Growth in School Revisited: Achievement Gains from the Fourth to the Eighth Grade
Richard J. Coley, Educational Testing ServiceNovember 2003
Richard J. Coley, Educational Testing ServiceNovember 2003
The Albert Shanker Institute and the New Economy Information ServiceApril 20, 2004
Jeanne Allen of the Center for Education Reform is her usual blunt self in a recent exchange with the editors of USA Today, who bemoan financial, curricular, and administrative scandals among charter schools and call for greater accountability for them.
Martha McCall, Gage Kingsbury, and Allan Olson, Northwest Evaluation AssociationApril 2004
Bryan C. Hassel and Emily Ayscue Hassel, Armchair Press May 2004
Clifford Adelman, Institute of Educational Sciences, U.S. Department of Education April 2004
Katherine Mangu-Ward penned a super essay in the March 29 Weekly Standard (http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Protected/Articles/000/000/003/881iitwp.asp) that accurately describes NCLB's virtues, acknowledges its shortcomings, responds thoughtfully to several oft-voiced criticisms, and s
Last week, the National Collegiate Athletics Association approved reforms intended to improve graduation rates among college athletes, amid an outcry over the horrendous rates at many schools, particularly in men's basketball and football (see http://www.edexcellence.net/gadfly/issue.cfm?issue=140#1725).
A pair of excellent articles in Education Week by Lynn Olson point to the UK for lessons on the pitfalls of standards-based reform on the one hand, and value-added analysis on the other.
Big news for Colorado charter schools. That state's legislature has just passed two bills packed with useful charter law reforms. One creates a Colorado State Charter Institute to sponsor charter schools, removing local districts from their monopoly over that key role.
A rosebud to our friends at the Progressive Policy Institute for the launch of "Eduwonk," a daily blog on education issues. It's peppered with smart and witty comments on the education news of the day, perfect for those who just can't wait the full seven days for the next Gadfly. Check it out at http://www.eduwonk.com.
Sobering thoughts from Frederick Hess on why the new D.C. voucher program won't have the hoped-for effect of reforming the public school system by exposing it to competition. In fact, the new program shields public schools from real competition by capping enrollment at 3 percent of the school-age population, while actually adding dollars to the woeful D.C.
Considering all the bad news and negative comments you sometimes hear about charter schools, you wonder why anyone would ever choose them for their child.