Testing flexibility under ESSA: A primer on the pros and cons
The new education law of the land—the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA)—has been the talk of the town since President Obama signed it into law in December 2015.
The new education law of the land—the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA)—has been the talk of the town since President Obama signed it into law in December 2015.
By Daniel Cohen
By Amber M. Northern, Ph.D.
At the National Charter Schools Conference last month, Secretary of Education John King challenged U.S.
Editor's note: This is the seventh entry in our forum on charter school discipline practices.
The mental image most people have of career and technical education is taken directly from a mid-century General Motors training video: Enthusiastic young men in denim replacing serpentine belts and laboring over alternators. Failing that, the scenario might take place in a wood shop or a welding station.
By Jamie Davies O’Leary
Editor's note: This is the fifth entry in our forum on charter school discipline practices.
In a previous blog post, we urged Ohio’s newly formed Dropout Prevention and Recovery Study Committee to carefully review the state’s alternative accountability system for dropout-recovery charter schools.
The purpose of my last post was to suggest that those frustrated with school “accountability” should consider the structural elements that gave rise to our present accountability systems.
Editor's note: This is the fourth entry in our forum on charter school discipline practices.
Editor's note: This is the third entry in our forum on charter school discipline practices. Earlier posts can be found here and here.
Eighteen months ago, Ohio proved it was finally serious about cleaning up its charter sector, with Governor Kasich and the Ohio General Assembly placing sponsors (a.k.a. authorizers) at the center of a massive charter law overhaul.
In case you missed it, Fordham Ohio released a new report yesterday—Evaluation of Ohio’s EdChoice Scholarship Program—a first-of-its kind rigorous examination of the state’s largest voucher program. Say what you will about the frankly disappointing findings but never say that Fordham is afraid to go where the data lead.
No Child Left Behind (NCLB) required states to identify and intervene in persistently low-performing schools.
Editor's note: This is the second entry in our forum on charter school discipline practices. The first post post is here.
Over the last few months, my work on ESSA implementation and my thinking about new systems of urban schools have come together. I have a new hypothesis. And I think it has some interesting implications.
By Elliot Regenstein
Shortly after Ohio lawmakers enacted a new voucher program in 2005, the state budget office wrote in its fiscal analysis, “The Educational Choice Scholarships are not only intended to offer another route for student success, but also to impel the administration and teaching staff of a failing school building to improve upon their students’ academic performance.” As economist M
By Amber M. Northern, Ph.D.
By Robert Pondiscio
Darius Brown’s educational biography,
Children with extraordinary gifts and talents experience drastically different needs. We parents, teachers, and advocates often get nervous calling attention to bright children, and we often fall into the trap of working under the radar or even making ourselves invisible.
Editor's note: This is the first entry in our forum on charter school discipline practices. Mike Petrilli's introductory post is here.
At the National Charter Schools Conference last week, Secretary of Education John King challenged U.S.