December 7, 2011
Education Week, Vol. 31, Issue 13
IT Infrastructure & Management
Bad Online Behavior Jeopardizes Students' College Plans
The number of college-admissions officials using social-networking sites to learn more about applicants quadrupled over the past year.
Accountability
Kansas City-Area Districts Brace for Influx of Students
The impending loss of accreditation for Kansas City, Mo., schools could cause an exodus of students to neighboring districts—and impose new financial burdens on the troubled Kansas City school system.
Teaching Profession
Penn State Scandal Shines Light on Laws for Reporting Abuse
The child sex-abuse scandal at Penn State has renewed questions over educators' duty to report suspected abuse, but most states are clear on K-12 reporting requirements.
Equity & Diversity
Waiver Plans Would Scrap Parts of NCLB
The 11 states seeking flexibility under the No Child Left Behind Act differ widely on student-achievement goals and strategies to help low-performing schools.
Families & the Community
Middle Schoolers Getting Prepped for Higher Education
Successful efforts aimed at the middle grades, experts say, must go beyond specifying coursework.
Families & the Community
Photo Gallery: Giving Guidance
In this slideshow, follow Gail Bottone as she tackles questions, meetings, paperwork, and headaches.
Reading & Literacy
Letter to the Editor
English, Math Need Balanced Attention
To the Editor:
I read about rising student math scores and lagging reading scores on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (Nov. 9, 2011). I find it true that English isn't getting the focus that it needs. Math and English balance each other out in a way that students need to build their skills. I also find that parents need to enforce reading rules in order to have their children read at grade level.
I read about rising student math scores and lagging reading scores on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (Nov. 9, 2011). I find it true that English isn't getting the focus that it needs. Math and English balance each other out in a way that students need to build their skills. I also find that parents need to enforce reading rules in order to have their children read at grade level.
Teaching Profession
Opinion
The Teaching Evaluation Gap
An educator's grasp of students' cultural identities can boost learning, and it should also be assessed, write Willis D. Hawley and Jacqueline Jordan Irvine.
Education Funding
Opinion
We Need Next-Generation Funding
Paul T. Hill proposes a new school funding system, saying it would help foster technology-based learning opportunities.
IT Infrastructure & Management
Teenager's Tweet About Governor Causes Uproar
A student's recent tweet criticizing Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback soon became the center of a heated debate about students' free-speech rights.
Student Well-Being
Opinion
To Boost Learning, Start With Emotional Health
Some schools are entering into promising partnerships to address students' non-academic needs, Jane Isaacs Lowe writes.
Early Childhood
Common Core Poses Challenges for Preschools
Educators are figuring out how to balance the standards' focus on academic rigor with young children's developmental needs.
School Choice & Charters
Report Roundup
School Choice
A report tries to determine which school districts offer the friendliest environments for school choice and competition.
Education Funding
News in Brief
To Save Money, Schools in Pittsburgh to Close
The Pittsburgh school board voted to close seven schools, including two high schools, to save money but still faces a $21.7 million deficit for next year.
School & District Management
News in Brief
Class-Size Waivers Triple for Texas Districts
State figures show a more than threefold increase in just one year in the number of elementary schools allowed to exceed class-size limits in Texas.
Accountability
News in Brief
State Eyes Longer Year After District Takeover
The state takeover of the Lawrence public school system in Massachusetts could mean longer school days and fewer days off.
College & Workforce Readiness
Report Roundup
Middle Schools
The Southern Regional Education Board is calling on middle schools across the South to step up their game.
Education Funding
News in Brief
Seven States to Take Another Race to Top Shot
Seven states that narrowly missed getting a piece of the $4 billion in Race to the Top money in the last round of the federal grant competition are going for another shot.
School & District Management
News in Brief
Conn. Tightens Rules on Charter Boards
New state regulations have been approved to prohibit people from sitting on more than one charter school board or helping run companies that manage their schools.
School & District Management
Report Roundup
Flu Prevention
Pittsburgh elementary schools saw a decrease in cases of influenza A and in overall student absences.
Education Funding
Report Roundup
Poor Schools Found to Get Shortchanged
Many schools serving high concentrations of low-income students aren't getting their fair share of public funds.
Teaching Profession
News in Brief
Teachers' Pact Would Ease Rules in L.A.
An agreement from the Los Angeles and the local teachers' union would give certain schools new freedom to hire teachers and waive parts of the teachers' contract.
Education Funding
News in Brief
Funding a Problem for Va. Virtual Schools
Virginia legislators adopted a law in 2010 allowing private companies and school districts to run virtual school programs, but how to pay for those virtual schools remains an issue.
School & District Management
Report Roundup
Teacher Evaluation
Two methods tied to a teaching framework identified the same teachers as particularly high- or low-performing under Chicago's teacher-evaluation pilot.
Student Well-Being
News in Brief
Most Calif. Students Fail to Meet Fitness Goals
Adding fuel to arguments that California children need to ditch TV in favor of more athletic pursuits, a new report shows that fewer than one-third of students meet state fitness goals.
International
News in Brief
Winfrey's School in South Africa Turns Out First Graduates
All 72 members of the school's first graduating class have been accepted to universities in South Africa or the United States.
English-Language Learners
Report Roundup
Hispanic Students
A new study takes a close look at how Hispanic students in urban school systems are faring compared with their non-Hispanic white peers.
Professional Development
Letter to the Editor
Program Offers Credential in Blended Learning
To the Editor:
The article "Education Schools Playing Catch-Up" in your recent educational technology special report (Virtual PD Creates Connections, Oct. 26, 2011) was a good start toward highlighting the gaps between teachers' needs for immediate attention to professional development and programs offered by colleges of education. However, despite referencing the "high profile" Florida Virtual School, the article missed an opportunity to acknowledge a promising new program offered at Florida State University that specifically addresses the needs of teachers as they begin to conduct instruction in online and hybrid environments: the Blended and Online Learning and Teaching, or BOLT, certificate program.
The article "Education Schools Playing Catch-Up" in your recent educational technology special report (Virtual PD Creates Connections, Oct. 26, 2011) was a good start toward highlighting the gaps between teachers' needs for immediate attention to professional development and programs offered by colleges of education. However, despite referencing the "high profile" Florida Virtual School, the article missed an opportunity to acknowledge a promising new program offered at Florida State University that specifically addresses the needs of teachers as they begin to conduct instruction in online and hybrid environments: the Blended and Online Learning and Teaching, or BOLT, certificate program.