A Key Part Of Common Core Isn't Working Out | The Daily Caller

A Key Part Of Common Core Isn't Working Out | The Daily Caller:

A Key Part Of Common Core Isn't Working Out 

 A key advantage of Common Core over earlier educational standards has failed to appear, according to a new assessment by The New York Times.

According to backers, Common Core was supposed to make it a lot easier to compare standardized test scores between participating states. Ohio, Illinois, and Massachusetts all administered Common Core tests created by the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC), a testing consortium that produces similar tests all member states.

But despite taking nearly identical tests, each state classified what a “passing” score was differently. So in Ohio, two-thirds of students “passed” despite having real scores that were lower than Massachusetts’, where only half of all students passed. The discrepancy occurred because Ohio bolstered its passing rate by simply declaring that students who scored in the “approached expectations” range were “proficient.”

Fudging is once again becoming a common part of standardized tests, the Times notes. In North Carolina and California (which aren’t PARCC members), officials engaged in some sleight of hand by lumping together students who passed their tests and those who came close to passing, increasing their own passage rates. The intent, it seems, is to avoid creating a public backlash by saying a state’s children aren’t academically up to snuff.

 

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The fudging inclination is worrisome for Common Core’s advocates. Prior to the standards’ creation, every state in the country set its own educational standards, measured by its own state-specific tests. Critics argued that this made it difficult or even impossible to compare school systems across state lines, meaning in turn that it was harder to tell which states were succeeding and which were failing at education. (RELATED: Nearly 1/6 Of New York Students Skip Common Core Tests)

By adopting the shared standards of Common Core, the hope was that expectations would be identical across the country, and that states would in turn use similar standardized tests that could be directly compared to one another. That way, it would take only a quick glance at test scores to determine whether New Jersey or New Mexico were outperforming the other on, say, 5th grade math.

“This was exactly the problem that a lot of policy makers and educators were trying to solve,” Karen Nussle of the pro-Common Core Collaborative for

Read more: http://dailycaller.com/2015/10/07/a-key-part-of-common-core-isnt-working-out/#ixzz3nzTGdT6q

Mayor Kevin Johnson rescinds request to delay City Council meeting for ESPN film | The Sacramento Bee

Mayor Kevin Johnson rescinds request to delay City Council meeting for ESPN film | The Sacramento Bee:

Mayor Kevin Johnson rescinds request to delay City Council meeting for ESPN film

Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson withdrew a request late Wednesday to postpone a City Council meeting later this month to accommodate the premiere of a documentary about the city’s fight to save the Kings.

Johnson’s office had asked that the Oct. 20 council meeting be moved to Oct. 22 because ESPN is scheduled to premiere its “Down in the Valley” film that night. The city is planning a series of public viewing events that night.

But after the plan was criticized by Councilman Steve Hansen, the mayor changed his mind.

“From the beginning, the mayor was absolutely clear that this was an all-for-one decision, meaning all of the council members needed to be in agreement in order to move the council meeting,” said Ben Sosenko, the mayor’s spokesman. “Since that’s not the case, the council meeting will stay as scheduled.”

Hansen called the idea to postpone the meeting “silly” and said it was “reflective of the priorities of some on the City Council.”

The move also would have affected the City Council’s looming vote on whether to raise the city’s minimum wage. That vote had tentatively been scheduled for Oct. 20.

It was unclear late Wednesday whether that vote will take place Oct. 20 or the following week. The Oct. 22 council date was considered problematic for the closely watched minimum wage vote because it would come during a less common Thursday night session.

The minimum wage vote had initially been set for next week. But that vote got pushed back a week, to Oct. 20, when the council didn’t have enough members to hold Tuesday’s meeting and take a preliminary step necessary to place the matter on the discussion calendar.

Meanwhile, behind-the-scenes maneuvering surrounding the issue continues.

A Sacramento business group wrote in a letter Tuesday to Johnson and the City Council that it wants the city to specifically exempt sit-down restaurants from the proposed minimum-wage increase if the council eliminates a broader service industry exemption.

Representatives of Region Restaurants, a newly formed business advocacy group, wrote in a letter that it supports a “total compensation” provision. Under that section, businesses such as restaurants and nail salons would be exempt from paying their employees the newMayor Kevin Johnson rescinds request to delay City Council meeting for ESPN film | The Sacramento Bee:

Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/news/local/news-columns-blogs/city-beat/article38146614.html#storylink=cpy

How a billionaire is trying to control Los Angeles public schools - The Washington Post

How a billionaire is trying to control Los Angeles public schools - The Washington Post:

How a billionaire is trying to control Los Angeles public schools

Eli Broad is a housing and insurance tycoon whose  California-based Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation has poured hundreds of millions into “transforming” K-12 urban education by training administrators and supporting charter schools, merit pay and other market-based reforms. And now, Broad wants to do even more, trying to lead a campaign to raise nearly half a billion dollars to open enough charter schools to enroll nearly half of the students in the country’s second-largest school district.

Broad, according to various reports, wants to open 260 new charter schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District over the next eight years — effectively doubling today’s number.

Whether the plan will ultimately be approved by the city’s officials is unclear, but the idea is clearly spelled out in a 44-page memo obtained by the Los Angeles Times. It names other foundations and wealthy philanthropists who could be involved, including the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation as well as the Hewlett and Annenberg foundations. Individuals include Tesla Motors’ Elon Musk and entertainment magnate David Geffen. (Note: The Broad Foundation has partly funded the Los Angeles Times’ new digital initiative to expand education coverage.)

Broad was one of the early members of what education historian and activist Diane Ravitch dubbed “The Billionaire Boys Club,” whose members, including Gates, have spent so much money on corporate school reform that private philanthropy has had a major effect on public policy. Broad has repeatedly championed charter schools — which are publicly funded schools that are privately run. Earlier this year his foundation suspended a program in which it gave annual $1 million awards to high-achieving traditional public urban school districts, but Broad is carrying on with a $250,000 Broad Prize for charter schools, which he says do a better job than traditional public schools in educating high-needs students who live in urban areas.

His memo cites three major charter operators —  Green Dot Public Schools, Alliance College-Ready Public Schools and KIPP Public Charter Schools — as having  seen “significant” gains by students. But it turns out that those results How a billionaire is trying to control Los Angeles public schools - The Washington Post:

Eli Broad and the End of Public Education as We Know It - CAPITAL & MAIN

Eli Broad and the End of Public Education as We Know It - CAPITAL & MAIN:

Eli Broad and the End of Public Education as We Know It

If there were still any doubt about Eli Broad’s desire to gut traditional public education, it has been erased by his much-discussed “Great Public Schools Now” initiative, a draft of whichLA Times reporter Howard Blume obtained last month.

Broad’s 44-page proposal outlines plans to replace half of LAUSD’s existing public schools with charter schools. “Such an effort will gather resources, help high-quality charters access facilities, develop a reliable pipeline of leadership and teaching talent, and replicate their success,” states the document. “If executed with fidelity, this plan will ensure that no Los Angeles student remains trapped in a low-performing school.”

According to the proposal, Broad wants to create 260 new “high-quality charter schools, generate 130,000 high-quality charter seats and reach 50 percent charter market share.”

(Actually, LAUSD has 151,000 kids in charters now: 281,000 out of 633,000 LAUSD students is 43 percent. This isn’t the only imprecision in the proposal.)

The estimated cost of this LAUSD transformation would be nearly half-a-billion dollars.

By his own account, Broad is the fourth-richest resident of Los Angeles, with $7 billion in wealth. So he could easily finance this proposal out of pocket and still pay his property taxes in Brentwood.

But that’s not the plan.

Instead, Broad is shaking the can to his fellow foundationeers and squillionaires. The Gates Foundation of Seattle has already given $29 million for charter schools, while the Walmart-backed Walton Foundation of Bentonville, Ark. has invested over $65 million.

Broad says he’s “creating a more supportive policy environment for charters.” He hopes that virtually overturning the LAUSD in Los Angeles will set a revolutionary example that will enable charter schools to sweep the nation. The private sector would partially regain the control of public education that it lost in the 19th century, whose market-driven schools were excoriated by Charles Dickens.

But modern charter schools are a lot better, right? Some studies show a marked improvement in charters’ performance compared to traditional public schools in areas like reading and math. Others, however, suggest that the average results are about the same.

LAUSD already has more charters than any other U.S. school district. But supply-side institutions are risky. According to a new report by the Center for Media and Democracy, 2,500 have failed between 2001 and 2013 — 43 in Los Angeles alone — stranding their students and teachers and sinking many millions of U.S. taxpayer dollars. Charter teachers, lacking union support, appear to burn out faster.

According to his autobiography, “The Art of Being Unreasonable,” Broad blames school problems on administration (his signature educational achievement is the Broad Superintendent Academy, whose graduates Eli Broad and the End of Public Education as We Know It - CAPITAL & MAIN:

Charter School Queen Eva Moskowitz Completely PWNED By The Hedge Clippers

Charter School Queen Eva Moskowitz Completely PWNED By The Hedge Clippers:

Charter School Queen Eva Moskowitz Completely PWNED By The Hedge Clippers

Charter school queen Eva Moskowitz sent out a brief ALL CAPS email yesterday evening telling reporters that she would be making an announcement this morning about her future “political plans” on the steps of NYC City Hall. It is widely expected that she will be announcing a quixotic (but, likely well-funded) run for mayor against incumbent Bill de Blasio on a MOAR charters platform. But before she could even make her big announcement, she’s already run into a big problem, our old friends the Hedge Clippers.

Behold the complete and total pwnage they have wrought, ye mighty Moskowitz, and despair:

Eminent Domains: Websites Eva Moskowitz May Want for Future “Political Plans” Have Been Seized by Hedge Clippers Activists

Multiple Websites Moskowitz Could Try to Use in the Future Now Redirect to a Damning Hedge Clippers Report Showing that Her Hedge Fund Donors and Board Members Harm the Very Communities of Color Success Academy Claims to Serve.

New York, NY— Call it a teachable moment for Eva Moskowitz and the hedge funds and board members financing her Success Academy charter school chain and attacks on Mayor de Blasio.

In advance of a press conference where Moskowitz is expected to discuss her “political plans,” the Hedge Clippers campaign has seized a number of websites she may try to use to promote her future endeavors. The following web domains now redirect to aHedge Clippers report that reveals the hypocritical and harmful practices of Moskowitz’s top hedge fund donors:

evaformayor.org ; evafornewyork.com ; evafornewyork.org ; evafornyc.com ;evafornyc.org ; evafornyc2017.com ; evafornyc2017.org ; evamoskowitz.org

Anyone who clicks on the links to those domains listed above is shown a report calledThe Double Standard of Success Academy. The report has two key findings: 1) Many of Success Academy’s hedge fund board members contribute to political causes that harm the population that Success claims to serve; 2) Success Academy’s hedge board members would never allow their own children to be subjected to the harsh disciplinary policies of the charter chain.

“Every New Yorker needs to know that the hedge funds backing Eva Moskowitz are actively harming the very communities and students that she claims to serve. At 

Charter School Queen Eva Moskowitz Completely PWNED By The Hedge Clippers:

With A Brooklyn Accent: Some Historical Ironies Regarding Elite Support for Charter Schools in New York City

With A Brooklyn Accent: Some Historical Ironies Regarding Elite Support for Charter Schools in New York City:

Some Historical Ironies Regarding Elite Support for Charter Schools in New York City

One of the main reasons why many parents in low and moderate income communities send their children to charter schools- in spite of the scripting, intimidation, and rigid discipline many feature - is that most of these schools keep children from 7 AM to 7 PM. This is a huge boon to working parents, especially those who work more than one job to make ends meet. Neighborhood public schools who do not have fully funded after school programs cannot compete. Parents in the city's poorer communities need schools to be child care centers as well as centers of instruction. In New York City, charter schools provide this more effectively than public schools. And they are able to do this because they force teachers to work far longer hours than public school teachers for the same pay.

What is ironic about this situation, given the enthusiastic Hedge Fund and Celebrity support for charter schools, is that ALL New York City public schools once provided excellent after school programs for the city's children. From the late 1940's through the Fiscal Crisis of the late 1970's, every New York City public school was open 3-5 and 7-9 for supervised activity. These after school centers and night centers were beacons of hope and activity for New York City children as well as places to escape the gangs and violent streets you had in some neighborhoods. They featured sports programs, arts and crafts, music and talent shows. World famous athletes and musicians, some of them living in the city's poorest neighborhoods, were products of these programs

What happened?. In 1976, when New York City was put into receivership to avoid bankruptcy, with fiscal decisions make by a banker controlled Emergency Financial Control Board, huge cuts were mandated in the city's educatiom budget Within a year, ALL of the great after school centers and night centers in the With A Brooklyn Accent: Some Historical Ironies Regarding Elite Support for Charter Schools in New York City:

Diane Ravitch calls out charter-school nonsense: “Let her bring the hedge fund billionaires and her secret sauce to save all the children” - Salon.com

Diane Ravitch calls out charter-school nonsense: “Let her bring the hedge fund billionaires and her secret sauce to save all the children” - Salon.com:

Diane Ravitch calls out charter-school nonsense: “Let her bring the hedge fund billionaires and her secret sauce to save all the children”

Salon exclusive: "This is a well-funded, professionally orchestrated demonstration of support for privatization"

It is a school day in New York City. Across the city, over one million children are in class.

But not the children of Eva Moskowitz’s Success Academy charter schools! They (and possibly some allied charters) are holding a mass rally at Cadman Plaza Park in Brooklyn, preceding a march across the Brooklyn Bridge to City Hall. Thousands of children and parents are at the rally. The park is lined with rented buses. As the children and their parents step off the buses, an adult hands them a hand-lettered sign to carry, demanding more support for charter schools.

There are multiple buses for recording, audio, and video services. This is a well-funded, professionally orchestrated demonstration of support for privatization. If public schools closed for a political rally, their principals would be fired.

The children and parents are all wearing identical red tee-shirts, with the slogan “Dont Steal Possible.” This slogan works nicely in suggesting that someone is trying to close down charter schools, and this imminent threat to their survival must be stopped.

In fact, as is typical with reformer slogans, the opposite is true. Eva and her billionaire hedge fund backers get whatever they want from Governor Andrew Cuomo and the state legislature. And they aim to “steal” space and resources from the beleaguered public schools. They merrily “steal possible” from children with disabilities, children who are English language learners, and children who are homeless, none of whom are wanted by Eva’s Success Academies because they might not get high scores.

The theme of the day is “equality for all children.” A large banner across the top of the speakers’ podium says. “We Fight for Equality.” This is ironic since the typical complaint about charter co-locations is that the charters have more resources, the charters get whatever they want, the charters create “separate but equal” schools within the same building.

It is also ironic that children and parents are rallying for “more charters,” because they are already enrolled in a charter. The children can attend only one charter, Diane Ravitch calls out charter-school nonsense: “Let her bring the hedge fund billionaires and her secret sauce to save all the children” - Salon.com:

‘Bring Your Bible To School Day’ Message From Folsom School District Causes Confusion « CBS Sacramento

‘Bring Your Bible To School Day’ Message From Folsom School District Causes Confusion « CBS Sacramento:

‘Bring Your Bible To School Day’ Message From Folsom School District Causes Confusion

October 7, 2015 10:50 PM

FOLSOM (CBS13) — A flyer promoting a nationwide “Bring Your Bible To School Day” that was sent to thousands of parents by a local school district raised confusion with parents and students.

Plenty of parents and students thought the Folsom Cordova Unified School District was sponsoring a religious event, even though the fine print said otherwise.

“We’ve received a few calls from concerned families,” said district spokesman Daniel Thigpen.

If you’re with the PTA or the parks and recreation department with the city, you can ask the school district to send out an email blast to parents about events going on.

A parent did just that for Bring Your Bible To School Day, and that’s where things got confusing.

Thigpen says the district allows most flyers to be emailed to parents through the district account, as long as they don’t promote violence or hate. It ran this flyer by lawyers, who said it was allowed.

“By prohibiting this outside group some of that access, that could have been discriminatory,” he said.

Teachers won’t be involved, but students are free to join in, as long as it doesn’t interrupt teaching.

The district says it will take a new look at its policy on what flyers it sends out through its email system to try and avoid confusion in the future.

“We want to make sure that we don’t create environments where students don’t feel welcome but we also want to make sure our students families and free speech rights are intact,” he said.‘Bring Your Bible To School Day’ Message From Folsom School District Causes Confusion « CBS Sacramento:

Eva Moskowitz will have tough time running for mayor - NY Daily News

Eva Moskowitz will have tough time running for mayor - NY Daily News:

Charter school big Eva Moskowitz may have to switch parties if she wants to run for mayor

Charter school phenom Eva Moskowitz would have to switch her party registration to run for mayor in 2017 because she is persona non grata to the city Democratic establishment.

Moskowitz has violated orthodoxy by building a non-union network, and attacking Bill de Blasio in bitter tone and terms along the way.

In a Democratic primary, the party’s liberal wing and labor would crush her. Her only hope of knocking off de Blasio requires jumping the Democratic ship.

Then, in a general election, the going would get tough.

Her strengths? She’s driven by missionary zeal. The kids in her schools post undeniably impressive test results. She’d have a message on education that is as focused as Rudy Giuliani had on crime.

De Blasio may be polling well among blacks and Latinos, but he’s struggling mightily among whites.

She can offer herself as a competent executive of a large organization — a selling point to voters who doubt de Blasio’s management chops.

Moskowitz could also command the support of the same wealthy donors who back Success, not to mention Bloombergian school reform offshoot groups, Families for Excellent Schools and Students First.

But that has a downside: In a city that leans really liberal, it’s one thing to be a self-made billionaire and philanthropist. It’s another to be seen as doing the bidding of a super-wealthy cabal of “hedge-fund reformers.”Eva Moskowitz will have tough time running for mayor - NY Daily News:

Stand Up for Public Education in LA’s Superintendent Search Process

Los Angeles Superintendent Search:

Stand Up for Public Education in LA’s Superintendent Search Process

This evening I received an email from my friend and fellow education activist Roberta Eidman. It started like this:

We can’t continue to sit back and watch LAUSD get swallowed up—school by school—by privatizers and charter CEOs. Finally, incompetent John Deasy was ousted; interim head Ramon Cortines wants to be out by year end. A search firm has been engaged.

Local education activists pushed long and hard to get the Board to incorporate community input into its criteria. It worked. Recruiters Hazard, Young & Attea released an online surveyfor anyone in the community to complete. It asks several straightforward questions about characteristics and so forth. But the most valuable section is the free form comments at the end.

Inspired, I filled out the survey and wrote the following in the comments section:

“I think the next superintendent should have a lot of experience as a teacher and an administrator. I would not want this person to be a business person or someone who has been trained at the Broad Superintendent Academy.

Education is not a business. It is a public institution which must not be privatized like so many other public institutions, services and resources have been in the neoliberal society we live in today.

I am very concerned about the billionaire- and corporate-funded “education reform” movement embraced by Republicans and Democrats alike. Race to the Top is no better than No Child Left Behind. This has created an emphasis on standardized testing to the detriment of any other type of instruction. This has also led to the proliferation of publicly funded, privately run charter schools that all the meta-analyses show do not perform any better than public schools.

There is nothing wrong with public schools and unionized teachers. In wealthy neighborhoods, the students perform excellently on standardized tests. Poor tests scores are a result of poverty not bad teachers. When kids do not have prenatal care, when they do not have good nutrition, when their parents don’t read to them at night, when they have to walk through gang infested neighborhoods—these factors are what makes it hard for kids to learn and perform well on tests.

I see nothing wrong with certain reforms like breaking up the school district into smaller districts. Often, it is large bureaucracies that create problems. I see nothing wrong with LAUSD affiliated charters, where the teachers are unionized and credentialed. My own son went to one of them. I see nothing wrong with pilot schools.

I do see something wrong with letting billionaires—who can get a 39% tax credit for investing in charter schools in a low income neighborhood thus doubling their money in seven years—have an outsized influence over education policy in this city. I think Eli Broad’s plan to turn Los Angeles Superintendent Search:

Washington State Legislature Inflicts a Triple Whammy on Low Income Students

State Legislature Inflicts a Triple Whammy on Low Income Students:

State Legislature Inflicts a Triple Whammy on Low Income Students

In previous articles, we explained that Washington State is facing a school construction crisis – with a need to build more than $50 billion in new public schools. In this article, we will look at the impact on a particular school district when the State legislature refuses to honor their constitutional obligation to build urgently needed schools. The school district we have chosen is the Highline School District. The impact on these students from the failure of our state legislature to build urgently needed schools has been devastating. We begin with a brief explanation of our State Constitution. 

In 1889, the drafters of our Washington State Constitution understood the importance of education to the future of our economy and the future of our democracy. They therefore made the funding of public schools the “paramount” or most important duty of the State legislature. These same wise people had seen how school districts in other states had turned into a system of “rich schools in rich communities and poor schools in poor communities.” They therefore added a second lesser known clause to our State Constitution calling for a “uniform system of public schools.” In recent Supreme Court rulings, the Court has criticized the legislature not only for failing to comply with the full funding of public schools, but also for relying on local levies – which are unconstitutional precisely because they lead to a system of rich schools that can pass local levies and school construction bonds versus poor school districts that cannot pass local levies and school construction bonds. 

All of which brings us to the subject of Highline High School. Highline High School is located south of Seattle - just 3 miles from Seatac Airport. It opened in 1924. So it is now about 91 years old and in need of replacement. As was reported in the local news lately, Highline High School now suffers from problems with rats, mold and a host of other health problems. It does not comply with the health code or the earthquake code. In the event of a major earthquake, most of its 1,300 students and their teachers would be killed or injured. 

Here is a sign posted on one of the doors at Highline High School:

Recognizing these problems, the Highline School Board attempted to pass a school construction bond to replace the high school in November 2014. When this was defeated, they put it back on the ballot for February 2015 – when it was defeated for a second time. No one opposed to the school bond argued that the high school was not in need of replacement. Instead, they argued that they could not afford it. This fact is supported by the OSPI Property Tax Report which shows that school related property taxes in the Highline School District more than double school related property taxes in the Seattle School District. ($5.66 per thousand versus $2.55 per thousand). This means that for a $400,000 home, the annual school related property tax in Highline is $2,264 versus only $1,020 in Seattle). This is on top of all the other property taxes that are also higher in the Highline School District. http://www.k12.wa.us/safs/PUB/LEV/1415/2010r.pdf

The cause of this huge and unfair difference in school related property taxes is that the Highline School District is a “bedroom” community without a lot of commercial property. Therefore, there is much less property to tax in Highline than there is in Seattle. As a consequence, the amount of property per student is much less in Highline than in Seattle. To be precise, according to OSPI report 1061, Seattle has a per State Legislature Inflicts a Triple Whammy on Low Income Students:

Paramount Charter School: A Chaotic “Free for All” That Cannot be Immediately Shut Down | deutsch29

Paramount Charter School: A Chaotic “Free for All” That Cannot be Immediately Shut Down | deutsch29:

Paramount Charter School: A Chaotic “Free for All” That Cannot be Immediately Shut Down

In August 2013, the Paramount Charter School submitted an impressive-reading, 344-page application to Broward County Public Schools (Florida). The school is run by an impressively-named nonprofit, The Advancement of Education In Scholars Corporation. The document reveals what would surely be a marvel of a school, one expecting to enroll 1,088 students in grades K-6 in its first year and anticipating 1,594 students in grades K through 8 in its fifth year.

Among its promises, the Paramount application included the following:

 Be a college preparatory school that provides an extended day with performing arts and sports and fitness program with enrichment classes along with single sex core classes.

 Provide learning opportunities for all students with an emphasis on low performing students and reading.

 Provide an environment that promotes each student‟s personal and intellectual growth along with a commitment to educational success.

 Educate students uniquely different from a traditional public school and establish bold new innovative ideas to change the way children are educated.

 Provide parents with sufficient information on whether their child is reading at grade level and whether the child gains at least a year‟s worth of learning for every year spent in the charter school.

The School’s education will encourage students to take intellectual risks in an atmosphere that is both challenging and supportive. With the careful guidance of experienced teachers, students will discover their individual passions while learning to value multiple perspectives and work with people who have diverse points of view.

At the School, students will be problem solvers: they will learn to evaluate what they hear, read, or see and in doing so they will take control of the 

Paramount Charter School: A Chaotic “Free for All” That Cannot be Immediately Shut Down | deutsch29:

The REAL Accountability Issue: Incompetent Leadership | Creative by Nature

The REAL Accountability Issue: Incompetent Leadership | Creative by Nature:

The REAL Accountability Issue: Incompetent Leadership

“Effective leaders in education apply strategies of democracy, they listen to and collaborate creatively with the people in their community. They engage and inspire others to take on leadership positions. They include all members of a community in the development of a shared vision and well-designed plan, grounded in research, unique to each school, adapting also to the individual needs of children.” ~Christopher Chase

In December, the U.S. Department of Education’s leadership will be handed over from Arne Duncan to John King, Jr. Most teachers and parents who have suffered under the Duncan administration are not expecting anything to change.

I’m not as pessimistic, I think progress and a radical shift in policy is possible. But it would have to begin with two fundamental changes:

First, President Obama and John King must do something that Sec. Duncan never did, look VERY closely at the actual research on effective education reforms, and see what that tells us.

They will find that a rigorous curriculum, strong leadership, data collection and higher standards are indeed part of the “recipe” of successful schools, and lead to improved academic learning, as can be measured by standardized tests. See: “The Essential Supports for School Improvement” – a landmark research study completed in The REAL Accountability Issue: Incompetent Leadership | Creative by Nature: