Commentary
Postcard from China: How the Chinese recognize excellence
Amber Winkler, Fordham's VP for Research, is currently traveling China as a Senior Fellow with the Global Education Policy Fellowship Program (GEPFP).
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Quotable & notable
?We are one. These are our students, and we need to wrap our arms around parents all across the city to make sure all parents are involved in the schools.'' * ? Dennis Walcott, Chancellor of New York City Public Schools
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Education news nuggets
Exercise your logic: what happens when the sex-ed curriculum is a how-to manual if the students are already
Commentary
Governance doesn't get much more thrilling than this
ESEA reauthorization is exciting, sure, but whatever comes out of the Senate won't be all that revolutionary. If you want to hear some really groundbreaking ideas on how our education system should work, highlight December 1, 2011 on your calendars. Right now.
Commentary
Postcard from China: Waking up to the needs of all students
Amber Winkler, Fordham's VP for Research, is currently traveling China as a Senior Fellow with the Global Education Policy Fellowship Program (GEPFP). She'll be passing along her observations on education in the People's Republic with periodic ?Postcards from China.?
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Quotable & notable
?Perfection is just not reasonable'' * ? Mitchell Chester, Education Commissioner of Massachusetts
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The lessons of "Halting a Runaway Train"
This is the fourth in a series of blog posts introducing Fordham’s latest report, Halting a Runaway Train: Reforming Teacher Pensions for the 21st Century.
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The lessons of "Halting a Runaway Train"
This is the fourth in a series of blog posts introducing Fordham's latest report, Halting a Runaway Train: Reforming Teacher Pensions for the 21st Century.
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Quotable & notable
?I speak Spanglish... I say 'Necesito ayuda con my homework.'' * ?Miguel de La O, student at Coral Way Elementary school
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News of the World? Or, catching up on Rupert, Nick, Alexis, and the NAACP
I have been on the road for much of the last couple of weeks, much of that time spent visiting ?poor? schools doing well.? You will, I hope, see the results of my road trip fact-finding in future Fordham publications, but for now I can confidently report that, despite economic challenges (which are real), good things are happening in the provinces (i.e.
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"Halting a Runaway Train" highlights K-12 trailblazers in pension reform
This is the third in a series of blog posts introducing Fordham's latest report, Halting a Runaway Train: Reforming Teacher Pensions for the 21st Century.
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Quotable & notable
?Frequently, we think of digital media as a distraction and a risk, but it is a potential bridge between what students find engaging and what they need to know'' * ? Joseph Kahne, Professor of Education at Mills College
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Report
Governance
Now What? Imperatives and Options for Common Core Implementation and Governance
This Fordham Institute publication—co-authored by President Chester E. Finn Jr. and VP Michael J. Petrilli—pushes folks to think about what comes next in the journey to common education standards and tests. Most states have adopted the Common Core English language arts and math standards, and most are also working on common assessments. But...now what? The standards won't implement themselves, but unless they are adopted in the classroom, nothing much will change. What implementation tasks are most urgent? What should be done across state lines? What should be left to individual states, districts, and private markets? Perhaps most perplexing, who will govern and own these standards and tests ten or twenty years from now?
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Governance
Cracks in the Ivory Tower? The Views of Education Professors Circa 2010
This national survey of education school professors finds that, even as the U.S. grows more practical and demanding when it comes to K-12 education, most of the professoriate simply isn't there. They see themselves more as philosophers and agents of social change, not as master craftsmen sharing tradecraft. They also resist some promising reforms such as tying teacher pay to student test scores. Still, education professors are reform-minded in some areas, including tougher policies for awarding tenure to teachers and financial incentives for those who teach in tough neighborhoods. Read on to find out more.
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Charter Schools
Charter School Autonomy: A Half-Broken Promise
The typical U.S. charter school lacks the autonomy it needs to succeed, once state, authorizer, and other impositions are considered. For some schools—in some states, with some authorizers—the picture is brighter but for many it's bleak. State-specific grades for charter autonomy range from A to F.
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Governance
America's Private Public Schools
More than 1.7 million American children attend what we've dubbed "private public schools"—public schools that serve virtually no poor students. In some metropolitan areas, as many as one in six public-school students—and one in four white youngsters—attends such schools, of which the U.S. has about 2,800.
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Charter Schools
Renewal and Optimism: Five Years as an Ohio Charter Authorizer
The Thomas B. Fordham Foundation is pleased to share our 2009-10 Sponsorship Accountability Report. The report, Renewal and Optimism: Five Years as an Ohio Charter Authorizer, contains a year in review for Ohio's charter school program, detailed information on the Fordham Foundation's work as a charter school sponsor, and data on the performance of our sponsored schools during that year.
Commentary
"Halting a Runaway Train" looks beyond K-12 to resolve the pension crunch
This is the second in a series of blog posts introducing Fordham's latest report, Halting a Runaway Train: Reforming Teacher Pensions for the 21st Century.
Commentary
It sure wasn't pretty, but Harkin-Enzi's out of committee
The Senate HELP committee voted last night to send the Harkin-Enzi ESEA bill to the floor. It passed 15-7, with support from all of the Democrats and three Republicans (Mike Enzi, Lamar Alexander, and Mark Kirk).
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Curriculum & Instruction
Wrapping up "The Other Achievement Gap"
[pullquote]"I got to tell you, the only viable political strategy for getting broad-based support of school reform on that premise is to get those middle-class parents drunk.? -AEI's Rick Hess[/pullquote]We wrap up coverage of Monday's panel discussion, ?The Other Achievement Gap,?
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Quotable & notable
?It shouldn't be a rite of passage for students to feel bad when they come to high school.'' * ?Mark Frank, dean of Parke House at New Albany High School
Report
School Finance, Governance
Halting a Runaway Train: Reforming Teacher Pensions for the 21st Century
When it comes to public-sector pensions, writes lead author Mike Lafferty in this report, "A major public-policy (and public-finance) problem has been defined and measured, debated and deliberated, but not yet solved. Except where it has been." As recounted in "Halting a Runaway Train: Reforming Teacher Pensions for the 21st Century," these exceptions turn out to be revealing—and encouraging. As leaders around the country struggle to overhaul America's controversial and precarious public-sector pensions, this study draws on examples from diverse fields to provide a primer on successful pension reform. Download to find valuable lessons for policymakers, workers, and taxpayers looking for timely solutions to a dire problem.
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Tracking the Fordham Investment Index
Microsoft just reported its quarterly earnings, posting $5.7 billion in profits but disappointing investors, who had hoped for more. News like this naturally excites Wall Street more than it does education wonks.
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PODCAST: 666 is 999 turned on its head
Mike and Janie hold down the fort this week, discussing the Harkin-Enzi bill, same-sex schooling, and St. Louis (both its new gifted-ed program and the Cardinals). Amber evaluates teacher-prep programs and Chris finds a novel way to hide a bald spot. [powerpress]
Commentary
Talking High Flyers at ?The Other Achievement Gap?
Monday's panel discussion, ?The Other Achievement Gap,? provided a chance for critics and supporters of the Fordham Institute's recent study Do High Flyers Maintain their Altitude? to make their cases in person.?