Posted by Ol' Pancake
Public Agenda, a New York-based nonprofit that does opinion surveys on a range of issues, has a new "Reality Check" study out that "finds that most public school superintendents -– and principals to a lesser extent -– think local schools are already in pretty good shape. In fact, more than half of the nation's superintendents consider local schools to be "excellent."
Most superintendents (77%) and principals (79%) say low academic standards are not a serious problem where they work. Superintendents are substantially less likely than classroom teachers to believe that too many students get passed through the system without learning. While 62 percent of teachers say this is a "very" or "somewhat serious" problem in local schools, just 27 percent of superintendents say the same.
See more on The Insiders: How Principals and Superintendents See Public Education Today
No wonder Nevada kids need remedial everything!
September 28, 2006
September 23, 2006
Unions' Advice Is Failing Teachers
Posted by Flatnose
Labor groups have joined forces with investment firms to steer members into savings plans that often have high expenses and poor returns.
By Kathy M. Kristof
LA Times Staff Writer
April 25, 2006
Second-grade teacher Crystal Mendez was in the staff lunchroom at 42nd Street Elementary in the Crenshaw district when an investment broker introduced herself and started talking up a retirement plan.
Mendez, fresh out of college, thought she could trust the woman because her company had been endorsed by the Los Angeles teachers union.
Mendez agreed to put $400 a month into a retirement account. She assumed her money would be invested in stocks. Just 22, she figured she had plenty of time to ride out any dips in the market. She said the saleswoman told her: "Leave it to me."
Unions' Advice Is Failing Teachers - Los Angeles Times
Labor groups have joined forces with investment firms to steer members into savings plans that often have high expenses and poor returns.
By Kathy M. Kristof
LA Times Staff Writer
April 25, 2006
Second-grade teacher Crystal Mendez was in the staff lunchroom at 42nd Street Elementary in the Crenshaw district when an investment broker introduced herself and started talking up a retirement plan.
Mendez, fresh out of college, thought she could trust the woman because her company had been endorsed by the Los Angeles teachers union.
Mendez agreed to put $400 a month into a retirement account. She assumed her money would be invested in stocks. Just 22, she figured she had plenty of time to ride out any dips in the market. She said the saleswoman told her: "Leave it to me."
Unions' Advice Is Failing Teachers - Los Angeles Times
September 22, 2006
High schools to stress science, math
Posted by Flatnose
By ANTONIO PLANAS
REVIEW-JOURNAL
Sep. 21, 2006
Community College of Southern Nevada freshman Jason Celia said he earned B's in math classes during his days as a Palo Verde Panther.
But after finishing an algebra test at the community college Tuesday, Celia complained he wasn't prepared for the rigor of college math courses. Having to take a remedial math class for no credit was something he "didn't like at all."
"It's way harder here than high school," Celia said. "You're expected to learn so much more and you're not really ready."
To better prepare students for their post-high school plans and reduce high remediation course rates at Nevada's two- and four-year colleges, Clark County School District officials are developing a plan that would implement a tougher curriculum than Nevada now requires for high school math and science courses.
Read the story
By ANTONIO PLANAS
REVIEW-JOURNAL
Sep. 21, 2006
Community College of Southern Nevada freshman Jason Celia said he earned B's in math classes during his days as a Palo Verde Panther.
But after finishing an algebra test at the community college Tuesday, Celia complained he wasn't prepared for the rigor of college math courses. Having to take a remedial math class for no credit was something he "didn't like at all."
"It's way harder here than high school," Celia said. "You're expected to learn so much more and you're not really ready."
To better prepare students for their post-high school plans and reduce high remediation course rates at Nevada's two- and four-year colleges, Clark County School District officials are developing a plan that would implement a tougher curriculum than Nevada now requires for high school math and science courses.
Read the story
September 21, 2006
Editorial: Who's failing? The teachers?
Posted by Flatnose
A new study says teachers are not receiving the education that their jobs require
There is a tendency to fault students when they achieve poor results on standardized tests. A report released this week, however, suggests that the principal problem rests with teachers who lack education in their specialties and who never received proper training in how to lead a classroom.
The report, produced from a four-year study, was authored by Arthur Levine, formerly of Columbia University where he was the president of Teachers College. It was part of the Education Schools Project, a Washington-based initiative focusing on schools that is funded by several foundations.
Read the editorial
A new study says teachers are not receiving the education that their jobs require
There is a tendency to fault students when they achieve poor results on standardized tests. A report released this week, however, suggests that the principal problem rests with teachers who lack education in their specialties and who never received proper training in how to lead a classroom.
The report, produced from a four-year study, was authored by Arthur Levine, formerly of Columbia University where he was the president of Teachers College. It was part of the Education Schools Project, a Washington-based initiative focusing on schools that is funded by several foundations.
Read the editorial
Promoting the end of social promotion
Posted by Flatnose
By Jay Greene & Marcus Winters
... in a new study we conducted for the Manhattan Institute that avoids the pitfalls of earlier research, we find that holding low-performing students back helps them academically. We examined a policy in Florida that required third-grade student to perform at a certain level on the state’s reading test to receive an automatic promotion to fourth grade. ..
More
By Jay Greene & Marcus Winters
... in a new study we conducted for the Manhattan Institute that avoids the pitfalls of earlier research, we find that holding low-performing students back helps them academically. We examined a policy in Florida that required third-grade student to perform at a certain level on the state’s reading test to receive an automatic promotion to fourth grade. ..
More
No more teachers, no more books
Posted by Flatnose
Welcome to the Microsoft-designed School of the Future
PHILADELPHIA -- Students enter this city's newest public high school through an invisible metal detector. They swipe "smart cards" to open their lockers, stowing jackets as they head to class with laptop computers.
More
Welcome to the Microsoft-designed School of the Future
PHILADELPHIA -- Students enter this city's newest public high school through an invisible metal detector. They swipe "smart cards" to open their lockers, stowing jackets as they head to class with laptop computers.
More
A 92 percent homework turn-in rate
Posted by Flatnose
...At one of these sessions, a teacher shared that he had been using the pink slip. He had a HORRIBLE time with students not turning in their work. He used the pink slip. He said that the first week he used an entire ream of paper. The next ream lasted him the rest of the school year! His homework turn in rate improved drastically!
At a similar type of session in New Jersey, a principal said that he asked his teachers to use the pink slip. He said that their homework turn in rate increased from 45 percent to 85 percent!!
http://teachers.net/wong/SEP06/
...At one of these sessions, a teacher shared that he had been using the pink slip. He had a HORRIBLE time with students not turning in their work. He used the pink slip. He said that the first week he used an entire ream of paper. The next ream lasted him the rest of the school year! His homework turn in rate improved drastically!
At a similar type of session in New Jersey, a principal said that he asked his teachers to use the pink slip. He said that their homework turn in rate increased from 45 percent to 85 percent!!
http://teachers.net/wong/SEP06/
'Down for some Columbine stuff?'
Posted by Flatnose
KLAS-TV --- A 14-year-old boy has been arrested in Henderson. He is accused of sending threatening messages through the Internet.
Henderson police say they received information on Wednesday that the boy made several references to the 1999 Columbine shooting in his messages.
http://klas-tv.com/Global/story.asp?S=5324102
KLAS-TV --- A 14-year-old boy has been arrested in Henderson. He is accused of sending threatening messages through the Internet.
Henderson police say they received information on Wednesday that the boy made several references to the 1999 Columbine shooting in his messages.
http://klas-tv.com/Global/story.asp?S=5324102
September 20, 2006
$1 million of school grant may be returned
Posted by Flatnose
By Emily Richmond
Las Vegas Sun
September 20, 2006
In the face of mounting criticism, a Clark County schools administrator said Tuesday she wants to return more than $1 million in funds that were intended by state legislators to pay for innovative educational improvements.
In order to qualify for the grants, school districts had to show how their requests would benefit academic achievement.
Of the $54 million awarded to the Clark County School District by the governor's Commission on Educational Excellence, $1.8 million was earmarked to increase back-office staffing to facilitate the hiring of new teachers.
Read the news story
By Emily Richmond
Las Vegas Sun
September 20, 2006
In the face of mounting criticism, a Clark County schools administrator said Tuesday she wants to return more than $1 million in funds that were intended by state legislators to pay for innovative educational improvements.
In order to qualify for the grants, school districts had to show how their requests would benefit academic achievement.
Of the $54 million awarded to the Clark County School District by the governor's Commission on Educational Excellence, $1.8 million was earmarked to increase back-office staffing to facilitate the hiring of new teachers.
Read the news story
September 18, 2006
Teachers speak out of turn
Posted by Flatnose
By Greg Toppo
USA TODAY
When the fed-up young teacher decided to quit her job in rural North Carolina in June, her resignation letter was brief — three lines. But she had more to say.
So she spoke her mind online, in an anonymous, 1,000-word Internet posting to her principal that recounted in grim detail racist teachers, obligatory prayers at faculty meetings, "What would Jesus do?" lectures and a "terrible" vice principal who "tries to sleep with the coaches."
rest of article
By Greg Toppo
USA TODAY
When the fed-up young teacher decided to quit her job in rural North Carolina in June, her resignation letter was brief — three lines. But she had more to say.
So she spoke her mind online, in an anonymous, 1,000-word Internet posting to her principal that recounted in grim detail racist teachers, obligatory prayers at faculty meetings, "What would Jesus do?" lectures and a "terrible" vice principal who "tries to sleep with the coaches."
rest of article
September 15, 2006
Superintendent says schools to go from ‘good to great’
Posted by Flatnose
Reno Gazette-Journal
9/14/2006
SILVER SPRINGS — Just prior to school starting, Lyon County Superintendent Nat Lommori delivered a message to each teacher in the county.
His message was first to congratulate the teaching “staff on their fine performances last year and second, to encourage them to do even better this year.”
His message continued, “Lyon County School District did very well, they had the highest percentage of high achieving schools of any school district in the state of Nevada,” with Fernley High School and Silver Stage High School being identified as exemplary schools along with 17 other schools in the state.
Read the story
Reno Gazette-Journal
9/14/2006
SILVER SPRINGS — Just prior to school starting, Lyon County Superintendent Nat Lommori delivered a message to each teacher in the county.
His message was first to congratulate the teaching “staff on their fine performances last year and second, to encourage them to do even better this year.”
His message continued, “Lyon County School District did very well, they had the highest percentage of high achieving schools of any school district in the state of Nevada,” with Fernley High School and Silver Stage High School being identified as exemplary schools along with 17 other schools in the state.
Read the story
September 14, 2006
Value-Added Assessment
Posted by Flatnose
Value-added assessment is a clean and objective way to measure the exact effects of a school district, a school or an individual teacher on the rate of students' academic progress.
It was during the early '80s, that research by William L. Sanders, Ph.D., first led to the development of the Tennessee Value-Added Assessment System. Now often known as VAAS for short, it is a statistical method of determining the effectiveness of school systems, schools and teachers.
To understand the concept of value-added assessment, imagine a physical growth curve. A parent props Susie against a wall, usually inside a closet door, and applies pencil marks that indicate her height at ages 2, 3, 4 and so on. From those two bits of data, the height and the age, the parent can construct a graph illustrating the growth of the child.
Read more at EdWatch Nevada
Value-added assessment is a clean and objective way to measure the exact effects of a school district, a school or an individual teacher on the rate of students' academic progress.
It was during the early '80s, that research by William L. Sanders, Ph.D., first led to the development of the Tennessee Value-Added Assessment System. Now often known as VAAS for short, it is a statistical method of determining the effectiveness of school systems, schools and teachers.
To understand the concept of value-added assessment, imagine a physical growth curve. A parent props Susie against a wall, usually inside a closet door, and applies pencil marks that indicate her height at ages 2, 3, 4 and so on. From those two bits of data, the height and the age, the parent can construct a graph illustrating the growth of the child.
Read more at EdWatch Nevada
'No Child' Leaves Too Much Behind
Posted by Flatnose
The No Child Left Behind Act, a federal law designed to ensure that all children can read and do math proficiently by 2014, comes up for renewal in Congress next year. Debate over its future will center on whether the law is doing enough to improve education across America and to help children succeed in school.
By Brian Stecher
Special to washingtonpost.com's Think Tank Town
Wednesday, September 13, 2006; 12:00 AM
The No Child Left Behind Act, a federal law designed to ensure that all children can read and do math proficiently by 2014, comes up for renewal in Congress next year. Debate over its future will center on whether the law is doing enough to improve education across America and to help children succeed in school.
U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings said recently that she is happy with the law as it is. "I talk about No Child Left Behind like Ivory soap: it's 99 percent pure or something," Spellings told reporters. "There's not much needed in the way of change."
But questions have arisen about the accuracy of student proficiency testing used to chart performance under No Child Left Behind, and about whether math and reading scores -- even if they are accurate -- should be used as the full measure of school progress under the law. Schools whose students fail to hit math and reading proficiency targets set by the states in these two subject areas face sanctions or even outright takeovers.
As the Washington Post reported Sept. 3, many states -- which develop their own proficiency tests -- set proficiency levels in reading and math without any relationship to standards in other states or to the National Assessment of Educational Progress. The NAEP, a test known as "the nation's report card," tests representative groups of students in certain subject areas to chart long-term educational trends.
The Post reported, for example, that in Maryland 82 percent of fourth-graders scored proficient or better in reading on the state's test -- while only 32 percent of fourth-graders in Maryland scored proficient or above on the NAEP. The Post also reported a similar gap in Virginia -- 86 percent of fourth-graders proficient or better in reading on the state test, compared with just 37 percent on the NAEP.
In contrast, South Carolina's tests are more difficult than NAEP. As a result, only 36 percent of fourth-grade students scored proficient or better in reading on the South Carolina test, compared with 57 percent on the NAEP.
When each state is allowed to set its own standard, measuring compliance with the No Child Left Behind law and comparing performance between states becomes virtually impossible. In fact, some states changed their proficiency levels early on so that more students appear proficient, making it easier for the states to meet No Child Left Behind performance targets
Beyond this, recent studies have shown that schools are spending less time teaching social studies, the arts and physical fitness -- and more time teaching reading and math -- at least in part in response to No Child Left Behind.
Besides the impact of shrinking the curriculum down, why should reading and math proficiency -- certainly of critical importance -- be the sole measures of how well students are doing in school and how well schools are teaching? Shouldn't schools be working to see that no child is left behind in writing, social studies, science, computer skills, art, music, and physical fitness as well?
While No Child Left Behind requires annual math and reading tests for children from 3rd through 8th grade and in one year of high school, the only other testing required under the law is for science exams in three years of school -- but the science scores do not count in a school's report card. Consequently, the only pressure on schools to improve student performance under the law involves math and reading.
But other subjects are important. For example, writing and verbal communication skills have been cited repeatedly by the business sector as necessary for success in the workplace and as being seriously lacking in recent graduates. Music and art are pathways to careers for many students, and they enrich the educational experience for the whole school.
And at a time when poor physical fitness is contributing to record obesity rates and leading to serious health problems for millions of Americans, teaching students the need for exercise in their lives is more important than ever. Not only do athletics help to engage students in school, but participation in sports is important for developing healthy minds and bodies.
Giving all these subjects greater emphasis in the curriculum and in the way school performance is measured should help develop well-rounded children prepared to deal with the important decisions they will face as adults at work, at home and in civic life.
It seems reasonable that if we continue the policy of holding schools accountable, we need to broaden the meaning of school quality to include more of the things that really matter to students, parents and society.
Labeling a school a success or failure based solely on the basis of reading and math test scores reflects a failure of imagination. It downgrades the importance of other subjects and minimizes the value of students' real accomplishments. Imposing sanctions based on such a limited view of the educational landscape is shortsighted.
Furthermore, testing is not the only way to indicate whether students have mastered academic skills.
Calculating the number of semesters required for students learning English as a second language to become proficient would tell us how well the schools serve the needs of an often growing proportion of students.
Assessing the proportion of students who are properly identified for special education services and who promptly receive those services would add to our understanding of the responsiveness of a school to children's needs. So would tracking the ability of schools to provide additional services to students deemed at risk of failing.
Counting the percentages of students in high school who complete college-preparatory courses or who participate in challenging Advanced Placement classes would also add a good deal to our understanding of a schools' overall performance.
The percentage of students going to college is another good indicator of school performance. While graduation rates are part of the measurements tallied by No Child Left Behind, college admission rates are not.
The No Child Left Behind law focuses on a very narrow set of outcomes, and ignores many elements that students and their families find satisfying, challenging and motivating about their schools. An improved No Child Left Behind Act ought to focus on more than standardized tests in reading and math to get a real picture of how well students are being prepared for life.
Brian Stecher is a senior social scientist at the RAND Corporation, a nonprofit research organization.
© 2006 Washingtonpost.Newsweek Interactive
The No Child Left Behind Act, a federal law designed to ensure that all children can read and do math proficiently by 2014, comes up for renewal in Congress next year. Debate over its future will center on whether the law is doing enough to improve education across America and to help children succeed in school.
By Brian Stecher
Special to washingtonpost.com's Think Tank Town
Wednesday, September 13, 2006; 12:00 AM
The No Child Left Behind Act, a federal law designed to ensure that all children can read and do math proficiently by 2014, comes up for renewal in Congress next year. Debate over its future will center on whether the law is doing enough to improve education across America and to help children succeed in school.
U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings said recently that she is happy with the law as it is. "I talk about No Child Left Behind like Ivory soap: it's 99 percent pure or something," Spellings told reporters. "There's not much needed in the way of change."
But questions have arisen about the accuracy of student proficiency testing used to chart performance under No Child Left Behind, and about whether math and reading scores -- even if they are accurate -- should be used as the full measure of school progress under the law. Schools whose students fail to hit math and reading proficiency targets set by the states in these two subject areas face sanctions or even outright takeovers.
As the Washington Post reported Sept. 3, many states -- which develop their own proficiency tests -- set proficiency levels in reading and math without any relationship to standards in other states or to the National Assessment of Educational Progress. The NAEP, a test known as "the nation's report card," tests representative groups of students in certain subject areas to chart long-term educational trends.
The Post reported, for example, that in Maryland 82 percent of fourth-graders scored proficient or better in reading on the state's test -- while only 32 percent of fourth-graders in Maryland scored proficient or above on the NAEP. The Post also reported a similar gap in Virginia -- 86 percent of fourth-graders proficient or better in reading on the state test, compared with just 37 percent on the NAEP.
In contrast, South Carolina's tests are more difficult than NAEP. As a result, only 36 percent of fourth-grade students scored proficient or better in reading on the South Carolina test, compared with 57 percent on the NAEP.
When each state is allowed to set its own standard, measuring compliance with the No Child Left Behind law and comparing performance between states becomes virtually impossible. In fact, some states changed their proficiency levels early on so that more students appear proficient, making it easier for the states to meet No Child Left Behind performance targets
Beyond this, recent studies have shown that schools are spending less time teaching social studies, the arts and physical fitness -- and more time teaching reading and math -- at least in part in response to No Child Left Behind.
Besides the impact of shrinking the curriculum down, why should reading and math proficiency -- certainly of critical importance -- be the sole measures of how well students are doing in school and how well schools are teaching? Shouldn't schools be working to see that no child is left behind in writing, social studies, science, computer skills, art, music, and physical fitness as well?
While No Child Left Behind requires annual math and reading tests for children from 3rd through 8th grade and in one year of high school, the only other testing required under the law is for science exams in three years of school -- but the science scores do not count in a school's report card. Consequently, the only pressure on schools to improve student performance under the law involves math and reading.
But other subjects are important. For example, writing and verbal communication skills have been cited repeatedly by the business sector as necessary for success in the workplace and as being seriously lacking in recent graduates. Music and art are pathways to careers for many students, and they enrich the educational experience for the whole school.
And at a time when poor physical fitness is contributing to record obesity rates and leading to serious health problems for millions of Americans, teaching students the need for exercise in their lives is more important than ever. Not only do athletics help to engage students in school, but participation in sports is important for developing healthy minds and bodies.
Giving all these subjects greater emphasis in the curriculum and in the way school performance is measured should help develop well-rounded children prepared to deal with the important decisions they will face as adults at work, at home and in civic life.
It seems reasonable that if we continue the policy of holding schools accountable, we need to broaden the meaning of school quality to include more of the things that really matter to students, parents and society.
Labeling a school a success or failure based solely on the basis of reading and math test scores reflects a failure of imagination. It downgrades the importance of other subjects and minimizes the value of students' real accomplishments. Imposing sanctions based on such a limited view of the educational landscape is shortsighted.
Furthermore, testing is not the only way to indicate whether students have mastered academic skills.
Calculating the number of semesters required for students learning English as a second language to become proficient would tell us how well the schools serve the needs of an often growing proportion of students.
Assessing the proportion of students who are properly identified for special education services and who promptly receive those services would add to our understanding of the responsiveness of a school to children's needs. So would tracking the ability of schools to provide additional services to students deemed at risk of failing.
Counting the percentages of students in high school who complete college-preparatory courses or who participate in challenging Advanced Placement classes would also add a good deal to our understanding of a schools' overall performance.
The percentage of students going to college is another good indicator of school performance. While graduation rates are part of the measurements tallied by No Child Left Behind, college admission rates are not.
The No Child Left Behind law focuses on a very narrow set of outcomes, and ignores many elements that students and their families find satisfying, challenging and motivating about their schools. An improved No Child Left Behind Act ought to focus on more than standardized tests in reading and math to get a real picture of how well students are being prepared for life.
Brian Stecher is a senior social scientist at the RAND Corporation, a nonprofit research organization.
© 2006 Washingtonpost.Newsweek Interactive
September 12, 2006
Arizona's New Corporate Tax Credit
Posted by Flatnose
By Robert Teegarden
Corporations have a new opportunity to make an impact in their communities and change a child's life forever.
The Arizona Legislature this year enacted a record four new or expanded programs allowing disadvantaged children to exercise school choice. One of the newest programs is the corporate tuition tax credit that would expand our state's educational options and allow economically disadvantaged schoolchildren to use scholarships to attend private schools.
Corporations can take a dollar-for-dollar credit from their tax liability for each dollar they donate.
Read the article
By Robert Teegarden
Corporations have a new opportunity to make an impact in their communities and change a child's life forever.
The Arizona Legislature this year enacted a record four new or expanded programs allowing disadvantaged children to exercise school choice. One of the newest programs is the corporate tuition tax credit that would expand our state's educational options and allow economically disadvantaged schoolchildren to use scholarships to attend private schools.
Corporations can take a dollar-for-dollar credit from their tax liability for each dollar they donate.
Read the article
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