DEPARTMENT OF GOOD NEWS
Earlier this fall, Fordham’s inimitable Robert Pondiscio traveled to Reno to check out the breezy and successful Common Core implementation in the Washoe County school district. This week, the county's teachers discuss how their original wariness of the standards gave way to an understanding of how they will benefit students. Teachers are particularly optimistic about how the Common Core ELA standards stress text-based evidence rather than personal connections, an approach that helps disadvantaged kids keep pace with the rest of their class.
DEPARMENT OF BAD NEWS
The U.S. Department of Education announced in September that more than 1.1. million public school students have no permanent homes. Experts say homeless students are nine times more likely to be held back a grade level and four times more likely to drop out of school entirely. Nonprofit mobile tutoring programs often have to supplement the work of local schools, as NPR reports.
COMPETITORS GETTING TEST-Y
There is growing controversy surrounding Common Core-aligned test-development contracts. Bidding in many states has lacked any semblance of competition, with only one company participating in the process, and a lawsuit in New Mexico alleges that the bid requirements were prejudicial, according to the Wall Street Journal.
SHORTCUT TO HIGHER PAY?
A new study found wide variations in wages earned by students graduating from short- or long-term degree programs, concluding that most short-term career certificates yield “minimal to no positive effects.” Today, more than a third of college-going students are enrolled in two-year institutions. These degrees are more accessible and easier to achieve, but are they worth the effort? For an in-depth look at alternative pathways to higher wages, register now to attend Fordham’s star-studded Education for Upward Mobility Conference on December 2, sure to be the ed-reform event of the season.
