Untouchable?

Mike Petrilli and Ty Eberhardt discuss the soft spots in President Obama's education record.

Embracing the Common Core - Michael Cohen Presentation

Mike Cohen, president of Achieve, spoke to the specifics of PARCC (the assessment consortia Ohio joined last fall) and warned that the implementation of the new standards in ELA and math will not be easy and that districts should start the implementation process now.

Embracing the Common Core - Stan Heffner Presentation

Among the speakers at the event was State Superintendent Stan Heffner who stressed that the system Ohio currently has is letting kids down and not preparing them for the future. He went on to emphasize that the Common Core gives us the opportunity and chance to do better for our kids and we must capitalize on that.

What's holding back America's science performance?

While business leaders rue the lack of American workers skilled enough in math and science to meet the needs of an increasingly high-tech economy, the situation may be growing even grimmer. The latest installment of TIMSS showed stagnation in U.S. science achievement, and the 2009 NAEP science assessment found that only 21 percent of American twelfth-graders met the proficiency bar. Yet while the gravity of the problem is clear, the root cause is not. Is our science curriculum lacking? Is it being squeezed out by an emphasis on math and reading? Is there a problem with our pedagogy? Are our teachers ill-prepared? Or are we simply expecting too little of teachers and students alike? Coinciding with its new review of state science standards, The Thomas B. Fordham Institute will bring together experts with very different perspectives to engage this crucial question: "What's holding back America's science performance?" Watch the discussion with UVA psychologist Dan Willingham, NCTQ President Kate Walsh, Fordham's Kathleen Porter-Magee, Project Lead the Way's Anne Jones, and Achieve, Inc.'s Stephen Pruitt.

Are Bad Schools Immortal?

When it comes to low-performing schools, we seem to be witnessing the same thing over and over—not unlike the classic movie, Groundhog Day.Ground Hog Day A recent study by the Thomas B. Fordham Institute tracked about 2,000 low-performing schools and found that the vast majority of them remained open and remained low-performing after five years. Very few were significantly improved. So, are failing schools fixable? Join the Thomas B. Fordham Institute for a lively and provocative debate about that question. Fordham VP Mike Petrilli will moderate, and the discussion will be informed, in part, by Fordham's study, Are Bad Schools Immortal? The Scarcity of Turnarounds and Shutdowns in Both Charter and District Sectors.

Has the Accountability Movement Run Its Course?

Ten years ago, George W. Bush signed the No Child Left Behind Act, the law that has dominated U.S. education—and the education policy debate—for the entire decade. While lawmakers are struggling to update that measure, experts across the political spectrum are struggling to make sense of its impact and legacy. Did NCLB, and the consequential accountability movement it embodied, succeed? And with near-stagnant national test scores of late, is there reason to think that this approach to school reform is exhausted? If not "consequential accountability," what could take the U.S. to the next level of student achievement? Join three leading experts as they wrestle with these questions. Panelists include Hoover Institute economist Eric Hanushek, DFER's Charles Barone, and former NCES commissioner Mark Schneider, author of a forthcoming Fordham analysis of the effects of consequential accountability. NCLB drafter Sandy Kress, previously identified as a panelist, was unable to attend.

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Education Reform Idol: The Reformiest State 2011

Leaders from five cutting-edge states battled for the honor of "Reformiest State 2011." This Fordham Institute panel pitted Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, and Wisconsin against one another. The winner, Indiana, was determined by a vote of the in-person and online audience.

When Reform Touches Teachers

There has been much heated debate this year over bold changes that affect teachers, including dialing back pensions and union rights. These matters were candidly discussed by two high-visibility national education leaders who don't always agree: Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers and Frederick M. Hess, director of Education Policy Studies at the American Enterprise Institute. Which issues do we actually disagree about? Can we do so in ways that illumine rather than obscure? Our two panelists will prove that it's possible. Watch this lively conversation, moderated by Fordham's ever-lively Michael Petrilli.

Checker Finn on patriotism, democracy, and teaching about 9/11

On the ten-year anniversary of the 9/11, teachers are looking for advice on how to teach about the attacks. Unfortunately, much of the curricular content available focuses on the wrong things. Checker Finn discusses what teachers should be teaching based on Fordham's new report, Teaching about 9/11 in 2011: What Children Need to Know.

Working Smarter Together

Presented by the Nord Family Foundation, Ohio Grantmakers Forum, and Thomas B. Fordham Institute, with the ESC of Central Ohio and Public Performance Partners, this is a free, non-partisan event to help local government administrators -- from county commissioners and city managers to school district superintendents -- think differently about how they operate, and learn tangible strategies for sharing services and saving money.

The Other Achievement Gap

A trio of recent studies and articles raises troubling questions about America's "Achievement-Gap Mania." Are we leaving our highest performing students behind in the quest to raise the test scores of students at the bottom? If so, what will this mean for our future international competitiveness? Learn about the recent studies--Fordham's Do High Flyers Maintain their Altitude? and the George W. Bush Institute's Global Report Card?as well as Frederick M. Hess's new National Affairs essay, "Our Achievement-Gap Mania." And join a conversation about whether our focus on raising the bottom is blinding us to trouble at the top. View the event page for more details.

Do High Flyers Maintain Their Altitude?

Fordham's study, "Do High Flyers Maintain Their Altitude? Performance Trends of Top Students," is the first to examine the performance of America's highest-achieving children over time at the individual-student level. Produced in partnership with the Northwest Evaluation Association, it finds that many high-achieving students struggle to maintain their elite performance over the years and often fail to improve their reading ability at the same rate as their average and below-average classmates. The study raises troubling questions: Is our obsession with closing achievement gaps and "leaving no child behind" coming at the expense of our "talented tenth"?and America's future international competitiveness?

Reform School: Mike Miles

Mike Miles talks about student achievement and the pay for performance process he has implemented at the Harrison School Disctrict 2 in Colorado Springs, CO.

Is It Time to Turn the Page on Federal Accountability in Education?

With ESEA reauthorization looming, there's much debate over the proper role for the federal government in holding schools accountable. In their recent ESEA Briefing Book, Fordham Institute President Chester E. Finn, Jr., and Executive Vice President Michael J. Petrilli argue that it's time to turn the page on federally-mandated accountability (such as "Adequate Yearly Progress" and connected sanctions), since it can't successfully be imposed from Washington. Instead, they say, Uncle Sam should ensure that education results and finances are transparent to the public?and leave it to the states and districts to do the rest.

Teachers speak out, dispel fears and myths about teacher evaluations - Part 2

Teachers speak out, dispel fears and myths about teacher evaluations - Part 1

DC teachers speak out about teacher evaluations

Many states, including Ohio, are moving toward more rigorous evaluation systems. We talked to DC teachers evaluated by DC's IMPACT evaluation system to hear their thoughts on how they're evaluated.

Are Education Schools Amenable to Reform?

Many reformers and funders have written off schools of education as beyond repair, and much of the current energy for teacher preparation is centered on non-traditional programs like Teach For America. But are schools of education more ready for reform than the conventional wisdom supposes? Join the Thomas B. Fordham Institute for a lively and provocative debate about that question. Institute President Chester Finn will moderate, and the discussion will be informed, in part, by Fordham's recent study, Cracks in the Ivory Tower? The Views of Education Professors Circa 2010, as well as by the recently-announced effort, led by Jim Cibulka's NCATE, to overhaul the teacher evaluation system.

The cons and pros of universal preschool