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A Little Break from RTT: Gun-totin' teachers
The value-added debate in LA?may seem a little tame after reading the Medford (OR) Mail Tribune's problems.
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EduJobs: Brother, Can You Spare a Million?
So, my tiny school district (1,950 students, $43 million budget) just got word that we will be getting over $580,000 from the Education Jobs Fund (Ed Jobs) program (otherwise known as Public Law No. 111-226), passed just a couple weeks ago.?
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A sober reflection on Race to the Top results
On sober, morning-after reflection, let me say this about Race to the Top. Arne Duncan deserves at least a B for initiating and persevering with it.
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Wanted: Engineers in India to fix roads, build stuff that doesn't fall
The next time Tom Friedman or one of his flat-world henchmen buttonhole you and tell you how America is just about to become India's doormat, in part because India produces so many math-and-science-genius engineers, tell him about the article in today's New York Times th
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Review: The Cafeteria at Kelly Miller Middle
I'm just back from lunching at Washington, D.C.'s Kelly Miller Middle School, one of seven schools selected this year by the district to be in a pilot program that will feed students meals prepared by DC Central
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Quotable and notable
?I have to scratch my head and wonder why. But at the end of the day, that is the process, and we'll live with it.'' ? Paul Pastorek, Louisiana's superintendent of education
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Attracting education reform: Worth the bother
Is there more to school reform than student achievement? Baltimore schools CEO Andres Alonso would say no.
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Yes We Can: The Schott 50 State Report on Public Education and Black Males
Schott Foundation for Public Education2010While its title sounds hopeful, this report’s findings are not very auspicious. The Schott Foundation for Public Education takes an in-depth look at the education of Black males across the US (and state-by-state), analyzing several areas related to performance, such as graduation rates and reading proficiency.
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The wheels on the bus go... late, off-route, and terribly mismanaged
School started last week for one of the highest performing middle schools in Columbus, the Columbus Collegiate Academy (one of Fordham’s sponsored schools). With the start of school comes the start of familiar problems with student transportation.
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Use value-added data to measure teacher effectiveness; but humanely
Nothing matters more to student learning than teacher quality. Not class-size, not poverty, not family background, not even overall school quality. This was the key takeaway from a highly controversial Los Angeles Times analysis of teacher value-added scores for students in the L.A. Unified School District (LAUSD). The significance of this finding can’t be understated.
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RttT reforms are good, but can we afford them over the long-haul?
Yesterday, Ohio was selected as a winner in the Race to the Top federal education sweepstakes, garnering $400 million for the state and local schools. We are happy to see Ohio win funds – especially during a brutal recession and with an impending funding cliff threatening K-12 funding. In the short term, the money will surely help Ohio’s schools and its children.
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New Fordham report: Best and worst cities for school reform
A new report from the national Fordham team surveys 30 American cities to find out which have environments that are most conducive for school reform (measured by factors such as access to human capital, a solid funding pipeline, a thriving charter-school market, etc.) The report also grades cities accordingly – no city earned an “A,” while Columbus ranks alongside eight others
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I want to go to that school
Sick of hearing stories about cuts facing K-12 education? Here’s a change: The nation’s most expensive public school ever will open its doors next month to 4,200 K -12 students. Robert F. Kennedy Community School located in Los Angeles cost an astonishing $578 million.
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Districts improve performance despite increasing poverty
A few weeks ago Fordham hosted an event in our hometown of Dayton to discuss findings from a student mobility study we commissioned.
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Think Tank + Sponsoring Charter Schools = Harder Than It Looks
Don’t miss another vigorous, frank, and eye-opening discussion of Fordham’s own experience authorizing charter schools in Ohio—and how that compares to authorizing elsewhere. Join us Thursday, August 26 from 3:30 to 5:00 pm in Fordham’s DC office (1016 16th St.
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Advancing High-Quality Professional Learning Through Collective Bargaining and State Policy: An Initial Review and Recommendations to Support Student Learning
American Federation of Teachers, Council of Chief State School Officers, National Education Association, National Staff Development Council August 2010
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Should school ratings be available before start of new school year?
Back-to-school season is in full swing.?? Of the seven schools that Fordham authorizes, five have already opened their doors and by the middle of this week nearly all Ohio school kids will be back in classes. But it won't be till this Friday morning that the Ohio Department of Education will release annual report cards for both district and school performance.
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School Finance, Charter Schools
America's Best (and Worst) Cities for School Reform: Attracting Entrepreneurs and Change Agents
This study tackles a key question: Which of thirty major U.S. cities have cultivated a healthy environment for school reform to flourish (and which have not)? Nine reform-friendly locales surged to the front. Read on to learn more.
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RttT reforms are good, but are they affordable over the long-haul?
Today Ohio was selected as a winner in the Race to the Top federal education sweepstakes, garnering $400 million for the state and local schools. We are happy to see Ohio win funds ? especially during a brutal recession and with an impending funding cliff threatening K-12 funding. In the short term, the money will surely help Ohio's schools and its children.
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Follow the Money ? Now You Can!
An email from Lori Crouch at the Education Writers Association brings glad tidings?about a light in?the black hole of the bureaucracy:
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Education news nuggets
While we eagerly await the Education Department's announcement about Race to the Top round 2 winners (here's a sneak peek for Ohioans and New Yorkers),
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The Nation's Best (and Worst) Cities for School Reform
The question: Which cities are in the mix when it comes to being the ?Silicon Valley? of K-12 schooling? Or, more simply: If you're a problem-solver with some successes under your belt, where will you be most welcome? Cities rounding out the top ten include Charlotte, Austin, Houston, Fort Worth, and San Francisco.
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A big flop on Race to the Top
For those who may not believe in coincidence, consider this: Today, Fordham released a brand-new Rick Hess study that found New Orleans, Louisiana to be the most reform-mind
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What college costs
U.S. News & World Report has a handy graph. The National Center for Education Statistics has the details. ?Liam Julian
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The Seattle Times says ?false?
This month, U.S. Senator Patty Murray, a Democrat from Washington (cherries, not cherry blossoms), emphasized in a speech on the Senate floor the?gravity of mailing billions of federal dollars to states in order to avert the dismissal of scads of public-school teachers. ?In my home state, nearly 3,000 jobs are at risk,?