September 6, 2006
Education Week, Vol. 26, Issue 02
Education
A Washington Roundup
Study Critical of Anti-Drug Ads Was Credible, Review Finds
An evaluation that criticized a federally sponsored anti-drug media campaign is credible and reliable, the Government Accountability Office has concluded.
Education
A Washington Roundup
Aid Executive Tapped To Be Undersecretary
President Bush announced his intention last week to nominate Sara Martinez Tucker as the undersecretary of the Department of Education, the No. 3 post.
Education
Federal File
The Big Easy Revisited
In a wide-ranging national address last week in New Orleans, President Bush highlighted the promise of charter schools as a force against the city’s persistent poverty and an upgrade to a dysfunctional school system.
Education
Schools Reap Benefits From Finance Case
Kansas lawmakers have solved their long-running school finance dilemma by passing a K-12 education budget that will increase precollegiate spending by 13.7 percent this year and promises increases over the following two years.
Education
A State Capitals Roundup
Retirees Work Excess Hours
The 100,000-student DeKalb County school district in Georgia must pay more than $280,000 into the state’s teacher-retirement system, after state officials learned that six retirees worked more hours than allowed by law.
Education
A State Capitals Roundup
Some Calif. Principals Could Get More Control Over Hiring
A bill that passed both houses of the California legislature with overwhelming majorities seeks to give principals in low-performing schools more control over the hiring of teachers for their schools.
Education
A State Capitals Roundup
Calif. Bill Proposes $2.9 Billion in Aid for 600 Schools
Hundreds of low-performing schools in California would see smaller class sizes, more qualified teachers, and an increase in the number of counselors, under a $2.9 billion plan unveiled last week by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and the California Teachers Association.
Curriculum
Schools Adjusting to Pluto’s Fall From Planetary Grace
Tiny, frigid, and remote, Pluto has endured relentless astronomical skepticism since its discovery more than 70 years ago. And now, the shadowy brown orb has suffered the supreme indignity of losing its very status as a planet, to be replaced with a decidedly less-awesome descriptor: dwarf planet.
Equity & Diversity
Choice Programs Found to Help Integration, But Not Scores
A study of several school choice programs in San Diego finds that they are promoting more racial and ethnic integration of students, but do not, in general, have any notable effect on test scores.
School & District Management
Let It Snow?
For Rhode Island students, Sept. 12 is like a snow day—without the white, fluffy stuff.
Federal
Leader in NCLB Tutoring Finds New Corporate Home
Education Station—a leading provider of tutoring services under the No Child Left Behind Act—has been purchased by Knowledge Learning Corp., a Portland, Ore.-based company that runs several chains of child-care centers and provides after-school programs in 38 states.
Social Studies
Teachers Tiptoe Into Delicate Topics of 9/11 And Iraq
As the war in Iraq continues amid declining public and political support, and the anniversary of the worst terrorist attack on U.S. soil nears, students around the country will find plenty to challenge their strongly held opinions, which tend to lean liberal and anti-war.
Federal
States Late With Data About AYP
More than a dozen states will not release information about whether schools have met achievement targets under the federal No Child Left Behind Act until after the school year begins, and about a dozen more are just releasing their lists either this week or last.
School Climate & Safety
Since Attacks, Schools Said Safer, More Prepared
State and federal programs have been set up since the Sept. 11 attacks to help pay for better security programs, and more schools are making it a priority to train teachers and staff members in what to do if a crisis occurs, according to experts.
Early Childhood
Katrina’s Impact on Pre-K Programs Lingers
A year after Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast, many preschools, child-care centers, and other early-childhood programs in the region are still struggling to reopen.
Student Well-Being
‘Social Norms’ Seen to Keep Students on Right Track
Rather than scare students out of misbehaving, social-norms educators use survey data on students’ actual behavior to underscore that, when it comes to avoiding risky habits, many students are already doing the right thing.
Education
A National Roundup
Mayor of L.A. Wins Fight for Say Over Schools
Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa’s bid to assume some control over Los Angeles’ school system won final approval from the California legislature last week, and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger announced again his intention to sign the measure into law.
Education
People in the News
Frank G. Chester
Frank G. Chester has been appointed the chief human-resources officer for the 30,000-student Pittsburgh public schools.
Education
People in the News
Ellen C. Frede
Ellen C. Frede has been named the co-director of the National Institute for Early Education Research at the graduate school of education of Rutgers University in New Brunswick, N.J. Ms. Freed is also an associate professor in the department of elementary and early-childhood education at the College of New Jersey, Ewing.
Education
People in the News
Kimberly A. Statham
Kimberly A. Statham was named interim state administrator for the 40,000-student Oakland, Calif., school district after Randolph E. Ward resigned. Ms. Statham, 47, formerly served as chief academic officer.
Education
Correction
Correction
Two stories in the Aug. 30, 2006, issue of Education Week about a National Center for Education Statistics-sponsored study comparing charter and regular public school performance ("NCES Calls for Sticking to the Stats" and "Reanalysis of NAEP Scores Finds Charter Schools Lagging") presented data on student test scores incorrectly. The study found that 4th grade students in a nationally representative sample of charter schools scored 4.2 points behind students in regular public schools in reading, and 4.7 points behind regular public school students in mathematics, when various student characteristics were considered. Those score differences were measured on the National Assessment of Educational Progress achievement scale of zero to 500.
School Choice & Charters
A National Roundup
Two Foundations Support KIPP Charters in New Orleans
Two philanthropies will provide nearly $2.5 million to help two existing and three planned charter schools in New Orleans in the network of the Knowledge Is Power Program, or KIPP.
Education
A National Roundup
Appeals Court Backs Student’s Right to Shirt Critical of President
A Vermont public school may not block a student from wearing a T-shirt with slogans and images critical of President Bush, even if they include references to drugs and alcohol, a federal appeals court ruled last week.
Teaching Profession
Labor Unrest Shuts Schools in Midwest
The new school year has brought with it a fresh wave of labor unrest, as teachers in districts large and small went back to school without new contracts and thousands took to the picket lines.
Standards
Fordham Pushes National Standards
A decade after attempts to establish national standards in core subject areas set off a firestorm, the Thomas B. Fordham Foundation has joined a growing chorus of scholars and pundits who say the approach to school improvement again deserves serious consideration.