NEWSWIRE IS BACK! Click here for the latest weekly report on education news and commentary you won’t find anywhere else, spiced with a dash of irreverence, from the nation’s leading voice in school reform.
NATIONAL COVERAGE
Mainstreaming’ Special-Ed Students Needs Debate
Opinion
Wall Street Journal, August 5, 2013
What has been the law’s impact on students who are not disabled? The matter at least merits discussion.
Tony Bennett scandal sparks new discussion on validity of school grading
Tampa Bay Times, August 4, 2013
The national push to grade schools has slammed into an unexpected roadblock, causing even supporters to question the validity of the widely celebrated A-F system that Florida started 14 years ago.
No child, no chance?
Editorial
News & Observer, August 4, 2013
So House Republicans have approved a bill to dismantle the federal No Child Left Behind law that, ironically, was a product of the George W. Bush White House.
Christie Spars With GOP Again, This Time Over Education Standards
WSJ Blog, August 4, 2013
Mr. Christie, speaking at a charter-school conference, said Republicans who opposed education issues such as the Common Core State Standards were having a “knee-jerk” reaction to something the president supports.
FROM THE STATES
ARIZONA
Your choice: School options abound in East Valley
East Valley Tribune, August 4, 2013
Parents will find few states that offer families as many schooling options as Arizona. A longtime leader in the national school choice movement, Arizona has an education marketplace with a school for nearly any income, interest or situation.
Bowers: An equal educational opportunity for charter students
Commentary
East Valley Tribune, August 4, 2013
Becca Weinstock heard about the East Valley Institute of Technology from a friend while attending Heritage Academy, a charter middle and high school in Mesa. She had the elective space, was curious, and Heritage supported her decision to enroll in the aviation program at the EVIT East Campus (6625 S. Power Road, Mesa).
Current education policies are driving nation’s teachers away
Opinion
Arizona Republic, August 4, 2013
Although most teachers are a bit more polite and formal when submitting their letters of resignation, it appears more and more of them are choosing to do so due to dissatisfaction with the prevailing conditions of the education profession.
Not all charters make grade in Pima County
Arizona Daily Star, August 3, 2013
More than half of Pima County’s charter schools received an A or B. But that bit of good news is offset by more than 25 percent of charters receiving Ds.
CALIFORNIA
L.A. teachers union urged to improve training for bad teachers
Los Angeles Times, August 5, 2013
An L.A. school board member tells UTLA activists that the union must fight public perceptions that it protects bad teachers.
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
Federal, local officials probing special education services at DC charter school
Washington Post, August 4, 2013
Federal officials say the Education Department’s Office of Civil Rights is investigating a complaint that a District of Columbia charter school discriminated against students with disabilities.
D.C. schools should give students more time to learn
Editorial
Washington Post, August 3, 2013
EIGHT SCHOOLS in the D.C. public school system last year started experimental programs built around a longer school day.
FLORIDA
Renaissance charter F grade imperils chain’s ‘high-performing’ label
Orlando Sentinel, August 4, 2013
The F grade of a new Orange County charter school means its parent chain will likely lose its designation as “high-performing.” Renaissance Charter School at Chickasaw Trail is part of a group of Florida charter schools run by management organization Charter Schools USA. Florida law designates charter systems as high performing if most of their schools earn grades above a D. The designation makes it easier for the chain to open new locations.
5 Apply to Start New Charter Schools in Polk
The Ledger, August 4, 2013
Five new charter schools are being proposed for Polk County — four of them in the Lakeland area and one in Mulberry.
GEORGIA
Tybee Island Maritme Academy Charter School ready to set sail
Savannah Morning News, August 4, 2013
Friday, Tybee Island Maritime Academy officials were busy unloading boxes of sports equipment, inventorying laptop computers and fielding phone calls from parents all over the county who are interested in enrolling their children in the remaining seats.
INDIANA
Common Core foes have lawmakers’ ears
Editorial
Journal Gazette, August 5, 2013
Indiana lawmakers will hear testimony today on the state’s adoption of national school standards. The Common Core State Standards are under fire from critics on both the left and right, with additional ammunition earned by Tony Bennett’s fall from grace.
KENTUCKY
Survey says: Vulnerable Kentuckians want charter schools
Opinion
News Democrat Leader, August 5, 2013
Herculean efforts by labor bosses at Kentucky’s teachers unions to convince lawmakers that charter schools are neither needed nor wanted in the commonwealth have succeeded.
LOUISIANA
School choices changing for Baton Rouge parents
The Advocate, August 4, 2013
On top of the usual craziness of shopping for supplies and new uniforms and pushing kids to finish summer reading, some parents are still shopping for something more fundamental: Their child’s school.
MAINE
Milestones for students, state celebrated at Maine’s first charter school commencement
Morning Sentinel, August 2, 2013
10 students graduate from Maine Academy of Natural Sciences tonight, marking first commencement for a Maine charter school
MASSACHUSETTS
Ten groups submit charter school proposals in Mass.
Boston Globe, August 3, 2013
The State Department of Elementary and Secondary Education announced Friday that 10 groups have submitted new charter school proposals, which, if approved, could open as early as fall 2014.
Resiliency Foundation aims to move forward with innovation academy charter school
Herald News, August 4, 2013
The Resiliency Foundation will move ahead with a proposal before the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education to establish the Fall River Innovation Academy as a charter school.
School crisis spurs race
Salem News, August 5, 2013
Since the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education relegated the Salem public schools to Level 4 status nearly two years ago due to low scores on the statewide MCAS exam and gave Salem three years to turn the schools around, the level of concern among parents has spiked.
MICHIGAN
Pontiac schools will keep top programs; Charter high school put on hold
Oakland Press, August 5, 2013
Despite its financial problems, the Pontiac school district expects enrollment to be up and three top programs to continue when doors open in the fall.
Detroit reform district touts free home internet, free college credit in school enrollment effort
Grand Rapids Press, August 4, 2013
After adding some enticing new programming, the Education Achievement Authority, a reform district made up of Detroit’s lowest-performing schools, held an enrollment rally Saturday in an effort to retain and lure in more students.
Detroit school for pregnant, parenting teens to be independent charter
Detroit New, August 4, 2013
Catherine Ferguson Academy, Detroit’s only school for pregnant and parenting teens and their children, will open next month as an independent charter school.
NEW YORK
New School Test Scores to Be Released This Week Are Expected to Drop
Wall Street Journal, August 5, 2013
New York City and state schools officials have been warning publicly for more than a year that, thanks to harder state tests, scores for elementary- and middle-school students released this week will plummet.
Results of New Testing Standard Could Complicate Bloomberg’s Final Months
New York Times, August 5, 2013
Michael R. Bloomberg has staked much of his reputation as the mayor of New York City on improving students’ test scores, and has trumpeted gains in math and reading as validation of his 12-year effort to remake the city’s schools.
Teachers’ Union v. City Hall
Editorial
New York Times, August 5, 2013
Since taking office in 2002, Mayor Michael Bloomberg has pursued an aggressive policy of replacing large, failing schools with smaller, specialized ones and greatly expanding the number of charter schools, which receive public money but are exempt from some state rules.
New York City charter schools getting $4.5 million state grant to teach regular public schools
New York Daily News, August 4, 2013
Charters and district schools around the city will engage in partnerships under the ‘Charter School Dissemination Grant’ program.
OHIO
Prep school opens doors to first class
Columbus Dispatch, August 5, 2013
When 14-year-old Alexander Green explains why his dream is to become a neurosurgeon, he doesn’t talk about the salary or the prestige that comes with being a top-flight physician.
PENNSYLVANIA
Parents back charter school saying it fills a need
Pocono Record, August 4, 2013
Despite frustration with the past and uncertainty about the future, Pocono Mountain Charter School parents remain unified on doing whatever they can to keep the school open.
WISCONSIN
With wide-open school choice, marketing becomes name of the game
Column
Journal Sentinel, August 3, 2013
In a steady trickle, the come-on’s for schools arrive in our mail. Usually in large-postcard format, they offer a photo of cute kids, stylish designs, and upbeat messages about the great program our child needs. They come from individual Milwaukee Public Schools, religious schools, charter schools, even Headstart programs. Some of the schools are at hefty distances from our neighborhood.
ONLINE LEARNING
D.C. schools give blended learning a try in classrooms
Column
Washington Times, August 4, 2013
Smithsonian Magazine recently published an article on blended learning, and when the Smithsonian talks, we all should listen.
Virtual Reality School applies for charter
Cheraw Chronicle, August 4, 2013
Soon such a school might exist in South Carolina if the proposed NOBLE Virtual School, based upon interactive 3D virtual world technology, is successful with its charter application.
Online schools face scrutiny over scores, growth
Journal Gazette, August 3, 2013
Leaders of Indiana’s two largest online charter schools say low student test scores don’t tell the whole picture of how the schools are performing.
School transfer issue spawns logistical headaches and legal questions
St. Louis Post-Dispatch, August 4, 2013
When Angela Morgan learned about the opportunity to transfer her son out of Riverview Gardens High School, it was like finding a winning lottery ticket.
Virtual Learning: A Different Approach to Home Schooling
KOLO, August 2, 2013
While many students will be heading back to the classroom in ten days, some students are taking a different approach to learning. With just one click, students can gain all the benefits of a real classroom, from rigorous AP courses to active P.E. classes, without leaving the comforts of home.
Online schools, blended learning provide varied options for East Valley students
East Valley Tribune, August 4, 2013
With the school year approaching, many local school districts are flaunting success with online schooling for today’s busy, on-the-go, technology wielding student.