May 17, 2017
Education Week, Vol. 36, Issue 31
Recruitment & Retention
Opinion
We Need More STEM Teachers; Higher Ed. Can Help
Four recommendations could encourage college STEM majors to pursue classroom teaching and help fill the void, say three researchers.
Education Funding
Opinion
Business Invests in Professional Learning. Why Doesn't Education?
A federal budget that guts Title II funding for teacher professional development is a bad idea, argues former school superintendent Deborah S. Delisle.
Student Well-Being
How Much Math Anxiety Is Too Much?
Researchers are developing scales to help teachers understand when young children’s math anxieties are getting in the way of learning.
School & District Management
Do Digital Games Improve Children’s Math Skills?
Educators and researchers are finding that digital games can boost math performance for children as early as preschool.
School & District Management
Children Must Be Taught to Collaborate, Studies Say
Learning to work in groups in the classroom doesn't come naturally, research shows. Teachers have to lay the groundwork.
Every Student Succeeds Act
Career Tech-Ed. Bill Models ESSA's Flexibility
Proposed legislation to overhaul the nation's law governing career-and-technical education seeks to give states more discretion over spending, which programs to focus on, and other issues.
Education
Letter to the Editor
America's Economic Future Does Not Hinge on PISA Scores
To the Editor:
In recent years, Education Week has published at least one Commentary and one opinion-blog post that argue for the very strong connection between the United States' economic future and international test results, specifically those from the Program for International Student Assessment. In a Commentary three years ago ("Why the U.S. Results on PISA Matter," Jan. 8, 2014), the Hoover Institution's Eric A. Hanushek argued that this country's PISA scores—which measure the progress of 15-year-olds nationwide in reading, math, and science—had "huge economic ramifications."
In recent years, Education Week has published at least one Commentary and one opinion-blog post that argue for the very strong connection between the United States' economic future and international test results, specifically those from the Program for International Student Assessment. In a Commentary three years ago ("Why the U.S. Results on PISA Matter," Jan. 8, 2014), the Hoover Institution's Eric A. Hanushek argued that this country's PISA scores—which measure the progress of 15-year-olds nationwide in reading, math, and science—had "huge economic ramifications."
Education
Letter to the Editor
What Successful Readers Need
To the Editor:
It is satisfying to know that 94 percent of the more than 4,700 pre-K-12 teachers and principals interviewed for a recent Scholastic report agree that students should have time to read a book of their choice independently during the school day ("Study: Teachers Value Independent Reading But Lack Class Time for It," April 26, 2017).
It is satisfying to know that 94 percent of the more than 4,700 pre-K-12 teachers and principals interviewed for a recent Scholastic report agree that students should have time to read a book of their choice independently during the school day ("Study: Teachers Value Independent Reading But Lack Class Time for It," April 26, 2017).
School Climate & Safety
70,000 Students With Disabilities Secluded, Restrained in School
An Education Week Research Center analysis finds that 1 in 100 special education students was physically restrained or placed in seclusion from classmates in 2013-14.
College & Workforce Readiness
Can a Career Tech Ed. School Be Too Popular?
Schools like the Marine Academy of Science and Technology worry that their enrollments are becoming less diverse as their academics become more rigorous.
School & District Management
School Boards Pay Superintendents Big Bucks to Quit Early
Eye-popping parachute packages are still relatively uncommon in the world of K-12, but some recent cases show that school boards will pay hefty sums to get rid of superintendents.
College & Workforce Readiness
In Kentucky, Rural Schools Betting on Drones to Stem 'Brain Drain'
Districts in the state's coal country are pushing for a $50 million complex where students master high-tech skills that would lure them back home for jobs after college.
Every Student Succeeds Act
Political Policy Questions Tinge Ed-Tech Conference
Political uncertainty in the federal policy arena hung heavy over the recent ASU/GSV Summit, an annual event that draws thousands of educational technology executives, developers, and investors.
Education Funding
News in Brief
Voters in Santa Fe, N.M., Reject Beverage Tax to Fund Preschool
Voters in Santa Fe, N.M., have rejected a 2-cents-per-ounce tax on distributors of sodas and other sugary beverages that, if passed, would have helped support prekindergarten within the Santa Fe public schools.
Professional Development
News in Brief
Teacher-Prep Accreditor Gives Nod to First Online Program
Teach-Now, an online teacher-preparation program, has received full seven-year accreditation from the Council for Accreditation of Educator Preparation—making it the first online institution to meet the council's new, more rigorous standards.
Education Funding
News in Brief
Kellogg to Give $51 Million to Single School District
The W.K. Kellogg Foundation has announced that it's giving $51 million over five years to the public schools in its hometown of Battle Creek, Mich., in the hopes of tackling low academic performance linked to long-standing racial inequality and segregation.
School Climate & Safety
News in Brief
Teachers Say More Training Needed on Discipline Methods
Almost three years since California joined the vanguard of a burgeoning national movement to sharply curtail the use of student suspensions and expulsions, nearly 9 in 10 Golden State teachers say they still need more training and support for utilizing alternative-discipline techniques, reports EdSource.
School Choice & Charters
News in Brief
Indiana Virtual Charter Again Escapes the Ax
An online virtual charter school in Indiana has once again been spared from closing, despite persistently low academic scores.
School Choice & Charters
News in Brief
Mystery Measure Would Protect Sponsors of Failing Charters
A mysterious provision added to the state budget bill as passed by the Ohio House stands to protect the sponsors of some online charter schools.
Classroom Technology
News in Brief
Online School Owes Millions to Ohio, Hearing Officer Says
A state hearing officer has ruled against Ohio's largest online charter school in its appeal of the state education department's determination that the school owes $60 million for enrollment that can't be justified.
Federal
News in Brief
Cybersecurity Ed. Included in Review Ordered by Trump
An executive order signed by President Donald Trump last week aims to bolster the nation's cybersecurity, including through a multiagency review of related education and workforce-development efforts.
Education Funding
News in Brief
Minor Errors Lead to Rejection of Upward Bound Applications
Dozens of universities and organizations that applied for federal grants to help young people from poor families prepare for college have been turned down by the U.S. Department of Education because of mistakes that consisted mostly of incorrect margins, the wrong font, or lack of double-spacing.
College & Workforce Readiness
Report Roundup
Research Report: English-Language Learners
Schools that want to improve the educational prospects for English-language learners should take account of what's happening in their students' lives outside the classroom, a new report from the research arm of America's Promise Alliance finds.
Education Funding
Report Roundup
Research Report: Charter Schools
Traditional public schools on average received about 29 percent more funding per student than charter schools in 14 metropolitan areas, finds a new study by the University of Arkansas' education reform department.
Law & Courts
Report Roundup
At-Risk Youths
Students who enter the juvenile-justice system are significantly less likely to graduate from high school, and a new online report offers a roadmap for states to make sure incarcerated students get back on track academically.
School Choice & Charters
Report Roundup
School Choice
Low- and high-income parents both select schools in a choice district based on school quality—but they use different measures, finds a new study in the journal Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis.
Teaching Profession
Report Roundup
Teacher Preparation
Too many teacher-preparation programs are doing a poor job of covering content that future science and social studies teachers need to master, according to a new report.
School Climate & Safety
News in Brief
Congressional Bill Aims to End 'Lunch-Shaming'
A group of federal lawmakers has proposed a bill that would ban "lunch shaming" in school cafeterias.
Education
News in Brief
Transitions
Kyla Johnson-Trammell has been named the new superintendent of the Oakland district in California, effective July 1. Currently the interim deputy superintendent, Johnson-Trammell started out as an elementary teacher in the 49,000-student district, where she has worked for nearly two decades. Laura Mitchell is expect...