December 5, 2012
Education Week, Vol. 32, Issue 13
College & Workforce Readiness
News in Brief
Test Consortium Drafts College-Ready Criteria
Twenty-five states have drafted an initial definition of what college readiness means, and descriptions of the skills and knowledge students must demonstrate toward that goal.
School Climate & Safety
Report Roundup
Teenagers' Health
Both teenage boys and girls are engaging in muscle-enhancing behaviors far more than previously known, according to a study published online last month in the journal Pediatrics.
Special Education
Report Roundup
Students with Autism
A new study confirms that students with autism spectrum disorders tend to major in the STEM fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics if they make it to college.
Assessment
Report Roundup
Analysis Finds Wide Variation in Effectiveness of L.A. Teachers
Los Angeles has an unusually wide spread in the relative effectiveness of its teachers, according to an analysis released last month by the Strategic Data Project, an initiative housed at the Center for Education Policy Research at Harvard University.
Recruitment & Retention
Study: More Churn at the Top in Large Districts
A study finds that 71 percent of superintendents in California's biggest districts leave within three years.
School & District Management
More Principals Learn the Job in Real Schools
Universities and districts are increasingly basing principal training in the schools where leaders will end up working.
Federal
Opinion
Common-Core Momentum Is Still in Jeopardy
Raising student expectations could help smooth the tough road ahead for standards implementation, writes Rick Dalton.
School Climate & Safety
Letter to the Editor
School Climate Series Could Have Gone Further
To the Editor:
Your recent four-part series on school climate and student behaviors offered practical strategies for schools and teachers ("Rethinking Discipline," Oct. 17 through Nov. 7, 2012). However, addressing critical issues in education has traditionally required identifying root causes when determining solutions—something which regrettably was nearly absent in the series. Focusing only on symptoms does not generate lasting resolutions.
Your recent four-part series on school climate and student behaviors offered practical strategies for schools and teachers ("Rethinking Discipline," Oct. 17 through Nov. 7, 2012). However, addressing critical issues in education has traditionally required identifying root causes when determining solutions—something which regrettably was nearly absent in the series. Focusing only on symptoms does not generate lasting resolutions.
Education Funding
Letter to the Editor
'Holistic Approach' Is Only Way to Fix Schools
To the Editor:
Here are Commentary authors Michael Greenstone and Adam Looney's recommendations for improving K-12 education: Look to charter schools for new approaches, start school later, institute after-school programs, and make sure each school has "great" teachers ("The Importance of Education: An Economics View," Nov. 7, 2012). Groundbreaking stuff, and we've seen it all before. What about addressing poverty? And the accompanying health issues, damaging home environments, and unsafe neighborhoods that more often than not come along with it?
Here are Commentary authors Michael Greenstone and Adam Looney's recommendations for improving K-12 education: Look to charter schools for new approaches, start school later, institute after-school programs, and make sure each school has "great" teachers ("The Importance of Education: An Economics View," Nov. 7, 2012). Groundbreaking stuff, and we've seen it all before. What about addressing poverty? And the accompanying health issues, damaging home environments, and unsafe neighborhoods that more often than not come along with it?
Assessment
Letter to the Editor
Student-Learning Data Are Crucial
To the Editor:
Alfie Kohn was right on point about lots of things in his Commentary "Schooling Beyond Measure" (Sept. 19, 2012).
Alfie Kohn was right on point about lots of things in his Commentary "Schooling Beyond Measure" (Sept. 19, 2012).
Equity & Diversity
Letter to the Editor
Teachers Can Help Prevent Discrimination
To the Editor:
The Commentary "Two Lives Diverged" by David Bamat (Oct. 10, 2012) brought back memories of Boonton (N.J.) High School, from which I graduated in 1966. At Boonton, we were separated into general, commercial, college, and scientific tracks. I chose the scientific track because of a lifelong interest in science (not realizing at the time that women would be discouraged from entering those fields).
The Commentary "Two Lives Diverged" by David Bamat (Oct. 10, 2012) brought back memories of Boonton (N.J.) High School, from which I graduated in 1966. At Boonton, we were separated into general, commercial, college, and scientific tracks. I chose the scientific track because of a lifelong interest in science (not realizing at the time that women would be discouraged from entering those fields).
Equity & Diversity
Youth, Latino Vote May Mean Clout on Key Issues
College access and immigration are among the topics that may rise on the to-do list for the president and Congress.
Standards
Opinion
Common Core vs. Common Sense
Schools should be redesigned to align with the needs of students in light of the new standards, Ronald A. Wolk writes.
School & District Management
Elementary Pupils Immersed in Foreign Language
Delaware and Utah are funding foreign-language instruction at the elementary level in hopes of fostering achievement and economic growth.
Standards
Opinion
Science Standards Require a Teacher-Learning Rethink
There are five principles to consider for supporting professional development for science educators, write Jean Moon, Sarah Michaels, and Brian J. Reiser.
Education Funding
Testing Group Scales Back Performance Items
The Smarter Balanced consortium will present only one performance task each in math and literacy, in addition to multiple-choice and other items.
Assessment
Standardized Testing Costs States $1.7 Billion a Year, Study Says
States spend, on average, $34 per student on assessment, according to a national study released by the Brookings Institution’s Brown Center on Education Policy.
Reading & Literacy
Opinion
Four Questions on Common Core and Reading Assessment
There are critical questions to address on technology and other issues in planning for reading assessment tied to the common-core standards, Breyette Lorntz writes.
Teaching Profession
Teachers' Contract Includes Peer Review
The pact approved in Newark, N.J., sets up a dual salary schedule and ensures teacher involvement in evaluations.
Assessment
Philadelphia Principal Describes Fallout of Test-Score Inflation
When she took over as principal in 2010, Saliyah Cruz thought Communications Technology High—now involved in a state-led cheating investigation—was a high-perfoming school.
School Choice & Charters
A+ Schools Infuse Arts and Other 'Essentials'
The networks, soon to be in four states, are guided by such "essentials" as the arts, teacher collaboration, and experiential learning.
Student Well-Being
Opinion
What Kind of Success Does 'Character' Predict?
It's not character or "grit" alone, but interest and motivation, as well, that propel student success, Joan Goodman writes.
Student Well-Being
Better Teacher-Candidate Mentoring Targeted
To improve the student-teaching experience, teacher education programs are taking more care in picking and guiding "cooperating" teachers.
Equity & Diversity
Study: Housing Aid No Path to Better Schooling
The four largest federal programs to house families in poverty do not help parents get their children into higher-quality schools, according to the Poverty and Race Action Council.
School & District Management
Charters' District Enrollment Shares Rising, Report Finds
Las Vegas, Tampa, and Dallas showed the fastest growth among districts where charter enrollment tops 10 percent, a study says.