Daily Headlines for October 10, 2011
Long-Overdue Relief From Meddlesome NCLB
The State, SC, October 9, 2011
THE OBAMA administration’s announcement that it will offer waivers to states from some of the most absurd requirements of the meddlesome No Child Left Behind Act is welcome — if long overdue — news.
G.O.P. Candidates Take an Anti-Federal Stance
New York Times, NY, October 8, 2011
For a generation, there has been loose bipartisan agreement in Washington that the federal government has a necessary role to play in the nation’s 13,600 school districts, primarily by using money to compel states to raise standards.
FROM THE STATES
End Debate Over Charter Schools, Learn What We Can From The Best
East Valley Tribune, AZ, October 9, 2011
From the start, Arizona’s charter schools were pitted against the state’s school districts as lawmakers created them to force competition and stimulate an education marketplace. So it was inevitable that an us-versus-them mentality would develop as traditional public schools suddenly found that their students — and the state dollars that accompany them — had other public schooling options.
‘Unions’ Empower Parents To Push For Reform
Wall Street Journal, October 9, 2011
Shoehorned into a small living room in a South Los Angeles apartment, a dozen parents discuss why their kids’ school ranks as one of the worst in the nation’s second-largest school district.
For Parents, School Choice Is Easier Than Ballot Initiatives
San Francisco Examiner, CA, October 10, 2011
There’s a grass-roots parent revolt surging in California. Parents statewide and at the local level are pushing ballot measures to overturn unpopular government education policies.
Jefferson County School-Board Election Could Dramatically Alter District, Bring Vouchers
Denver Post, CO, October 9, 2011
There’s a major power play happening in the Jefferson County school-board race that could mean big changes in the near future, including a possible move, some say, to add vouchers to the slate of choices in the district.
State’s Money Must Follow Students
Colorado Springs Gazette, CO, October 8, 2011
School choice, the modern wave of education, is always under attack by the establishment. New schools threaten the old union-controlled, one-size-fits-all government education monopoly.
Those who liked the old way simply don’t like anything about the new way
Berthoud Residents Fear Charter School Would Cause Closure of Existing School
Reporter Herald, CO, October 9, 2011
The founders of Red Rock Academy are marketing their proposed charter school outside of the Berthoud community — they say it will make a smaller impact on Berthoud public schools.
Another Grab For Power By The Teacher Unions
Connecticut Post, CT, October 7, 2011
This anomaly has been noticed by Connecticut’s biggest teacher union, the Connecticut Education Association, which is asking the General Assembly to transfer the teacher licensing power from the Education Department to a committee composed entirely of teachers, presumably union members.
Teachers Increasingly Use Home Visits To Connect With Students’ Families
Washington Post, DC, October 10, 2011
It’s an effort to connect with even the most withdrawn families, who might have immigration difficulties or perhaps feel spurned by the public school system. Such parents are often uncomfortable at a school conference or open house, but teachers are desperate to collaborate with them.
Two Pinellas Educators Among Those Taking On New Teacher Evaluation Law
St. Petersburg Times, FL, October 10, 2011
Now the Dunedin High School teacher is at the forefront of another cause: challenging Senate Bill 736, the controversial new law that abolished tenure.
Polk County School Board to Consider Creating New Charter Schools
The Ledger, FL, October 9, 2011
The Polk County School District is one step closer to entering the charter school business with hopes of curtailing the number of students who drop out.
Charter System Seeking Federal Grants
News Chief, FL, October 9, 2011
Administrators and staff at the Lake Wales Charter Schools Inc. are moving quickly to get federal grants. They didn’t have much time after the school system became its own local education agency in late June, but now they have six grant applications in to the Florida Department of Education for federal funding.
Hernando County Rolls Out New Teacher Evaluation System
St. Petersburg Times, FL, October 9, 2011
It’s an oft-used phrase to describe how principals would visit classrooms once a year, watch teachers in action for 30 minutes and jot down scores on a checklist to come up with an annual evaluation. The process is widely panned as flawed because it relies heavily on an administrator’s subjective assessment of a snapshot of what goes on in the classroom.
VP’s Brother Involved In New Charter School
Tallahassee Democrat, FL, October 8, 2011
At the most recent school board meeting, during which two new charter school applications were approved, an advocate speaking on behalf of Mavericks High of Leon County was none other than Frank Biden, Vice President Joe Biden’s youngest brother.
No Miracles
Chicago Tribune, IL, October 10, 2011
Chicago has tried cutting-edge school reform after reform. In the 1990s, Paul Vallas ended social promotion and championed high-stakes standardized tests to hold schools accountable.
National Charter School Leader to Hoosier Parents: Keep Pressure On
WIBC, IN, October 7, 2011
An Indianapolis native at the forefront of the national charter-school movement is exhorting his home state to keep the pressure on.
Charter Schools Offer Great Value, Education
Herald Palladium, IN, October 9, 2011
In local columnist Robert Burgess’ Sept. 28 opinion piece, he made the argument that “the numbers don’t support” charter school expansion, which is endorsed by Gov. Rick Snyder. The major focus of Mr. Burgess’ article was comparing the budgets of charter public schools and traditional public schools, claiming that charter schools spend more on administrative costs.
Charter School Urged in Clarksville
Louisville Courier-Journal , KY, October 9, 2011
The experience led Kischnick to wonder if there was a better way to teach young children — and it put her on a path with a group of Southern Indiana educators and business people to propose the area’s first, from-scratch charter school.
Parents, Activists Debate School Choice At Education Forum
Times Picayune, LA, October 8, 2011
Stewart and several others debated the tension between citywide school choice and access to neighborhood schools in one component of a Saturday forum on education, which drew about 100 parents, educators, and activists.
Keep Reformers on BESE
Times Picayune, LA, October 9, 2011
Before Hurricane Katrina and the levee breaches that swamped New Orleans, the vast majority of the students in the city’s public schools were simply doomed.
Study: Charter School Parents More Satisfied
WDSU, LA, October 9, 2011
A national think tank’s latest study of post-Hurricane Katrina public education in New Orleans says parents of students at independently run charter public schools are more satisfied than parents of students at more traditional schools.
The Big Easy’s School Revolution
Wall Street Journal, October 8, 2011
John White, superintendent of New Orleans ‘ public schools: ‘In other cities, charter schools exist in spite of the system. Here they are the system.’
Early Educator Union Sought
Boston Globe, MA, October 10, 2011
Massachusetts teacher unions are attempting to enroll more than 10,000 early childhood education workers in the private and nonprofit sectors, a move that could boost their woefully low pay but critics say could also drive up tuition rates.
10% Of District Budget Pays For Outside Schools
Worcester Telegram, MA, October 10, 2011
Boylston member Laurence D. Brenner noted the financial impact: School choice and charter school students who leave Berlin and Boylston cost the district about $733,000, about 10 percent of the regional district’s $7.4 million budget.
Teachers Are Free To Make A Choice
Columbia Daily Tribune, MO, October 9, 2011
As Columbia Public Schools moves forward, it is important for everyone to have a clear understanding of the exclusive representation process that leads to collective bargaining, as well as how it can benefit teachers and students.
Eva Moskowitz’s Plan for Three New Charter Schools in Brooklyn Deserves a Chance to Succeed
New York Daily News, NY, October 10, 2011
A wildly successful charter school network is getting set to open three new schools in Brooklyn next year – in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Williamsburg and in less “needy” Cobble Hill. What’s not to like?
Should Ratings Of Public School Teachers Be Made Public?
Post-Standard, NY, October 9, 2011
A much-disputed system that will give public school teachers and principals effectiveness ratings between 0 and 100 is facing an added complication: the possibility that those ratings will go public.
State’s Public Schools Courting “Choice” Students — And The Financial Aid That Comes With Them
Press of Atlantic City, NJ, October 9, 2011
Schools in the state Public School Choice program have begun recruiting students for the 2012-13 school year. Parents have until Nov. 1 to notify their hometown school district that they plan to transfer their child to one of the 70 approved choice districts next year.
Ohio Spends Half A Billion Dollars On Charter Schools Each Year
StateImpact NPR, October 10, 2011
In 1998, Ohio opened its first 15 charter schools. There are now more than 300. They’re enrolling more than 100-thousand primary and secondary students. And Ohio is paying upwards of 500 million dollars to support those schools.
Ohioans Have Always Had Choice In Education
Cleveland Plain Dealer, OH, October 9, 2011
In his support for giving school vouchers to Ohio families earning up to $95,000 a year, Thomas Suddes (Forum, Oct. 2) argues that parents lack the choice of where to send their children to school. But choice has been the defining feature of public schools in Ohio for 30 years.
School Grades Failing
Register-Guard, OR, October 10, 2011
The number of Oregon schools rated as being “in need of improvement” doubled in report cards released by the state Department of Education last week. That ought to be a cause for concern, but the decline is getting the same kind of attention as a car alarm in a shopping mall parking lot.
Analysis: It’s Back To School Vouchers in Pennsylvania
Morning Call, PA, October 9, 2011
It was only a few months ago that private school kids, some in ties and smart shirts, others in tartan skirts, filled the Capitol nearly every day to call on lawmakers to pass legislation that would radically reshape the way Pennsylvania delivers and regulates public education.
Private Schools Keep Eye On Voucher Debate In York County
York Daily Record, PA, October 9, 2011
Gov. Tom Corbett and legislative leaders say they expect the school voucher debate to dominate the fall session. The bill will permit the state to give money to students to help them to pay tuition at the private school of their choice.
Gov. Tom Corbett Puts Vouchers, Charters As Second Priorities To Marcellus Shale Drilling
Patriot News, PA, October 9, 2011
Corbett will unveil the first phase of his school reform agenda on Tuesday. He aims to see Pennsylvania join the growing list of states that offer taxpayer-funded vouchers to parents to send their children to a school of their choice.
Partnership In Philadelphia Could Be Model For Inner-City Catholic Schools
Philadelphia Inquirer, PA, October 10, 2011
St. Martin de Porres School in North Philadelphia may have found the key to survival for inner-city Catholic schools.
How the People’s Editorial Board Would Change Education
Philadelphia Daily News, PA, October 10, 2011
We like the hybrid-nature of the SRC, with the mayor and governor sharing responsibility – though maybe it needs to be bigger. We have a few ways to improve it:
Protesters Demonstrate Opposition To Providence Mayoral Academy
Providence Journal, RI, October 8, 2011
Late Friday afternoon, about three dozen people protested on Westminster Street outside the Shepard Building , home of the state’s Board of Governors for Higher Education. The protesters opposed the possibility of the Achievement First Charter School being invited to Providence.
CMCSS Continues To Question Effectiveness Of Teacher Evaluation
Leaf Chronicle, TN, October 9, 2011
The state’s new teacher evaluations are undermining the effectiveness of principals in Montgomery County , district officials say.
School Vouchers Require Open Hearing
Green Bay Press Gazette, WI, October 10, 2011
We’re glad state lawmakers are attempting to fix a potential problem created when the controversial school voucher provision was hurriedly stuck into the biennial budget passed in June.
VIRTUAL LEARNING
Kiel eSchool Provides Students An Opportunity For Self-Paced
Herald Times Reporter, WI, October 10, 2011
Pionek didn’t want to speak about the reasons those particular students are doing all of their high school coursework online, but she said, in general, reasons can include social issues, health problems, expulsion and being a teen parent.
Tuning In, Dropping Out: Online Schools Troubled?
Denver Post, CO, October 9, 2011
The state is right to question eye-raising turnover rates in the schools, but we hope the result isn’t an attempt to close them.
Technology, Team Learning Hold Keys To Core Subjects
Reno Gazette Journal, NV, October 8, 2011
As education leaders scramble to implement common curriculum standards to assess student performance in all states, they understand that to effectively engage students, greater use of technology, team learning and restructured classes should be the strategies, a Washoe County school official said.