Daily Headlines for July 18, 2011

Charter School Battle Shifts to Affluent Suburbs
New York Times, NY, July 17, 2011
Suburbs like Millburn, renowned for educational excellence, have become hotbeds in the nation’s charter school battles, raising fundamental questions about the goals of a movement that began 20 years ago in Minnesota.

Obama Seeks CEO Help for Schools
Wall Street Journal, July 18, 2011
President Barack Obama will meet with some of the nation’s top CEOs Monday to prod them to invest more heavily in education initiatives, especially those he champions, such as high-quality teaching and early childhood programs.

Easing Test Pressure Won’t Save Kids
Washington Post, DC, July 17, 2011
Who is to blame for tampering with tests in Atlanta and Baltimore? Why are there so many suspicious testing irregularities in Washington, Philadelphia and other cities? From what I have read in blogs, columns and official statements, the verdict is in. Cheating, wherever it occurred, was caused by too much pressure on principals and teachers to raise student achievement.

Our View: Don’t Blame Tests For School Cheating Scandals
USA Today, July 17, 2011
The wrongdoing was systemic and the coverup sophisticated. Documents were altered, and materials were withheld from investigators. Whistle-blowers were punished, and one of the most blatant perpetrators won plaudits, raises and bonuses.

FROM THE STATES

CALIFORNIA

Los Angeles Schools To Revamp Their Ban On Social Promotion
Los Angeles Times, CA, July 18, 2011
One approach to ensuring that children are academically ready for promotion would be to provide extra help for students in key grades.

Newton: A New Voice L.A.’s Teachers Union
Los Angeles Times, CA, July 18, 2011
New UTLA President Warren Fletcher is a welcome change from his predecessor. But he has his work cut out for him to save his union.

California Ignores Parents, Empowers Reactionaries
San Francisco Examiner, CA, July 17, 2011
Many states are passing progressive legislation to empower parents and students with choice in education. California , on the other hand, is considering legislation that ignores the needs of students and makes the most powerful anti-choice force in the state even more powerful.

COLORADO

Denver Judge: Douglas County Voucher Program Suits Should Stay In Denver
Denver Post, CO, July 18, 2011
Last November, as Douglas County school district leaders were beginning to craft their voucher program, State Board of Education Chairman Bob Schaffer asked Colorado Department of Education staff to help “pave the way for Douglas County” and its controversial program within the department.

Parents Deserve To Know
Denver Post, CO, July 17, 2011
Colorado’s teachers union is wrong to sue the State Board of Education over a rule requiring notification of teacher arrests.

FLORIDA

If University of Florida Program Can Revitalize Teacher Training, Pinellas Schools Benefit
St. Petersburg Times, FL, July 17, 2011
Over the past few years, UF has rolled out its promising but unproven teacher training package to a handful of Florida school districts, including Pinellas. The $24 million investment has spanned five counties and involved 11,000 teachers so far.

GEORGIA

Atlanta Public Schools: Help APS Students Break Poverty’s Lock
Atlanta Journal Constitution, GA, July 16, 2011
The saddest theme of the report dissecting the cheating rackets that enveloped Atlanta Public Schools was that so many educators did not believe their pupils were capable of meeting even minimal academic standards.

Charter Schools Worth Supporting
Savannah Morning News, GA, July 18, 2011
Education has dominated local political news the past couple of weeks, mostly because of the long expected yet still shocking report which detailed the depth of cheating in the Atlanta Public Schools system.

Uncharted Course Ahead For Charter Schools Locally
Savannah Morning News, GA, July 18, 2011
Charter schools have a place in the Savannah public schools going forward, insist educators and parents alike. Figuring out where is a challenge beyond Rand McNally, Garmin and Mapquest.

Cracking a System in Which Test Scores Were for Changing
New York Times, NY, July 18, 2011
There had long been suspicions that cheating on state tests was widespread in the Atlanta public schools, but the superintendent, Beverly L. Hall, was feared by teachers and principals, and few dared speak out.

HAWAII

As Schools Struggle, Officials Seek Relief From NCLB
Star Advertiser, HI, July 17, 2011
A decade after Hawaii students started taking annual reading and math assessments under No Child Left Behind, there are growing calls locally and nationally to overhaul the federal law that requires that schools meet rising annual proficiency goals or risk losing federal money.

ILLINOIS

Education Reforms Underfunded, Illinois Schools Chief Warns
Chicago Tribune, IL, July 18, 2011
State superintendent says budget cuts could hamper performance evaluations for principals, teachers.

INDIANA

Will Vouchers Stand Up To State Constitution?
Fort Wayne News-Sentinel , IN, July 15, 2011
So far, state officials say they’ve received more than 125 applications from schools seeking to take part in Indiana’s new private- school voucher plan. According to the Bloomington Herald-Times, nearly all the 80 schools approved to date appear to be faith-based.

NEW HAMPSHIRE

Teacher Tenure Will Take 5 Years
Nashua Telegraph, NH, July 16, 2011
New teachers will have to work for five years in the same district before earning tenure, after Gov. John Lynch this week allowed the change to become law without his signature.

NEW JERSEY

Foundation Academy Charter in Trenton Expanding to Include High School in the Fall
The Times of Trenton, NJ, July 17, 2011
Foundation Academy Charter, a college preparatory middle school for students in grades 5 through 8, will expand to include a high school starting this fall.

NEW MEXICO

On the Waiting List
Silver City Sun News, NM, July 17, 2011
For the first time in its six-year history, Aldo Leopold High School, Grant County’s only charter school, has reached its enrollment cap of 120 students, and has had to create a waiting list for interested students.

NEW YORK

New York City Abandons Teacher Bonus Program
New York Times, NY, July 18, 2011
A New York City program that distributed $56 million in performance bonuses to teachers and other school staff members over the last three years will be permanently discontinued, the city Department of Education said on Sunday.

Teacher Grading System Passes
Wall Street Journal, July 16, 2011
The city Department of Education and the teachers union have agreed on a teacher evaluation system at 33 failing schools that will for the first time use individual student progress to measure the performance of educators.

NORTH CAROLINA

Family’s Crusade Leads To New Law
Charlotte Observer, NC, July 17, 2011
Leslie Petruk burst into tears when she heard recently that House Bill 344 had passed.
The bill, which became law June 30, allows up to $6,000 a year in tax credits to help pay for private education and therapy for children with special needs.

OHIO

Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson Keeps Pushing State For New Teacher Evaluation System
Cleveland Plain Dealer, OH, July 17, 2011
Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson is demanding a do-over in Columbus, accusing Republican state lawmakers of reneging on plans to approve tougher new rules that would have made it easier for him to fire any public school teacher for poor performance.

‘Last Chance’ Often A Misnomer
Columbus Dispatch, OH, July 17, 2011
Thirteen current Columbus school-district employees have signed agreements that give them one last chance to change their behavior, or else.

OKLAHOMA

Plenty of Lessons From High-Profile School Cheating Scandals
The Oklahoman, OK, July 17, 2011
THE pressure on teachers to help students perform well on state-mandated tests has never been greater. The No Child Left Behind law’s requirement of a rising performance bar means states in the past several years have steadily and sometimes dramatically increased what it takes for students to meet academic standards.

PENNSYLVANIA

Fairly Or Not, Spikes In Test Scores Haunt Some Schools
Philadelphia Inquirer, PA, July 16, 2011
Superintendent Kevin J. McHugh suspects that the Pennsbury School District may be a victim of its own success.

Charter Schools’ Influence Unclear
Centre Daily Times, PA, July 18, 2011
Officials in Bald Eagle Area, like those in Bellefonte, Philipsburg- Osceola and Penns Valley area school districts, have in recent years created online programs largely in an effort to lure students back from cyber charters, or prevent students like Shawley from dropping out.

Charter Schools Fought To Be An Option
Centre Daily Times, PA, July 17, 2011
Elizabeth Eirmann knew middle school could be a challenge for her son. She figured that if Samuel fell behind then, it would be hard for him to catch up later. And she didn’t want him to get lost in a crowd.

Improve Voucher Bill
Scranton Times-Tribune, PA, July 18, 2011
When the Republican majorities in both houses of the state Legislature and Republican Gov. Tom Corbett took office early this year, it looked like school choice legislation would be their first priority.

RHODE ISLAND

What Achievement First Has Achieved
Providence Journal, RI, July 17, 2011
When I took over as superintendent of the Hartford Public Schools in 2006, one of the first things I did was to call Dacia Toll, the president of Achievement First, to ask her to bring her high-performing school model to my district.

UTAH

Teacher Pay Idea Has Great Merit
Daily Herald, UT, July 17, 2011
A brouhaha over teachers’ contracts in Ogden provides lots of lessons on why merit pay is an

idea whose time has come. It’s time to seize the moment statewide.

VIRTUAL LEARNING

The Internet Will Reduce Teachers Union Power
Wall Street Journal, July 18, 2011
Online learning means fewer teachers (and union members) per student.

Studies Show Cyber Schools Not Making Grade
Wilkes Barre Times-Leader, PA, July 18, 2011
Every school district in Luzerne County reached a key state benchmark that measures school performance in the 2009-10 school year, but the news was not nearly as good for the 11 charter cyber schools operating in Pennsylvania.

Controversy Swirls About Cyber Schools
Wilkes Barre Times-Leader, PA, July 17, 2011
Backers praise their accessibility, but critics question their accountability.

Commitment Vital to Child’s Success
Wilkes Barre Times-Leader, PA, July 17, 2011
A decade ago, Ian’s parents, Dawn and David, were among the first families in the state to test the waters of what was then an emerging educational movement known as cyber schooling.

Phoenixville Unveils Its Own Cyber School
Pottstown Mercury, PA, July 17, 2011
Touting it as a “great opportunity” for students who want a conventional and online education, the Phoenixville Area School District is making the transition into the 21st century, competing with area cyber schools by creating its own online curriculum.

Memphis Exploring Virtual Academy
Knoxville News Sentinel, TN, July 16, 2011
Union school district serves as fiscal agent for education venture

New School Is Both Virtual, Reality
Munster Times, IN, July 18, 2011
For generations, Hoosier students have gone to high school. Now they have the option of high school coming to them. The Achieve Virtual Education Academy, created by the Wayne Township Metropolitan School District in Marion County , is now open to students living anywhere in Indiana.

Part-Time Teaching Online Pays Off
Las Vegas Review-Journal, NV, July 18, 2011
Teachers have been known to make a few extra bucks by delivering pizza or hawking peanuts at the ballpark. These days, students might just as easily find their teachers working online.

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