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July 21, 1999
This week we return to find that, once again, the defenders of the status quo have sued in federal court to keep the Ohio voucher program from operating this fall.
Meanwhile, 158 Florida families have chosen to vote with their feet. They now have the right to choose a public or private school of their choice if their assigned school has failed for two years in a row. Thus 62 families have chosen a private school, and the rest a different public school to help their children get a better education soon.
If you wonder what kind of education program your kids should be getting, you might want to demand your school district post its goals and standards. One enlightened business group in Texas did just that to pressure school districts. At www.tbec.org, you will find samples of the kinds of math questions students are expected to answer on that state’s very challenging yearly assessment.
Speaking of what your child should know and be able to do, the Back to School issue of Parent Power is now being developed and if you’re not on the list to receive it you should act now! Please sign up for Parent Power here on CER's award-winning website.
Not only are school choices on the rise in publicly-funded programs, but CER is pleased to announce that privately funded scholarship programs are now serving 58,000 children in 65 programs nationwide. More information about those programs can be gleaned from our School Choice page and our action paper Private Scholarship Programs: A Matter of Priority.
Kudos to California’s Sacramento school district, which after putting in place two proven reading and language arts programs raised first-graders' average reading scores from the 35th percentile nationally to the 62nd.
And finally, hats-off to the New Frontiers Charter School in San Antonio. This charter school boasted significant gains on standardized tests. Kindergartners scored in the 94th percentile nationally in reading and all other grades showed significant advancement since they were first tested in the fall. The school is run by Advantage Schools, a private company that operates about a dozen other charter schools nationwide. For more information, click here.
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The CER Newswire is published by The Center for Education Reform, the nation's leading authority on school reform. CER is dedicated to making schools better for America's children by improving educational access and excellence for all. CER works with parents, teachers and policymakers to advance meaningful education improvement initiatives.
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