June 19, 2002
Education Week, Vol. 21, Issue 41
Student Well-Being
Mass. High Court Says Liability Waiver Protects District
Liability waivers for school activities are in fact worth more than the paper they're printed on, Massachusetts' highest court ruled last week.
Education
Summer Job Market Bleak For High Schoolers
When Mom and Dad are combing through the want ads in search of work, chances are their teenage sons and daughters are reading alongside them. Economic downturns tend to hit young people as hard as anybody, analysts say, and this summer, the job market for high school students is especially gloomy.
Education
Retrospective
The Supreme Court rules that illegal immigrant children are entitled to a free, public education; two soon-to-be-published studies suggest that urban Roman Catholic schools may be more effective than public school; the National Science Foundation predicts that the widespread dissemination of information by wholly electronic means may create closer links between family life and schooling; and more.
The Supreme Court rules that illegal immigrant children are entitled to a free, public education; two soon-to-be-published studies suggest that urban Roman Catholic schools may be more effective than public school; the National Science Foundation predicts that the widespread dissemination of information by wholly electronic means may create closer links between family life and schooling; and more.
IT Infrastructure & Management
Arizona's One-Stop Internet Education Zone Hits a Snag
A growing number of states are looking to "network" their way past the imbalances of educational resources separating their public schools.
A growing number of states are looking to "network" their way past the imbalances of educational resources separating their public schools.
Accountability
Accountability Studies Find Mixed Impact on Achievement
How effective is accountability in raising student achievement? The evidence is mixed, according to a set of research papers presented last week.
Education
Report Roundup
- Barriers to College Examined in Study
- Latino Boys and Girls
- Elite Teachers
- Online Learning
- Civic Engagement
- Condition of Childhood
Law & Courts
Ruling Sparks Row Over Ohio Construction Panel
Ohio Gov. Bob Taft last week ordered the state's school construction commission to better manage itself and open its contract-review process.
Law & Courts
Judge Dismisses Suit Challenging Appointees to Rulemaking Panel
A federal judge has dismissed legal action that would have forced the Department of Education to delay issuing new regulations on standards and testing until it reconfigured a rulemaking panel.
Education Funding
Congress, Near Accord On Pell Boost for 2002, Dragging Feet on 2003
Congress is one step closer to injecting an extra $1 billion into the Pell Grant program to help remedy a shortfall this fiscal year, even as federal lawmakers struggle to get the budget process moving for the upcoming year.
Reading & Literacy
Federal Program Will Test States' Reading Policies
The states that are applying for their share of $900 million in grants under a new federal reading program may be headed for a rude awakening, some policy analysts warn. Includes a table, "State Reading Programs," in PDF and Excel.
Teaching Profession
Contract Agreement Gives Teachers 16 Percent Raises
New York City's public school teachers would get an across-the-board raise of 16 percent under a new contract negotiated with Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg.
Equity & Diversity
Title IX: Too Far, Or Not Far Enough?
Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 has made a huge difference in women's and girl's lives. But even as some are celebrating Title IX's anniversary, the legislation is under the microscope by the Bush administration.
School Climate & Safety
Experts Ponder Sept. 11 Effect On School Violence
The terrorist attacks of Sept. 11 coincided almost precisely with the start of the 2001-02 school year, and some experts speculate those events and their aftershocks may have something to do with the absence of large-scale violence in American schools.
Student Well-Being
Fitness Report Cards Part of 'New PE' Movement
Some 11,000 schools nationwide are now using a program called Fitnessgram that seeks to make physical activity a part of students' daily life by giving them information on their conditioning.
Special Education
Disparate Measures
The statistics are clear: African-American students, especially boys, end up in special education more often than white students do. What is less clear is why. And as one service group has discovered, addressing the situation requires much more than good intentions.
School & District Management
Public Wants Data On Teacher Quality
Americans rate knowledge about the quality of the teaching force as the most important piece of information when determining the strength of their local schools, according to a recent opinion poll conducted by the Public Education Network and Education Week.
School & District Management
Sacramento Hopes to Transform High Schools
This summer, when Gary K. Hart teaches his first lesson here, the former California secretary of education's presence in the classroom will underscore how profoundly Sacramento leaders want their city's high schools to change.
Teacher Preparation
Paige Uses Report As a Rallying Cry To Fix Teacher Ed.
Secretary of Education Rod Paige urged the states last week to revamp the way they certify teachers for the classroom, by setting higher standards for knowledge of the subjects they teach and requiring less preparation in teaching methods. Includes the chart "Academic-Content Requirement."
Education
Federal File
As leaders of the Annenberg Challenge gathered in Washington last week to give themselves a collective pat on the back, Secretary of Education Rod Paige handed out some kudos of his own.
Official Thanks
As leaders of the Annenberg Challenge gathered in Washington last week to give themselves a collective pat on the back, Secretary of Education Rod Paige handed out some kudos of his own.
Education
News in Brief: A National Roundup
- U.S. Teenage Birthrate Drops to 10-Year Low
- San Diego District Sued Over Use of Federal Aid
- Boston Catholic School Receives $5 Million Bequest
- Utah Schools to Receive Surplus Olympic Goods
- Federal Court Upholds Detroit School Takeover
- Chicago Schools Move to Fire Chaperones in Field Trip Death
- D.C. School Officials Probe Grade-Changing Charges
- Los Angeles Judge Throws Out Teacher's $4.35 Million Award
Education
News in Brief: A State Capitals Roundup
- 10 Florida Schools Get F's; Students Qualify for Vouchers
- Ariz. Chief Wants Checks in Charters
- La. Panel to Study Large Districts
- Embattled Del. Charter Calls it Quits
- Idaho Gets Grant to Go Online
Teaching Profession
Candidates Stress Experience, Style In Union Contest
The next president of the nation's largest teachers' union will not be elected until early next month, but the winner is certain to be an African-American middle school teacher with a commitment to raising teacher salaries and scaling back penalties linked to standardized tests.
Education
Rural Education
A university in Australia is now offering what may be the first education degree of its kind in the world: an online master's degree in rural education.
Degree From the Outback
A university in Australia is now offering what may be the first education degree of its kind in the world: an online master's degree in rural education.
Federal
New Ed. Dept. Office Reaches Out to the Faithful
Officials from the Department of Education are touring the country this summer, spreading the gospel that religious and community groups are welcome to vie for federal education dollars.