Don't count Ohio out just yet

The "Great Recession" has been painful for all Americans, but especially cruel for Ohio cities like Youngstown, Toledo, Canton, and Fordham's hometown of Dayton.

Survey: Ohio has a bittersweet relationship with its college students

Ohio's best-and-brightest college students may love the Buckeye State, but too many can definitely jilt it for a future elsewhere, according to a new survey from the Thomas B. Fordham Institute.

More about Fordham's work in Ohio

We've shared a bit about our work as a <

Check out the Ohio Education Gadfly!

Today's Ohio Gadfly is a must-read. In Capital Matters, Checker, Terry, and I offer Fordham's recommendations for the state's pending biennial budget.

Analysis Shows Ohio's 8 Largest Urban Districts and Charter Schools Rank Higher on Educational Progress Than on Absolute Test Scores

KidsOhioJune 2009

Why We're Behind: What Top Nations Teach Their Students But We Don't

Common CoreJune 2009

Not all hope is lost in Ohio

There isn't much hope at the moment for meaningful, statewide education reform in the Buckeye State, but there are promising things happening at the local level.

How to make Ohio education even worse

The recent furor over the many flaws and unrealities in Gov. Ted Strickland's (and the Ohio House of Representatives') plan to alter Ohio's school-finance system has diverted attention from other grave mistakes in the education portion of the state's biennial budget bill (see here).

Stimulating Excellence: Unleashing the Power of Innovation in Education

Center for American Progress, American Enterprise Institute, New Profit Inc., and Public ImpactMay 2009

Slow the preschool bandwagon

President Obama has pledged to spend $10 billion more a year on "zero to five" education, and his 2010 budget makes a $2 billion "down payment" on that commitment. (Billions more are already in the "stimulus" package.) Any number of congressional leaders want more preschool, as do dozens of governors.

Rallying against funding cuts in Ohio

How smart is Ohio's proposed school-funding plan?

In late April, the Coalition for Student Achievement released Smart Options: Investing the Recovery Funds for Student Success (see here).This document, developed following a convening of more than 30 K-12 national education leaders, including state and district superintendents, was sponsored by the Bill and Me

Arizona joins Ohio in value-added push to close weak charters

Arizona charter-school operators are moving to cleanse their ranks of weak schools by seeking tougher state charter-school standards based on value-added test scores. The proposal is similar to language proposed in Ohio's current biennial budget and could lead to the closing of weak schools that, as in Ohio, taint the entire charter-school movement.

How smart is Ohio's school reform plan?

Late last week, the Coalition for Student Achievement released Smart Options: Investing the Recovery Funds for Student Success.

Checked Out: Ohioans' Views on Education 2009

Ohio is seriously debating the future of its public education system-and much of that debate has grown more partisan than is probably healthy for the state and its children. Much of it also centers on money.

The nutty professor

Remember how many analysts now say that improving teacher quality is loads more important than reducing class size? Well, famed Columbia sociologist Herbert J. Gans must not have gotten that memo. This week, he urges President Obama to think long term with his stimulus dollars, specifically, you guessed it, to shrink class sizes. Why?

Dr. Paul Hill's April 28 invited testimony to the Ohio Senate Education Committee

Today the Senate Education Committee heard testimony about school funding reform from Dr. Paul Hill, director of the Center on Reinventing Public Education and John and Marguerite Corbally professor at the University of Washington Bothell. Dr.

The Economic Impact of the Achievement Gap in America's Schools

McKinsey & CompanyApril 2009

Ohio's governor could benefit from a sit-down with President Obama

President Obama and Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland are pushing their school reform agendas hard. Sitting in Ohio, one can't help but compare and contrast these efforts. There are similarities but also some interesting differences. Here's what we see from the Buckeye State.

Liberating Learning: Technology, Politics and the Future of American Education

Terry M. Moe and John E. ChubbJossey Bass PublishersApril 2009

Making a Difference? The Effects of Teach for America in High School

Zeyu Xu, Jane Hannaway, and Colin TaylorThe Urban Institute and CALDERApril 2007 (Revised March 2009)

Get some Ohio Gadfly

While I usually report on the national Education Gadfly, don't be confused: we have a sister publication called the

State cuts would set back online learning in Ohio

Online learning is the fastest-growing sector in education. In the fall of 2008, 44 states reported offering significant full-time or supplemental learning opportunities for students. Ohio has been a leader in moving toward this powerful educational innovation, but it risks sliding backwards when it comes to cyber charters.

Evaluation of the DC Opportunity Scholarship Program: Impacts After Three Years

Patrick Wolf, Babette Gutmann, Michael Puma, Brian Kisida, Lou Rizzo, Nada EissaInstitute of Education SciencesMarch 2009

Ohio governor's proposal for charter school funding a head scratcher

Much has been much written about the challenges of understanding Ohio Gov. Strickland's school-funding plan. For example, the Akron Beacon Journal asked, why some "wealthy districts receive more state money than much poorer ones?

Ohio earns a D-plus in use of technology in schools

Ohio, birthplace of the Wright brothers, Thomas Edison, and Neil Armstrong has received a D-plus in the use of technology in education (see here), according to an Education Week survey.

Ohio schools can expect to see federal stimulus dollars soon

Federal stimulus dollars will begin flowing into the state as early as this week, according to State Superintendent Deborah Delisle.

Do term limits dumb down the political dialogue in Ohio?

Have term-limits hurt public policy in Ohio? When term limits were passed by Ohio voters in 1992 the idea was simple: they promised relief from mediocre, self-interested incumbents and partisan legislatures stuck in gridlock. Term limits were intended to create more competitive elections while also creating citizen legislatures.

Ohio's two different directions in online learning

After explosive growth in online learning options in Ohio and nationally, the state could soon be poised to take a huge step backward. Governor Strickland's proposed budget would cut funding substantially to Ohio's charter schools, including cybercharters.