Quite a bit of opining this weekend in regard to proposals which would lower the bar on Ohio’s new graduation requirements even before they are fully phased in.
It has been a busy couple of days for our Chad Aldis. First up, he was quoted in this piece, trying to inject some reality into a discussion of the fiscal analysis of the proposed expansion of the EdChoice voucher program.
Ohio faces a significant budget crunch. This is forcing state lawmakers to scrutinize expenditures—even more closely than usual—to create a balanced budget by the end of June.
A new meta-analysis of studies examining the relationship between homework and student achievement looks at 30 years of data involving over 312,000 students worldwide. It was published in the journal Educational Research Review in March.
Our own Aaron Churchill is quoted in this piece looking at the proposal being floated in Ohio to water down graduation requirements. Spoiler alert: Aaron is against said watering down. (Columbus Dispatch, 4/9/17)
All six members of the new five-member Lorain Academic Distress Commission were named simultaneously yesterday.
Our own Chad Aldis today offers a suggestion or two for folks interested in reducing standardized testing in Ohio schools. (Columbus Dispatch, 4/3/17)
What’s the biggest education news story going in Ohio this week?
NOTE: The House Finance Committee of the Ohio General Assembly is hearing testimony this week on the education portion of Ohio's next biennial budget.
Leaders at the Clifton Cultural Arts Center have rejected an offer from Cincinnati City Schools to move to the old mansion next door, which the district recently purchased, saying it’s too small for their needs and would require too much renovation.
Ohio House Bill 2 (HB 2) was signed into law on November 1, 2015. It was a landmark piece of legislation that significantly altered the framework governing the state’s charter schools.
A deep dive into the performance of Ohio’s public schools, statewide and in its eight largest urban areas
Like other states, Ohio has over the past few years put into place a standards a
A thorough overview of Ohio's teacher evaluation framework
For the past year, Ohio policymakers have been grappling with the issue of deregulating public schools. But what does deregulation mean--and how should policymakers go about doing it?
School Closures and Student Achievement: An Analysis of Ohio’s Urban District and Charter Schools examines 198 school closures that occurred between 2006 and 2012 in the Ohio ‘Big Eight’ urban areas (Akron, Canton, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, Dayton, Toledo, and Youngstown). The research included 120 closed district-run schools and seventy-eight closed charter schools.
Latest report from Bellwether Education Partners.
Fordham's 2012-13 sponsorship annual report addresses our schools’ perspective regarding persistent challenges and how the schools address those challenges.
The Reynoldsburg City School District, just east of Columbus, is far down the “portfolio management” path – further than probably any suburban school district of its size. This feature article discusses portfolio management and takes readers behind the scenes in Reynoldsburg.
Dr. Paul Hill evaluates Governor John Kasich's education budget proposal.
Is it time for Ohio to consider new forms of governance and management for its most troubled schools and districts, and, if so, what might alternatives look like?
In partnership with the independent education journal Catalyst Ohio (see here), we resolved to find out, and enlisted the expert help of the nonpartisan FDR Group (see here), a respected survey research firm led by veteran public opinion analysts Steve Farkas and Ann Duffett. The result is Checked Out: Ohioans' Views on Education 2009. This is the third such survey that we at Fordham have undertaken since 2005 on education issues in the Buckeye State. This makes it possible to track some key trends in public opinion over time.
To what extent have Ohio's leaders met the challenges and opportunities before them in K-12 education? What needs to happen next?
Statewide survey of Ohio school district superintendents (and other education leaders) on the most critical issues facing K-12 education in the Buckeye State, including budgets, school effectiveness, and troublesome laws.
In this policy brief, Fordham gives its advice to Governor-elect Kasich and the incoming leaders of the Ohio House and Senate as it relates to the future of K-12 education policy in the Buckeye State.
As Gov. Ted Strickland concludes his 12-city "Conversation on Education" tour to gather ideas for reforming public education in Ohio, the Thomas B. Fordham Institute has put forth a report of five recommendations designed to keep improvements in the Buckeye State's public schools on track toward three critical goals: 1) maximizing the talents of every child; 2) producing graduates as good as any in the world; and 3) closing the persistent academic gaps that continue between rich and poor, and black and white and brown.
Despite its long history and prodigious size, all is not well with Ohio's teacher pension system. In this Fordham Institute report, nationally renowned economists Robert Costrell and Mike Podgursky illuminate some of the serious challenges facing STRS.
This survey covers such topics as school quality and funding, academic standards, school reforms, proposals to improve how the public schools are run, teacher quality, charter schools and school vouchers. It follows up a survey conducted in 2005 and many of the questions are repeated, allowing us to gauge whether attitudes have shifted over time.
What do ordinary Ohioans think about the myriad education reforms enacted in the Buckeye state over the last half-decade? How do parents, taxpayers, and citizens view public schooling in 2005? Do they like these reforms? Seek more or less of them? Have confidence that they'll succeed? Fordham decided to enlist veteran analysts Steve Farkas and Ann Duffett to examine the attitudes of Ohio residents toward their public schools. The results? Ohioans are frustrated with their K-12 education system on a number of fronts, and feel the state is in dire need of stronger, better leadership when it comes to education. Policymakers would do well to pay attention.
