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November 6, 2009 |
Click here to read printable version |
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| Desegregation, but not by race |
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In an effort to integrate schools without relying on a racial metric, a growing number of districts are integrating on the basis of income, reports USA TODAY. More than 60 school systems now use socioeconomic status as a factor in school assignments, according to Richard Kahlenberg of the Century Foundation. Districts in Champaign, Ill.; Kalamazoo, Mich.; and Louisville, Ky. returned this year to income-based assignments. "To the extent we can eliminate the highest concentrations of poverty or spread more thinly those concentrations of poverty, I think we make the environment a little less challenging for students and staff to be successful," says Kalamazoo Public Schools Superintendent Michael Rice. The strategy is not unprotested, however, since many parents prefer neighborhood schools where their kids have shorter (or no) bus rides and it's easier for them to stay involved. Still, studies show low-income students do better in middle-class schools, which Kahlenberg says is evidenced in at least one district where parents are protesting economic integration. In Wake County, N.C., both poor and middle-class students have mostly outperformed their peers in other urban North Carolina districts, though scores have slipped lately.
Read more | Read more | Back to top
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| Turnarounds: A losing proposition? |
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Overall, school turnarounds have consistently fallen far short of hopes and expectations, writes Andy Smarick, a fellow at the Thomas B. Fordham Institute and at the American Enterprise Institute, in an article on the Education Next website. In his view, turnarounds are not a scalable strategy for fixing America's urban school systems; the solution lies in closing schools and starting fresh. Smarick points to national data on schools undergoing NCLB-mandated restructuring that bear this out: For instance, of the schools required to restructure in 2004-05, only 19 percent were able to exit improvement status two years later. Reform efforts are plagued by what he calls the Law of Ongoing Ignorance -- despite considerable time, money, and energy, it is still unknown what policies convert a school from struggling to excellent. Studies often conclude that the differences between schools that turnaround and schools that continue downhill are undetectable. Smarick instead recommends a clear process for closing schools, most easily executed via the charter model. "Done right, not only will this strategy help the students assigned to these failing schools, it will also have a cascading effect on other policies and practices, ultimately helping to bring about healthy systems of urban public schools," he says.
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| Texas may get tough with teacher prep |
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Under a proposed new rating system, Texas will toughen standards for state colleges of education and other teacher-training programs, reports The Houston Chronicle. If implemented, programs will be accountable for their graduates' effectiveness on the job, and programs that repeatedly fall short will lose state accreditation. The state is still working on a formula and long-range data system to determine which programs produce graduates whose students make the biggest or smallest gains. Until now, the state has based accreditation on the state's written certification exam, but the new rating system will raise the percentage of an institution's teacher-candidates who must pass the exam, and programs will be graded on how often and well they follow up with teachers during their first year on the job. In addition, school principals will weigh in on programs through evaluations of new teacher hires. As before, programs will be judged on the passing rates of all students and of various gender and ethnicity groups. The State Board for Educator Certification gave initial approval to the rules last month and is expected to finalize them in February.
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| The elusive relationship between standards and achievement |
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In response to surprise over a Brown Center Letter on Education that posited weak association between the quality of state content standards (among other popular reforms) and student academic achievement, the Brookings Institution's Up Front blog lays out in plain terms how the authors found no relationship between state scores on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) and quality ratings of state standards. The authors do not state there is no correlation between high-quality standards and student achievement; only that facets of standards and accountability play out through a set of conditional relationships and interactions, which can't be neatly pinned down. "Thus, high-quality common standards may affect student achievement only in a system in which there are also aligned assessments, and aligned curriculum, and accountability for educators, and accountability for students, and aligned professional development, and managerial autonomy for school leaders, and teachers who drawn from the best and brightest, and so on." Despite this, the Secretary of Education has characterized common standards as "absolutely a national challenge, which we must meet together or will compromise our future." Analysis suggests otherwise.
Read more | See the original Letter on Education | Back to top
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| Stimulus lets states dig budgetary holes |
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The American Association of School Administrators (AASA) has released a new survey on the impact of the recession on school districts, finding that because of federal stimulus funding, states have sharply curtailed their own education spending, creating an austere budget structure from which it will be hard to retreat, Thompson.com reports. Of 875 school administrators, 66 percent report having eliminated personnel positions for 2009-10, and 83 percent say more will go in 2010-11: about 15 staff per respondent this year and about 11 per respondent next year. Just 13 percent said American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) dollars increased state and local funding, which AASA says illustrates the "shell game" that Secretary of Education Arne Duncan has warned against, with states cutting education budgets as soon as it was known that ARRA included money for education. One quarter of respondents say ARRA helped save all core-subject teaching positions, while 35 percent say they were unable to save any core teaching positions set for elimination. In special education, 36 percent of respondents receiving ARRA funds were unable to save jobs. The AASA survey came in advance of the Obama administration's release of ARRA job-creation and retention data, which are being criticized by watchdog groups and others for inconsistencies.
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| 'Proficient,' or proficient? |
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A new study by the Department of Education that uses a statistical comparison between the federal National Assessment of Educational Progress and state tests finds that nearly a third of states lowered their academic proficiency standards in the wake of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), The New York Times reports. Fifteen states lowered proficiency standards in fourth- or eighth-grade reading or math, with three -- Maine, Oklahoma, and Wyoming -- lowering standards in both subjects at both grade levels. Some states raised standards in one subject but lowered them in another. Only eight states increased the rigor of their standards in one or both subjects and grades: Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Missouri, Montana, New York, North Carolina, and Virginia. Under NCLB, all schools must bring 100 percent of students to the proficient level on states' reading and math tests by 2014, and schools that fall short of annual targets face sanctions. The question, says Louis Fabrizio of the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction, is whether you want more kids at "proficiency," or "do you want to do the right thing for kids, by setting [standards] higher so they're comparable with our global competitors?"
Read more | See the report | Back to top
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| Overhauling education's human capital system |
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A new report from the Strategic Management of Human Capital in Education Project outlines six broad principles and 20 state and local recommendations for attracting, developing, and maintaining an effective teacher workforce. According to the authors, "The reform spotlight should be turned where it is most important -- on the people who teach and who serve as principals." The report's recommendations include raising entry requirements for teacher preparation; instituting a tiered licensure system that requires teachers to complete an induction program and demonstrate teaching effectiveness before receiving tenure; and overhauling professional development and evaluations so they are standards-based and indicate areas for teacher improvement. The report concedes these recommendations pose "real political challenges" that will require multiple-year periods of adoption and implementation. The policies themselves are straightforward, but will require a major developmental effort to design residency programs, fund professional development resources, and develop and operate performance-based evaluation systems. Perhaps most controversially, the report states some districts now face significant human capital challenges because they gave tenure to inadequate teachers, who despite good faith efforts show no improvement in job performance. According to the report, if these teachers "are not able to become effective instructors who can bring about measurable gains in student learning, they should be removed."
See the report | Related | Back to top
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| Some sophomores (conveniently) left behind |
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Illinois districts across the state have been using a loophole that allows them to define what constitutes a high school junior, leaving struggling students out of the rigorous testing pool and thereby significantly boosting school-wide scores on the Prairie State Achievement Exam, The Chicago Tribune reports. By raising credit hour requirements, schools are disqualifying thousands of third-year high school students from taking the 11th-grade exam. Many then take the test as seniors, but their scores are not used for state and federal No Child Left Behind accountability purposes, nor does the state track how seniors perform on the test. Officials justify the practice by saying it gives weaker students more time to prepare, but the result has been that 20 percent of Illinois sophomores did not take the test last year, leading to huge leaps in accountability scores for schools and districts. "This is not an appropriate way to engage in the accountability system," said Joyce Zurkowski, who oversees student assessment for the Illinois State Board of Education. "This is an accountability test, and it's the gauge of how ready students are. By keeping out the kids who are most at risk, you are not being held accountable." Educators defending the move say they are doing what's best for students.
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| Of airplanes and teacher evaluations |
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In the ongoing struggle to reliably quantify what makes a teacher successful, many American educators "are trying to be teacher assessments' answer to Wilbur and Orville Wright," says Jay Mathews of The Washington Post. Take, for instance, the efforts of D.C. Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee and the newly introduced IMPACT plan, which many have said will crash and burn since it "takes the art of teaching and turns it into bean counting," in the words of George Parker, president of the Washington Teachers' Union. Perhaps not, counters Mathews, who has sent the assessment to experts across the country, receiving back analyses that were more optimistic than he frankly expected. Under the plan, 50 percent of each teacher's rating will be based on how much their students improve over the preceding year on the D.C. Comprehensive Assessment System test when compared with the average gain of a similar mix of students district-wide. Forty percent will be based on five 30-minute classroom observations by administrators and district evaluators chosen for their teaching experience, each followed by a discussion with the teacher about what looked good and what didn't. Assessment of a teacher's support for colleagues and the school, and the school's overall tests gains, round the rating. Though complicated, the system sets out clear guidelines for both teachers and evaluators, and if executed properly -- a big "if" -- could lead the way for teacher assessments elsewhere.
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| The teaching view from Gen Y |
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A new report from Learning Point Associates in partnership with Public Agenda is the second based on their mixed-method research on retaining teacher talent. "Supporting Teacher Effectiveness: The View from Generation Y" gives a nationwide vantage on attitudes in this latest generation of teachers. Seventy-one percent of Gen Y teachers are open to incentive pay, whereas only 10 percent of Gen Y teachers think that student performance on standardized tests is an "excellent" measure of teacher success. For Gen Y teachers, paying for performance is the least important policy option for improving teacher effectiveness and retention; meaningful learning opportunities, reducing class size, increasing parental involvement, and raising salaries across the board still rank higher. Gen Y teachers desire sustained, constructive, individualized feedback from principals to help them become more effective in the classroom. The report also found that among all teachers, concerns that unions protect seriously underperforming teachers have risen in recent years, with 66 percent agreeing that unions sometimes fight to protect teachers who should not be in the classroom, compared with 48 percent agreeing in 2003.
See the report | Back to top |
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Probably not what drafters of RttT intended
Under a bill moving through the Wisconsin legislature, schools could use student test scores to evaluate teachers, but not to discipline or fire them.
http://host.madison.com/news/state-and-regional/wisconsin/article_660f51c8-3148-58e8-b259-10ba2bdf2817.html
Forging a bridge between 'kids like herself and possibilities for greatness'
First Lady Michelle Obama has launched a leadership and mentoring program in which 20 high school girls from D.C. will pair up with top administration officials to learn life skills.
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1109/29042.html
NYC teacher quality study enlists 100 schools
The joint project of the New York City Department of Education and the United Federation of Teachers, funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, will look at ways of measuring teacher quality beyond using test scores.
http://gothamschools.org/2009/11/03/nearly-100-schools-sign-up-for-gates-funded-teacher-quality-study/ |
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| NEW GRANT AND FUNDING INFORMATION |
Kinder Morgan Foundation: Grants for Youth Programs
Kinder Morgan Foundation grants support non-profit youth programs that focus on education, the arts, and the environment in communities where Kinder Morgan has operations. Maximum award: $5,000. Eligibility: U.S. and Canadian 501(c)3 organizations that serve youth. Deadline: November 10, 2009.
http://www.kindermorgan.com/community/
Produce for Kids: Play With Your Produce Challenge
The Produce for Kids (PFK) Play With Your Produce Challenge invites teachers to create a fun activity for the classroom focused on healthy eating with more fruits and vegetables. Activities must focus on getting kids to eat more fresh fruits and vegetables, feature at least three PFK sponsors' products, involve the entire classroom, and be able to be replicated and used in other classrooms/schools. Maximum award: $500 to promote school-based health and wellness, and a classroom party toolkit (with party ideas, recipes, favors, and $100 gift certificate to purchase produce and other nutritious food from a local grocery store). Eligibility: teachers and classrooms grades K-6 in the U.S. Deadline: November 13, 2009.
http://www.produceforkids.org/teachers/takeTheChallenge.html
Air Force Association: Educator Grants
The Air Force Association Educator Grant program aims to encourage development of innovative aerospace activities within a prescribed curriculum. The program also encourages establishing an active relationship between a school and its local Air Force Association organization. Maximum award: $250. Eligibility: classrooms K-12. Deadline: November 13, 2009.
http://www.afa.org/aef/aid/educator.asp
Toyota: International Teacher Program
The 2010 Toyota International Teacher Program allows participants to explore Costa Rica's education, culture, and environment, examining how these affect industry and society in the country today. Maximum award: a fully funded 12-day study tour of Costa Rica. Eligibility: U.S. teachers grades 6-12 in all disciplines, with three consecutive years teaching experience. Deadline: January 6, 2010.
http://www.toyota4education.com/
For more grants, see http://www.publiceducation.org/newsblast_grants.asp
"To fix our schools, we need teaching programs that are as rich in resources, interesting, high-reaching, and thoughtful as the young people we want to attract to the profession. Show me a school where teachers are smart, well-educated, skilled, and happy to be there, and I'll show you a group of children who are getting a good education."
-- Susan Engel, senior lecturer in psychology and director of the teaching program at Williams College, in an op-ed in The New York Times, November 1, 2009
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/02/opinion/02engel.html?scp=2&sq=Susan%20Engel&st=cse
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