Thursday, April 15, 2010

U.S. Falls Short in Measure of Future Math Teachers - NYTimes.com

U.S. Falls Short in Measure of Future Math Teachers

By SAM DILLON

Published: April 14, 2010

Enlarge This ImageAmerica’s future math teachers, on average, earned a C on a new test comparing their skills with their counterparts in 15 other countries, significantly outscoring college students in the Philippines and Chile but placing far below those in educationally advanced nations like Singapore and Taiwan.

Answer: AB=2 cm; AM =square root of 3 cm; BM=1 cm

Testing the Prospective Testers A sample from the test given to future middle school math teachers.

The researchers who led the math study in this country, to be released in Washington on Thursday, judged the results acceptable if not encouraging for America’s future elementary teachers. But they called them disturbing for American students heading to careers in middle schools, who were outscored by students in Germany, Poland, the Russian Federation, Singapore, Switzerland and Taiwan.

On average, 80 percent to 100 percent of the future middle school teachers from the highest-achieving countries took advanced courses like linear algebra and calculus, while only 50 percent to 60 percent of their counterparts in the United States took those courses, the study said.

“The study reveals that America’s middle school mathematics teacher preparation is not

National Briefing | Washington: Fund Proposed to Prevent Some Teacher Firings

by By BLOOMBERG NEWS

Senator Tom Harkin, an Iowa Democrat, introduced legislation on Wednesday to create a $23 billion jobs fund to prevent teachers from being fired because of budget shortfalls.

N.Y.U. Expansion Plans Meet Neighborhood Critics

by By LISA W. FODERARO

As New York University formally unveiled its 25-year expansion plan, residents of Greenwich Village were among the chief critics.

National Briefing | Washington: Fund Proposed to Prevent Some Teacher Firings

by By BLOOMBERG NEWS

Senator Tom Harkin, an Iowa Democrat, introduced legislation on Wednesday to create a $23 billion jobs fund to prevent teachers from being fired because of budget shortfalls.

A Lesson Lovely as a Tree: Defining and Appreciating Trees

by By CATHERINE HUTCHINGS and KATHERINE SCHULTEN

Lesson Plan | Interdisciplinary ideas for considering the importance of trees and their real and symbolic role in the world and people's lives.

Learning Idioms | Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day...

Learning Idioms

Making Good Presentations

Best Art-Related Websites

“Read A Children’s Book” Form For Students

The First Review Of My New Book!

“Getting English-Language Learners to Thrive”

Alabama Parent Education Center

Interview With National PTA President

Learning First Alliance Calls For Family Engagement Priority

“Ideas To Increase Parent Communication In Schools”

Parents work to rejuvenate a public school | Philadelphia Inquirer | 04/14/2010

Parents work to rejuvenate a public school

By Kristen A. Graham

Inquirer Staff Writer

It was a two-page wish list, full of goals both lofty and practical: "reopen the school libary," "establish a language program," remove "bars/grates/fencing if possible."
A handful of playground moms brainstormed the plan and presented it to a Philadelphia School District official last fall as a blueprint for a vibrant neighborhood school.
The school, Andrew Jackson Elementary at 12th and Federal, has failed to meet state standards for several years running. Seventy-six percent of its students are poor. Student outcomes have caused the district to classify Jackson an "empowerment" school, among the lowest performers in the city.
Still, the moms want to send their children, now toddlers, there. With the encouragement of the district, the dozen core members of the Passyunk Square Civic Association's education committee - architects, stay-at-home moms, a lawyer, even two women who don't yet have children - plan to check off every item on that list, from installing a science lab to incorporating yoga programs into classroom routines.
All they've got to do, they figure, is reshape curriculum and teaching, lower class size, and sell Jackson to a neighborhood highly skeptical of city public schools.
The needs of the nondescript brick school building are big, but they will raise money, they swear. They will volunteer and scrub and recruit and work with officials and do whatever it takes to make Jackson a top public school.
"We can make the most impact at a school that's struggling," said Terry Jack, one of the moms. "We can

District chooses 6 nonprofits as potential Renaissance school operators

Six nonprofits have been selected to radically reform nine failing Philadelphia School District schools, officials announced Tuesday. Five organizations currently operate charters and are planning to turn district schools into charter schools. Another wants to take over schools but staff them with district teachers.

District support staff gets raise in new contract

More than 3,000 Philadelphia school aides, bus drivers, building engineers, cleaners, and maintenance workers have a new contract. The four-year pact between the Philadelphia School District and 32BJ Service Employees International Union District 1201 gives workers an 8 percent wage increase, employer-paid health care, and training.

Education - latimes.com

UC a tougher bet this year for Californians, with 10,700 wait-listed

By Larry Gordon

The university system is cutting freshman enrollment and boosting out-of-state admissions in the wake of budget cuts. That leaves fewer spots for residents, many of whom are left to wait and hope.

Teachers agree to shorten LAUSD school year

By Jason Song

Union members OK the deal that could save the district up to $140 million, save about 2,100 jobs and maintain class sizes. It will become effective if approved by the school board Tuesday.

E
Headlines from L.A. Now

Cal State Stanislaus president says documents stolen, welcomes attorney general inquiry04/14/2010, 6:59 p.m.
Two fires break out at Birmingham High School04/14/2010, 7:01 a.m.
L.A. school officials approve job-saving pact that shortens school year04/13/2010, 6:09 p.m.
Students say they found documents relating to Sarah Palin fundraiser at Cal State Stanislaus04/13/2010, 2:38 p.m.
63-year-old man arrested in connection with UCLA sexual assaults04/13/2010, 11:02 a.m.

Education - The Denver Post

Daniels Scholarships delight student winners04/15/2010Denver philanthropist Bill Daniels thought his scholarship program would send maybe 1,000 kids to college.

Long-shot Senate candidate Buck hits bull's-eye in Colo.04/15/2010 - Ken Buck, once thought to be a dead-in-the-water Republican U.S. Senate candidate with laughable fundraising totals and little establishment GOP support, has surged to life in a matter of days thanks to a handful of prominent endorsements pulling in big cash and — more important — national distinction.

Colorado high schoolers going forth with a state-paid fifth year 2204/14/2010 - Almost 300 Colorado high school seniors are eligible for a state-paid year of college this fall — a policy garnering attention from the nation's capital as a model to push poor kids to higher education.

Norton plans petition path to get on GOP primary ballot04/13/2010 - GOP Senate front-runner Jane Norton said Tuesday that she will petition her way onto the ballot rather than go through the traditional vote-getting at the state assembly — a move she said was driven by her incumbent Democratic rival doing the same thing.

School in running for Obama commencement speech works on video showing its success04/13/2010 - Seventeen-year-old senior Dan Marks has the keen eye of a political strategist in weighing the odds of getting President Barack Obama to speak at his school's graduation ceremony.

COLORADO CLASSROOM EDUCATION BLOG

COLORADO CSAP TEST SCORE LOOKUP

Click here to look up Colorado's CSAP, ACT and SAR results by district, school, city, county or ZIP code.

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Santa Ana schools will undergo drastic reform for federal funds | California Watch

Santa Ana schools will undergo drastic reform for federal funds

by Corey G. Johnson

Photo by Tiffany Szerpicki

Corey G. Johnson

Since March, Santa Ana Unified School District, the third largest district in California, has been faced with this dilemma: Do we apply for the federal School Improvement Grants and undergo drastic reform, or do we forgo the program and pass up much-needed federal dollars?
Last week, based upon the fine reporting by the Contra Costa Times, we wrote about a loophole that would allow districts like Santa Ana Unified to further avoid the reform measures, if they so desired.
Wednesday, Santa Ana announced they would take the money and the reform.
According to the Orange County Register, six schools – Century High, Santa Ana High, Saddleback High, Valley High, Willard Intermediate and Sierra Intermediate – will apply for SIG money and begin restructuring

University of California admits more nonresident students

by Erica Perez

Photo by Patrickniel

Erica Perez

Preliminary admissions data from the University of California shows some campuses in the state's premier public university system are admitting more nonresident students – a move that will bring more money to the campuses while also shifting the composition of the student body.
Overall, nonresidents account for 14 percent of admitted students this year, compared to 12 percent last year.
Nowhere is the increase sharper than at UC Berkeley, where nonresidents make up 27 percent of admitted students this year, up from 14 percent in 2009.
Susan Wilbur, director of undergraduate admissions for the UC system, said that even though the proportion and number of international and out-of-state students are increasing, these nonresident students are not taking up spaces that could otherwise go to California residents.
She said that the university currently enrolls 15,000 more California resident students than are funded by the

Almanac : Bill would restrict kindergarten enrollment

Bill would restrict kindergarten enrollment

by Dave Boyce
Almanac Staff

A bill introduced in the state Legislature today by state Sen. Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto, would restrict kindergarten enrollment to children who are 5 before Sept. 1, three months earlier than the current Dec. 2 cut-off date.

Research shows that 4-1/2-year-olds in class with 5-year-olds are at a disadvantage that can stay with them, Mr. Simitian said in a statement.

About a quarter of California children start kindergarten before they're 5, and most states have earlier cut-off dates, Mr. Simitian said.

The change has the "outspoken" support of educators in San Mateo, Santa Clara and Santa Cruz counties, Mr. Simitian said.

Also supporting the bill: the Legislative Analyst's Office, the California Performance Review, and the Governor's Committee on Education Excellence, he said.

"Almost every child who comes to me for reading support has a fall birthday," said Palo Alto reading specialist Natalie Bivas, who was quoted in the statement. "They don't catch up somehow down the line. Instead, they end up on everyone's radar. By third grade, teachers start asking me why we didn't hold these children back. By then, we're discussing a special education intervention."

SB 1381, which would be phased in over three years starting in 2012, would save the state about $700 million annually and $9.1

UC puts 10,000 applicants on waiting list - Sacramento News - Local and Breaking Sacramento News | Sacramento Bee

UC puts 10,000 applicants on waiting list

Published: Thursday, Apr. 15, 2010 - 12:00 am | Page 1ABy Laurel Rosenhall
lrosenhall@sacbee.com

Last Modified: Thursday, Apr. 15, 2010 - 12:24 am

For the state's high school seniors, this was the toughest year ever to get into the University of California, with seven of the nine undergraduate campuses reporting the lowest admission rates on record and – for the first time – more than 10,000 applicants being offered a spot on a waiting list.

A-plus students are now the average – not the exception – at most UCs, data released Wednesday show. At all but three UC campuses, the mean grade-point-average of admitted students is above 4.0.

Students must work harder and score higher to get into UC because more high schoolers are seeking a college education at the same time the state has cut funding to public universities. UC cut freshman enrollment for this fall for the second year in a row – by 3,800 students compared with two years ago.

How to Get In: University of California—Davis School of Law - US News and World Report

How to Get In: University of California—Davis School of Law

Posted April 15, 2010

We posed questions to admissions officials at the University of California—Davis School of Law regarding the application process, what they look for in applicants and what sets their school apart. These are their responses:

1. What can applicants do to set themselves apart from their peers?

Because we are striving to put together a talented, diverse, and well-rounded student body to join the law school community, ours is a holistic evaluation. We look for strong academic credentials, such as high grades and Law School Admission Test (LSAT) scores. But we also seek applicants who can demonstrate that they are dedicated, ethical, intellectually curious, and ready to learn. We like students who are leaders, who are involved in professional or extracurricular activities. We try to base our admissions decision on the whole package.

The best law students are those who took every opportunity to obtain a very well-rounded education before law school. Sometimes that means taking classes outside of your major in order to stretch yoursel

UC Santa Cruz scales back size of freshmen class - San Jose Mercury News

UC Santa Cruz scales back size of freshmen class

By Shanna McCord --Santa Cruz Sentinel

Posted: 04/14/2010 06:27:25 PM PDT

Updated: 04/14/2010 06:29:06 PM PDT

SANTA CRUZ - UC Santa Cruz is continuing to be more picky about who gets in as it looks for ways to deal with reduced state funding.

The university announced Wednesday that it accepted 64.9 percent of freshman applicants for the fall, which is down from 83 percent in 2007 and 74.3 percent in 2008 and in line with the acceptance rate of 63.7 percent in 2009.

UCSC wants to establish a trend of slightly smaller and higher caliber freshmen classes. The goal is to begin the new school year with 3,200 freshmen, Admissions Director Michelle Whittingham said. By comparison, the 2008 fall class had 3,900 freshmen and 2009 had 3,214.

The decision to shrink the freshman class, Whittingham said, is largely due to reduced education funding from the cash-strapped state, which has grappled with a $20 billion budget crisis for the past three years.

"This is a very competitive cycle, and we're looking to decrease our numbers," Whittingham said. "There's been a

Battling for a Spot | City on a Hill Press

Battling for a Spot

By Dana Burd

City on a Hill Press Reporter

Illustration by Rachel Edelstein.

UC Office of the President (UCOP) recently said that an increase in selectivity across most campuses made admissions the most competitive in UC history this year.

UCOP released admittance information for the fall 2010 California resident freshman class on April 14.

A projected 18.5 percent of California public high school graduates applied to UCs, an amount up 5.5 percent since 2008. Systemwide, 71.6 percent of California resident students who applied for fall 2010 were admitted, down slightly from 72.5 percent in 2009.

Susan Wilbur, director of undergraduate admissions for the UC, said that a lack of state funding for enrollment increases — along with a current over-enrollment of 15,000 — contributed to the necessity for enrollment cutbacks.

“The UC remains committed to enrolling as many California students as we are funded for,” Wilbur said.

Students have been encouraged to apply to as many UCs as possible.

“With increased selectivity on many of the campuses students were encouraged to apply broadly to increase

Alisal parents tell state officials they want to keep bilingual education programs - MontereyHerald.com :

Alisal parents tell state officials they want to keep bilingual education programs

Parents make push to stress bilingual education programs

By CLAUDIA MELÉNDEZ SALINAS
Herald Salinas Bureau

Posted: 04/15/2010 01:46:41 AM PDT

Updated: 04/15/2010 01:46:42 AM PDT

There were pleas to end harassment, to bring in an honest trustee, and not to let the principals of the Alisal Union School District go.

But perhaps the most common request from speakers during a visit from members of the California Department of Education board Wednesday was for support for bilingual education.

"You have to keep our bilingual programs; that's the best for our Latino children," said Maria Ramirez, mother of two students in the district. "We need to have bilingual programs and bilingual teachers."

About 300 people attended a community meeting at Jesse Sanchez Elementary School called by the Department of Education.

Board President Ted Mitchell wanted to receive comments from community members about the qualities they would like to see in a state trustee, how long a trustee should stay at the district, and what kind of powers he or she should have.

As part of sanctions under the federal No Child Left Behind Act, the state Department of Education decided in

Federal student loan program expanding

Esteem Brumfield's parents never sent their son to school. So in 2008, when the 21-year-old announced he would go to college rather than pursue the religious life his parents planned for him, Brumfield found himself on his own and penniless.

He got a job, enrolled in Berkeley City College and found a homeless shelter. Now he is hoping that changes to the federal student loan program will propel him to graduate school for a master's degree in teaching and - eventually - into law school.

"Going from homelessness to grad school is a far-reaching dream for me," Brumfield said this week.

Signed into federal law on March 30, the education portion of the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act snagged fewer headlines than the

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