Thursday, March 25, 2010

Can States With Such Big Budget Woes Really Race to the Top? - Politics K-12 - Education Week

Can States With Such Big Budget Woes Really Race to the Top?

By Michele McNeil on March 25, 2010 5:31 PM | No Comments | No TrackBacks

With the Race to the Top winners expected to be announced "very soon," it seems particularly urgent to start thinking about what the winning states will actually do with all of their money. And whether it will do any good...

As I've blogged before, all of the states--except Pennsylvania--asked for more money in their RTT applications than what the Education Department had estimated as a top-of-the-line grant. Which brings up important questions about a state's capacity to deliver on its grand promises, with less money.

This question become even more critical when you look at the potential winners, and just how bad off their overall K-12 budgets are.

In researching an upcoming story about states having trouble meeting basic funding requirements to get their State Fiscal Stabilization Fund dollars, an eagle-eye education policy analyst pointed out something very interesting: the

Voices of Concerned Educators: Who Will Take A Stand? [Monise Seward] — The Jose Vilson

Voices of Concerned Educators: Who Will Take A Stand? [Monise Seward]

by MONISE on MARCH 25, 2010 · 0 COMMENTS

in LIFE

Jaime Escalante

A few weeks ago @billcelis, one of my Twitter friends (still trying to adjust to ‘follower’) posted an article about notable educator Jaime Escalante, the main character in ‘Stand and Deliver.’ I am sure that every educator has seen the movie at least once; I think my count is closer to ten. Anyway, here is alink to the article. Mr. Escalante is very ill; he has been battling cancer for some time now. I was saddened by his story for a number of reasons. First, it appears that he is really suffering and may be near the end of his life. His family is also having a difficult time covering his medical expenses. But I was truly saddened for selfish reasons.

When he is gone, who will take his place?

I don’t mean who will be the next Jaime Escalante, per se, but really, who will be the next educator, parent, politician, etc. to take that type of stand for our kids? After all, he fought to teach his students the higher-level math

Council Endorses School Tax Measure

By Lookout Staff

March 26, 2010 -- The City Council on Tuesday gave its support to Measure A, the $198-per-parcel tax expected to generate $5.7 million for the cash-strapped Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District (SMMUSD). The vote was 6-0. Council member Robert Holbrook did not attend the meeting.

Council members did not discuss the item. They heard from several advocates for the tax, including school district officials and activists.

Council member Gleam Davis said in a press release issued after the meeting, “We are fortunate to have excellent public schools, but state budget cuts will erode years of investment and improvement if we don’t pass Measure A and provide reliable local funding for education.”

The SMMUSD is facing a deficit of up to $14 million for the next school year. Its financial hole is mostly due to decreased revenue from Sacramento, the District’s largest financial

The Perimeter Primate

A very important collection of other-statistics

There’s too much talk about the academic attainment of places like Finland and Singapore in education babble these days. We need to forget the international comparisons about student test scores. Instead, Americans need to study the other indicators below, and deeply consider how they are reflective of our attitudes about our families and children. Is isn’t a pretty picture.

We need to stop getting distracted by comparing ourselves to the Joneses and start to deal with our own enormous mess. And we especially need to put an end to the fixation that people have on the supposed inadequacies of public school teachers.

So read up. Thar’s gold in them thar hills.

The figures are from the well-reviewed site NationMaster which are

Sacramento Press / RETIRE YOUR ATTIRE DRIVE HELPS REDUCE BARRIERS FOR VICTIMS OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

RETIRE YOUR ATTIRE DRIVE HELPS REDUCE BARRIERS FOR VICTIMS OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

On March 24th representatives from Nissan, WEAVE and Capital Public Radio met with key supporters of the 13th Annual Nissan Retire Your Attire Clothing Drive to accept donations of apparel for WEAVE’s Suited for Success program. During the 10 day drive Capitol staffers and elected officials donated thousands of suits, dresses, shirts, shoes and ties to be distributed to victims of domestic violence who are reentering the workforce and working to rebuild their lives.

Beth Hassett, Executive Director of WEAVE, was overwhelmed by the generosity of the Capitol community this year and by the support members have shown for domestic violence services. On March 25th the boxes of clothes will be transported from the Capitol building, local Nissan dealerships and Capital Public Radio to WEAVE’s Suited for Success program site. The clothing will be distributed over the year to men and women who seek services through the program.

Senator Christine Keohoe and Weave Executive Director, Beth Hassett

As ballots come in, a look at the teachers union elections | GothamSchools

As ballots come in, a look at the teachers union elections

from GothamSchools by Anna Phillips

Tonight, as members of New York City’s teachers union celebrate the union’s 50th anniversary with a line up of political and labor celebrities, some of their members will be sitting at home or in schools filling out ballots.
That’s because the United Federation of Teachers is in the midst of an election for its president and governing executive board, as well as hundreds of other positions. To outsiders and even some teachers, UFT elections are a little puzzling. This year, there have been no stump speeches, no public debates, and the only tangible evidence that candidates are campaigning is the fliers distributed in teachers’ school mailboxes and ads printed in the union’s newspaper.
The thousands of ballots counted on April 7 will decide the future leaders of America’s largest union local, and one of the most influential in the state. The UFT’s power to set education policy and craft pension deals in the city and statewide is so formidable, its former leader was once called “governor” in a newspaper editorial. And no matter how much the city detests the union’s policies, even Mayor Bloomberg admitted today that “they are part

Ravitch's Consistent Confusion :: Frederick M. Hess

Ravitch's Consistent Confusion

by Frederick M. Hess
National Review Online
March 25, 2010

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In her new book, The Death and Life of the Great American School System, eminent historian Diane Ravitch charges that accountability and school choice have been ineffective, destructive distractions from real school improvement. Given her longtime support for these ideas, her "turncoat" moment has raised quite a stir.

But the resulting debate has been plagued by confusion. Ravitch is no turncoat. Indeed, she is now making the same fundamental mistake, in reverse, that she made previously. Ravitch's stance reflects the misguided premise that chartering and accountability are best seen as ways to improve instruction — like a new curriculum or reading program — rather than ways to create the conditions under which sustained improvement is possible.

Indeed, Ravitch's mistake shines a light on the frailty of current Obama-administration reform efforts. There is a disturbing parallelism when one hears Ravitch or Secretary of Education Arne Duncan discuss merit pay, accountability, or charter schooling. Ravitch is disappointed because she thought accountability and charter schooling were supposed to make schools better, and now sees that they don't. Duncan promises that they willmake schools better. They're both missing the central point: These structural reforms are means, not ends. Choice and accountability can only make it easier to create schools and systems characterized by focus and coherence, where robust curricula, powerful pedagogy, and rich learning thrive.

A lack of choice forces educators to serve families with very different demands and varying responses to discipline simultaneously, making it difficult to establish common norms. A lack of autonomy makes it difficult for principals to assemble teachers who share expectations and instructional principles. Political turbulence

Eduflack: Firing Teachers ... or Improving Teaching?

Firing Teachers ... or Improving Teaching?

by Eduflack

In Rhode Island, they fired an entire high school of teachers because of poor student test scores and a perceived unwillingness to change. In Florida, the legislature is now moving forward with plans to eliminate job security for teachers, essentially putting them on year-to-year contracts. Center for American Progress researchers arewriting about the need to fire bad teachers if we are to improve public education. And officials at The New Teacher Project and Education Trust are calling for an end to last hired, first fired and an collective wave bu-bye to poor teachers in California.

And earlier this year, riding the wave of Race to the Top and the U.S. Department of Education's four education improvement pillars, even the American Federation of Teachers got into the discussion, advocating for greater adoption of teacher performance measures (albeit at a much less high-stakes way than CAP, TNTP, or EdTrust may call for).

Teacher quality is quickly become issue (and public enemy) number one in education reform debates. For decades now, we have said that teachers are the most important component to school success. You couldn't

Model SARBs Named - Year 2010 (CA Dept of Education)

State Schools Chief Jack O'Connell Announces
2010 Model Programs for Dropout Prevention

SACRAMENTO—State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell announced today that six school districts and one county office of education have been designated as Models of Dropout Prevention by the State School Attendance Review Board (State SARB).

"I am delighted to recognize educators and community members who are collaborating to help students who are at risk of dropping out." O'Connell said. "Due to our ongoing state budget crisis, we have fewer attendance supervisors, school nurses, counselors, school social workers, teachers, and administrators. But these excellent partnerships combine the expertise and resources of schools officials with members of the community to diagnose school attendance problems and recommend solutions.

"Effective SARBs include parents, law enforcement, county social workers, and community-based youth service workers who bring back students on the margins of the educational system and guide them back to regular school attendance. These SARBs are demonstrating moral leadership and expert collaboration critical to California's future," O'Connell said.

The State SARB is a panel appointed by the State Superintendent and established by the state Legislature to promote best practices in dropout prevention and statewide policy coordination. County SARBs consist of district representatives nominated by their school district boards and county members appointed by the county superintendent of schools. County SARBs may establish local SARBs and provide consultant services and coordination to local districts. Local SARBs consist of members appointed by local school districts to directly assist students in one district or a combination of districts.

Six school districts and one county office of education were selected for their exemplary SARB programs. This is the first year that a county SARB has been designated as a model SARB. The 2010 Models of Dropout Prevention are: Bellflower/Paramount Unified School Districts, El Dorado County Office of Education, Los Angeles Unified Local District 6, Montebello Unified School District, San Lorenzo Unified School District, and Twin Rivers Unified School District. The list of the model SARB programs and their contacts is attached below.

In selecting the model SARBs, the State SARB looked for excellence in specific content areas, including SARB chairperson leadership; prevention, early identification, and interventions; SARB collaboration; inventory of community resources; goals and objectives; program design and organizational structure; measuring and reporting outcomes; and interpersonal communication.

The districts and the county office recognized for their model dropout prevention programs retain their title through the 2011-12 school year and serve as mentors for other SARBs seeking to improve their programs. This year the model SARBs will be recognized on May 6 at the California Association of Supervisors of Child Welfare and Attendance (CASCWA) in Fresno.

The SARB process for dropout prevention was created by the Legislature more than 30 years ago to develop new ways of coordinating school, community, and home efforts to assist students with persistent school attendance or behavior problems that can lead to dropping out of school. For more information on the SARB process for dropout reduction, please visit the California Department of Education Web site at School Attendance Review Boards-Attendance Improvement at: School Attendance Review Boards - Attendance Improvement.

2010 Model SARB Programs

Bellflower/Paramount Unified School Districts (two districts that combine to form one SARB), Terry Gendreau and James Monico, SARB Chairpersons, Bellflower and Paramount, 562-866-9011 and 562-602-9011, Superintendent/Designee: Rick Kemppainen.
El Dorado County Office of Education, Carolyn Zachry, Ed.D., SARB Chairperson, Placerville, 530-295-2419, Superintendent/Designee: Vicki L. Barber, Ed.D.
Los Angeles Unified District, Local District 6, Velma D. Davis, SARB Chairperson, Cudahy, 323-560-4293, Superintendent/Designee: Dionne Ash.
Montebello Unified School District, Dr. Angel E. Gallardo, SARB Chairperson, Montebello, 323-887-7900, ext. 7924; Superintendent Designee: Robert Henke.
San Lorenzo Unified School District, Linda Freccero, SARB Chairperson, San Lorenzo, 510-317-4763, Superintendent/Designee: Ammar Saheli.
Twin Rivers Unified School District, Jane Claar and Tracey Wiltshire, SARB chairpersons, North Highlands, 916-566-1615, Superintendent/Designee: Frank S. Porter.

Diane Ravitch: No Child Left Behind, Reform Killing Public Education - US News and World Report

Diane Ravitch: No Child Left Behind, Reform Killing Public Education

By Kenneth Terrell

Posted March 25, 2010

In the spring of 1991, education scholar Diane Ravitch got a phone call from Education SecretaryLamar Alexander inviting her to lunch in Washington. He asked her to become an assistant secretary, and—excited by this high-profile opportunity—Ravitch accepted and stayed until 1993. Since then, as a writer and blogger, she has become known as an advocate of reform via school choice, charter schools, and accountability. But to the surprise of many, Ravitch now opposes those strategies in her book The Death and Life of the Great American School System: How Testing and Choice Are Undermining Education.Ravitch recently spoke with U.S. News about her new views. Excerpts:

Why have you changed your mind about the No Child Left Behind Act?

First of all, I was not an architect of No Child Left Behind, as some people seem to think. But along with about 90 percent of the House and the Senate, [I thought] it sounded like a good idea. Who wants to leave any child behind? So, yeah, I supported it with the hopes that it would lead to improvements. And I've concluded, based on the evidence, that it has not.

How has No Child Left Behind failed?

It has encouraged the states to dumb down the standards by saying that every state would have its own definition of proficiency, every state would use its own test, by setting a deadline of 2014—which is

SAFRA Passes Senate, Back to House � The Quick and the Ed

SAFRA Passes Senate, Back to House

The U.S. Senate just voted 56-43 to pass the combined health care/student loan reconciliation bill (PDF). The bill did, however, have two changes to it, which means it must now go back to the House for a final vote before the fixes are official. In case you having trouble understanding this process, think of it like this video. As expected, Sen. Ben Nelson (D-Neb.) voted against the bill and was joined by the two Democratic Senators, Mark Pryor and Blanche Lincoln. Georgia Republican Johnny Isakson did not vote.

Here are the two bill changes:

1) Limitation on decreases. Because Pell Grant increases will now be pegged to the consumer price index (CPI), the House-passed version of the legislation contained a provision saying that a negative change in the CPI would not lead to a decrease in the maximum award. The Senate Parliamentarian found that this change violated the rules of reconciliation and so was taken out. (It’s on page 118, lines 15 through 25 of this PDF.)

2) Redesignation of some paragraphs. Since the legislation makes changes to existing Pell statute, the letters associated with some paragraphs have to change (i.e. designate paragraph A as paragraph B). Throughout the constant revisions of

voiceofsandiego.org | - Live Reporting from the State of the School District

voiceofsandiego.org | News. Investigation. Analysis. Conversation. Intelligence. - Live Reporting from the State of the School District

Live Reporting from the State of the School District

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Posted: Wednesday, March 24, 2010 5:11 pm

I'll be live tweeting tonight from the State of the District Address given by San Diego Unified school board President Richard Barrera at Cherokee Point Elementary tonight. Want to follow it from afar? Check out my Twitter feed at http://www.twitter.com/emilyschoolsyou.

We'll also be featuring it on the VOSD front page.

-- EMILY ALPERT

White urges Perry to get state board to revisit social studies curriculum | Nation | New...

White urges Perry to get state board to revisit social studies curriculum

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Bill White on Tuesday said he wants Gov. Rick Perry to ask State Board of Education Chairwoman Gail Lowe to send the controversial social studies curriculum revisions back to the committees where the proposals started.

The board's work on the standards has brought national attention. Critics worry the changes will affect textbooks offered nationwide because of the volume of Texas' purchases.

The 15-member board is set to give final approval to the changes in May. They voted 10-5 to give their preliminary approval earlier this month.

"Individual school board members are no doubt sincere in their beliefs, and some of the changes can be debated by reasonable people. But, under the leadership of another extreme Rick Perry appointee, the amendment process injected politics into our school books and classrooms," White said it a statement. "That is a step in the wrong direction, requiring leadership from our Governor."

The committees where White wants the revisions returned were comprised of educators from throughout the state. Those committees sent proposals to the state board. Board members then considered more than 300 amendments to that work at their meetings in January and March.

Confident with process

Perry seemed unlikely to fill White's request.

"The Governor is confident in the process that is in place and it is the same process that has been used in the past," said Catherine Frazier, a spokeswoman for the Governor's re-election campaign. She also criticized White's suggestion.

"It's clear from his statement that Bill White doesn't have any understanding of this process. Members of

NAEP - Nation's Report Card Home

The Nation's Report Card: Reading 2009 was released on March 24th at 10:00 am EDT.

Browse the report online and link to the full data for each figure.
Download a copy of the report to print or share.
Watch the press conference of the Reading 2009 Report Card.
Read the statement from Stuart Kerachsky, Deputy Commissioner of the National Center for Education Statistics.
Read the National Assessment Governing Board's news release (288 KB PDF).
Join Associate Commissioner Peggy Carr for Ask NAEP, an online Q&A about the findings.

Latest News and Comment from Education

Thursday, March 25, 2010