Live Free or Die: Curriculum Edition
The New Hampshire GOP primary is overshadowing an important new Granite State law that allows parents to have their children exempted from elements of the curriculum they find objectionable.
The New Hampshire GOP primary is overshadowing an important new Granite State law that allows parents to have their children exempted from elements of the curriculum they find objectionable.
Why education needs to learn a few lessons from Apple about evolving and improving over time.
Chris highlights a great resource for educators.
STEM education in Ohio is a growing component of the state’s K-12 system. Metro Early College High School opened as a STEM school in Columbus in 2007, and since then STEM schools have opened their doors in metro regions.
Editor Kathleen Porter-Magee introduces Fordham's new center for commentary and analysis on standards, curriculum, and instruction: the Common Core Watch blog.
Let's not gloss the challenges of transitioning to Common Core
Ohio's districts are shrinking from competition with parochial schools through expanded voucher programs.
The Proficiency Illusion, science edition
Recent news that White Hat, the big, Ohio-based, profit-seeking charter school operator, faces financial problems was surely received as an early Christmas present by many long-time charter opponents, particularly within the Buckeye State. The company?s founder and leader, Akron industrialist David Brennan, has been a larger-than-life-target for school choice foes since Governor George Voinovich appointed him in 1992 to head a commission intended to advance choice in Ohio k-12 education.
Since 2005, Fordham has been working in Ohio to recruit high quality charter schools to neighborhoods badly in need of better schools. During our six-plus years of effort as a charter authorizer we have managed to recruit just two high-performing models to Columbus (KIPP and a BES school).
My husband and I have to decide in the next year where our 4-year old son will go to school and it is a daunting decision.
View the footage from the Fordham & CEE-Trust charter incubation panel discussion, "Driving Quality."
It's too early to tell
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.
The second edition of Fwd: Arresting Insights in Education summarizes Ohio state report card data for Dayton's district and charter public schools. Despite some recent gains, the phrase academic emergency continues to characterize the majority of Dayton's public schools. Also, youngsters in Dayton's charter schools outperformed their district peers on the 4th and 6th grade proficiency tests -- a finding that flies in the face of recent assertions that charter school students are learning less.
Robin Lake looks at the lessons from the Fordham and CEE-Trust policy brief.
Fordham's Terry Ryan and CEE-Trust's Ethan Gray explain the potential of the charter incubation model and the characteristics of incubators.
Guest blogger Stuart Buck explains the virtues of the Arizona Empowerment Scholarship program and the legal obstacles it faces.
Charterin' ain't easy
America: Take notes
Since their inception in 1997, charter schools have been at the center of some of the most politically contentious debates about education in Ohio. The past year offered yet another example of charter school controversy, but this time with a twist. The 2010 elections were very good for Buckeye State Republicans, with John Kasich winning the governor?s race (replacing Ted Strickland who had been a charter adversary throughout his four-year term). Republicans also took control of the House while expanding their majority in the Senate.
The Thomas B. Fordham Foundation is pleased to share its latest annual Sponsorship Accountability Report, Two Steps Forward, One Step Back. The sixth of its kind, the report reflects on Ohio??s charter school policy environment and the performance of Fordham sponsored charter schools ??? in terms of absolute achievement, growth, and adherence to goals set forth in our authorizing contract ??? as well as developments in state law over the year. Despite some tough battles during the state budget as it relates to holding authorizers (and operators) accountable, overall Fordham and its schools had an encouraging year, with Fordham sponsored-charters making achievement gains and positioning themselves to do even better in the future.
As school levies fail across central Ohio, I am concerned and disappointed to see so many school districts quickly threaten to reduce the quality of our children?s education. Providing an excellent education for our children may be the single most important thing we can do as responsible citizens.