April 20, 2011

Education Week, Vol. 30, Issue 28
Law & Courts News in Brief Judge Blocks Ban of Cancer Bracelet
A federal judge has blocked a Pennsylvania school district from enforcing its ban on breast cancer-awareness bracelets that read "I (heart) Boobies," saying the ban is likely unconstitutional.
Mark Walsh, April 19, 2011
1 min read
School & District Management News in Brief Finalists Picked for Obama Graduation
The White House this month announced six finalists for a chance to have President Barack Obama speak at their graduation ceremonies.
Michele McNeil, April 19, 2011
1 min read
School Climate & Safety News in Brief Federal Bill on Restraints, Seclusion Resurrected
The leading Democrat on the U.S. House of Representatives' education committee has reintroduced a bill to limit physical restraint and locked seclusion of students.
Nirvi Shah, April 19, 2011
1 min read
College & Workforce Readiness Report Roundup Study: Reading Problems Can Flag Potential Dropouts
A student who can't read on grade level by 3rd grade is four times less likely to graduate by age 19 than a child who reads proficiently by that time, according to a new study.
Sarah D. Sparks, April 19, 2011
1 min read
School & District Management News in Brief N.Y. State Education Chief Resigns
New York state Education Commissioner David Steiner is resigning after two years on the job.
The Associated Press, April 19, 2011
1 min read
School Climate & Safety News in Brief Fla. Lawmakers Pursuing Way Around Class-Size Limits
Class sizes in Florida schools could grow again next fall, despite voter-mandated restrictions.
McClatchy-Tribune, April 19, 2011
1 min read
School & District Management News in Brief National Board President to Step Down
Joseph A. Aguerrebere, the president of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, will step down on June 30 after eight years of service, the NBPTS announced.
Liana Loewus, April 19, 2011
1 min read
School & District Management News in Brief Broad Announces Finalists
The Broad Foundation has announced the finalists for its Broad Prize in Urban Education, and all four are former contenders.
Christina A. Samuels, April 19, 2011
1 min read
Teaching Profession News in Brief Los Angeles District Issues Own Value-Added Ratings
The nation's second-largest district released school ratings last week based on a new, value-added approach that measures a school's success by how well it raises students' performance.
McClatchy-Tribune, April 19, 2011
1 min read
School & District Management News in Brief Power Stripped From Okla. Board
Gov. Mary Fallin, a Republican, has signed a bill stripping most power from the seven-member, appointed Oklahoma board of education, including its authority to develop the budget for public schools.
The Associated Press, April 19, 2011
1 min read
Special Education News in Brief Arizona Creates Vouchers for Special Ed. Students
Lawmakers in Arizona, where a private-school-voucher program for students with disabilities was found unconstitutional in 2009, are trying a new approach to pay for special education students' tuition outside of public schools.
Nirvi Shah, April 19, 2011
2 min read
Education Correction Correction
A news brief in the March 2, 2011, issue of Education Week erred in describing the U.S. role in an upcoming Program for International Student Assessment, or PISA.
April 19, 2011
1 min read
Federal News in Brief Md. Approves In-State Immigrant Tuition
Maryland lawmakers sent the governor a bill last week to grant in-state college tuition rates to undocumented immigrants who meet certain requirements.
The Associated Press, April 19, 2011
1 min read
School & District Management Report Roundup School Food
More than 75 percent of American voters believe schools should have to meet higher nutrition standards for all foods they sell or serve students, according to a poll commissioned by the Kids' Safe and Healthful Foods Project.
Nirvi Shah, April 19, 2011
1 min read
Special Education Report Roundup Research Report: Special Education
Students who had more severe, and thus more expensive, disabilities were less likely to attend an Arizona charter school than a traditional public school in the 2002-03 school year.
Nirvi Shah, April 19, 2011
1 min read
School & District Management Report Roundup Teenage Sexual Behavior
Compared to results from the last National Survey of Family Growth in 2002, fewer males and females age 15 to 24 have had sexual contact with another person, a new survey shows.
Nirvi Shah, April 19, 2011
1 min read
Teashia Benson, 8, gets tutored after school at the Lincoln School by teacher Vicki Rouse.
Teashia Benson, 8, gets tutored after school at the Lincoln School by teacher Vicki Rouse.
Bruce Crippen for Education Week
School & District Management School's a Community Effort in Indiana District
Educators in an Evansville-area school district enlist community groups to provide academic, health, and social supports for vulnerable children.
Mary Ann Zehr, April 19, 2011
10 min read
English-Language Learners Report Roundup Research Report: English-Language Learners
A new study from the University of Georgia suggests that including appropriate graphics with test questions can help English-language learners translate their math skills.
Sarah D. Sparks, April 19, 2011
1 min read
School Climate & Safety Report Roundup Research Report: Bullying
Schools in Virginia that used a bullying-prevention program found that students improved their test scores on state English, math, science, and history exams by an average of 6.25 percentage points.
Nirvi Shah, April 19, 2011
1 min read
Teaching Profession Report Roundup 'Gen Y' Teachers
"Gen Y" teachers want more frequent feedback on their teaching, tend to be more open to shared practice, and say that rewards and sanctions should be differentiated based on performance.
Stephen Sawchuk, April 19, 2011
1 min read
Families & the Community Districts Use Web Polls to Survey Parents on Hot Topics
School leaders are using online polling tools for everything from gauging parent and community support for bond measures to determining the best times to hold spring break.
Dave Aekins, St. Cloud Times, April 19, 2011
5 min read
Education Funding Report Roundup Prisons vs. Schools
The NAACP compiled research and data from various sources to show that, for years, many states have spent increasing amounts of their discretionary funds on prisons and less of that money on education.
Nirvi Shah, April 19, 2011
1 min read
Teaching Profession Report Roundup Teacher Distribution
The highest-performing teachers appear to be underrepresented in economically disadvantaged middle schools—but the pattern is less pervasive at the elementary level, a new study concludes.
Stephen Sawchuk, April 19, 2011
1 min read
Chancellor of New York City Public Schools Dennis Walcott addresses the media during a news conference at the Capitol in Albany, N.Y., on April 12.
Chancellor of New York City Public Schools Dennis Walcott addresses the media during a news conference at the Capitol in Albany, N.Y., on April 12.
Mike Groll/AP
School & District Management Selection for N.Y.C. Schools Chief Knows City Government, District
No stranger to public schools, Mayor Bloomberg's latest pick to head the 1.1 million-student school system is likely to continue the education reforms the Bloomberg administration put in place.
Christina A. Samuels, April 19, 2011
5 min read
School Choice & Charters High Court Tax-Credit Ruling Could Offer New Momentum to School Choice Supporters
The U.S. Supreme Court rules 5-4 against taxpayers who sought to overturn an Arizona program aiding religious schools.
Mark Walsh, April 19, 2011
6 min read
A statue of Abraham Lincoln when he was nine years-old sits in front of Lincoln's boyhood home in Indiana, in this scene at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum in Springfield, Ill. The complex houses one of the world's largest collections of Lincoln documents and artifacts, from letters he wrote as a young lawyer to an original copy of the Gettysburg Address.
A statue of Abraham Lincoln when he was nine years-old sits in front of Lincoln's boyhood home in Indiana, in this scene at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum in Springfield, Ill. The complex houses one of the world's largest collections of Lincoln documents and artifacts, from letters he wrote as a young lawyer to an original copy of the Gettysburg Address.
Seth Perlman/AP-File
Education Funding Federal History-Grant Program Takes Budget Hit for Fiscal 2011
The Teaching American History grants program could see its budget cut from $119 million in fiscal 2010 to $46 million in the current year.
April 19, 2011
2 min read
Teaching Profession Opinion Educator Pension Systems Ripe for Reform
Policymakers should make educator pension systems more transparent, Robert M. Costrell and Michael Podgursky write.
Robert M. Costrell & Michael Podgursky, April 19, 2011
6 min read
The Fort Sumter "Storm Flag," lowered by Major Robert Anderson on April 14, 1861, when he surrendered Fort Sumter, in the harbor of Charleston, S.C., at the outset of the American Civil War.
The Fort Sumter "Storm Flag," lowered by Major Robert Anderson on April 14, 1861, when he surrendered Fort Sumter, in the harbor of Charleston, S.C., at the outset of the American Civil War.
National Park Service
Curriculum Schools Walk Into Touchy Territory With Civil War
As the U.S. commemorates the war's 150th anniversary, debates about the conflict persist and misinformation still thrives.
April 19, 2011
7 min read
School & District Management Transfer Rates Similar for KIPP, Local Schools
A new Mathematica study raises questions about recent research suggesting that students are transferring out of KIPP middle schools and their seats are going unfilled.
Mary Ann Zehr, April 19, 2011
3 min read