Beyond Superman: Leading Responsible School Reform | eSchoolNews.com

Beyond Superman: Leading Responsible School Reform | eSchoolNews.com

Beyond Superman: Leading Responsible School Reform

The challenges facing public education today require multifaceted solutions that involve all stakeholders working together—not shallow responses or agenda-driven reformers with superhero aspirations. At eSchool News Online, we’ve created this platform to help school and community leaders explore real, effective strategies for moving education forward in the 21st century.

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Students, ed-tech company form extraordinary partnership »

The educational search-engine firm netTrekker Inc. is part of a new initiative at one Ohio high school not only to spur community support for education, but also to help kids...

November 12 2010 / No comment / Read More »

News

More public schools trying single-sex education »

Single-sex education appears to be making a comeback, but with a new twist: A small but growing number of traditional public schools are experimenting with separate instruction for boys and girls to help meet each...

November 19 2010 / Read More »

New effort aims to turn teacher education ‘upside down’ »

Eight states are beginning a national pilot program to transform teacher education and preparation to emphasize far more in-field, intensive training—as is common practice in medical schools....

November 19 2010 / Read More »

With divided Congress, school reform faces a tough road ahead »

The Obama administration has pushed an ambitious education agenda in the last two years, sending $100 billion to states thorough the stimulus package and spurring reform in many locations through the Race to the Top...

November 17 2010 / Read More »

Opinion

Superman‘ doesn’t fly" class="alignleft" style="border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; margin-top: 5px; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; float: left; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; ">

Opinion: This ‘Superman‘ doesn’t fly »

As a strong supporter of American public education, I don’t know what’s more depressing: that the film Waiting for ‘Superman’ is so bad, or that so many critics have heaped such high praise upon it....

November 8 2010 / Read More »

Superman the conversation we need?" class="alignleft" style="border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; margin-top: 5px; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; float: left; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; ">

Viewpoint: Is Superman the conversation we need? »

It’s hard to look away from the small, vulnerable faces of the children whose educational odysseys are highlighted in the movie Waiting for Superman. It’s hard not to sympathize with the fiercely protective, yet politically...

November 4 2010 / Read More »

Putting our ideas of assessment to the test »

Here’s a pop quiz: What are the skills that today’s students will need to be successful in tomorrow’s workplace? The answer to this question has enormous implications for the future of education, including what we...

September 27 2010 / Read More »

Outgoing NYC Schools Chief Klein: School Reform Momentum Will Continue | PBS NewsHour | Nov. 23, 2010 | PBS

Outgoing NYC Schools Chief Klein: School Reform Momentum Will Continue | PBS NewsHour | Nov. 23, 2010 | PBS

Outgoing NYC Schools Chief Klein: School Reform Momentum Will Continue

SUMMARY

Jeffrey Brown speaks with Joel Klein, outgoing chancellor of New York City Schools, about his sometimes-controversial eight-year tenure and what will become of the national school reform movement with several high-profile departures.

Transcript

JIM LEHRER: Now: the man who has led the New York City schools and the national debate over education reform. Jeffrey Brown has our interview.

JEFFREY BROWN: Joel Klein took over as chancellor of the nation's large

One of every five Texas charter schools has religious ties - JSOnline

One of every five Texas charter schools has religious ties - JSOnline

One of every five Texas charter schools has religious ties

By Amy Hetzner of the Journal Sentinel

Nov. 23, 2010 |(4) COMMENTS

The same day that the West Bend School Board voted against entering contract negotiations with a Baptist pastor to run a publicly funded charter school, The Dallas Morning News ran a story focusing on the large number of charter schools in Texas that used to be parochial schools or had other religious ties.

In addition to noting that more than 20% of Texas charter schools have some kind of religious ties, the story says that such church-charter partnerships are popping up around the country and blurring the lines between church and state.

"You have to wonder what the impetus is," Dan Quinn, a spokesman for Texas Freedom Network, is quoted as saying in the story. "What is the catalyst for becoming a charter because at that point they've abandoned the mission of being a religious institution?"

The Answer Sheet - The mismatch between Duncan's words, actions

The Answer Sheet - The mismatch between Duncan's words, actions

The mismatch between Duncan's words, actions

This was written by educator Anthony Cody, who taught science for 18 years in inner-city Oakland and who now works with a team of science teacher-coaches that supports novice teachers. He is a National Board-certified teacher and an active member of the Teacher Leaders Network. This post, which appears on his Teachers Magazine blog, Living in Dialogue, refers to Monday's Day of National Blogging for Real Education Reform, in which scores of educators from around the country shared their perspectives. Education Secretary Arne Duncan blogged too, and here is how Cody responded to Duncan: Secretary Duncan, You may recall we spoke on the phone last May when I was part of a group called Teachers' Letters to Obama that organized ourselves to share our concerns and ideas with your administration. Unfortunately we never heard back from you (as I describe here).

NYC Public School Parents: Conflict of Interest? That's for the Little People

NYC Public School Parents: Conflict of Interest? That's for the Little People

Conflict of Interest? That's for the Little People

by Paola de Kock

All pretense aside, Cathie Black's qualifications for the Chancellor's job boil down to the fact that she's a friend of Mike. He wants her real bad. No one else will do. So it's perplexing to say the least that Commissioner Steiner should stack his advisory panel with people whose professional and/or personal connections with Mike or his twin Joel render suspect their ability to voice an independent opinion on Ms. Black. But if there was a plan, it backfired--no waiver from that panel, at least not now. The bad publicity ("the fix is in" was pretty much the consensus) may well have stiffened some members' resolve to at least avoid embarrassment (I'd like to see a serious academic defend the notion that tireless selling of Cosmopolitan,Seventeen, House Beautiful, vel sim. is the "substantial equivalent" of a superintendent's license and a master's degree!). Still, I'm dumbfounded that Commissioner Steiner would pick the panel members without regard to well-established conflict-of-interest rules.

As a member of the Citywide Council of High Schools (CCHS), I can attest from my own experience--both in applying for the position and in seeking candidates for a more recent vacancy--that candidates for CECs and

Schools Matter: November's Education Hero: Superintendent Bill Mathews

Schools Matter: November's Education Hero: Superintendent Bill Mathews

November's Education Hero: Superintendent Bill Mathews

by Jim Horn

Here is something to go with your pumpkin pie. If you know of education heroes whose actions defy the corporatization of American schools, send me a link: ontogenyx@gmail.com:


This is from WaPo:

By Valerie Strauss

A number of school districts in states that won money in the Education Department's $4 billionRace to the Top competition have decided they don’t actually want the money because, in most cases, officials think it is more trouble to accept it.

In Ohio, which won $400 million in the Race sweepstakes, more than two dozen districts and

NJ Spotlight | Unique Bilingual Education Program Spreading Across New Jersey

NJ Spotlight | Unique Bilingual Education Program Spreading Across New Jersey

Unique Bilingual Education Program Spreading Across New Jersey

Dual-language system benefits both Spanish- and English-speaking students

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By Sarah Garland, November 24 in Education |Post a Comment

In Amanda Castaño’s classroom in a Long Branch public preschool, the four-year-olds get ready for reading circle with a song: "A leer, a leer, todos calladitos!" The native English speakers in the group join in as enthusiastically as the Spanish speakers, and when Castaño begins reading the story – in Spanish – the entire class is rapt.

Next door, the four-year-olds in Sean Kelly’s class raise their hands as he asks questions in English, including several students who started preschool as monolingual Spanish speakers. After a week, the two classes will switch places: Kelly’s students will go to Castaño’s room for a week of learning in Spanish, and Castaño’s students will join Kelly for a week in English.

Bilingual Experiment

The four-year-olds in both classes are part of an experiment in bilingual education in Long Branch preschools. This is the experiment’s second year, and school officials are pleasantly surprised at