March 14, 2007
Education Week, Vol. 26, Issue 27
Education
Events
9-13—Education research: 2007 Annual Meeting and Exhibition, sponsored by the American Educational Research Association, for researchers, in Chicago. Contact: AERA, 1230 17th St. N.W., Washington, DC 20036; (202) 223-9485; fax: (202) 775-1824; e-mail: 2007annualconv@aera.net; Web site: www.aera.net.
April 2007
9-13—Education research: 2007 Annual Meeting and Exhibition, sponsored by the American Educational Research Association, for researchers, in Chicago. Contact: AERA, 1230 17th St. N.W., Washington, DC 20036; (202) 223-9485; fax: (202) 775-1824; e-mail: 2007annualconv@aera.net; Web site: www.aera.net.
Education
Honors & Award
Honors & Awards
The National Governors Association awarded the Ford Motor Company with the NGA Public-Private Partnership Award for the company’s work in education and development of the Ford Partnership for Advanced Studies program. The Ford PAS program provides interdisciplinary learning to 10,000 high school students across the country through partnerships with public education, community organizations, local businesses, and universities.
Early Childhood
Early-Childhood Programs Urged for Hispanic Population
The early-childhood years provide the "most promising opportunities" for improving the achievement of Hispanic students, a new report says.
Federal
Shift in Regional Education Labs’ Role Stirs Concern
The new mission balances rigorous studies with constituent services.
Federal
Nutrition Group Lobbies for More Free School Meals
The Reduced Price School Meal Pilot would allow five states to experiment with eliminating the “reduced price” category for school lunches and breakfasts.
School Climate & Safety
Union and Anti-Union Group Wage Billboard Campaigns in Newark
Union leader Joseph Del Grosso says the campaign will eventually call on teachers to be part of the solution.
Early Childhood
Project Launches 10-Year Initiative to Link Early Education, Economy
Concerns over global competition, the need for a better workforce, and the growing national debt prompted the project.
Standards
Australia Grapples With National Content Standards
Political parties offer separate approaches to achieving uniformity.
Reading & Literacy
‘Reading First’ Contractor Neglected Bias Rules
Inspector general's report says company did not take appropriate steps to prevent problems.
Federal
A Washington Roundup
Counselors’ Groups Urge More Funding
Congress should double funding for the Elementary and School Secondary School Counseling Program, bringing it to $75 million in fiscal 2008, two groups recommended.
Federal
A Washington Roundup
Bills Seek to Improve School Science Labs
The National Science Foundation would be required to oversee a new program to support the improvement of high school science laboratories, under bills being considered by the House and the Senate.
Federal
A Washington Roundup
Senators Form Caucus on Charter Schools
A new Senate caucus aims to help inform lawmakers and the public about charter schools and the role the growing sector can play in improving public education, organizers say.
Federal
A Washington Roundup
Bill to Name Building for L.B.J. Advances
The House approved a bill last week that would name the Department of Education’s Washington headquarters after Lyndon Baines Johnson.
Law & Courts
Lawmakers Debate Wis. Admissions
A group of state lawmakers is seeking to overturn the University of Wisconsin system’s new admissions policy that requires campuses to review each applicant individually and consider factors such as race and past experiences along with academic record.
Teaching
A National Roundup
Boston to Allow 10 Schools to Switch to Later Start Times
The move is designed to increase the number of teenagers who get to school on time.
Education
Letter to the Editor
‘Kalamazoo Promise’ Shows What Works
Two years into the “Kalamazoo Promise,” a scholarship program giving aid to every college-bound graduate of the Kalamazoo, Mich., schools, the city has seen its property values increase by between 7 percent and 10 percent.
Reading & Literacy
Letter to the Editor
Reading Program Evokes an Iraq War Analogy
The Bush administration has empowered U.S. Department of Education appointees to make decisions based on their personal preferences, suppress reports and research they do not agree with, and all but make up their own standards, while initiating consequences to those who disagree with them.
Education
Letter to the Editor
Civics: Where Have All the Class Presidents Gone?
Jeffery J. Miller raises the right question with his Commentary.
Education
Letter to the Editor
‘Turnaround’ Essay Shows Need for a Reform Focus
Daniel L. Duke in his recent Commentary once again points out that the correct unit of analysis and focus of change is the school, not the school district.
Education
Letter to the Editor
Even the ‘Model Minority’ Has Students With Needs
Thank you for finally acknowledging the struggles as well as the successes of Asian-American students.
Education
Letter to the Editor
Agreement on the Sad Results of ‘Parrot Math’
Thank you for publishing T.C. O’Brien’s Commentary decrying the teaching of “Parrot Math,” or the rote recall of numerical facts, in the name of high standards.
Accountability
Letter to the Editor
No One Has a Patent on Defining ‘Accountability’
The members of the Forum on Educational Accountability have it right on the best ways to assess schools.
School Climate & Safety
Curriculum Offers Lessons on Recycling Technology
A new curriculum from the Hewlett-Packard Co. and Scholastic Inc. aims to broaden students’ understanding of environmental issues related to technology.
IT Infrastructure & Management
Education Professor Starts Free Blogs for Principals
As the number of bloggers continues to grow at a dizzying rate, Scott C. McLeod worries that school leaders are being left behind.
Standards
Technology Standards Undergoing an Update
The International Society for Technology in Education is updating its educational technology standards for students and is inviting feedback from educators on proposed changes.
College & Workforce Readiness
National Network Aims to Recraft Ed.D. for Practitioners
Nearly two dozen colleges and universities will work to create doctoral programs geared towards nonacademic careers.
Assessment
NAEP Writing Exams Going Digital in 2011
The board that oversees the federally sponsored assessment approved the changes to reflect the ways in which technology has changed the way people write.
Early Childhood
Report Roundup
Child-Care Quality
States fall far below the recommended standards for child care, says a report by the Arlington, Va.-based National Association of Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies.
Curriculum
Report Roundup
Arts Education
Eighty-nine percent of California's public schools do not offer standards-based courses in dance, music, visual arts, and theater, falling short of state goals set up in 2001 by the California state board of education, a report by SRI International says.