September 12, 2007
Education Week, Vol. 27, Issue 03
School & District Management
Getting Serious About Preparation
The nation’s schools need principals who know instruction, and that focus is helping to shape more coherent professional programs to select and train the next generation of school leaders.
School & District Management
A National View
When Arthur Levine wrote a scathing report on the preparation of American school leaders, the one institution he singled out as a “promising model” wasn’t even in the United States. It was England’s National College for School Leadership.
School & District Management
Real-World Lessons
Since 2000, New Leaders for New Schools has recruited and trained more than 300 principals and placed them at the helms of troubled schools in cities across the nation. But the nonprofit organization aspires to much more.
School & District Management
Joining Forces
Greeneville City and Kingsport district officials entered into a collaborative partnership to help East Tennessee State revamp its educational leadership program.
Federal
Colleges Build Web Sites to Enable Campus Comparisons, Sans Ranks
Long-established college associations and a nascent national organization are either building or planning five free, Web-based college-information platforms that may diminish the U.S. News lists’ influence among high school counselors, students, and parents.
Education
Letter to the Editor
Valuing Summer Vacation, However Students Spend It
What about assisting students, all students, in making their childhood meaningful, whatever it is?
Education
Letter to the Editor
Supreme Court Decision Shows Misplaced Priorities
It might do the justices some good to take a few bong hits for Jesus.
Education
Letter to the Editor
Are Students, Not NCLB, Behind New-Teacher Flight?
Jonathan Kozol’s latest screed, "Letters to a Young Teacher," is a good example of why educational writers ought to actually spend some time teaching in a classroom today.
Law & Courts
Military Recruitment Ignites an Arizona Rhetorical Firefight
Arizona Superintendent Tom Horne recently criticized opponents of military recruitment for targeting students with their message— and heard howls of protest in return.
Federal
News in Brief
NCLB Reauthorization Database Debuts
The Denver-based Education Commission of the States has launched what it bills as a single source for “who’s saying what” about renewing the federal No Child Left Behind Act.
School & District Management
News in Brief
Ed. Dept. to Finance Study of ‘Responsive Classroom’
The U.S. Department of Education’s research arm has awarded a $2.9 million grant to underwrite a randomized study of the Responsive Classroom, a popular elementary school program aimed at promoting students’ social development.
Teacher Preparation
Opinion
Teach For America—Second Things First
Michael J. Salmonowicz writes about the impact the program’s alumni are having outside of education.
Education
States Move Toward Closer Scrutiny of Preschools
States move forward on efforts to certify early-childhood programs according to how well graduates perform in kindergarten.
Special Education
Report Roundup
Preschoolers With ADHD
Helping preschoolers who have attention deficit hyperactivity disorder may require more behavior therapies and less medication, concludes a study.
Law & Courts
Opinion
It’s Time to Confront the Class Divide in American Schools
Peter Sacks offers a class-based approach to addressing educational inequalities.
Equity & Diversity
With Immigrants, Districts Balance Safety, Legalities
Schools attempt to navigate stepped-up federal efforts to curb illegal immigration, protection of student privacy, and the safety of students during enforcement operations.
Teaching Profession
Report Roundup
Teacher Performance Pay
Merit-pay programs for teachers appear to improve their performance, a study suggests.
Special Education
Report Roundup
ADHD Prevalence and Treatment
A large percentage of children ages 8 to 15 who meet the criteria for having attention deficit hyperactivity disorder are not receiving the medication they need, researchers report.
Federal
News in Brief
Houston Board to Vote on Changes to Teacher Performance-Bonus
Houston school administrators are seeking board approval this week to overhaul the nation’s largest performance-bonus plan in time for the second annual payout to teachers.
Education
Report Roundup
Shortcomings Noted for State Exit Exams
Though more than half the nation’s public high school students must pass exit exams to graduate, high scores on the tests don’t necessarily translate into adequate preparation, concludes a report.
Student Well-Being
Report Roundup
Adolescent Suicide
Suicide rates for adolescents and teenagers appear to have increased at the same time that the number of prescriptions for antidepressants for patients in those age groups were dropping, according to a study.
Teaching Profession
News in Brief
New Contract Would Give Chicago Teachers Raises
Chicago teachers would get 4 percent annual raises over the next five years, under a tentative contract settlement.
School & District Management
News in Brief
Governors Issue Proposals On Head Start Renewal
With the reauthorization of Head Start expected to move to a conference committee in Congress this fall, the National Governors Association has issued its recommendations for improving the 43-year-old federal preschool program for poor children.
Student Well-Being
Report Roundup
Bipolar Disorder in Children, Youths
The U.S. standard for clinical diagnoses of children and youths with bipolar disorder may need further assessment for reliability and accuracy, concludes a report.
Law & Courts
Opinion
A Reversal of Fortunes
Alfred A. Lindseth writes about why the courts have cooled to school-finance lawsuits.
Federal
Federal File
Some Schools Take No Restructuring Action, GAO Finds
Researchers have found that schools are reluctant to make major changes even after failing to reach student-achievement targets under the No Child Left Behind Act for five consecutive years.
School & District Management
Experts Eye Solutions to ‘4th Grade Slump’
Four research centers are working on classifying learning disabilities and improving understanding of interventions for children with reading problems.
School & District Management
Maine Districts Take Key Step to Consolidation
After months of heated debate, outcry, and backlash, the first step in Maine’s sweeping school consolidation plan is done.
Teaching Profession
Policies Allow Districts to Cut Corners With Substitutes
The majority of states don’t require substitutes to have more than a high school diploma.