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Video
1.12.2012

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.

Report
1.9.2012
School Finance

The Costs of Online Learning

The latest installment of Fordham's Creating Sound Policy for Digital Learning series investigates one of the more controversial aspects of digital learning: How much does it cost? In this paper, the Parthenon Group uses interviews with more than fifty vendors and online-schooling experts to estimate today's average per-pupil cost for a variety of schooling models, traditional and online, and presents a nuanced analysis of the important variance in cost between different school designs.

Report
1.9.2012
Accountability & Testing, Governance

Quality Control in K-12 Digital Learning: Three (Imperfect) Approaches

Will the move toward virtual and “blended learning” schools in American education repeat the mistakes of the charter-school movement, or will it learn from them? The Thomas B. Fordham Institute, with the support of the Charles and Helen Schwab Foundation, has commissioned five deep-thought papers that, together, address the thorniest policy issues surrounding digital learning. The goal is to boost the prospects for successful online learning (both substantively and politically) over the long run. In this first of six papers on digital learning commissioned by the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, Frederick M. Hess explores the challenges of quality control.

Report
1.9.2012
Governance, Teachers & School Leaders

Teachers in the Age of Digital Instruction

Will the move toward virtual and “blended learning” schools in American education repeat the mistakes of the charter-school movement, or will it learn from them? The Thomas B. Fordham Institute, with the support of the Charles and Helen Schwab Foundation, has commissioned five deep-thought papers that, together, address the thorniest policy issues surrounding digital learning. The goal is to boost the prospects for successful online learning (both substantively and politically) over the long run.

Commentary
1.2.2012

The Green-tea Party

Chester E. Finn, Jr.

Checker lays out a third party platform for disaffected Republicans and Democrats.

Commentary
12.28.2011

Budgeting smartly for digital success

Phyllis McClure

Guest blogger Paul Teske reflects on the future of digital learning and Paul T. Hill's "School Finance in the Digital Learning Era."

Commentary
12.28.2011

The lessons of “The Accountability Plateau”

Chester E. Finn, Jr., Michael J. Petrilli

“Consequential accountability,” à la No Child Left Behind and the high-stakes state testing systems that preceded it, corresponded with a significant one-time boost in student achievement, particularly in primary and middle school math.

Report
12.28.2011
Accountability & Testing

The Accountability Plateau

Mark Schneider

After more than ten years under NCLB, that law’s legacy continues to be fiercely contested. This analysis of NAEP scores—focusing on Texas and on the entire nation—by former NCES commissioner Mark Schneider finds that solid gains in math achievement coincided with the advent of "consequential accountability," first in the trailblazing Lone Star State and a few other pioneer states, then across the land with the implementation of NCLB. But Schneider warns that the recent plateau in Texas math scores may foreshadow a coming stagnation in the country’s performance. Has the testing-and-accountability movement as we know it run out of steam? How else might we rekindle our nation’s education progress?

Commentary
12.22.2011

Take five

This week's NewSchools Venture Fund gabfest left Mike and Rick all talked out. The Gadfly Show will return next week at its usual place and time.

Commentary
12.22.2011

Taking a look at national standards

Our next event is only a week away, and though it’s currently at capacity, we will have a live webcast of all the proceedings. Don’t miss “National Education Standards circa 2009” on our website, November 4 from 3:30 to 5 pm.

Commentary
12.22.2011

Talented leaders wanted for mentorships with urban superintendents

The new Broad Residency in Urban Education offers a small group of talented leaders from the private and nonprofit sectors a chance to do hands-on work as managers in urban school districts across the U.S. In addition to a mentorship under an urban superintendent, Broad Residents will receive executive-level training and $80,000 per year.

Commentary
12.22.2011

The future of patriotism

How can parents and teachers ensure that today's kids become tomorrow's civic-minded patriotic citizens? Find some good resources for civic education that emphasize strong historical content and identification with American values at www.edexcellence.net.