Friday, November 26, 2010

Damn Good Education Daily

RTTT States Retaining Districts (Mostly)

scholasticadministrator.typepad.com - Unique Bilingual Education Program Spreading Across New Jersey Hechinger Report: In the Garden State, Long Branch joins Elizabeth, Perth Amboy and Plainfield as one of the fewer than 400 dual-lang...

alexanderrusso

Be wary of test score comparisons

ajc.com - By Walt Gardner In the debate over education reform, the charge guaranteed to get the attention of the media is that the U.S. is losing its economic hegemony. The evidence is rankings on tests of i...

teacherken

thankfulness = mindfulness = thankfulness

dailykos.com - Those who have read me for a long time know that I am shy, socially awkward, and extremely prone to depression. Any of these could cause me to nurse wounds, to wonder about my value, about why I e...

teacherken

For-Profit College Graduation Rate: 22 Percent

huffingtonpost.com - For-profit colleges graduated an average of 22 percent of their students in 2008, according to a new report from Education Trust.That average palls in comparison to bachelor's-seeking graduation ra...

EDPressSec

Does Miguel del Valle Watch Community?

nbcchicago.com - Community colleges have long had a reputation as places where academic careers go to die. Young people start out “taking some classes” at Kennedy-King or Wright, and the next time you see them, the...

Data, not race, prompts school's efforts | delawareonline.com | The News Journal

Data, not race, prompts school's efforts

DELAWARE VOICE • BY MARTHA SOMMERS • NOVEMBER 26, 2010

I am disappointed by the title and tone of your newspaper's article "Delaware schools: Race-based approach snarls plan for parental involvement" on Nov. 18.

Labeling Claymont Elementary's efforts a "race-based approach" is misleading.

The term "race-based" within the context of this article's title implies a negative connotation inconsistent with our focus. If race is such an issue, why does this article carefully identify the social worker of Claymont's Equity Team as "black" while the nurse on that same team is not identified as "white"? The nurse -- being me -- attended the meeting discussed by this article and was greatly encouraged by it.

Now in my 20th year of employment by the Brandywine School District, I am well acquainted with programs purposed for academic achievement, and I applaud principal Jim Grant for his support of Tuesday night's meeting.

The article states, "Leaders at a Brandywine School District elementary school hope to increase parental involvement and boost test scores by hosting meetings with parents based on race or ethnicity of their

Unions knocking on charter school doors | NJ.com

Unions knocking on charter school doors

Published: Friday, November 26, 2010, 6:27 AM

Star-Ledger Guest Columnist
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By Steve Gunn

It’s become obvious in recent years that charter schools, with their unique and innovative approach to student instruction, are a source of great promise for our nation’s troubled public education system.

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That’s why the recent decision by teachers at the Englewood on the Palisades Charter School to join the American Federation of Teachers is so frightening.

For years, our nation’s powerful school-employee unions, like the AFT and the National Education Association, opposed the very concept of charter schools and pressured state governments to cap their numbers or shut them down altogether.

They simply didn’t want the competition.

But now that charter schools are obviously here to stay

Orleans Parish School Board sues the state for right to evaluate charter school applications | NOLA.com

Orleans Parish School Board sues the state for right to evaluate charter school applications

Published: Friday, November 26, 2010, 8:50 AM Updated: Friday, November 26, 2010, 8:50 AM

Cindy Chang, The Times-Picayune
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The Orleans Parish School Board has filed suit against state education officials, seeking to be removed from its "academically in crisis" status and allowed to evaluate nine charter school applications that have been filed directly with the state.

Times-Picayune archiveOrleans Parish School Board officials have been mounting an intensive public relations effort to convince BESE and the public that the district is ready to take back at least some schools.

A hearing on the board's cease-and-desist request is scheduled for Nov. 30 in front of Orleans Civil District Court Judge Piper Griffin.

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In a sign of how important the district considers the issue, former U.S. Attorney Harry Rosenberg, now a partner at Phelps Dunbar, is its lead attorney.

If the lawsuit is successful, the nine charter school applications currently in process would not need to be restarted. Last week, the board decided that it would use the same recommendations the state is using to make decisions about the applications.

"Being that the district has the highest bond rating in the city and is ranked academically third in state and third in the rate of improvement, those applications should come before the Orleans Parish School Board," board President Woody Koppel said.

In addition to the Louisiana Department of Education and the state Board of Elementary and

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