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September 18, 2009 |
Click here to read printable version |
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| 'Skills-based' curricula serve no one |
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In an editorial in The Boston Globe, education professor Diane Ravitch of New York University writes that our drive for "21st century skills" has sidelined a knowledge-based curriculum, even though "skill-centered, knowledge-free education has never worked." Skills-based learning has been propagated in one guise or another throughout the 20th century, Ravitch says, and in every instance, failed. Yet its philosophical impact has been substantial: "[supporters] inserted into American education a deeply ingrained suspicion of academic studies and subject matter," Ravitch argues. "But we have ignored what matters most. We have neglected to teach [students and teachers] that one cannot think critically without quite a lot of knowledge to think about." Thinking critically, she says, involves comparing, contrasting, and synthesizing what one has learned. What matters most is our capacity to see beyond our own immediate experience. "The intelligent person, the one who truly is a practitioner of critical thinking, has the capacity to understand the lessons of history, to grasp the inner logic of science and mathematics, and to realize the meaning of philosophical debates by studying them." Without a love of knowledge and learning, we cannot expect anyone to use his or her mind well.
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| In the accountability debate, where does student responsibility fall? |
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In an opinion piece in The Bangor Daily News, educator Lori Wingo writes that after carefully reading the text of the president's back-to-school speech and its accompanying lesson plans, she fails to see how student responsibility is a "socialist agenda." The president's message is, rather, an antidote to the No Child Left Behind era, whose drive for "proficiency" has left good students idling at lower achievement levels, and struggling students thinking that "potential" matters over effort. In the accountability wars, Wingo writes, "there is a critical stakeholder who has not been asked to assume any responsibility in student achievement: namely, the students themselves." She decries the fact that schools, not students, are accountable for outcomes of standardized tests, while "there are no consequences for the student who takes the test with grudging indifference." Mediocre expectations -- a goal of "proficient" -- has college freshmen expecting the easy grades of high school, "only to experience academic meltdown when they realize they really have to go to class, take notes, study, turn in work and be accountable for their own learning experience." Educators have traded critical thinking and higher levels of learning "for a curriculum that asks only for proficiency and tests for it in multiple-choice format."
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| A fundamental realignment in education, writ large and small |
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In a clear-eyed analysis in the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, Alan Borsuk writes that the gathering "political thunderstorms" over education, both in Milwaukee and nationally, are impacting the fundamental position of Democrats on the matter. Contentious issues such as mayoral control, teacher performance pay, and teacher assessment with student data are prompting reevaluations and new party factions. "Those calling for sweeping changes against those aligned with the status quo is increasingly an intra-party fight," Borsuk explains, Democrat vs. Democrat. The tensions on a national level are playing out in Milwaukee, where Gov. Jim Doyle and Mayor Tom Barrett are pushing for mayoral control of the Milwaukee Public Schools, over the objections of community members, political figures, and the powerful teacher union. Historically, teacher unions have prevailed in contests against Democratic officeholders, since they are major donors and organizers for the party. But this is a distinct moment in education reform, with a Democratic president and Department of Education heavily invested in dramatic change. Milwaukee is looking to the New York model, where Mayor Michael Bloomberg and his schools chancellor, Joel Klein, have successfully made broad systemic changes even in the presence of the mighty UFT. "The way Democrats wrestle with that question [of acceptable reform] and who prevails in the next few months will show the destination, at least when it comes to Democrats," according to Borsuk.
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| Local education fund (LEF), community group, and Cosby bring 'Mission' to Philly |
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In his continuing efforts to support public education around the country, Philadelphia native Bill Cosby lent his celebrity and conviction to Mission: Education, an awareness campaign organized by the Father's Day Rally Committee and the Philadelphia Education Fund. The campaign aims to unite the African American community in Philadelphia around a common goal: the importance of educating every child. "We're asking those of you responsible for the child to make sure that the child gets to the school, eats properly, and does his or her homework," Cosby said at the rally. "We raised the children so that they would go on and be higher and better. That's what we're raising them for. We're not raising them to go out on the street corner and hang out with the Bloods and the Crips." Bilal Qayyum, president of the Father's Day Rally Committee, agreed. "A child needs to be educated." The committee promotes positive interaction among individuals toward resolving problems in African-American communities. Qayyum said that raising the expectations for children's educational performance while increasing access to resources can help cut the dropout rate, reduce crime, and give kids a chance to succeed. The rally was one of many planned before the end of the year, according to Qayyum.
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| What we talk of, when we talk of lunch |
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For some students, school lunch makes up half of their daily calories, rendering it "a critical component of our health and educational system," according to Deborah Eschmeyer in The Huffington Post. Eschmeyer, co-founder of the group One Tray, writes that, "Healthy, local, sustainably produced school food can improve the health of kids, develop new marketing opportunities for farmers, and support the local economy." One Tray, a national campaign to encourage direct connections between local farms and federal nutrition, would like Congress enact $50 million in mandatory funding for a farm-to-school provision when it reauthorizes The Child Nutrition Act at the end of September. This would fund 100 to 500 projects per year, Eschmeyer writes, up to $100,000 each, to cover start-up costs for Farm to School programs. One-time grants would allow schools to develop vendor relationships with nearby farmers, plan seasonal menus and promotional materials, start school gardens, and develop hands-on nutrition education to demonstrate the important interrelationship between nutrition and agriculture. "Farm to School is a win-win for everyone. Farm to School programs address many critical issues of our society: the health of our children, economic success of our farm communities, and environmental footprint of food traveling long distances."
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| Using cultural resonance for gang intervention |
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In the midst of San Francisco's many civic strengths, gang violence persists. A new policy brief from the National Center for Cultural Competence outlines innovative measures taken by the San Francisco Children's System of Care (SOC) to combat the issue. The SOC, a federally funded initiative, has set in play interventions that use cultural strengths, values, traditions, and practices. As the brief notes, youth violence is not limited to particular racial, ethnic, or cultural groups, but the SOC found violence predominating among young Latino and African American males in certain parts of the city. For Latino youth, the group introduced "healing circles," a Native American rite with cultural resonance for Hispanics. Individuals sit in a circle, meditate, and share stories, all with the intent of "receiving healing." In another action, mentors from the African American community lead youth in a 12-week course of study, activities, and community service, the last day of which ends with a ritual that recognizes entry into adult life and responsibility to the community. "These activities that connect them to their past and cultural affirmation of who they are just so powerful," says Esperanza Echavarri, a program coordinator. "The kids just gravitate towards it."
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| Detroit versus charters: time to throw in the towel |
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In its longtime resistance to charters, the Detroit Public Schools (DPS) is like "an aging boxer fighting Muhammad Ali in his prime. He's still trying to hit Ali, who has already punched him four times and headed back to his corner," writes Rochelle Riley in The Detroit Free Press. School leaders in the district continue to fight education alternatives, she says, despite the fact that more than half Detroit's school-aged children now attend charter, parochial, or private schools -- they've already left. Thirty thousand Detroit children attend 49 charter schools within city limits, and an additional 20,000 attend charters in the suburbs, according to Gary Naeyaert, spokesman for the Michigan Association of Public School Academies. Heaster Wheeler, executive director of the Detroit Branch NAACP and a charter school parent, says the terms of the argument should shift: "If your only debate is about the Detroit Public Schools [versus charters], you're talking about yesterday's reality. While we need the public schools to work, we need education to work. Period." Riley agrees. "It's time to end the debate and figure out the best way to get DPS back into the very competitive game. That means that Detroit school leaders and parents must accept that reform is necessary."
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| Teacher-performance incentives and student outcomes in Portugal |
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A recent paper from the Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA) in Bonn, Germany examines individual, performance-related teacher pay in Portugal's public schools, introduced seven years ago. The study matched student-school data for secondary school national exams, then analyzed the same for two control groups: public schools in autonomous regions exposed to lighter versions of the reform; and private schools subject to the same national exams but whose teachers were unaffected by the reform. In what the researchers found to be scant literature on the topic, their study is the first to look at a reform applied across an entire country (rather than a localized pilot study), and to conduct an analysis with representative population data. Up to this point, research on incentive pay has faced severe data constraints and therefore tended to be based on case studies of individual organizations, making the results harder to extrapolate for larger populations. Looking at a reform in its entirety, the IZA research consistently indicates that an increased focus on individual teacher performance caused a significant decline in student achievement in Portugal, particularly with respect to scores on national exams; the study also documents a significant increase in grade inflation.
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They have seen the future, and it's in Mandarin and Spanish
Pasadena (among others) is piloting English dual-language immersion programs in both Mandarin and Spanish for elementary school students this fall.
http://www.pasadenastarnews.com/news/ci_13328811
Related: http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20090912/NEWS01/909130343/1055/NEWS/Mason+offers+foreign+language+to+middle+schoolers
Teen birth rate higher in Bible Belt states
U.S. states whose residents have more conservative religious beliefs on average tend to have higher rates of teenagers giving birth, a new study suggests.
http://news.aol.com/article/teen-birth-rates-higher-in-bible-belt/674301
Clash of the reform titans
Caroline Grannan of The San Francisco Examiner reports on a falling out between Steve Barr of Green Dot charters and D.C. Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee.
http://www.examiner.com/x-356-SF-Education-Examiner~y2009m9d13-Breaking-news-from-afar-Edreform-darlings-Rhee-Barr-turn-on-each-other?cid=examiner-email
Seattle schools may lower grade-point requirements
The Seattle School Board will consider a staff recommendation to roll back the requirement of a C average for students play on sports teams and to graduate from high school.
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2009873682_grades16m.html
New Orleans school pays for good behavior
At Children's Charter middle school, kids get $25 a month for showing up, and various other incentives for good behavior that they can convert into cash at the school store.
http://www.2theadvocate.com/news/59192467.html |
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| NEW GRANT AND FUNDING INFORMATION |
GreatNonprofits: Youth Thrive Awards
The 2009 GreatNonprofits Youth Thrive Awards recognize youth-oriented organizations of all sizes that receive the most positive reviews on GreatNonprofits and on Guidestar, a site for philanthropic research on the Web. GreatNonprofits is a website similar to Yelp or TripAdvisor where people can post reviews of nonprofit organizations. The contest asks clients, donors, volunteers, and board members to write reviews of these nonprofits, which will then automatically be visible on GuideStar.org. Nonprofits with the most positive reviews in their category will be announced as winners. Maximum award: media coverage and promotion on GuideStar.org for the organization. Eligibility: youth-oriented nonprofits. Deadline: September 30, 2009.
http://www.greatnonprofits.org/youth
New York Stock Exchange/By Kids For Kids: NYSE Financial Future Challenge
The NYSE Financial Future Challenge asks kids to create a new product/idea or process that will excite and educate friends and classmates about investing and the financial marketplace. Ideas can be activities, games, books, websites, videos, etc. that illuminate the fundamentals of the stock market and financial literacy. Maximum award: $2,500. Eligibility: kids ages 6-19. Deadline: September 30, 2009.
http://www.bkfk.com/FinancialFuture/index.htm
Liberty Mutual: Responsible Sports Community Grants
Liberty Mutual Responsible Sports Community Grants fund youth sports organizations in the United States. League administrators must register their organization at the Responsible Sports Web site. Then coaches, parents, administrators, and youth sports supporters can participate in the Responsible Sports Parenting and/or Responsible Coaching coursework. Participants who pass the ten-question Responsible Sport Parenting quiz or Responsible Coaching quiz can credit the successfully passed quiz to their favorite youth sports league. Maximum award: $2,500. Eligibility: registered nonprofit youth sport organizations recognized by the governing bodies of their sport(s) that serve the community at large and are open to the general public. Deadline: November 30, 2009.
https://www.responsiblesports.com/community_grants/default.aspx
For more grants, see http://www.publiceducation.org/newsblast_grants.asp
"Healthier school meals are possible without higher government spending to fund nutrition education programs or increased reimbursement rates."
-Tony Geraci, food service director, Baltimore (Md.) Public Schools
http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200907/lunch
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