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October 10, 2008 |
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| A teachers union in Florida campaigns against budget cuts |
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Everywhere, it seems, money is tight and school budgets are hurting. But in Volusia, FL, where the head of the teachers union says its members understand that school financing is a problem, teachers have taken issue with how and where cuts are made. According to the Orlando Sentinel, Andrew Spar, the union's president, says district officials have made bad decisions, cut teachers out of the process, and stuck instructors with the brunt of this year's losses. So in a massive public-relations effort that includes e-mail, fliers, letters, and calls to parents and politicians, the union is protesting against fewer supplies, fewer courses, fewer teachers, and larger class sizes. "Teachers are tired," says Spar. "They are burnt out, overwhelmed, and overworked."
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| Michigan districts privatizing services to save money |
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Faced with declining enrollments and state-aid cuts, the school district in Southfield, MI, recently contracted with private companies to provide food, busing, and custodial services, reports Capital News Service at the Michigan State University School of Journalism. The moves are projected to save $18 million over three years but have drawn opposition from unions. They argue that the new approach cuts jobs and wages for loyal employees, and that less expensive workers with less of a stake in the community are taking their place. Statewide, according to the Mackinac Center for Public Policy, the number of Michigan school districts turning to privatization has increased every year for the last five years. "Are we glad?" asks Southfield Deputy Superintendent Ken Siver about the steps his district has taken toward privatization. "No, we're not glad. But we couldn't squeeze any more out of the budget without cutting programs."
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| Wisconsin schools sue over retirement investments |
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Five Wisconsin school districts that put $200 million in borrowed dollars into complex investments to help pay retiree benefits have sued two financial institutions that oversaw the process, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports. According to the suit, filed recently in a county court, the investments lost $150 million, or three-quarters of their value, since they were undertaken in 2006. The districts said they were misled and that the risks involved were misrepresented. None of the districts hired an independent financial adviser before entering the deals.
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| Maryland task force recommends steps to increase number of teachers |
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A Maryland task force has outlined 26 actions for the state to take in the next few years to replace the numbers of teachers leaving and retiring from the state's classrooms, the Baltimore Sun reports. The recommendations, intended to produce more teachers from state colleges and provide incentives for teachers to stay on the job, include technical changes in certification standards, pay increases for teachers, and a resumption of tuition reimbursement for college students who study to be teachers and agree to work in the public schools. Some of the recommendations would need substantial state funding or a shift in policies by the Maryland State Department of Education, but the proposals are said to have been widely endorsed by education leaders.
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| Cheat with technology, get caught by technology |
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Teachers are using new technologies such as text-matching software, webcams, biometric equipment, and testing centers with cheat-proof computers to combat widespread student cheating, says U.S. News & World Report. Where teachers and professors once struggled to keep up with the stratagems of technologically savvy students, they now have recourse to some of the very same tools used by would-be cheaters and plagiarists. "The electronic revolution cuts both ways," says economics professor Rick Lotspeich of Indiana State University, who now has a much easier time when he suspects a student has lifted a passage. "It makes plagiarism a lot easier, and checking a lot easier," he explains. Teachers are also fighting cheating by asking students to turn in outlines and drafts so that they can track student progress, or by creating more real-world assignments that point out the stupidity of cheating.
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| Achievement gap found narrowing in DC area |
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According to an analysis by the Washington Post, the achievement gap is shrinking between lower-income children and more affluent ones in areas near the District of Columbia. Test data from Maryland and Virginia show that the academic performance of disadvantaged children has improved in suburban DC schools since the No Child Left Behind Act was signed into law in January 2002. Such gains are among the law's goals. "As much as I'd say I wish we didn't have to necessarily take these tests, I know it's made us better," said Angela Robinson, principal of an elementary school in Loudon County, VA. "Before NCLB was put in place, yes, we paid attention to those groups, but it was not with the same focus that we do now." Some experts have cautioned, however, that state tests are an unreliable gauge because standards vary from place to place, and they point to national test scores that show some achievement gaps unchanged.
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| Texas business group calls for greater college readiness |
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The Texas Coalition for a Competitive Workforce, a coalition of business and research groups, has called on state legislators and education officials to do something quickly about the inadequate skills of many students graduating from Texas high schools, the Dallas Morning News reports. The coalition wants an immediate raising of curriculum standards to reflect the knowledge and skills students need to be ready for college. The group also has called for school performance ratings to be based on the percentage of students who are on track for college or career readiness, or who are making progress and will be on track for college readiness in three years. Says Jim Windham, chairman of the Texas Institute for Education Reform: "Today, 65 percent of new jobs created in the U.S. require some college or equivalent skills. However, research shows that the vast majority of Texas students -- more than 80 percent in some cases -- fail to meet college readiness benchmarks."
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| Rhode Island schools must teach about dating violence |
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In the wake of the stabbing death of 23-year-old Lindsay Ann Burke by her boyfriend in 2005, Rhode Island has instituted a law that requires all public middle schools and high schools to teach students about dating violence in their health classes, reports the Associated Press. The Lindsay Ann Burke Act mandates that discussions of abusive relationships be incorporated into the curriculum each year for students in Grades 7 through 12. One other state --Texas -- requires awareness education about dating violence, and several other states encourage it. Burke's mother, Ann Burke, a health teacher, says such instruction would have enabled her daughter to recognize the danger in her relationship earlier. "If this could happen to her, this could happen to anyone," she adds.
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| Policy analysts fault California's education system |
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California's system of public education has been criticized by a group of education researchers. Known as Policy Analysis for California Education, or PACE, the group concludes that the progress of many of California's struggling students has been overstated, the Los Angeles Times reports, and that the state provides relatively few resources per student when compared with other states. In addition, the researchers say California's resources are not always distributed fairly, and they blame the state's governance system for impeding school reform. In a publication titled "Conditions of Education in California 2008," the group also says the state has fewer teachers per student than previously, a growing number of inadequately experienced teachers, and a looming teacher shortage.
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| College guidebook targets underserved students |
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The Center for Student Opportunity, a national nonprofit group that helps first-generation, low-income, and minority students bound for college, has released a "College Access & Opportunity Guide." The publication highlights more than 225 colleges and universities with programs for college access and retention aimed at historically underserved college-bound students. It includes material developed in collaboration with KnowHow2GO, a national college access campaign created in partnership with Lumina Foundation for Education, the American Council on Education, and the Ad Council. The Center for Student Opportunity says it plans to distribute more than 100,000 free copies of the guide, which also may be purchased online.
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Where McCain and Obama stand on education
A comparison of the candidates' positions on education, part of Public Education Network's latest "Federal Legislative Update" for its members, is now on PEN's website.
A special week to help 'Give Kids Good Schools'
The week of October 12-18 is the centerpiece of Public Education Network's campaign to provide Americans with tools to learn about "quality public schools" and to encourage related actions.
Opportunity seen to reverse DC enrollment decline
The city could add 20,000 students to its public and public charter schools by 2015, a study finds. Needed: academic reform, affordable housing, and neighborhood revitalization.
'Promising Practices in Working with Young Adults'
A report drawing on contributions by school and community leaders is available online from the Youth Development Institute in New York.
Homelessness and parenting: call for papers
The federally sponsored Homelessness Resource Center has issued an open request for papers to appear in the American Journal of Orthopsychiatry.
Correction for 'bad link' to article on urban education
Readers of NewsBlast's e-mail version who could not find a Dissident Voice article cited in last week's issue can try a related link on PEN's website by clicking the heading above. |
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| NEW GRANT AND FUNDING INFORMATION |
ECS: Frank Newman Award for State Innovation
Honoring the late Frank Newman, who was president of the Education Commission of the States for 14 years, the ECS Award for State Innovation recognizes states and territories for demonstrated excellence in shaping education policy. Deadline: Oct. 24, 2008.
NEA and Youth Service America: Youth Leaders for Literacy
The Youth Leaders for Literacy Program, an initiative of the National Education Association and Youth Service America, helps young people direct their enthusiasm and creativity into reading-related service projects. The projects will begin next March 2, on Read Across America Day, and will end April 24-26, on Global Youth Service Day. Maximum award: $500. Eligibility: people 21 years old or younger; individuals or groups. Deadline: Oct. 30, 2008.
Surdna: Art Teachers Fellowship Program
Recognizing that art teachers often lack the time and resources to reconnect with the artistic processes they teach, the Surdna Arts Teachers Fellowship Program offers grants to enable selected teachers to make art with professionals in their disciplines and stay current with new practices and resources. Maximum award: $5,500. Eligibility: all permanently assigned full- and part-time arts faculty members in specialized, public arts high schools. Deadline: Nov. 14, 2008.
SeaWorld/Busch Gardens: Environmental Excellence Awards
The SeaWorld/Busch Gardens Environmental Excellence Awards recognize outstanding grassroots efforts by students and teachers to protect and preserve the environment. Maximum award: $10,000. Eligibility: all schools (grades K-12) and community groups. Deadline: Nov. 28, 2008.
AAPT: High School Physics Teachers
The American Association of Physics Teachers High School Physics Teacher Grant will reward a proposal designed to result in better teaching, student understanding and interest, and increased class enrollment. The proposal may use a new teaching method or an adaptation of an existing idea. Maximum award: $500. Eligibility: members of AAPT. Deadline: Dec. 1, 2008.
For more grants, see http://www.publiceducation.org/newsblast_grants.asp
"Until we see some sign of rebound on the horizon, this is going to be a constant exercise in cutting. ... [The goal is] to protect our priorities as best we can."
-- Gov. Martin O'Malley (D-MD), quoted 10/9/08 in a Washington Post article about the economic slowdown's effects on government services, including education.
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Contributing Editor
PEN Weekly NewsBlast
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and Editor, PEN Weekly NewsBlast
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