Daily Headlines for August 31, 2012
Is Teach for America Working?
New York Times, NY, August 30, 2012
When Teach for America entered the national stage it was applauded as a fresh, innovative approach to education. Now, well into its second decade of providing teachers to struggling schools across the country, is it still a good idea for our children? Has bringing in smart, young college graduates improved the education that American children are receiving?
Obama, Romney Spar Over School Initiatives
Henderson Press, NV, August 30, 2012
President Barack Obama chose Southern Nevada, which struggles with one of the lowest high school graduation rates nationally, to contrast his administration’s education policies with the proposals of presumptive Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney.
Jeb Bush: How Shopping For Milk Is Like Choosing A School
Washington Post Blog, DC, August 31, 2012
Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush said pretty much what you’d expect him to say about education reform at the GOP convention — schools are failing and teachers unions are bad — but you might not have expected this as his pitch for school choice:
Teacher Union Says Black Education Group Supports KKK
Washington Examiner, DC, August 30, 2012
As Democrats at the national level accuse Republicans of racism, a Louisiana teachers union is charging the Lousiana Black Alliance for Parent Power — a school choice group — of supporting the racist Ku Klux Klan.
Who Might Be Romney’s Education Secretary?
Washington Post Blog, DC, August 30, 2012
So who might Mitt Romney pick as his education secretary should he win the November presidential election?
FROM THE STATES
CALIFORNIA
Assemblyman’s Teacher Rating Bill Shelved
Sacramento Bee, CA, August 30, 2012
Hotly contested legislation to create a new statewide teacher evaluation system was shelved Thursday night, one day before the Legislature adjourns for the year.
Wrong Timing For Teacher Evaluation Bill
Santa Cruz Sentinel, CA, August 31, 2012
Amid the uncertainty, the state Legislature is considering a bill that would revamp teacher evaluations. Assembly Bill 5 has already gotten through the Senate Education Committee and if enacted will force every district in the state to negotiate with unions over annual reviews.
Santa Clara County Judge Questions If She Can Rule on Bullis Charter Case
Marin Independent Journal, CA, August 30, 2012
Before a judge can act on Bullis Charter School’s motion to compel the Los Altos School District to hand over one of its nine campuses, she first has to figure out whether she even has the authority to make such a decision.
Charters Provide Choices Parents Didn’t Have
Los Angeles Times, CA, August 30, 2012
It is simply absurd to suggest, as an Aug. 28 Times article summarizes a study as reporting, that California charter schools are “placing an ever-greater burden on taxpayers, who must fund an already strained public education system.”
FLORIDA
Public Comments Strike Upon Major Issues During Thursday’s School Board Meeting
Bradenton Times, FL, August 31, 2012
The contentious issue of charter schools and the controversial “Parent Trigger Bill” came up during the session, with Christine Sket from the group Fund Education Now speaking in opposition to the agenda of the bill’s pro-charter school supporters.
GEORGIA
Clayton State Ed Students Hear Case Against Charters
Clayton Daily News, GA, August 30, 2012
With a vote just months away that could allow Georgia to create new charter schools, Clayton State education students heard the case against them Tuesday night from a teacher already in the trenches.
Charter Schools Backers Dispute Claim That Traditional Public Schools Are Better
Atlanta Journal-Constitution, GA, August 30, 2012
Backers of a constitutional amendment that would guarantee the state’s authority to approve and fund charter schools are pushing back against a claim that charter schools do not perform as well as traditional public schools.
Dekalb School Board Draws Scrutiny
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, GA, August 30, 2012
An accrediting agency wants the DeKalb County school board to answer allegations that it has mismanaged its oversight of the system and ignored key financial responsibilities.
ILLINOIS
Don’t Back Down: Spare The Kids, Decertify The CTU
Chicago Tribune, IL, August 31, 2012
Mayor Rahm Emanuel is considered a man of iron will who has a deep commitment to reform. He should show it. Push ahead with Chicago Public School reforms and decertify the Chicago Teachers Union if necessary.
Hold Firm, CPS
Chicago Tribune, IL , August 31, 2012
The Chicago Teachers Union announced Thursday that it will lead its members off the job Sept. 10 if it does not have a new contract.
LOUISIANA
Closer Eye On Testing
Times-Picayune, LA, August 30, 2012
It’s unclear what consequences Robert Russa Moton Charter School will face for alleged cheating on the 2011 LEAP test, even though the Orleans Parish School Board demanded that the school meet five ”non-negotiable” steps or face losing its charter. Those steps included firing at least one staff member and disciplining others.
MARYLAND
Better Evaluations Means Better Schools
Baltimore Sun, MD, August 29, 2012
There’s excitement in the air for students, parents and educators as schools across Maryland open their doors for a new school year. Students enter new classrooms, parents learn about new expectations for their children, and educators begin another year with a renewed focus on continued academic improvement.
MASSACHUSETTS
Teachers Union Proposal To Be Released Today
Boston Herald, MA, August 31, 2012
The Boston Teachers Union gathered reporters yesterday afternoon to announce a new proposal they said had been sent to school officials to break a two-year contract log jam, but after city negotiators complained they had nothing but a press release last night, the union admitted its formal proposal would not be ready until this morning.
New Charter School Opens, Others Swap Spaces
Jamaica Plain Gazette, MA, August 31, 2012
A new public charter school, KIPP Boston Middle School , has just opened at 215 Forest Hill St. , sharing a building with the Match Charter Public Middle School .
Don’t Bury Charter School Before It Has A Chance
Gloucester Daily Times, MA, August 31, 2012
I believe the ongoing assault by this newspaper toward the Gloucester Community Arts Charter School is troubling. What is presented as front page news is often no more than a presentation of innuendos, hearsay, and trivial happenings blown out of proportion.
NEW HAMPSHIRE
State Looking For Greater Local Control Over Education
Union Leader, NH, August 31, 2012
The state Department of Education wants the federal government to give it flexibility to institute its own accountability and improvement system without putting its federal Title 1 funding at risk.
NEW JERSEY
Teacher Tenure Rules Must Be Implemented Fairly
Express Times, NJ, August 31, 2012
The Express Times’ recent editorial regarding the changes in the tenure law in New Jersey is correct on some points but not on others (“Christie’s speech hit and missed,” Aug. 30).
NEW YORK
City Schools at High Risk Of Shutdown
Wall Street Journal, August 30, 2012
The New York state Department of Education on Thursday named 221 poorly performing public schools that must undertake drastic measures in the next three years or risk being shut down.
At Some Schools, the Demographic Future Is Now
New York Times, NY, August 31, 2012
Certain characteristics set the Laredo Independent School District apart from most other districts in the state.
NORTH CAROLINA
Charter Schools Offer Teachers Freedom, Restrictions
Huntersville Herald Weekly, NC, August 30, 2012
As charter schools continue to flourish since North Carolina lifted the 100-school cap last year, many former teachers in public school systems have sought employment at charter schools. With looser restrictions on everything from classroom instruction to teacher certification, some teachers say charters give them more control over how they can best teach students.
TEXAS
Sen. Dan Patrick Pushes For ‘School Choice’ Bill at RNC
San Antonio Express Blog, TX, August 30, 2012
Keying off former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice’s speech to the Republican National Convention, Sen. Dan Patrick, R-Houston, today vowed to pass a “school choice” bill giving students vouchers to escape failing schools.
UTAH
Utah Charter Schools A Story Of Success And Promise
Deseret News, UT, August 31, 2012
Utah’s first charter school, the Tuacahn High School for the Performing Arts in Ivins, opened its doors in the fall of 1999 amid a good deal of grumbling from the local educational establishment.
VIRGINIA
Virginia’s Not-So-Great Expectation
Washington Examiner, DC, August 31, 2012
When the federal No Child Left Behind Act was passed by a bipartisan majority in Congress and signed by President Bush in 2002, its goal was to have nearly all children in federally funded school districts performing at grade level in math and reading by 2014.
Defining School Down: Education
Richmond Times-Dispatch, VA, August 31, 2012
Whether you like or dislike the No Child Left Behind law, there’s no denying that the recent waiver granted to Virginia at the behest of Gov. Bob McDonnell’s administration guts the premise of the act. Proposed new standards would have largely codified, rather than modified, existing achievement gaps among racial groups.
WISCONSIN
Audit Questions Impact Of Voucher Schools On Test Scores
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, WI, August 30, 2012
A five-year study released this year found students in voucher schools improved slightly more on state tests than those in Milwaukee Public Schools – but a state audit of the study released Thursday said voucher schools’ impact on test scores is inconclusive.
Raising the Bar
Herald Times Reporter, WI, August 30, 2012
Wisconsin is one of numerous states that applied for and received a waiver of certain requirements of the federal No Child Left Behind Act. Signed into law in 2002, it’s a re-authorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, which was enacted in 1965 and reauthorized in 1994, according to www.edweek.org.
ONLINE SCHOOLS
Unleash These Virtual Schools
Worcester Telegram, MA, August 31, 2012
Like many families across Massachusetts , ours is taking the important step of beginning another school year. Although we live in Worcester , my child will be attending an excellent public school in Greenfield . Or more precisely, the school in Greenfield will be coming to my child.
School’s in Session at Hybrid Charters, Despite Ongoing Legal Challenges
New Jersey Spotlight, NJ, August 31, 2012
New Jersey’s experiment with online charter schools has started, even while the legal challenge from the state teachers’ union is also moving ahead.
Teaching Online
News & Observer , NC, August 31, 2012
In her Aug. 24 column about Jason Langberg, staff attorney at Advocates for Children’s Services, Burgetta Eplin Wheeler wrote, “About 300 students received what Langberg considers entirely inadequate unsupervised online courses.” As a teacher who provides online instruction for long-term suspended students I am curious as to what Langberg considers as adequate instruction.
Online Learning Gains Momentum
WTVF-TV, TN, August 30, 2012
More and more students in Davidson County are getting their education without stepping foot in the classroom. Online learning is gaining momentum, mostly among students who want to take a class or two, but more students are choosing to go to school virtually full time.
One Mom Asks, Why Limit Options For Oklahoma Students?
The Oklahoman, OK, August 31, 2012
More than 650,000 students attend public schools in Oklahoma . Many of them board a yellow school bus to get to class. This isn’t the case for every student. More than 2,000 students who attend the Oklahoma Virtual Charter Academy will get the same quality education as neighborhood school students, but in a format that better fits their learning styles and needs.