July 14, 2004
Education Week, Vol. 23, Issue 42
Teaching Profession
Chicago Union Leaders Ask AFT To Resolve Vote Dispute
The American Federation of Teachers’ executive council last week was weighing whether to conduct a full investigation into the election for president of its Chicago affiliate.
Assessment
One Last Chance
A private school in Birmingham, Ala., offers a last chance to students who have fallen through the cracks in public high schools.
School Choice & Charters
Colo. Vouchers Now Back In Political Arena
A recent ruling by the Colorado Supreme Court to uphold a lower-court decision finding the state’s 2003 voucher law unconstitutional could make vouchers a campaign issue in state elections this fall and has stirred fresh speculation about the prospects for such laws nationwide.
Education
News in Brief: A State Capitals Roundup
- Ariz. Teachers Targeted for English Immersion
- N.J.'s Abbott Districts Settle Supplemental-Funding Dispute
- Gov. Bush Vetoes Plan for Pilot Preschool Effort
- Sexual-Abstinence Message Required by New Mich. Law
- Mass. Governor Vetoes Charter School Moritorium
- Texas Education Agency Gets OK to Buy Textbooks
- Mich. Affirmative Action Bid Put On Hold Till Next Year
- Iowa Sets New Rules for Homeless Students
College & Workforce Readiness
Vocational Students Lag In Achievement, Report Says
Vocational education students today are far more likely to enroll in academically demanding classes than they were a decade ago, though they continue to lag behind their peers in test scores, completing high school, and going to college, a federal report shows.
Education
Urban Education
Reality 101
For one group of Chicago 5th graders, a semester that began as a civics lesson ended as a life lesson.
Budget & Finance
Tax Appeals Divide Schools, Businesses
In Ohio, schools are hit especially hard by corporate rate cuts. Includes the story "Education Inc."
School & District Management
Power Play Over New Orleans Schools Involved Large Cast
Federal court, state legislature, and school board members all had roles in the recent struggle over New Orleans public schools. Includes the accompanying story, "Schools Probe in City Yields Theft Charges," and a timeline, "A Day-by-Day Drama."
Student Well-Being & Movement
Bush Signs School Lunch Reauthorization
Federal child-nutrition programs have a new focus on healthy eating habits and fighting obesity under a measure signed into law recently by President Bush. Includes the accompanying table, "Appetite for Change."
Education
Federal File
Status Pending?
The battle between the National Head Start Association and the official who heads the federal Head Start program deteriorated recently into a "they said, she said" skirmish.
Education
Pa. Wagers on Slot Machines To Pay for Property-Tax Relief
Pennsylvania Gov. Edward G. Rendell has signed legislation that allows slot machines in the Keystone State, a move that will help him fulfill two promises: increase the state’s share of education funding, and lower homeowners’ soaring property taxes.
Equity & Diversity
Settlement of School Equity Case Caught Up in Calif. Budget Battle
California leaders are working to settle a school finance lawsuit filed in 1999 on behalf of needy students over the decrepit facilities and a lack of equal educational opportunities in their schools.
Federal
Creative Associates Gets New Iraq Contract
The Washington-based firm hired by the U.S. Agency for International Development to help rebuild schools in Iraq this past school year has landed another education contract to work in that country.
Teaching Profession
Teachers’ Union Shifts Into Campaign Gear
The nation’s largest teachers’ union revved into campaign speed last week, even as its choice for president, presumptive Democratic nominee Sen. John Kerry, was a no-show at the group’s annual meeting.
Education
News in Brief: A National Roundup
- S.F. Schools Win Millions in Dispute Over Contract
- Some N.Y.C. 3rd Graders Gain Promotion on Appeal
- Lawsuits Settled Over Students ‘Pushed Out’ of City’s Schools
- Officials of Fla. Private School Charged With Voucher Fraud
- Calif. State Chief Enlists Agency in Review of Anti-Drug Program
- Fla. District’s School Choice Plan Trumps Federal Law, Judge Rules
- Federal Judge Says Ky. District Can Keep Race-Based Assignments
- Snapshots
Student Well-Being & Movement
Report Examining Sexual Misconduct Taps Some Nerves
A report commissioned by the U.S. Department of Education on school employees’ sexual misconduct with students is drawing fire from national education groups and has attracted only qualified support from the agency itself. Includes the table, "Words of Warning."
Education
News in Brief: A Washington Roundup
- House Panel OKs Education Budget
- Department Says States Risk Losing School Aid
- Religious-School Teaching Under AmeriCorps Voided
- Bill to Make 'No Child' Rules Retroactive Is Clarified
School & District Management
Chicago to ‘Start Over’ With 100 Small Schools
Chicago is embarking on a major initiative to convert at least 10 percent of its schools into small schools, most of which will be run by private operators. The controversial move expands the city’s role in the vanguard of districts experimenting with alternative school arrangements.
Education
Letter to the Editor
Letters
- Educator Pay Trends: 'Telling, Disappointing'
- The Media Discover the No Child Left Behind Act
- For Gifted 'Victims,' Charters to the Rescue
- Testing Juggernaut Puts Small Schools at Risk
- Family Corrects Record on Accused Va. Teacher
- Software Is Available for Arabic-Language Study
- Vouchers Sometimes Can Promote Integration
- Adequacy Lawsuits
- Teacher Quality
- The Author Changes a Phrase
- Teach For America
Federal
Citing Illness, Cuba Frees Teacher-Activist From Prison
Roberto Miranda, who led an independent teachers’ group in Cuba before being jailed more than a year ago as a political dissident, has been released from a Havana prison because of deteriorating health.
Education
Opinion
Accounting for Citizenship
There is no more central purpose to schools in a democracy than the preparation of citizens, argue education specialists Michael Johanek and John Puckett.
Education
Opinion
Jefferson on Education
Retired public school teacher Tom Shuford takes a look at Thomas Jefferson's vision for education to discern modern relevance in the revolutionary's thoughts.
Reading & Literacy
Teaching & Learning
- Reading Scores Rose in New York City’s ‘Chancellor’s District’
- Myth-Busting, Washington Style
- Alternative Certification
- Assessing District Responses
- The Science of Music