Daily Headlines for August 6, 2012
Carrots and Sticks for School Systems
New York Times, NY, August 6, 2012
Education Secretary Arne Duncan has been pushing the states to create rigorous teacher evaluation systems that not only judge teachers by how well their students perform but also — when the results are in — reward good teachers while easing chronic low performers out of the system.
AP Interview: Duncan on Reform and Back to School
Associated Press, August 6, 2012
A more well-rounded curriculum with less focus on a single test. Higher academic standards and more difficult classwork. Continued cuts to extracurricular and other activities because of the tough economy.
Evaluating Teachers Is Not So Easy
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, PA, August 5, 2012
My own observations are meant to show how overwhelming, subjective and difficult is the matter of teacher evaluations. We can only hope that, along with the best of intentions, the people who decide how to make the process viable demonstrate patience, resourcefulness and, most of all, the wisdom to make the plan succeed.
FROM THE STATES
ALABAMA
Gov. Robert Bentley’s Call On Charter Schools Correct
Birmingham News, AL, August 5, 2012
The collective sigh heard across Alabama recently came from educators pleased to hear Gov. Robert Bentley tell the Alabama Association of School Boards he would not include charter school legislation in his next package of bills.
A School On The Rise: Clay County ’S New Central High Shows What Happens When Progress Arrives
Anniston Star, AL, August 6, 2012
The new unified public school in Clay County resembles a painting with several interpretations: It is the forced marriage of former rivals. It is a new school with an unfamiliar name and undeveloped traditions. And it is a new campus.
CALIFORNIA
Lawsuit, Bill Aim to Keep K-12 Education Free in California
Los Angeles Times, CA, August 6, 2012
Legislation and an ACLU lawsuit tackle the increasing use of fees at public schools, a trend that is unfair to low-income students and increases disparities.
DELAWARE
Charter School Chain Rocketship Prepares For Launch
News Journal, DE, August 6, 2012
Inside a prefabricated beige building by the freight tracks, John Danner thinks he has solved one of the nation’s most vexing problems.
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
Rhee’s Teacher Evaluation System Is Revised — But Is It Improved?
Washington Post Blog, August 5, 2012
For three years, 50 percent of the evaluations of many D.C. public school teachers were based on students standardized test scores, a key part of the ground-breaking IMPACT assessment system introduced by Michelle Rhee.
Evaluating the District’s Teachers
Washington Post, DC, August 4, 2012
EIGHTY-FIVE PERCENT of D.C. teachers were judged to be effective or highly effective in 2010-11 under the system used to evaluate school personnel. But less than half of their students were proficient in math or reading. Clearly, something was out of whack. That’s why Schools Chancellor Kaya Henderson is on solid ground in raising the standard for what it means to be effective.
Let Charters Bloom. Let Teachers Be Creative.
Washington Post Blog, DC, August 5, 2012
Gary Petrazzuolo is a Northern Virginia biochemist who understands complicated statistics. His youngest daughter attends Falls Church High School in Fairfax County . He is angry that resources for that school might be drained away by a proposed public charter school to be called the Fairfax Leadership Academy .
Private-School Vouchers Go To About 300 D.C. Students
Washington Post, DC, August 4, 2012
Nearly 300 D.C. children were awarded private-school tuition vouchers last week, part of a federally funded program that generates perennial debate among leaders in the city and on Capitol Hill.
FLORIDA
Requests For New Charter Schools Down From Last Year
Central Florida News, FL, August 3, 2012
Pasco County school officials thought there would be quite a few applications to start new charter schools. However, Supervisor Nancy Scowcroft says only four groups submitted paperwork to start institutions in the 2013-2014 school year.
GEORGIA
Clarke Goes Its Own Way On Teacher Evaluations
Athens Banner Herald, GA, August 5, 2012
Georgia’s proposed new teacher evaluation system embroiled the state Board of Education in controversy after lawyers warned the new system might invite lawsuits, particularly a part that called for student evaluations of teachers.
IDAHO
Idaho Left Behind on No Child Waiver
Idaho Statesman, ID, August 6, 2012
State education officials applied for a No Child Left Behind waiver in February, and they contend that the five-star rating system they’ve proposed as an alternative is unique and relies on more student data than plans proposed in states that have won waivers already.
INDIANA
The Trouble With School Choice
Indianapolis Star, IN, August 5, 2012
School-choice supporters in Indianapolis are beside themselves. They’ve smacked right up against the inconvenient truth: Parents sometimes make bad choices.
IOWA
Branstad Set To Take Another Swing At Education Reform
Quad City Times, IA, August 5, 2012
The Monday after the 84th General Assembly adjourned, Gov. Terry Branstad stood behind his speaker’s podium and assessed the success of his 2012 education reform package.
LOUISIANA
Louisiana School Voucher Program Gives Parents New Option
Alexandria Town Talk, LA, August 5, 2012
The new Louisiana Scholarship Program gave her an option. The state’s controversial voucher program allows students zoned for public schools that receive a C, D or F rating from the state to apply for a state voucher to attend a private school.
MAINE
Baxter Academy Is Not ‘Elitist,’ But Is Open To All Who Apply
Portland Press Herald, ME, August 5, 2012
Charter schools have a high level of accountability and are monitored frequently.
MASSACHUSSETTS
Despite High Interest At Some Schools, Charter Movement Slow To Catch On In Metrowest
MetroWest Daily News, MA, August 6, 2012
Lured by high demand and ample opportunities in urban communities, charter school founding groups have largely focused on starting up in major cities like Boston and Springfield over the past few years.
MICHIGAN
Nia Merriweather’s Mom Willing To Give Charter District A Try
The Muskegon Chronicle, MI, August 5, 2012
Plenty has been written about the financial troubles that are plaguing Muskegon Heights Public Schools and the charter school district that is taking over its schools. This story is part of a series that takes a more personal look at those who are most affected: the students. Here is fifth-grader Nia Merriweather’s story.
MISSISSIPPI
Paying Mississippi’s Teachers
Commercial Appeal, TN, August 6, 2012
Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant wants to bring the state into one of the key components of education reform that is taking place in Tennessee and across the country.
Details Key To Teacher Merit Pay
Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal, MS, August 5, 2012
Leaders of several Northeast Mississippi school districts said they are intrigued by a plan floated recently by Gov. Phil Bryant to pay teachers based on performance.
NEW JERSEY
Hope Act Applicants Under Review
Cherry Hill Courier Post, NJ, August 6, 2012
The school board is weighing Hope Act school proposals that, if approved, could cause thousands of students and tens of millions of dollars to leave the public school system.
Christie Scheduled to Sign Historic Tenure Reform Bill Today
NJ Spotlight, NJ, August 6, 2012
More than a month after the Legislature approved the tenure reform bill without a single dissenting vote, Gov. Chris Christie will sign Teacher Effectiveness and Accountability for the Children of New Jersey (TEACH NJ) into law today.
NEW MEXICO
Teacher Eval Systems Gain Reform Traction
Albuquerque Journal, NM, August 6, 2012
Teacher evaluations tied to some level of student performance is a slow train chugging down the school reform track.
NEW YORK
To Increase Learning Time, Some Schools Add Days to Academic Year
New York Times, NY, August 6, 2012
It was the last Sunday in July, and Bethany and Garvin Phillips were pulling price tags off brand-new backpacks and stuffing them with binders and pencils.
Teacher Evaluation System Political Theater At Its Worst
Utica Observer Dispatch, NY, August 4, 2012
APPR is not gong to fix any of these problems. Thus, this newest panacea of correcting the perceived ills of public education will fail. As so many others before it.
OHIO
State Schools Chief Resigns
Columbus Dispatch, OH, August 5, 2012
The state schools superintendent’s defiant stand in the face of swirling controversy was short-lived.
OKLAHOMA
Why So Much Hand-Wringing Over Oklahoma’s Charter Schools?
The Oklahoman, OK, August 6, 2012
THE bizarre world inhabited by some members of the education establishment was graphically illustrated recently when Jenks Superintendent Kirby Lehman complained that state funds were going to … other public schools.
School Choice Could Benefit Oklahoma’s Military Families
The Oklahoman, OK, August 4, 2012
With its recent adoption of opportunity scholarships, Oklahoma has become a leader in tapping the power of school choice to help families and society as a whole. The potential exists to draw on this power to help military families, who sacrifice greatly to serve the nation.
OREGON
Oregon School Reform: Let Students Help Evaluate Teachers
The Oregonian, OR, August 5, 2012
Good teaching isn’t a popularity contest. Like good parenting, it involves setting limits, assigning chores, expecting mature behavior and other acts often perceived by young people as unspeakably unfair.
TENNESSEE
Role of Public Education Is Key
The Tennessean, TN, August 6, 2012
The week of July 23 marked a noteworthy moment in Tennessee when major education decisions and policy directions were debated, contested and appealed. School districts and state legislatures across the country were watching, waiting and learning — dialed in because that week’s events involved racial diversity, school choice and parent voice.
School Could Help Juvenile Offenders
Commercial Appeal, TN, August 6, 2012
Former Memphis mayor Willie Herenton intends to make one of the seven charter schools he wants to open next year an educational haven for teens serving probation through Juvenile Court.
Vouchers Offer Students Opportunity
The Tennessean, TN, August 5, 2012
Our Republican majority in the state legislature has reached many of our goals these past two years. I’m very proud of our accomplishments. But there is still much left to do. One example is education reform.
TEXAS
In Preparing Texas Students for College, a Struggle
Texas Tribune, TX, August 5, 2012
The short answer to whether most Texas students leave public schools prepared for college? No.
WYOMING
Underperforming Teachers No Longer Get Raises
Billings Gazette, WY, August 3, 2012
Teachers who fail to meet minimum standards in job evaluations by the end of this school year will no longer move up on the Natrona County School District pay schedule.
ONLINE SCHOOLS
Parents Hold The Teaching Tools For Virtual School
Daytona Beach News-Journal, FL, August 6, 2012
Jacquez is among about 200 Florida children who completed kindergarten that way last school year through a new, free program offered by Florida Virtual School Full Time and Connections Academy , a nationally-accredited online education provider. Enrollment is expected to increase by about 50 percent in the upcoming school year.
Next American City: In Cyber Schools, the Kitchen Table as Classroom
NJ Spotlight, NJ, August 5, 2012
Imagine a 5-year-old on the first day of kindergarten: Dressed in new fall clothes, with a spic-and-span lunch box and Toy Story backpack, ready to head to school — which, if one of the 3,400 students enrolled in Pennsylvania Virtual Charter School, is likely the kitchen table.
New to School: Fleetwood to Debut Online Course Work
Reading Eagle, PA, August 5, 2012
Students will be able to attend Fleetwood School District classes this fall without having to leave their homes.