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The Renaissance Kids: First Fridays Washington Latin School Visit

March 10, 2014 By

A Renaissance man is defined as someone who has expertise in a number of different subject areas and uses that knowledge in order to problem-solve. The faculty and teachers at the Washington Latin School are molding the next generation of Renaissance men; but since this is the 21st century and more than just men can master many different areas of academia, I shall call these students “The Renaissance Kids”.

Washington Latin School, located at 5200 2nd St., NW, offers a classical education curriculum to an extremely diverse population of students.  From 5th to 8th grade, all students study Latin. By 9th grade, the students begin to take another language, French, Arabic or Chinese. The students learn through drill and memorization and are taught to be fluid writers. They have Socratic seminars, which involve the study of public speaking and debate. They study dance and drama and are required to play sports.

It was amazing seeing the Renaissance kids in action. We visited a 6th grade history class, where they were learning how to pass a bill in the American political system. They already knew that it started in the House, moved the Senate, went to the desk of the President and even the role the Supreme Court played. They were asking questions about Executive Order; something I did not fully understand until my freshman year of college. They were extremely engaged and the teacher used Lego animated figures in his PowerPoint. In a 9th grade Chinese 1 class, the teacher only spoke Chinese and they recited their vocabulary words with precision, while at the same time having fun with a game of Simon Says.

As I saw the Renaissance Kids in the hallway, they were happy, greeting their teachers with respect yet with a sense of familiarity. The teachers care and that is truly the driving force behind this amazingly rigorous curriculum. Next to the students and teachers in the hallways are huge murals with quotes from some of the world’s great thinkers. My personal favorite was by J.W. Von Goethe.

“If you treat an individual as he is, he will remain as he is. But if you treat him as if he were what he ought to be and could be, he will become what he ought to be and could be.”     

It does not matter what ward these students are from, what race or what socio-economic background; The Renaissance kids know what they can be and the teachers treat them thus. Washington Latin School is a prime example of a successful and unique public charter school and I hope they continue to see success.

Sahara Lake, CER Intern

Filed Under: Commentary, Edspresso Tagged With:

Why I Want to Work in Education Reform

March 5, 2014 By

Starting when I was a teenager, I’ve always loved working with kids. I worked at a local summer camp for many years, volunteered at a charter school in DC and last summer, I was an advisor for students at a private school preparatory program called REACH Prep based in Stamford, Connecticut.

Now in my junior year studying Political Science at The George Washington University, I have developed an interest in public policy and have become more educated in the ways that politics works. As I come closer and closer to graduation (something that excites and terrifies me all at the same time), I have begun to think about what direction I want my career to go. I have had some experience working in a non-profit office before; I often volunteer at my mom’s non-profit back home in New York. I am hoping CER with give me more experience and great insight into the realm of education policy.

The issues of education reform are very personal to me. As an elementary school student, I left my local public school for a private school after attending the REACH Prep program (the same program I interned for this past summer).  The dedication of the staff and the resources made available to me at my new school were amazing. Even as young girl, I realized how lucky I was to have been given that opportunity. The transition took a lot of hard work and sacrifice from my family and me and I will always be grateful for those who supported us. I’ve always believed that every student should be able to have the opportunities I did, whether they are able to afford private school or not. This is why I want a career in education reform, whether it’s working hands-on in a school or in policy.

Today is my first day at CER and I am excited to learn more about the charter school movement, how to raise awareness, and make change through a combination of hard work, research and passion. I am looking forward to getting the ball rolling on my first full day on Friday.

Sahara Lake, CER Intern

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Introducing Columbia County School for the Arts

February 28, 2014 By

After talking with Michael Berg, a founding board member of the Columbia County School for the Arts (CCSFTA) in Evans, GA, we were excited to learn about the creative mission of this aspiring charter school. Poised to be the first charter in its county, Berg and his colleagues aim to provide an arts-based curriculum for students grades K-12. Many local community members have expressed their support and Berg believes that their grassroots movement is gaining momentum.

The decision to establish the school with a focus on the arts was made based on an expressed need from parents and educators who felt the county would benefit from a school that incorporated arts into its curriculum. The Columbia County School for the Arts will incorporate music, drama, dance, visual arts and foreign languages into a regular core curriculum of math, science, language and social studies to allow students to have a more creative and well-rounded education. Berg believes strongly that “creativity fosters literacy” and effective schools need to consider the diversity of students’ learning styles when developing models of education.

As a special education teacher for the past 22 years, Berg has had firsthand experience with the many ways that the arts can be used to benefit children and increase their academic achievement. His passion for charter schools developed after he had the realization that traditional public schools often don’t cater to different types of learners and can discourage students from being excited about their education.

Like many charter educators across the country, CCSFTA founding members have a unique vision for how best to serve potential students, and the culmination of many sources of inspiration and frustration were what led them to this endeavor. Over the past few years, Berg grew frustrated with the lack of praise that he saw for students in public schools whose strengths lie in the arts or humanities, and felt that far more emphasis was placed on athletics than creativity. Berg’s vision, in conjunction with his fellow founding members, is to create a school that encourages the synchronicity of rigorous academics and creative expression, which will allow for students to have a more tailored program more suited to their individual needs they wouldn’t be able to obtain in a traditional public school environment.

Parents in the district have already shown strong interest in sending their children to Columbia County School for the Arts, and teachers from across the country have begun applying for positions. While there are still several steps that need to be taken before the school is ready to open, the future looks positive. We look forward to hearing more about the Columbia County School for the Arts and how it, like many other charter schools across the nation, can provide a quality alternative for students in need of another educational option.

Bethany Tietjen, Intern

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My Introduction to CER

February 5, 2014 By

My first day interning at the Center for Education Reform, I was introduced to the manner by which CER increases awareness regarding education policy. I learned of all the day-to-day tasks that every member at CER engages in to formulate the important message that they send out. As a sophomore at The George Washington University double majoring in Philosophy and Mathematics, one may be wondering how I ended up at CER.

I have spent semesters working with students in both public and charter schools in D.C and Philadelphia, and as such found myself drawn to the educational realm. However, as a student studying at a university located in the nation’s capital, public policy seemed to be a main theme across campus, and so I slowly became more interested in the policy and reform aspect of education as opposed to the classroom. After searching for internships that would best represent my passions, I was drawn to CER.

In the office, I aid the other members of CER by assisting with research, and thereby increasing my own knowledge regarding education policy. Working at CER enables me to use the extensive knowledge I learn in the office and relate that back to my past experiences. I have seen first hand how charter schools run, and how they differ from public schools, but now I am able to understand the requirements put in place for charter schools and public schools, the importance of school choice, and other relevant factors tied to education policy.

Interning at CER has proved to be a rewarding experience just from the few days I have been here so far, and I look forward to learning more regarding education policy so that I can then apply my knowledge to creating better opportunities in education.

Maha Hasen, CER Intern

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Major Report on Digital Learning to be Released

February 2, 2014 By

Media analysis to serve as roadmap for “digiformers”

Media Advisory
Washington, DC
February 2, 2014

The Center for Education Reform (CER) will release The Media and the Digital Learning Revolution on Monday, February 3, 2014, authored by CER founder, Senior Fellow and president emeritus Jeanne Allen.

Illuminating key trends, the report offers eight conclusions and strategies to improve and increase coverage of digital and blended learning modalities and grow public understanding of these important innovations transforming student learning.

The analysis looked at a 1,600 article data set published in print or online news nationwide in the first nine months of 2013.

Allen is available for comment on The Media and the Digital Learning Revolution. Members of the media should contact CER Communications Director Michelle Tigani at 301-986-8088 or [email protected] to set up interviews.

About the Author: Jeanne Allen is the founder of The Center for Education Reform and served as its president from 1993-2013. Today, Jeanne is a Senior Fellow and president emeritus, and serves on CER’s Board of Directors. Jeanne Allen is Vice President of Business Development for HotChalk, Inc., an education technology company.

 

Filed Under: Press Releases

DC Put Kids First Rally: The Hands-on Advocacy of School Choice Week

January 31, 2014 By

After my first day of interning at CER learning about the behind the scenes work and research that the organization does on a daily basis, I got to spend my second day experiencing the hands on advocacy that occurs in DC to push education policy to the forefront of the media and national attention. The DC Put Kids First Rally, held at Friendship Chamberlain Elementary School due to the bitterly cold weather, was a gathering of passionate individuals and organizations that are strong advocates for school choice and better education options for students around the country. Attending this event allowed me to interact with individuals from other education policy groups in the District, as well as see firsthand some of the students who are directly impacted by the changes that are made in education today.

The event was part of National School Choice Week, a political awareness effort taking place across the country during the week of January 26th, and featured numerous impressive speakers including House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA), and Leslie Williams, former WNBA player and school choice advocate. All of the speakers expressed their strong support for the improvement of school choice throughout the United States, and emphasized the main message of the event, which was the need to “put kids first.” In addition to the main speakers, there were student speakers and performers that made the event extremely enjoyable and demonstrated the many benefits that private and charter schools can have on a student’s education.

As a junior at American University studying International Relations with minors in Public Affairs and German, I never thought that my studies would lead me to an interest in education policy, but after researching CER I began to realize the importance of education reform in the U.S. My knowledge on education up to this point has been more on the abstract side, always knowing that I support quality education for all students but never fully understanding the practice behind achieving reform, but even after only two days here I have developed a better understanding of the big issues that exist in education today. I’m excited to be starting this semester as a spring intern at CER, and I can’t wait to continue learning about the world of education reform!

Bethany Tietjen, CER Intern

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SOTU Wish List – What’s old is new

January 28, 2014 By

Last year, we made a list of things we hoped we would hear in President Obama’s State of the Union Address.  This year, not much has changed, and our wish list remains in tact:

State of the Union Wish List

Tonight, President Obama will give the first second State of the Union address of his second term in office, an opportunity for the president to raise issues critical to improving our nation’s schools, one of the most important domestic policy opportunities of our time. No other investment available can simultaneously enhance the workforce of the future, help rebuild the infrastructure of the present, and wipe out the civil rights injustices of the recent past. And while the president has a lot to cover during his speech, we hope he takes time to address education, because if we fail to fix our failing schools, if we fail to replace our public education system, We the People may soon find that we are fundamentally unequipped to govern ourselves let alone to provide governance to others we thought in greater need.

With that in mind, here’s what we hope to hear in tonight’s SOTU:

1) Work Across All Education Sectors: We hope that the president will announce plans by his administration to hear from a range of voices and ideas from cities and communities, including those who represent the grassroots in the school choice and charter school communities. In the first term, the Obama Administration talked a lot about others “collaborating” and “getting along” with unions. We urge President Obama to send a signal to all the people advocating critical school choices for children — be they digital, in private schools or public schools — that this second term will be more about good ideas, no matter where they come from, than about special interests, even if they did help fund his reelection. Likewise, it’s time for the president to firmly tell the teachers unions that protecting mediocrity month after month is unacceptable, not understandable but unacceptable. For a crash course on the issues, we offer a Mandate for Change.

2) Encourage Parent Power:  The president has often said that parents must be more responsible for their children’s education. That’s true, but difficult to do when they have no say in how or where their children are educated. Some states, like Indiana and Florida, are providing the most expansive options to parents, though even the best have a long way to go. In his speech, we urge the president to encourage parents to learn about their power, or if they have little, to take action to get it at the local level. Moreover, it’s time for the Obama Administration to reward states which offer children in failing schools quality alternatives among both public and private schools. President Obama’s administration should reward not just the talk, but the walk, as the first Race to the Top grants failed to do. More federal incentives to encourage states to adopt meaningful charter laws that provide for multiple authorizers while resisting the temptation to micromanage state processes is one way. A very bold move would be to finally advocate portability of all Title 1 funds, so that no matter where a child attends school, they are treated equally for the purposes of federal funds, and not discriminated against simply because their parents had the opportunity to send them to a better school. Parent Power is vital. Learn more here, at The Parent Power Index.

3) Restore Sound Federal Policy: A final area for refocusing federal effort is where waivers and No Child Left Behind (NCLB) are concerned. NCLB, while imperfect, is an example of how federal funds can influence local behavior. Before NCLB was enacted, officials masked data showing schools failing despite billions of dollars in funding. The legislation was a response to state and local leaders abdicating their responsibility. But in implementing the law, states encouraged test obsession over what the legislation intended: quality teaching and monitoring of results. Rather than continuing to give waivers, as the Obama Administration did in the first term, the president should focus on reforming NCLB to ensure more flexibility in approach, so that Washington, while not the arbiter of best practice, ensures adherence to high standards and accountability for precious tax dollars spent. We urge the president to stop the waivers for good faith promises of effort, and instead, start rewarding success. For states still sitting on funds from the first rounds with no mark of success in implementing fully promised reforms or scaling student achievement, it’s time to ask for the taxpayers money back.

 

Filed Under: Commentary, Edspresso Tagged With: , ,

Reflective Blog on My Time as an Intern

December 23, 2013 By

Tyler Losey

My internship at the Center for Education Reform is coming to an end and I think there are two central things that it has given me.  These go beyond the important professional experiences, seeing what working in a non-profit office was like, meeting leaders in education from government and the advocacy world, and getting to foster significant relationships with the CER staff.

No, the two central things that I received from my CER internship were different.  First, it allowed for me to really mold my opinions and thoughts on education reform, the challenges and the achievements of the nation’s education system.  I now know the importance of teacher and school accountability, the innovation that school choice, charters and online learning bring, and the necessity to implement policies to give parents more power over their children’s schooling.

Secondly, it has helped me to construct a passion for the education reform movement and the hope that it succeeds its goals.  It has helped me to construct and create a passion within me for education and policy that will carry me through from my university studies to the start of my career.  This exciting start and springboard to policy, networking, and research in education only strengthens that passion.

Being an intern during such an exciting period of change and transition, not only just in the organization, but also in education reform and the education system in general across the country has provided me with a one of kind experience that I will be grateful for as my time in EdReform continues.  Thanks, CER!

Filed Under: Commentary, Edspresso

My Experience with CER

December 17, 2013 By

Originally going into my fall internship at the Center for Education Reform, I knew little about the organization, besides that its focus was education. While I am very passionate about the education field, most of my knowledge comes first hand, from tutoring or assistant teaching. I thought it would be interesting to see what it was like in a non-profit organization whose goal is to advocate, what their inner workings looked like and how they pushed their agenda. While at the Center for Education Reform, I not only understood more about what I desired in a future employer, but I also learned about what the current rhetoric revolving education reform is, a little history of the education reform movement as well as the key players over the past couple of years.

One of the most memorable moments while here at CER was the 20th Anniversary Conference and Gala. It was an excellent opportunity to learn about CER’s history and impact over the past two decades. I got the opportunity to hear from some distinguished scholars about how we can continue to have a positive impact and create sustainable change in the nations education system.

A goal that I set out in the beginning of the internship was to familiarize myself with education related reforms, legislation and major players in the field. Everyday I received the latest news in the education arena, legislation, reform, political actors and charter school changes. I was able to improve on this goal daily. I feel like I have so much knowledge about what makes up a good character school.

I have also been exposed to the many forms of school assessment.  I have learned that there are an array of assessment tools to test the effectiveness of teachers, schools and the understanding of students. It has been very interesting to see how all the data is gathered and used for the betterment or lack there of in improving schools. I believe this experience will be useful in my quest to become a public educator.

I will miss CER’s quaint office and warm faces, but I know that I am only saying “see you later,” until I am working as an ally in the fight for education reform.  Even in this short time being here at CER, it has reaffirmed my passion for education and inspired me to pursue a career that I will feel fulfilled doing daily. While I am even more confused now about where exactly I see myself in my career, I know that will come with time.

Ta Lynn Mitchell

Filed Under: Commentary, Edspresso

Postcards from the Past – No. 5

December 17, 2013 By

All I Want for Christmas is the OSP

A song made in 2009 about Washington, D.C’s Opportunity Scholarship program still applies today as anti-reformers try to block or find fault with school choice programs across the state, most recently in North Carolina and Louisiana.

All I want for Christmas is the OSP, the OSP for all like me.

Gee if I could only have the OSP, then I could wish you Merry Christmas.

It seems so long since I couldn’t read or do the math my old school said I couldn’t.

Now my teachers help me read and teach me math and writing, even English.

All I want for Christmas is my scholarship. A chance to be a brand new me.

It’s not fair that we can’t get a scholarship when Congress pays for kids to go to prison.

Why is it fine for the President to send his daughters to the nation’s finest?

Mom wants me to have the same, so I can be the first to finish college.

All I want for Christmas is the OSP, the OSP for all like me.

Gee if I could have this for the kids like me, I could wish you Merry Christmas!

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