Daily Headlines for December 9, 2013
Click here for Newswire, 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
The Auditor: Christie, education leader go from friendly to foes again
Column, Star-ledger, NJ, December 8, 2013
Just 13 months ago, Gov. Chris Christie and Randi Weingarten, national president of the American Federation of Teachers, were all smiles, appearing together on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.”
Who Says Math Has to Be Boring?
Editorial, New York Times, NY, December 8, 2013
American students are bored by math, science and engineering. They buy smartphones and tablets by the millions but don’t pursue the skills necessary to build them. Engineers and physicists are often portrayed as clueless geeks on television, and despite the high pay and the importance of such jobs to the country’s future, the vast majority of high school graduates don’t want to go after them.
STATE COVERAGE
ARIZONA
Huppenthal wants state Supreme Court to maintain voucher program
East Valley Tribune, AZ, December 8, 2013
Saying it’s really a legal contract between the state and parents, Superintendent of Schools John Huppenthal is urging the Arizona Supreme Court to uphold the legality of what amounts to a voucher program for students.
More money for charter schools should mean higher expectations
Column, Arizona Star, AZ, December 8, 2013
For four years, Arizona charter schools have been arguing in court that they get a raw deal from the Legislature.
CALIFORNIA
Choice benefits students
Letter, The Reporter, CA, December 8, 2013
It is not surprising that a recently published column (“School choice isn’t the biggest need,” Dec. 3) by a past teachers union leader downplays the courageous action taken by Vacaville Unified School District trustees at their Nov. 21 meeting.
School librarian helps students struggling with reading
Los Angeles Times, CA, December 7, 2013
Program aims to help young children, most with Spanish-speaking parents, whose reading scores aren’t where they should be.
CONNECTICUT
Suspensions down, but imbalance persists
Connecticut Post, CT, December 8, 2013
Statewide school suspension rates were down for the fifth straight year in 2012-13, but a disturbing pattern that seems to target boys, minority students and charter school students remains.
FLORIDA
Florida students ‘happy’ at school despite lagging PISA scores
Miami Herald, FL, December 7, 2013
Florida’s students lag behind most of the developed world when it comes to math and science, but at least they’re generally “happy” with the quality of their public education.
Rosy teacher evaluations contradict student progress
St. Petersburg Tribune, FL, December 8, 2013
A sweeping majority of Florida’s teachers seem to be performing to the highest standards in the classroom, the newest round of evaluations say. However, some education experts say those findings contradict new reports on student achievement, and hint at bigger problems with the state’s accountability system.
GEORGIA
Savannah-Chatham’s poorest schools use federal money to catch up
Savannah Morning Journal, GA, December 7, 2013
Savannah-Chatham’s public education system includes 32 schools in which 48 percent all the way up to 100 percent of the students live at or below the poverty level.
INDIANA
Charter School of the Dunes working to meet objectives
NW Times, IN, December 9, 2013
Officials at Calumet College of St. Joseph are keeping a close eye on the Charter School of the Dunes.
Tensions Rise as Indiana Schools Chief and Governor Clash Over New Agency
New York Times, NY, December 9, 2013
For Glenda Ritz, who took office as Indiana’s top education official this year, the awkward reality of being the lone statewide elected Democrat here did not take long to blossom into all-out combat.
ILLINOIS
Chicago officials try to tackle K-8 grade truancy crisis
Chicago Tribune, IL, December 8, 2013
Top Chicago school authorities are working on new strategies to address the city’s crushing pattern of elementary grade absenteeism and truancy.
Chicago schools transition _ smooth or rocky?
Associated Press, December 8, 2013
Devion Allen peers wistfully through a door window at the school he used to attend. Those who live outside his gritty, violence-plagued neighborhood might dismiss this towering brick building as just another failing urban school.
How will UNO fare after Rangel?
Editorial, Chicago Tribune, IL, December 9, 2013
Most important: Many of those UNO schools excelled academically, providing a quality education to thousands of students. UNO became a model for how to expand a charter network and maintain high standards.
School works only if kids show up
Opinion, Chicago Sun Times, IL, December 9, 2013
Nothing a school does matters much if the kids don’t show up. As red-hot debates continue over how best to improve schools — More testing or less testing?
KENTUCKY
Survey: Kentuckians ‘Undecided’ On Charter Schools, but Favor Charter-Like Features
WFPL, KY, December 8, 2013
More than half of Kentuckians contacted for a new survey released this week say they’re undecided on whether the state’s public education system would improve with charter schools.
LOUISIANA
Jindal teacher reviews frozen
The Advocate, LA, December 9, 2013
Gov. Bobby Jindal’s hard-fought bid to link teacher job reviews to the growth of student achievement — a key plank in his push to improve Louisiana’s public schools — has been sidelined until after he leaves office.
MISSOURI
Missouri proposal to change early childhood teacher certification faces criticism
St. Louis Post-Dispatch, MO, December 9, 2013
Early childhood education proponents in Missouri say a state proposal to change teaching certification standards may hurt kindergartners and repel new teachers from pursuing careers with younger students.
NEW JERSEY
Funding one school district at the expense of another
Letter, Hudson Reporter, NJ, December 8, 2013
At the November 12th Hoboken Public School Board meeting, parents of children enrolled in the HoLa Charter School spoke in favor of expanding their school district by two new grade levels. Why were parents from HoLa speaking at the Hoboken Public School district meeting?
NEW MEXICO
Double dipping by teachers is on the rise
Albuquerque Journal, NM, December 9, 2013
When New Mexico lawmakers banned the practice of retiree double dipping in 2010, the ban applied to almost all types of public employees – but not teachers.
NEW YORK
A third way on education reform
Opinion, New York Daily News, NY, December 9, 2013
Mayor-elect de Blasio vowed to bring New York’s “two cities” together. When it comes to education, he’s got his work cut out. The city — like the nation — is locked in a bitter fight over education that leaves little room for cooperation.
‘Day of Action’ planned by NY teachers, union
Wall Street Journal, December 9, 2013
Teachers across New York will wear blue and rally for more funding and less testing as part of a national “Day of Action” organized across numerous states.
De Blasio Taking Slow and Steady Approach to Schools Chancellor Pick
Observer Sunday, NY, December 8, 2013
Bill de Blasio will be unveiling “important” new appointments in the near future, but don’t expect his schools chancellor pick to be among them.
It’s about the kids, Bill
Opinion, New York Daily News, NY, December 8, 2013
The mayor-elect is on the cusp of tapping a new chancellor to lead New York City’s largest-in-the-nation, 1.1 million student public education system. One bellwether of the new educator-in-chief’s determination to stand with the kids will be his or her approach to charter schools.
NORTH CAROLINA
State model outlines post-tenure teacher contracts
Burlington Times News, NC, December 7, 2013
A model for new teacher contracts approved this week by the N.C. Board of Education could leave local school districts across the state on the hook for $90 million in teacher raises.
OHIO
58% of Columbus third-graders fail state exam, risk being held back
Columbus Dispatch, OH, December 8, 2013
Sometime before May, when they take the reading test again, more than 2,350 Columbus third-graders have to get better.
PENNSYLVANIA
Charter schools are boon to school districts
Letter, The Sentinel, PA, December 7, 2013
Your recent editorial (“Charter school bill would burden taxpayers,” The Sentinel, Nov. 30) criticizing proposed charter and cyber-charter school reform perpetuates several myths that limit educational innovation and opportunity.
New charter school bill in State Senate won’t be any easy sell
Delaware County Daily Times, PA, December 8, 2013
There is little argument among state legislators and educators that Pennsylvania’s charter school law needs substantial changes.
Pa. schools and $$ behind the curtain
Column, Philadelphia Daily News, PA, December 9, 2013
ARE MOST Pennsylvania school districts fooling Pennsylvania taxpayers? Are they hoarding money while annually seeking more while poorer districts, including Philly’s, operate in crisis?
Public-school advocates fear pending revision of Pa. charter rules
Philadelphia Inquirer, PA, December 8, 2013
Its sponsors say it is an urgently needed and long-overdue package of reforms for a burgeoning system, but critics contend that Pennsylvania’s hotly debated charter-school bill would speed the decline of some conventional public schools.
SOUTH CAROLINA
Students, families benefit from more school choices
Editorial, Hilton Head Island Packet, SC, December 8, 2013
The Beaufort County School District should endorse a plan for more programmatic choices.
TENNESSEE
New charter school funding plan floated
The Tennessean, TN, December 8, 2013
Charter school pioneers willing to go where Metro wants them to go could soon be offered a boost: public money to help them turn old malls and stores into new schoolhouses.
VIRGINIA
Goal
Editorial, Richmond Post-Dispatch, VA, December 9, 2013
A unanimous Richmond School Board scored a goal on behalf of a worthy goal when it voted to require students to maintain a 2.0 grade-point average if they want to play on sports teams.
WASHINGTON
Lessons for locals on power of parents in schools
Seattle Times, WA, December 7, 2013
A community group in northwest Chicago has turned hundreds of hesitant parents into capable classroom helpers, role models and leaders by tapping into strengths many don’t realize they have.
WISCONSIN
Unified charter schools march to own drummer, checkbook
Kenosha News, WI, December 7, 2013
When principals leave traditional neighborhood schools to lead charter schools in Kenosha, they add another title to the list of responsibilities: budget director.
ONLINE LEARNING
Making virtual schools sustainable, accountable
Opinion, Ocala Star Banner, FL, December 8, 2013
There have been recent media stories questioning the quality of virtual education. Most recently, under the headline “Cyber schools flunk, but the money keeps flowing,” Politico reported on the poor performance of students taking online courses from various providers in a variety of states.
Online charters: Court rightly provides precious oversight time
Winston Salem-Journal, NC, December 8, 2013
The N.C. Court of Appeals has provided the General Assembly with precious time to fix an oversight in the state’s charter schools law. Legislators must not let this opportunity slip away.