is exploding, with a wait-listed K-8 school in south Sacramento moving to a larger site this summer.
Sacramento City Unified School District officials say they recognize the growing interest in Waldorf-inspired education, which is primarily offered at private schools.
The district opened a second Waldorf – a small
Read more: http://www.sacbee.com/2010/08/02/2929597/public-waldorf-schools-booming.html#ixzz0vRtOXxjQ


Public's help sought in protecting spruced-up schools from vandals
By Cathy Locke - Updated: 10:57 am
Six Sacramento City Unified School District campuses, dubbed Superintendent's Priority Schools, are undergoing face-lifts this summer, and district officials seek the community's help in protecting them from vandalism.
    U.S. vows to block California's sale of EdFund
    By Kevin Yamamura - Published: Saturday, July 31 2010 - 12:00 am
    In these dismal economic times, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has likened selling state assets to holding a garage sale to pay bills.
      CSU campuses to accept applications for spring admission
      By Laurel Rosenhall - Updated: 10:54 am
      California State University campuses will begin accepting applications for next spring on Sunday, though whether they enroll any students depends on the final state budget that lawmakers approve.
        Latino group offers master's scholarships
        By Laurel Rosenhall - Updated: 11:05 am
        Members of the Sacramento Hispanic Chamber of Commerce can apply for a scholarship to get a master's degree at Drexel University's center in downtown Sacramento.


        Read more: http://www.sacbee.com/education/#ixzz0vRtcPNV1
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        Sunday, August 1, 2010

        Cambridge to consider student immigrant resolution - Boston.com

        Cambridge to consider student immigrant resolution - Boston.com

        Cambridge to consider student immigrant resolution


        August 1, 2010
        Text size – +
        CAMBRIDGE, Mass.—Cambridge city councilors are scheduled to vote on a resolution calling for passage of federal legislation that would give illegal immigrant students a path to citizenship if they join the military or finish college.
        Christopher Hope, a member of the Cambridge Human Rights Commission and author of the resolution, said councilors are slated Monday to consider the resolution.
        The federal proposal, also known as the DREAM Act, would allow young undocumented immigrants to qualify for permanent



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