December 2, 2009
Education Week, Vol. 29, Issue 13
Federal
Tighter Oversight Promised on Stimulus' Jobs Impact
Obama administration officials concede reporting errors, but tell skeptics in Congress the program is creating and saving many jobs.
Teaching Profession
Report Roundup
Teacher Education
A new report documents growth in "practice-based" teacher education programs in Massachusetts and makes recommendations on next steps to support them.
Federal
Report Roundup
Early Childhood
One new report looks at early-childhood advisory councils in 19 states as required by Head Start and another researches New Mexico's prekindergarten program.
School & District Management
Report Roundup
Community Colleges
A study of six Texas community colleges where higher-than-expected numbers of poor and first-generation students progress to four-year schools finds common threads among them.
School Choice & Charters
Report Roundup
Research Report: Charter Schools
A new policy brief from a civil rights group is calling on the federal government to do more to counter racial segregation in the nation's growing population of charter schools.
Ed-Tech Policy
Report Roundup
Online Learning
More than half of U.S. states now operate online-learning initiatives for K-12 students, an increase over the 15 states that did so just two years ago.
Education
Letter to the Editor
E-Readers Help Those Who Struggle to Read
To the Editor:
I thoroughly enjoyed Michael L. Miles and Bruce S. Cooper’s recent Commentary "Reimagining the Textbook" (Nov. 11, 2009), and I agree with many of their ideas on the educational uses of electronic reading devices. In the work that I do, with students with reading disabilities, moving to a digital reading platform is essential. The Kindle in particular offers text-to-speech capabilities that can really level the playing field for such students.
I thoroughly enjoyed Michael L. Miles and Bruce S. Cooper’s recent Commentary "Reimagining the Textbook" (Nov. 11, 2009), and I agree with many of their ideas on the educational uses of electronic reading devices. In the work that I do, with students with reading disabilities, moving to a digital reading platform is essential. The Kindle in particular offers text-to-speech capabilities that can really level the playing field for such students.
Education
Letter to the Editor
Incentives for Teaching Demean the Profession
To the Editor:
Since when is it necessary to provide teachers with incentives to teach well ("Researchers Probe Performance Incentives for Teachers," Nov. 11, 2009)? I’ve had experience in both business and education—in business as a director of information services in the government and private sectors, and in education as a teacher, school administrator, and university professor—and am insulted by the attempt at the national and state levels to effectively bribe educators to teach children “better.”
Since when is it necessary to provide teachers with incentives to teach well ("Researchers Probe Performance Incentives for Teachers," Nov. 11, 2009)? I’ve had experience in both business and education—in business as a director of information services in the government and private sectors, and in education as a teacher, school administrator, and university professor—and am insulted by the attempt at the national and state levels to effectively bribe educators to teach children “better.”
Education
Letter to the Editor
Ed. School 'Experts' Need K-12 Experience
To the Editor:
Pedro A. Noguera deserves high praise for his analysis of the scapegoating of schools of education ("The New War Against Ed Schools," Commentary, Nov. 18, 2009). It’s always easier to berate than to encourage.
Pedro A. Noguera deserves high praise for his analysis of the scapegoating of schools of education ("The New War Against Ed Schools," Commentary, Nov. 18, 2009). It’s always easier to berate than to encourage.
School & District Management
News in Brief
Louisiana Audit Faults Vallas for Use of State-Owned Car
The superintendent of the Recovery School District misused his state-owned vehicle according to an audit released last week.
Law & Courts
News in Brief
Supreme Court Declines to Hear Miami Case on Cuba Book Dispute
The U.S. Supreme Court is staying out of a dispute in Miami between school officials and civil libertarians over a book about Cuba.
Law & Courts
News in Brief
Federal Civics Programs Under Fire
The U.S. Department of Education's inspector general has found widespread problems with two federally financed civics education programs.
School Choice & Charters
News in Brief
Idaho Charter School Warned on Use of Bible in Classroom
The Idaho Public Charter School Commission has reprimanded the publicly financed Nampa Classical Academy over the use of religious texts in the classroom that included the Bible.
School & District Management
News in Brief
Chicago Board President Remembered
Michael Scott, 60, the president of the Chicago board of education, was remembered at services last month for his lengthy record of community service.
Federal
News in Brief
N.J. Boards Back Standards
The New Jersey School Boards Association will support the concept of national education standards.
Federal
News in Brief
Library Group Balks at E-Rate Changes
The American Library Association says the cap on the federal E-rate program should be raised to meet the demand for universal high-speed connectivity to the Internet.
School Climate & Safety
News in Brief
U.S. Judge Says Chicago Schools Must Allow Transfers After Beating
A federal judge says Chicago public schools must arrange for the immediate transfer of students who want to leave a South Side high school after an honor student's brutal beating death.
Special Education
ESEA Renewal Session Focuses on 'Special' Groups
Federal officials gearing up for reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act are getting a clearer idea of how a number of special populations hope to see the law reshaped.
Teacher Preparation
Opinion
The 'Master's Pay Bump'
Patricia Wasley and Marguerite Roza tell why education schools should not fear a proposal advanced by their university that would decouple advanced degrees and teacher pay.
School & District Management
Opinion
What If Faculty Meetings Were Voluntary?
Thomas R. Hoerr counters five common myths about faculty meetings and tells how they might become production—and popular—gatherings.
School & District Management
Opinion
Cultivating Civility
"Intemperate irascibility" is hijacking our shared future, Peter Cobb writes, imploring schools to finds ways to help students elevate public discourse.
Federal
IES to Evaluate Programs Launched Under Stimulus
Researchers will study initiatives funded by the law’s $10 billion in competitive grant programs.
School & District Management
New Head of U.S. Research Agency Aims for Relevance
Reflecting his on-the-ground experience, the new director of the Institute of Education Sciences wants studies that are useful to the field.
School Choice & Charters
Opinion
When Roads Diverge: Tracking the Charter Movement
John Merrow looks at a promising study of New York City charter schools and wonders how it will influence education’s future.
Education Funding
Report Roundup
Dropout Costs Priced for 50 Major U.S. Cities
If half the students who dropped out of the class of 2008 had graduated, they would have generated $4.1
billion more in wages, according to a new analysis.
Federal
Majoring in Math Not Always a Classroom Plus
The evidence, experts say, does not show a link between teachers who majored in math and higher student achievement, especially before high school.
Federal
News in Brief
Obama Backing 'STEM' Education
The effort to get students interested in STEM studies and careers, called 'Educate to Innovate,' involves corporations and philanthropies.
College & Workforce Readiness
Louisiana's Career Diploma Stirs Concern On Standards
Officials say they are working to assure the diploma created by a new law is rigorous and holds value for those who choose it.