February 28, 2007
Education Week, Vol. 26, Issue 25
Education
Events
26-27—Rural education: National Rural Education Association Federal Legislation Forum, sponsored by the American Association of School Administrators, for educators, at the Holiday Inn Central in Washington. Contact: Bob Mooneyham, 112 Fourth St., Box 2, Norman, OK 73019; (405) 325-7959; e-mail: bmooneyham@ou.edu; Web site: www.nrea.net.
March
26-27—Rural education: National Rural Education Association Federal Legislation Forum, sponsored by the American Association of School Administrators, for educators, at the Holiday Inn Central in Washington. Contact: Bob Mooneyham, 112 Fourth St., Box 2, Norman, OK 73019; (405) 325-7959; e-mail: bmooneyham@ou.edu; Web site: www.nrea.net.
Teaching Profession
Flap Over UEA’s ‘Monopolistic’ Ways Fuels Utah Bill
Proposed legislation would make it easier for other teachers' groups to get access to recruits.
Education
Letter to the Editor
A Tale of Two Mechanisms
Contrary to Lisa Snell and Shikha Dalmia’s assertion in their Commentary "Experimenting With School Choice: A Tale of Two California Districts" (Feb. 14, 2007), the Oakland Unified School District does not use a weighted-student-funding formula.
Education
Letter to the Editor
‘Unions and School Reform’
The first article in your two-part series “The Unions and School Reform” asserts that the National Education Association “is perennially in the position of weighing its members’ rights against the needs of public education.
Education
Letter to the Editor
Battle Against Tenure Is Ill-Informed, Perpetual
Every so often, voices are heard denigrating and attacking professional tenure in education. Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg of New York is only the latest to raise this as the bane of education.
Education
Letter to the Editor
‘Snake in the Woodpile’ or Elephants in Classroom?
In his recent Commentary, James H. Lytle says that the current level of school intervention brought about by the federal No Child Left Behind Act is unsupported by research.
School Climate & Safety
California Schools to Vie for Grant Funding
California’s Quality Education Investment Act will provide
$3 billion to roughly 500 schools over seven years to boost performance.
Federal
Rural Districts Fear Loss of Timber Revenue
Two bills being debated on Capitol Hill would extend a federal program aiding rural schools and communities.
Federal
A Washington Roundup
States Face Federal Review On NCLB Choice, Tutoring
The Department of Education has added six more states to a list of 17 already selected for intensive monitoring of their supplemental-education-services and public-school-choice programs under the No Child Left Behind Act.
English-Language Learners
A Washington Roundup
Virginia Backs Down on ELL Student Tests
Virginia education officials ended a weeks-long showdown with the federal government last week by agreeing to carry out the U.S. Department of Education's mandate that the schools in the state change how they test beginning English-language learners.
Professional Development
PBS, Boston Station Team Up on Science
The Public Broadcasting Service and a Boston-based television, radio, and multimedia operation are teaming up to produce more online professional-development courses for science teachers.
International
McGraw Prize to Be Awarded to Promoters Of International Education
The award honoring “pioneers” in education will this year focus for the first time on individuals working to prepare global leaders for the future.
Law & Courts
Justices Decline Appeal on School Holiday Displays
The case challenged the New York City school system’s policy of permitting schools to display Christmas trees, but not Christian nativity scenes.
School Choice & Charters
La. Officials Selective in Granting 9 More Charters for New Orleans
New charter schools are needed to help accommodate the city's fast-growing student population.
Reading & Literacy
Reading Rituals
The Ogden, Utah, schools have used mandates of the federal Reading First grant program to fine-tune instruction districtwide, and students' scores are way up.
Special Education
Online Support Seen for Youths With Learning Disabilities
Researchers examined “virtual, but authentic” voices of young people who identify themselves as having a learning disability.
School & District Management
Lessons Learned on ‘Scaling Up’ of Projects
The IERI initiative was arguably the largest cross-disciplinary education research effort the federal government has undertaken.
Federal
For-Profits Get Subcontractor Role in Federal Grants
Nonprofit grantees are hiring firms to develop online educational materials for public schools.
Mathematics
Opinion
Mathematics and the Pure in Heart
T.C. O'Brien argues that education data regarding math curriculum development do not support anti-reformists.
Education Funding
Reporter's Notebook
Lawmakers Grapple With Nuts and Bolts of School Financing
Experts advise state lawmakers to follow characteristics of a "good" school finance system they say might help avoid legal entanglements.
States
State of the States
N.C. Governor Seeking Expanded College Plan
Students could take college courses, and even earn associate’s degrees, while completing their high school studies.
Teaching Profession
Union Fees’ Use Again at Issue
While some say the Washington state legislature is trying to enact a law that would insulate its teachers’ union friends if a pending U.S. Supreme Court decision goes against them, others say it is trying to clarify existing law.
School & District Management
A National Roundup
President of Miami Teachers’ Union Defeats 4 Rivals to Win Re-Election
Karen Aronowitz was the Miami-Dade County union’s first elected president since Pat L. Tornillo Jr., who led the union from the early 1970s until 2003.
Federal
Federal File
Position of Influence?
Alex Nock, staff chief of NCLB panel, takes job as aide for House education committee.
Special Education
A National Roundup
Issue Warnings on ADHD Drugs, FDA Tells Their Manufacturers
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration wants medication guides to alert people to possible cardiovascular risks and risks of adverse psychiatric symptoms associated with taking the medicines.
School & District Management
Charlotte District to Subdivide
Hoping to make a big system feel more intimate, leaders of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg, N.C., schools are working to divide the district into smaller parts.
School & District Management
Opinion
Truthiness in Education
Much of the research informing policy discussion about American school reform wields undeserved influence, write Kevin G. Welner and Alex Molnar.