October 18, 2000


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FRONT PAGE
The U.S. Supreme Court agreed last week to hear the appeal of a Christian youth group in New York state that was denied after-hours use of a public school building.
Hundreds of school districts are not getting reimbursed for millions of dollars in health services, because federal officials say they have systematically overcharged the Medicaid program intended to serve poor and disabled schoolchildren.
Looking for any edge they can get to meet demands to raise test scores, urban districts are trying to improve their attendance policies. Includes the table, "Attendance Pays Off With Higher Scores."
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Departments
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Teachers in Boston averted going on strike last week by ratifying a three-year contract that eliminates benefits once enjoyed by tenured educators, increases salaries, and shrinks class sizes in all grades.
The Dallas and Philadelphia school boards took steps last week to fill top administrative spots in moves that they hope will help bring stability and new momentum to their cities' public schools.
Departments
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- Search of 4th Graders Alarms Missouri Parents
- Key-Chain Flap Prompts Review
- Fla. Fire-Code Audit Wraps Up
- Bus Driver Fired for Leaving Boy
- Roof Collapse Closes School
- S.F. Drops Teacher-Housing Plan
- Desegregation Activist Cleared
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The mathematics instructional programs judged to be the best by a federal panel of experts may be scarce in California's classrooms over the next six years. Includes the table, "Making the Cut."
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Charter schools have failed to live up to the original promises made by their proponents and may lose the widespread support they enjoy today unless state legislatures improve the laws that govern them, a report released last week by the National School Boards Association warns.
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A study conducted by the Minneapolis public school district found that students' scores on the state's 8th grade reading test rose in proportion to the frequency with which they attended school.
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Departments
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Almost everywhere even a casual voter would look in the 11 states picking governors on Nov. 7, education gets top campaign billing—TV advertisements, Web sites, and stump speeches. Includes: "Summary of Gubernatorial Candidates' Positions on Education."
As this year's 10th graders become the first class in Massachusetts to be required to pass new tests in order to graduate, the state schools chief is recommending that students who fail the exams be allowed to earn local certificates anyway.
Departments
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Two new reports argue that student achievement can be bolstered if state boards provide challenging standards and effective accountibility measures.
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- Ky. May Tie Its Test Scores to Students' GPAs
- N.C. Gives Ratings Break to Schools Hit by Hurricane
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A practice in several Arizona school districts of admitting children who missed the kindergarten cutoff date to a separate "early" kindergarten program may well have helped a lot of children learn the skills they need for school, but the state says it's no longer going to pay for it.
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Departments
When Hillary Rodham Clinton visited the Mark Twain Center for the Gifted and Talented in New York City last month, she cast herself as a longtime education reformer who is well aware of—and prepared to fix—the problems of New York's public schools.
The U.S. Supreme Court last week delved into the regulation of high school sports for the first time as it considered whether a state athletic association acts with government authority in enforcing its rules.
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Next President Must Lead
On Education, IBM Chief Urges
Louis V. Gerstner Jr. likens the so- called "education president" to the unicorn, a fabled beast that magically appears every so often "and then—poof—disappears."
Members of Congress last week attached language on the impact-aid program to bipartisan Department of Defense legislation headed to President Clinton's desk.
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Fayette County's reputation as a top distict draws residents—and puts pressure on schools to keep up. Includes the chart, "Fayette Enrollment Trends."
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Thirty years after integration, immigration is changing the face of the DeKalb County schools yet again. Includes the chart, "DeKalb Enrollment Trends," Oct. 18, 2000.
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PAGE 37 - Commentary
An investment in counseling not only makes sense in light of school reform efforts, but can also yield important returns for taxpayer dollars, argues Charles W. Lindahl.
PAGE 38 - Commentary
One teacher took a sincere interest in one struggling student. A remembrance—and some lessons for all educators—by Howard Good.
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Departments
PAGE 40 - Commentary
Bruce Fuller looks beyond the symbolism and one-liners of the presidential campaign and finds that both candidates are putting forward an unprecedented array of policies and programs—ones that lead down divergent roads to reform, he says.
PAGE 42 - Commentary
Letters
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Departments
FOUNDATION SUPPORT: Coverage of specific topics in Education Week is supported in part by grants from the Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the CME Group Foundation, the Carnegie Corporation of New York, the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation, the Joyce Foundation, the NoVo Foundation, the Noyce Foundation, the Raikes Foundation, the Wallace Foundation, and the Walton Family Foundation. The newspaper retains sole editorial control over the content of the articles that are underwritten by the foundations. Additional grants in support of Editorial Projects in Education’s data journalism and video capacity come from the Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust and the Schott Foundation for Public Education. (Updated 1/1/2017)
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