Daily Headlines for October 7, 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
Closing achievement gap requires new thinking
Opinion, Richmond Times-Dispatch, VA, October 6, 2013
For nearly 50 years, the federal government has tried — but largely failed — to find the right formula to close the achievement gap between the highest-performing students in America’s public school classrooms and those who get left behind.
Deciding Who Sees Students’ Data
New York Times, NY, October 6, 2013
WHEN Cynthia Stevenson, the superintendent of Jefferson County, Colo., public schools, heard about a data repository called inBloom, she thought it sounded like a technological fix for one of her bigger headaches. Over the years, the Jeffco school system, as it is known, which lies west of Denver, had invested in a couple of dozen student data systems, many of which were incompatible.
Getting better teachers requires thorough education reform
Opinion, Washington Times, DC
October 6, 2013
Teaching — or at least teaching well — should be thought of as a “trade” not a “job.” Those doing an everyday (or even complex) job require training, experience and steadiness to become successful. Teachers need all that as well, but it’s more nuanced.
How much more do home buyers pay for better schools?
Los Angeles Times, CA, October 6, 2013
Buyers pay $50 more per square foot for homes in top-rated school districts compared with homes served by average-rated schools, Redfin says. But its nonscientific study has limitations.
Making Sure Teachers Are Classroom-Ready
Stateline, October 7, 2013
Most candidates for a teaching license in the United States have to pass written exams testing their knowledge of teaching theory and specific subject areas, such as English or biology.
Pay Raises for Teachers With Master’s Under Fire
Wall Street Journal, October 5, 2013
The nation spends an estimated $15 billion annually on salary bumps for teachers who earn master’s degrees, even though research shows the diplomas don’t necessarily lead to higher student achievement.
The DOJ’s Attack on Vouchers
Opinion, National Review Online, October 7, 2013
Obama held out the promise of a post-racial, post-partisan presidency. He would not reflexively dismiss vouchers or play interest-group politics. Five years on, things have changed.
STATE COVERAGE
CALIFORNIA
In defense of charter schools
Letters, Los Angeles Times, CA, October 5, 2013
Re “The charter mistake,” Opinion, Oct. 1. To say I am disappointed by Diane Ravitch’s Op-Ed article is an understatement. Many of her assertions regarding charter schools are offensive to the parents and educators who have created some amazing charters.
L..A. events call for opposing corporate-style school reform
Los Angeles Times, CA, October 6, 2013
Los Angeles was the scene last week of two events that took on corporate-style school reform, which emphasizes competition and accountability and is promulgated by many state governments and the U.S. Department of Education.
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
Meridian Public Charter School shrugs off D.C. investigation into test tampering
Column, Washington Post, DC, October 6, 2013
Six months ago, a consulting firm working for the D.C. schools superintendent reported that staffers at the Meridian Public Charter School had tampered with their students’ annual city tests, raising scores significantly above what they would have been.
FLORIDA
Lawsuit aims to increase Florida education funding
Miami Herald, FL, October 6, 2013
A group of determined parents from four Florida counties say the state’s public schools are unsafe, underfunded, inefficient and ineffective.
IDAHO
Idaho education reforms — let’s get it right first time
Opinion, Idaho Statesmen, ID, October 7, 2013
The prosperity of Idaho’s businesses depends largely upon the preparation we provide to our children. All of our children need access to learning opportunities that will help them become good citizens with strong minds. And we must start in the early years.
LOUISIANA
Could vouchers improve integration?
The News Star, LA, October 6, 2013
A recent report runs contrary to a federal government lawsuit that alleges Louisiana’s voucher program interferes with court-ordered school integration plans.
KIPP, Dillard partner to keep students in college
Times-Picayune, LA, October 4, 2013
Dillard University plans Friday to announce it will guarantee full financial support for 10 students from KIPP charter schools each year, as part of KIPP’s effort to ensure its alumni finish college. The initiative will quadruple the number of KIPP alumni at Dillard in four years.
La.’s education reform all about fuzzy math
Opinion, Shreveport Times, LA, October 6, 2013
What has reform really meant for Louisiana beyond the fuzzy math and mysterious statistics recited by (Bobby) Jindal in his “Louisiana is Leading the Way in Education” op-ed of Sept. 15, (The Times-Picayune)?
MASSACHUSETTS
Bills would raise Mass. dropout age to 18
Westport News, MA, October 7, 2013
Massachusetts lawmakers are again considering proposals to raise the legal dropout age for public school students from 16 to 18.
NEVADA
Huge victory for school choice … but not in Nevada
Commentary, Elko Daily Free Press, NV, October 5, 2013
A gaggle of school voucher-haters – led by the Arizona School Boards Association and the Arizona teachers union — filed a lawsuit challenging the Arizona Empowerment Scholarship Accounts (ESA) program.
NEW JERSEY
Christie calls for school vouchers at Orthodox Jewish gathering in Teaneck
The Record, NJ, October 6, 2013
Governor Christie made a pitch Sunday for school vouchers — which he tried unsuccessfully to get through the Legislature — to an Orthodox Jewish group concerned about the cost of private religious schools.
Dozen applications put NJ schools in the running for ‘Race to the Top’ grants
New Jersey Spotlight, NJ, October 7, 2013
While applications submitted by Newark and Paterson public schools got the headlines, another 10 New Jersey applications were also filed for federal Race to the Top funds, including two from charter operators.
NEW YORK
A walk on the child’s side
Editorial, New York Daily News, NY, October 6, 2013
Thousands of parents are set to walk across the Brooklyn Bridge Tuesday carrying an urgent message to the city’s next mayor, especially if it’s Bill de Blasio, as is looking increasingly likely.
Parents’ historic march for charter schools
Editorial, New York Post, NY, October 6, 2013
Some 10,000 parents, kids and teachers are about to make city history: On Tuesday, they’ll march across the Brooklyn Bridge into Manhattan to demand an end to the war on charters.
Why I’m marching for charter schools
Opinion, New York Daily News, NY, October 6, 2013
I like a lot of what Bill de Blasio says. I believe he wakes up in the morning thinking about people like my family and our friends — people who are working hard but find it harder than ever to make it in New York.
MARYLAND
Changes to teacher and principal evaluations rolled out as part of Race to the Top
Carroll County Times, MD, October 7, 2013
Teacher and principal evaluations have changed starting this school year, and there still may be more adjustments as the state seeks an exemption from part of the evaluation requirement.
Fight to keep the Common Core from being implemented in schools
Baltimore Sun, MD, October 5, 2013
Robert Small, the Howard County parent whose name became known from Maine to California when he protested new nationwide education standards, is part of a chorus of increasingly strident voices rising up against the initiative — from both ends of the political spectrum.
PENNSYLVANIA
Charter bill just first step
Opinion, Republican Herald, PA, October 7, 2013
Pennsylvania taxpayers have been paying charter schools, based partially on costs that they do not incur, for more than a decade.
I-LEAD school rocks downtown Reading’s redevelopment plans
Reading Eagle, PA, October 6, 2013
Spencer said the donation has thrown a wrench in the works for the city on several levels. The immediate impact, he said, is the loss of more than $150,000 in property taxes, which the nonprofit I-LEAD won’t have to pay.
More school choices arise as fewer students stay in Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, PA, October 6, 2013
As population declined over the past 30 years, so did the number of students enrolled in school from age 3 through the end of high school in both Pittsburgh and Allegheny County, each losing about one in five students.
SOUTH CAROLINA
School choice policies need strong analysis
Editorial, Aiken Standard, SC, October 7, 2013
The first steps toward a statewide school choice program in South Carolina may already have taken place.
Students need to be in schools that help them best develop
Editorial, Morning News, SC, October 6, 2013
Parents of special needs children and educators often are frustrated by the public school system that cannot meet the students’ needs.
TENNESSEE
ASD reshapes charter climate in Memphis; awaits school board response
Memphis Commercial Appeal, TN, October 6, 2013
Kindergarten at KIPP Memphis Academy Elementary is part performance with two teachers in each classroom playing off each other, their energy bouncing around the room like sparkles from a disco ball.
Haslam making progress on education
Editorial, Leaf Chronicle, TN, October 6, 2013
Gov. Bill Haslam is distinguishing himself as an “education governor,” with an array of programs to enhance learning opportunities for Tennesseans from preschool to college.
Springfield tests charter school waters
The Tennessean, TN, October 6, 2013
Two representatives of an Arkansas-based charter school company met with nearly 30 members of the Springfield community at a town hall meeting last month, explaining how they believe they could improve education in city schools.
TEXAS
Largely Unchecked, Tutors Got Millions Through Program
Texas Tribune, TX, October 6, 2013
In late September, a lesser-known No Child Left Behind program that set aside millions in federal funding to provide remedial help for struggling students from low-income families quietly came to a close in Texas.
WASHINGTON
Tri-City school districts not keen on charter schools
The Bellingham Herald, WA, October 5, 2013
Tri-City school districts are in no hurry to help create charter schools within their boundaries, at least not for the time being. Other school districts around the state, including the West Valley School District in Yakima, have at least expressed interest.
WISCONSIN
Lessons for Racine in New Orleans
Editorial, Journal Times, WI, October 5, 2013
A report in the Sept. 30 Wall Street Journal on the state of public education in New Orleans offered insight that should be useful for Racine as the debate over the school voucher program and charter schools continues in the coming years.
ONLINE LEARNING
School Board approves ‘blended learning’ IGA
Elburn Herald, IL, October 5, 2013
On Monday, the board officially approved the intergovernmental agreement for an online “blended learning” program with four other districts to form a Blended Learning Consortium.
School choice means progress by students
Letter, Cleveland Daily Banner, TN, October 3, 2013
Our families are particularly excited to begin another school year of online learning with the Tennessee Virtual Academy. We recognize that, like those in many other families, our children have very unique learning needs — and online learning is helping us meet the educational needs of our children in ways we never thought possible.
Volusia charter school applicant withdraws
Dayton Beach Journal-News, FL, October 6, 2013
Pivot, which offers a blend of online and face-to-face instruction, had hoped to open a school in Deltona next year that ultimately would serve more than 400 students in kindergarten through eighth grade.