October 24, 2012

Education Week, Vol. 32, Issue 09
Kenneth Thomas, a 7th grader, ponders a lesson in his PRIDE 101 class at Haut Gap Middle School. As part of the school’s approach to addressing behavior, all students take a course in how to be a Haut Gap student.
Kenneth Thomas, a 7th grader, ponders a lesson in his PRIDE 101 class at Haut Gap Middle School. As part of the school’s approach to addressing behavior, all students take a course in how to be a Haut Gap student.
Amelia Phillips Hale for Education Week
Student Well-Being At S.C. School, Behavior Is One of the Basics
With a special class on behavior and a strategy known as Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports, a Charleston middle school has found a way to reduce suspensions.
October 25, 2012
10 min read
Dressed as a pea pod, Anne Fritz, an intern with the Farm to School program in Eugene, Ore., encourages students to eat their vegetables during lunch at El Camino del Rio Elementary School in Eugene. Elsewhere around the country, though, some students are protesting the healthier lunches schools are required to serve as the federal Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act kicks in.
Dressed as a pea pod, Anne Fritz, an intern with the Farm to School program in Eugene, Ore., encourages students to eat their vegetables during lunch at El Camino del Rio Elementary School in Eugene. Elsewhere around the country, though, some students are protesting the healthier lunches schools are required to serve as the federal Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act kicks in.
Chris Pietsch/The Register-Guard/AP
Federal New School Lunch Rules Spur Student Protests
Some students are balking at the healthier lunches they are getting this year under the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act.
October 23, 2012
3 min read
Teacher Preparation National Board Puts Focus on Lifting Profile
The "master teacher" certification group, stymied by eroding state support, hopes to boost its influence in the education field.
Anthony Rebora, October 23, 2012
6 min read
School Choice & Charters Catholic Schools Turn to 'Blended Learning' to Get More Students
The approach of mixing online instruction and face-to-face learning comes as Catholic schools face increasing competition from charter schools.
Michelle R. Davis & Nikhita Venugopal, October 23, 2012
5 min read
School & District Management State Boards Could Feel Electoral Winds
A sixth of some 600 state school board seats nationwide could turn over through election or subsequent appointment this year.
Andrew Ujifusa, October 23, 2012
5 min read
Michael Chasen is the outgoing CEO of Blackboard.
Michael Chasen is the outgoing CEO of Blackboard.
School & District Management As Ed-Tech Competition Ratchets Up, Blackboard CEO to Step Down
The resignation is the latest change for the educational software giant, which is facing increasing competition in selling learning-management systems to schools and colleges.
Jason Tomassini, October 23, 2012
3 min read
Teaching Profession 'Value Added' Measures at Secondary Level Questioned
Researchers found value-added estimates of teachers' impact on student scores can be biased if academic tracking isn’t considered.
Stephen Sawchuk, October 23, 2012
6 min read
Accountability Opinion From STEM to ST2REAM
Students learn best with a curriculum that reaches across many disciplines, including the sciences and the humanities, writes Kenneth Wesson.
Kenneth Wesson, October 23, 2012
6 min read
Michael W. Kirst, the president of the California state board of education, emphasizes that student placement in algebra remains a local decision for school districts.
Michael W. Kirst, the president of the California state board of education, emphasizes that student placement in algebra remains a local decision for school districts.
Erin Lubin for Education Week-File
Curriculum Calif. Laws Shift Gears on Algebra, Textbooks
The new measures set the state on a course for some potentially significant changes to the curriculum.
Erik W. Robelen, October 23, 2012
7 min read
School Climate & Safety Opinion Schools Can Be the Difference in Preventing Suicide
Every school should create a suicide-prevention task force to head off tragedies, Genevieve LaFleur and Scott Poland write.
Genevieve LaFleur & Scott Poland, October 23, 2012
5 min read
Education Best of the Blogs Blogs of the Week
October 23, 2012
3 min read
Standards Letter to the Editor Common Standards Are a 'Living Work'
To the Editor:
Educators at every level—from teachers and principals to chief state school officers—have become increasingly comfortable using evidence-based research data to make sound educational decisions to maximize student learning outcomes. The developers of the Common Core State Standards are no exception. On the introductory pages of the English/language arts, or ELA, standards is this statement: "The standards are intended to be a living work: As new and better evidence emerges, the standards will be revised accordingly."
October 23, 2012
1 min read
College & Workforce Readiness Letter to the Editor Commentary Misleading on NAEP, Dropouts
To the Editor:
The recent Commentary "Public Schools: Glass Half Full or Half Empty?" (Oct. 10, 2012), provides a problematic view of education progress that can easily backfire.
October 23, 2012
1 min read
Special Education Report Roundup Special Educators
A new report says that looming automatic cuts to federal spending will take an especially big bite out of special education.
Nirvi Shah, October 23, 2012
1 min read
College & Workforce Readiness Report Roundup College Graduation
New research investigates whether the nation could meet President Barack Obama's 2020 goal of leading the world in producing college graduates.
Caralee J. Adams, October 23, 2012
1 min read
Kenneth Thomas, a 7th grader, ponders a lesson in his PRIDE 101 class at Haut Gap Middle School. As part of the school’s approach to addressing behavior, all students take a course in how to be a Haut Gap student.
Kenneth Thomas, a 7th grader, ponders a lesson in his PRIDE 101 class at Haut Gap Middle School. As part of the school’s approach to addressing behavior, all students take a course in how to be a Haut Gap student.
Amelia Phillips Hale for Education Week
Student Well-Being At S.C. School, Behavior Is One of the Basics
Learning 'how to be a Haut Gap student' is one of the basics at Charleston's Haut Gap Middle School.
October 23, 2012
8 min read
Early Childhood Report Roundup Early Learning
A parent education program aimed at Latino parents is having some success in improving parents' knowledge about early-literacy skills, among other things.
Lesli A. Maxwell, October 23, 2012
1 min read
School & District Management Report Roundup Broadband Access
Education is one of the areas with the greatest "opportunity gap" between residents of rural and urban communities because of disparities in broadband Internet access.
October 23, 2012
1 min read
College & Workforce Readiness Report Roundup Study: Dual Enrollment Paves Path Out of College
New research shows students who get a taste of college while still in high school are much more likely to continue their education and complete a degree.
Caralee J. Adams, October 23, 2012
1 min read
Education Funding New RTT Twist: Nonacademics
States seeking the federal aid could get points for addressing students' social, emotional, and behavioral needs.
Nirvi Shah, October 23, 2012
1 min read
Student Well-Being Report Roundup Students and Sleep
Getting less than half an hour of additional shut-eye can improve young children's alertness, suggests a new study from the American Academy of Pediatrics.
Ross Brenneman, October 23, 2012
1 min read
School & District Management News in Brief Review Requested in Local Chief's Firing
A nonprofit organizations focused on monitoring government spending is calling for an investigation into the firing of former superintendent Anthony Tata.
Jaclyn Zubrzycki, October 23, 2012
1 min read
Law & Courts News in Brief Texas Judge Permits Religious Banners
A Texas state judge issued a temporary injunction last week allowing a group of cheerleaders to continue to display banners with Christian messages at high school football games.
Mark Walsh, October 23, 2012
1 min read
Federal News in Brief Idaho Granted Waiver From NCLB Rules
Idaho has been granted a waiver from the No Child Left Behind Act, bringing the number of states awarded the waiver to 35.
Michele McNeil, October 23, 2012
1 min read
School & District Management News in Brief Accreditation Restored to St. Louis Schools
The 23,000-student public school system in St. Louis is officially accredited again after having been unaccredited for more than five years.
Jaclyn Zubrzycki, October 23, 2012
1 min read
Education Funding News in Brief Tenn. Withholds Aid Over Charter Rejection
The Tennessee education department is withholding aid from the Metropolitan Nashville district, citing its refusal to approve a charter school as a violation of state law.
Andrew Ujifusa, October 23, 2012
1 min read
Teaching Profession News in Brief Facebook Grant Funds Newark Teacher Plan
A tentative contract for teachers in the Newark public school system allows for merit pay bonuses funded mainly through a grant from Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg.
The Associated Press, October 23, 2012
1 min read
Families & the Community News in Brief Charter Group Picked in Calif. 'Trigger' Vote
A group of California parents chose a charter operator partnered with a local university to take over a failing elementary school.
The Associated Press, October 23, 2012
1 min read
Data News in Brief Ohio Data Scrubbing Driven by 'Mal-Intent,' Auditor Says
An investigation into attendance-data tampering in Ohio's school districts leads state Auditor to believe there was 'mal-intent' on part of some school officials.
Jaclyn Zubrzycki, October 23, 2012
1 min read